Episode 08
The morning light was pale and cold when Alok stepped through the rusty gates of Riverside High. His uniform was neat, but his shoes were worn scuffed from months of walking the long road to school.
He kept his head down, weaving through the chattering crowd of students. Groups of friends laughed together, sharing snacks or teasing one another about homework. Alok wasn't part of any of it.
As always, he took his seat in the back corner of the classroom, by the window. From here, he could watch the sky instead of the teacher. The clouds always seemed freer than the people around him.
The first period started Mathematics. The teacher, Mr. Dilan, droned on about quadratic equations. Alok copied notes mechanically, not because he cared, but because writing helped him ignore the whispers two rows ahead.
"He's so weird…"
"Never talks to anyone."
"Probably thinks he's better than us."
They weren't even trying to hide it anymore.
At lunch, he found his usual spot under the banyan tree behind the science block. Few students came here; it was too far from the canteen and too quiet for their taste. He opened his lunch box plain rice and a bit of fried dhal and ate in silence.
That's when he noticed a shadow falling over him.
"Why are you always here alone?" a girl's voice asked.
He looked up. It was Meera Senanayake, a classmate he had never spoken to before. Her uniform was perfectly ironed, her hair tied neatly in a ribbon, but her eyes carried a spark of curiosity that felt… different.
Alok hesitated, unsure how to answer. "I… like it quiet."
Meera tilted her head, studying him for a moment. "Quiet is fine… but too much quiet can turn into loneliness."
Before he could reply, the bell rang. She gave him a small smile and walked away, leaving him with a strange feeling in his chest like the world had shifted slightly.
That night, back in his tiny bedroom, Alok sat at his desk, the old pendant his mother had given him lying in his palm. Its silver surface glimmered faintly in the dim light. He didn't know why, but after talking to Meera, it felt… warmer.
Somewhere deep inside, the pendant's faint glow pulsed like a heartbeat.