The Day That Felt Different
1227 Words
Chapter 1
The Day That Felt Different
Ayesha never expected anything unusual from her routine academy day.
Books in hand, headphones in her bag, she walked through the crowded corridor like always.
But destiny doesn’t ask permission.
Her eyes suddenly fell on a boy standing near the notice board.
Yasir.
Quiet… simple… almost invisible to the world.
Yet something about him caught her attention instantly.
He looked lost in his own thoughts, unaware that someone had paused because of him.
Ayesha didn’t understand why she couldn’t look away.
Maybe some stories start before they’re understood.
Yasir lifted his eyes.
Their gazes met—
soft, uncertain, surprising.
Ayesha blinked and quickly looked down, pretending she wasn’t staring.
But the warmth in Yasir’s shy smile stayed with her.
She told herself it was nothing.
Just an ordinary moment.
But ordinary moments don’t echo in the mind repeatedly.
Over the next days, Ayesha noticed him often.
Same corridor.
Same timing.
Same quiet aura.
He walked with books pressed to his chest, eyes down, mind somewhere else entirely.
And every time he saw her, he gave that gentle, innocent smile.
Not confident.
Not flirtatious.
Just… pure.
Ayesha wasn’t used to such simplicity.
Maybe that’s why she liked it.
It was mid-week when Yasir got stuck during a class exercise.
He stared at his notebook, eyebrows knitted, completely confused.
Ayesha watched him for a moment.
Then she moved closer.
“You need help?”
He looked up, surprised.
“I… yes. I can’t understand this part.”
Ayesha took his notebook and began explaining everything smoothly, step-by-step.
Yasir listened silently, focusing on every word, like her voice was something worth saving.
When she finished, he whispered:
“Thank you… really.”
Ayesha smiled.
That was the first crack in the wall between them.
From that day, Yasir would approach her whenever he got stuck.
Ayesha helped him gladly.
She enjoyed it—more than she wanted to admit.
He asked questions with hesitation.
She answered with patience.
Soon Yasir’s confidence increased…
and Ayesha’s interest deepened.
One evening, after she solved another problem for him, he said softly:
“You explain better than anyone else.”
Ayesha laughed.
“That’s because you actually listen.”
He smiled.
And something small but beautiful settled between them.
That night, Yasir messaged her:
“Thank you for earlier. I solved the whole exercise because of you.”
Ayesha replied instantly:
“Good. See? You only need a little guidance.”
One message led to another.
Then another.
Then a whole night of conversation.
They talked about:
• favorite movies
• fears
• hobbies
• stupid mistakes in school
• childhood memories
Ayesha didn’t expect the conversation to feel so natural.
Yasir didn’t expect someone to care so genuinely.
Their comfort with each other…
felt like destiny’s quiet approval.
With every passing day, Ayesha noticed more about him.
He never showed off.
Never flirted.
Never lied.
Never pretended to be someone else.
His honesty felt rare.
His innocence… disarming.
One night she finally said it:
“Yasir… you’re too pure for this world.”
He paused.
“Is that… a good thing?”
Ayesha smiled sadly:
“It’s something people don’t have anymore.”
Her words settled deep in Yasir’s heart.
But also brought a quiet fear:
“Why does she know the difference?
Who hurt her before?”
He didn’t ask.
Some emotions remain unspoken.
Their chats became routines.
Good mornings.
Good nights.
Random jokes.
Study help.
Voice notes.
And virtual hugs when days got heavy.
Ayesha started waiting for his replies.
Yasir started living for her messages.
Ayesha’s care made him feel valued.
Yasir’s simplicity made her feel safe.
They didn’t confess anything yet—
but everything was visible.
Ayesha noticed she wasn’t the same.
She got annoyed when he replied late.
She felt happy when he messaged first.
She felt safe talking to him.
Her heart knew.
Her mind slowly accepted it.
Meanwhile Yasir…
fell harder every day.
He loved how she teased him.
He loved how she understood him.
He loved how she believed in him.
He didn’t say it, but his silence was loud.
The day they met in her university felt unreal.
Ayesha was nervous yet excited.
Yasir looked shy but overjoyed.
They sat together, sipping tea under a tree.
Talking.
Laughing.
Not wanting the moment to end.
Ayesha told him:
“You look different in real life.”
Yasir panicked.
“Bad different?”
She shook her head, blushing slightly.
“No. Better.”
That single word made his entire existence brighten.
After the meeting, their connection deepened.
They talked more.
Shared more.
Missed each other more.
Ayesha would say:
“Good morning, future husband.”
Yasir’s heart raced.
He replied:
“Good morning, my future.”
She told him:
“Our relationship will be the best.”
“I’ll be a perfect wife for you.”
Yasir would close his eyes and whisper:
“Please Allah… make this real.”
One evening, he couldn’t hold it anymore.
“Ayesha… can I ask something?”
“Yes?”
He inhaled deeply.
“Ayesha… will you be my wife?”
Ayesha froze.
Her eyes filled.
And she typed:
“YES. Yasir… I love you.”
His heart finally found its home.
Her soul finally found someone safe.
Everything felt perfect.
Too perfect.
But then—
One morning, Ayesha didn’t message.
Not good morning.
Not a single emoji.
Yasir kept checking his phone.
Nothing.
Hours passed.
His chest tightened with fear.
In the evening, at last…
a message appeared.
He opened it instantly.
And his world collapsed.
Ayesha wrote:
“Yasir… we can’t continue.”
“Umair came back.”
“I loved him once… I still do.”
Yasir stopped breathing.
The phone slipped from his hand.
Tears blurred his vision.
He typed with shaking fingers:
“Ayesha… what are you saying?”
Her reply was a knife:
“I’m sorry.”
Just one sorry.
But enough to destroy everything.
He sat on his bed, crying silently—
the kind of pain that rips from the inside.
He whispered:
“Did she ever love me?”
His chest hurt.
His eyes burned.
His world shattered.
But he still typed:
“If Umair makes you happy… I won’t stop you.”
Ayesha read it with shaking hands.
Tears rolled down her cheeks.
But she didn’t take her words back.
Some choices are irreversible.
Ayesha wasn’t cruel.
Just broken.
Umair was her past—
A love she once lost.
A wound she once bled for.
He returned unexpectedly, saying:
“I made a mistake. I want you back.”
Her heart got confused.
Her guilt grew heavy.
Her fear suffocated her.
And Yasir became the collateral damage.
Umair wasn’t a stranger.
He was her first love.
Her first heartbreak.
Her first silent prayer.
When he left, she shattered.
Yasir healed her without knowing.
But when Umair returned—
her heart trembled again.
Confusion is a dangerous thing.
Ayesha didn’t justify herself.
Didn’t defend herself.
Didn’t explain her pain.
She simply chose.
Umair.
And Yasir…
fell apart quietly.
That night, both cried in different rooms.
But the distance between their hearts was infinite.
Episode 1 ends with:
Ayesha returning to her past.
Yasir drowning in heartbreak.
Umair stepping back into the story.
But destiny…
doesn’t stop here.
The real story starts in Episode 2.
- Writer
