A Moment Away

I heard the echoes of my brother bawling his eyes out in his room. I raced up the stairs

and dashed in. All could see was another high school teenager, unaware of what was happening.

Dev’s emotions were everywhere, bouncing from wall to wall. At first, I hesitated to reach him,

but I progressed anyways. I was aware that he’s encountering an obstacle that eats away his

happiness and contentment. His friends, the devoted companions he thought of, have been

bullying him into a sheer sense of stress and disappointment. Dev sat down staring at the floor

with embarrassment. He was devastated, despondent, and confused. For a moment, I could see

my past self in him. A torrent of thoughts, whirling in my mind, pulled me back to the most

melancholic phase of my life.

It was the first couple days of school after vacation. I entered the familiar structure with

an unfamiliar feeling, like every other anticipated teenager. My palms were sweating and my

head glowed with beaming droplets. “Great… there goes my attire”, I remembered as I made my

entrance. The building was immense just as how I recalled from freshman year. I made my way

through the hallways and into class where I eventually started my sophomore year. I met a group

of people whom I once thought were so bright with joy and intellect. Their presence marked an

element of satisfaction and their personalities augmented the room with exuberance. It was a

group of four: one had just moved in, another I’ve known of for a while, third one from English

class, and finally another from my lunch period. We were strangers at first, but as we sat together

during lunch, I gazed upon my peers. Kathryn was eating, Victoria was scrolling down her

phone, Lucia had been glancing at her schedule, and Amaya was talking to me. I was a bright red

tomato, so embarrassed, miserably attempting to stir up a conversation. Being in the group was

uncomfortable at first, but it later transitioned into a close knit bond.

 Day by day, my anxiety began to ooze down. I was finally making conversations with

ease and my palms stopped sweating. We started to meet up outside of school and later skipped

classes. I’d even gotten personal by revealing some secrets to them. I was only a sophomore back

then making memories with the people whom I loved. However, even with all these quality

occurrences, there was one thing that never crossed me. I never realized that there were masks

hovering over my so called “friends”. These masks were watching over me; pretending their

emotions and personalities that I formerly considered were true. In the end they revealed

themselves to be cold hearted pejorative creatures fooling doormats like me into a field of

embarrassment and discomfiture. I was heartbroken and confused just like my brother; however I

had to learn to overcome my hardships through any available strength I had left. It was definitely

an incomprehensible event, but I destined to revive myself.

Thereby, every day as I entered school, a strange feeling began to engulf me. It felt like a

snake’s eye staring over me- waiting for me to screw up. My forehead became damp and my

heart raced as I feared my former companions’ remarks and animadversions. Life was a colorful

picture before; unfortunately now I have become a favorite model of life’s dreary, dark portraits.

At first I was weak. Books and pencils fell due to my clumsiness, classes and homework became

a challenge, and most of all, my mind constantly scurried back to my friends. I questioned- “why

me?” “What did I do to cause so much hatred?” I felt pathetic as if the world hated me. More

importantly I felt lost.

Gradually, as days passed, a sagacious voice within me found its voice. I realized that we

are human and every obstacle we face is a lesson for ourselves and others. Life incorporates its

twisted turns, but by overcoming them with patience and hope, we triumph. No matter what

event I face tomorrow, or next week, or maybe even in college, the obstacles from the past have
provided me a breakthrough to my strengths and heroism. It is time to finally toss my sorrowful

mask and truly unveil myself as an ambitious individual prepared to take on life’s next roller

coaster.

I sat on the cot in my brother’s room, and pulled myself from my thoughts, as a warm

breeze blew through the lacy white shades. Now, it is my turn to act, to be a lighthouse for my

brother, I said to myself. I moved down, sat next to Dev, and held his hand. I began to speak, as I

gave a relaxing gesture. Every word of mine was bringing him a step closer to a state of

composure. He has approached a phase of life and in one way or another my actions and

thoughts will always be here to guide him. As I disclosed my inner thoughts to him, a

memorabilia of my life and my character, outgrowing from a weaker personality to a much

powerful individual, flashed before me. Sitting here next to a companion unbeknownst to his

future, a moment away to a whole new adventure, I felt older and wiser.