I left the house —
not in search of her,
not even for noodles —
but just to remember some old memories.
The streets where I used to play with Noah.
The sweet shop I visited every week with my parents.
I kept walking, not knowing what I would remember next.
The first painting competition Noah won.
The lane where I first rode a cycle without training wheels.
The first tree I ever planted in nursery.
It had grown tall and strong now.
Just like me.
But unlike me,
the tree didn't waste its life living in the past.
I kept walking.
And walking.
Until I ended up at the very road where my life went downhill —
where my parents passed away.
I sat there for a while, thinking about how foolish I'd been for blaming myself.
I was just a kid.
Helpless.
And hurting.
I visited their graves for the first time since I was discharged from the hospital.
I guess… I blamed myself too much to even face them.
But this time, something felt different.
It felt peaceful.
Like I was finally allowed to breathe.
Maybe… this is the Sofia effect, I smiled.
For the first time in a long time, I could finally breathe.
Maybe even write.
But let's not rush things.
It's better to take things slow.
I don't know why,
but I took off my sandals.
I wanted to walk barefoot — like her.
To feel more connected to the earth,
to the present,
to myself.
---
I went to Noah's place — not for help, not this time.
Just to meet my friend.
We talked, joked, caught up on life.
Then we went out for lunch.
He asked me to hang around a bit longer,
but I had more places to see.
Evening rolled in — maybe 6:30 or so.
I found myself sitting on the footpath where I used to play.
The town had changed.
The long buildings weren't there before.
The air didn't smell like clay anymore — I missed that smell.
I wandered over to the old park.
Surprisingly, it still stood.
Not as many kids as before,
but it was still alive.
I went to the monkey bars.
I could never finish them as a kid — always fell off halfway.
But this time… I did it.
It took me sixteen years, but I did it.
I just kept walking.
Living through old memories.
Until finally, I returned home.
---
That night, I sat on the back porch, stargazing.
And I saw him.
My seventeen-year-old self.
The boy who had given up.
He sat beside me.
"Only if I wasn't cursed… everything would've been alright,"
he said, bitter.
"Our poetry isn't a curse.
It's a blessing," I replied.
He snapped,
"You don't understand anything!
Only if I didn't have the skill to write…
my parents would still be alive!"
He broke down, sobbing.
I hugged him.
"It's alright.
I've lived through it.
And you will too.
Life is far too beautiful to waste…
and remember — it gets better."
He started to find peace in my words.
But I wasn't done yet.
Another boy appeared.
Younger.
More broken.
My thirteen-year-old self.
The boy who lost everything in a single day.
He sat beside me, weeping.
And I let him.
He'd carried enough pain already.
"Why?" he whispered.
"Why do I always have to suffer?"
I didn't have the answer.
We sat there in silence but I eventually decided to break the silence
So I said, "You can cry as much as you want.
When you're ready, we'll talk."
He wept.
And wept.
Until he was ready.
He looked at me.
"What will I do without the Kid of Wonders?"
he asked, eyes heavy with sorrow.
I smiled, tilted my head.
"It's you who made the Kid of Wonders.
Not the other way around.
He's nothing without you."
"But… what about Mom and Dad?"
I had no answer.
Only silence.
We both stared at the stars.
Then I gently tapped his shoulder.
"You can't blame everything on yourself."
"But if I hadn't won that day… they'd still be alive," he said.
I patted his head.
"Even if you lost, they would've fought.
Even if you didn't compete, they would've argued.
You tried everything — you did your best.
That was their time, and they had to go…
to meet God."
He looked at me.
A tiny spark of hope returned to his eyes.
"Will we always be alone?" he asked.
"For a while… yes," I admitted.
"But someday, we'll meet two people who'll choose us…
over the entire world."
"Like Mom and Dad used to?" he asked softly.
I smiled.
"Even more than that."
"And who'll take care of us while we're alone?"
I smiled again.
"Noah will.
Our best friend.
He'll take care of us, even when we say we don't need him."
My younger self smiled.
He understood.
---
And with that, I was finally free.
Sure, I was alone.
But I wasn't lonely anymore.
The Sofia effect… really does work.
---