Chapter Eleven — The Life I Was Trying To Keep
948 Words
For the first time in days, I woke up without the sound of my own thoughts keeping me awake.
No mysterious notes.
No old photographs.
No questions about my mother.
No Daniel Hayes.
Just the sound of my alarm ringing loudly enough to make me regret owning a phone.
I groaned and reached out blindly, trying to find it on my bedside table.
“Five more minutes,” I whispered to absolutely no one.
The alarm continued.
I opened one eye.
“Okay, fine. I’m awake.”
I grabbed my phone and turned it off before sitting up.
My room looked exactly the same as it always did.
My books were stacked beside my bed.
My clothes were on the chair because apparently folding them was a task my future self always had to deal with.
A normal morning.
A normal life.
And I desperately wanted to keep it that way.
I stared at the photograph sitting inside my drawer.
I had hidden it there.
Not because I wanted to forget.
Because I needed a break.
I was still Amara.
Not just a girl chasing a mystery.
Not just someone’s daughter.
I was twenty-two.
I had classes.
Friends.
Dreams.
A life.
And I wasn’t ready to let secrets take all of that away from me.
---
By the time I reached campus, I was already late.
Very late.
I walked across the compound as quickly as possible, holding my books against my chest while trying not to run.
“Amara!”
I heard the voice before I saw her.
I stopped.
And immediately knew I was in trouble.
Lena stood near the walkway with her arms crossed, staring at me.
Beside her was Sarah, who looked far too amused.
I slowed down.
“Why are you looking at me like I committed a crime?”
Lena raised an eyebrow.
“Because you did.”
I blinked.
“What crime?”
“Disappearing.”
I sighed.
“I didn’t disappear.”
Sarah tilted her head.
“You ignored our messages for two days.”
“I was busy.”
Lena gave me a look.
“With what?”
I opened my mouth.
Then closed it.
Because technically, I couldn’t exactly say:
“Oh, you know, I’ve been dealing with mysterious people, my missing mother’s diary, and a powerful CEO who knows things about my past.”
So instead I said:
“Life.”
Sarah laughed.
“Wow. Very suspicious answer.”
I rolled my eyes.
“You two are dramatic.”
“Correct,” Lena said proudly. “But we’re your dramatic people.”
And annoyingly…
She was right.
A small smile appeared on my face.
Because this was what I missed.
Normal conversations.
Normal teasing.
The kind of moments where my biggest problem was whether I was going to pass my next test.
Not whether someone was hiding the truth about my family.
---
We walked toward our lecture hall together.
Sarah was talking about a party happening that weekend.
Lena was complaining about a lecturer who gave too much work.
And I listened.
Really listened.
For the first time in days, I let myself be distracted.
“You’re smiling.”
I looked at Sarah.
“What?”
She pointed at me.
“You were actually listening.”
I frowned.
“I always listen.”
Lena laughed.
“No, you pretend to listen. There’s a difference.”
I shook my head.
“You people are unbelievable.”
“Speaking of unbelievable…”
Sarah suddenly looked past me.
Her smile changed.
And immediately, I knew.
I turned around.
Jason.
He was standing a few steps away, holding a notebook in one hand.
He looked like he had just finished a class.
Jason wasn’t the kind of person who tried too hard to get attention.
That was probably what made people notice him.
He was easygoing.
Kind.
The type of person who remembered small things.
The type of person who made normal life feel easy.
When his eyes met mine, he smiled.
And unfortunately for me…
My heart reacted before my brain did.
Lena noticed.
Of course she noticed.
She leaned closer.
“Try not to stare.”
I immediately looked away.
“I wasn’t.”
Sarah laughed.
“You absolutely were.”
“I was looking around.”
“Amara.”
“What?”
“You were looking directly at him.”
I ignored them.
Both of them laughed.
Jason walked over.
“Hey.”
“Hey,” I replied.
Simple.
Normal.
Except somehow my voice sounded different.
Jason looked at my books.
“Need help?”
I shook my head.
“I’m okay.”
“You always say that.”
I looked at him.
“What?”
He smiled slightly.
“You always say you’re okay.”
For some reason, that stayed with me.
Because it reminded me of something.
Daniel had said something similar.
But with Jason, it felt different.
Safe.
Warm.
Easy.
“I’m fine,” I said.
He smiled.
“See? You did it again.”
I laughed softly.
And for a moment…
I forgot everything.
The diary.
The questions.
The fear.
Everything.
Maybe I could have a normal life.
Maybe I could just be Amara.
Not someone chasing the past.
Not someone surrounded by secrets.
Just a girl with friends, classes, and a small crush.
But as I walked into the lecture hall, my phone buzzed.
I looked down.
Unknown number.
One message.
My smile disappeared.
You can pretend to live normally, Amara. But the past always finds its way back.
My fingers tightened around my phone.
And suddenly, the normal life I was trying so hard to protect…
didn’t feel so safe anymore.
- Writer
