The Price of a Smile

Dear Delyara, I bought a round of drinks tonight because it was my friend's birthday. It cost sixty pounds. That sixty pounds was my electricity bill. I smiled and laughed and made a joke about being "rich for a night," but inside, I was calculating how many days I can go without eating lunch to make up the difference. I’m so exhausted by the performance of being "fine." I just want to tell someone that I’m struggling without feeling like a failure.