Silent Battles
805 Words
The silence was heavier than any insult.
Angel hadn’t heard Racheal’s voice in days—not the playful teasing, not the sarcastic remarks, not even the annoyed sighs that used to fill their small dorm room. And it was killing her.
Every time Angel opened her mouth to speak, Racheal would walk away. In class, Racheal shifted her chair closer to Chika. At meals, she ate with Mariam and avoided the table Angel sat at. Even in their room, Racheal spent hours with headphones on, shutting the world out—shutting her out.
It was like mourning someone who was still alive.
Angel sat at her desk one night, textbooks open but unread. Her eyes kept drifting toward Racheal’s bed. Racheal lay with her back turned, the faint glow of her phone screen illuminating her face. She was smiling—maybe at a meme, maybe at a chat—but not at Angel. Not anymore.
Angel swallowed the lump in her throat. “Rach…”
Silence.
She tried again, her voice barely above a whisper. “Please. Can we just talk?”
Racheal’s fingers stilled on the phone for a moment, then resumed typing.
Angel’s chest tightened. She heard me. She just doesn’t care.
The next day, Angel couldn’t concentrate in class. Every word the lecturer spoke blurred into meaningless sound. She scribbled in her notebook, not notes, but questions: How do I fix this? How do I make her see I never meant to hurt her?
During lunch, Chika pulled Angel aside.
“You need to give her space,” Chika said gently.
Angel’s eyes brimmed with tears. “Space? She’s not just creating space, Chika—she’s building walls. What if she never lets me back in?”
Chika sighed. “Then you have to prove you’re worth letting in again.”
Angel knew she was right. But how?
That evening, Daniel called.
“I saw Racheal yesterday,” he said quietly.
Angel’s stomach dropped. “What did she say?”
“Not much. She hates me, that’s for sure. But Angel…” His voice softened. “She’s hurting more than she wants to admit. I think she misses you, even if she’ll never say it.”
Angel pressed the phone harder against her ear, tears stinging. “I miss her too. More than anything.”
Daniel hesitated. “Then fight for her. Don’t let my mistake cost you your sister.”
Angel wanted to believe it wasn’t too late. But Racheal’s coldness told another story.
One night, unable to take the silence anymore, Angel slipped out of the room and walked across campus to the chapel. The wooden pews creaked under her weight as she sat, hugging her knees.
Her whisper echoed in the empty space: “God, please. Don’t let me lose her.”
The quiet pressed back, offering no answers.
Angel stayed until the candles burned low, her tears soaking her sleeves.
The breaking point came two days later.
Angel spotted Racheal outside the library, laughing with Mariam and Chika. The sight pierced her chest like a blade—not because Racheal was smiling, but because she wasn’t smiling with her.
Summoning every ounce of courage, Angel walked up. “Rach, can we talk? Please.”
Racheal’s laughter died instantly. She exchanged a glance with Mariam, then stood. “There’s nothing to talk about.”
Angel’s voice cracked. “Yes, there is. You won’t even give me a chance—”
“Because you don’t deserve one!” Racheal snapped, her voice rising. Heads turned. “You think you can betray me and then cry your way back into my life? It doesn’t work like that, Angel!”
Angel froze, humiliation burning her cheeks. The other students’ whispers sliced through her.
“I’m sorry,” Angel whispered, but Racheal was already walking away.
That night, Mariam found Angel crying into her pillow.
“Do you want to know the truth?” Mariam asked softly.
Angel sniffled. “What truth?”
“She still loves you. She’s angry, but underneath all that, she’s grieving the bond you had. That’s why it hurts so much.”
Angel looked up, desperate. “Then how do I fix it?”
Mariam’s gaze was steady. “Not with words. With actions. Show her you choose her—even if it costs you something.”
Angel nodded slowly. She didn’t know what that sacrifice would be, but she knew one thing: she couldn’t let silence be the end of their story.
The chapter closes with Angel standing alone at the campus fountain, clutching the bracelet Racheal gave her years ago.
She whispered into the night air:
“I’ll do whatever it takes to earn you back, Rach. Even if it breaks me.”
The water shimmered under the moonlight, carrying her vow into the darkness.
- Writer
