I Found Myself Listening for a Message That Never Came

Dear Delyara, I wasn’t expecting anything specific. That’s what made it sadder. Still, every time the phone lit up, my body reacted first. Maybe someone had thought of me. Maybe someone had noticed I was quiet. Maybe someone would say something kind without needing a reason to say it. Mostly it was spam, school, notifications, nothing. What hurt was not the silence itself. It was what the silence revealed. That I wanted to feel chosen, remembered, emotionally reached — and didn’t want to have to ask for it directly. That kind of wanting is embarrassing at my age. It is also deeply human.