College life continued.
Days passed slowly.
Classes, notes, routine.
Everything moved in the same pattern.
From the outside—
everything looked normal.
Aarvika followed her schedule.
She attended lectures.
Completed her work on time.
Stayed quiet.
Stayed in her own space.
No one really noticed anything different.
But inside—
things were not always steady.
She had learned a long time ago how to stay silent.
How to adjust.
How to keep things within herself.
It had become a habit.
Not speaking.
Not reacting.
Just moving forward.
But some things—
don't fade with time.
They don't disappear.
They stay.
Sometimes hidden.
Sometimes silent.
But always present.
During that phase of college—
training had started.
It was different from regular classes.
A new environment.
New people.
More interaction.
More movement.
She tried to adjust to it.
Tried to focus on what she was supposed to learn.
At first—
everything felt fine.
People were busy.
Everyone seemed focused.
There was nothing unusual.
But one day—
something felt off.
It wasn't something visible.
No loud moment.
No clear incident.
Just—
a sudden discomfort.
Something that didn't feel right.
For a moment—
she couldn't understand it.
Her mind tried to process it.
But before she could think—
her body reacted.
She stepped back.
Her heart started beating faster.
She suddenly shouted.
And then she quickly moved away from there.
A strange uneasiness settled inside her.
It was not something new.
That feeling—
felt familiar.
Even if she couldn't explain it.
She looked around.
Everything was normal.
People were talking.
Working.
Moving like nothing had happened.
No one noticed anything.
No one reacted.
And that made it harder.
Because it felt like—
it was only happening to her.
For a moment—
she just stood there.
Trying to understand.
Trying to ignore it.
But she couldn't.
That small moment—
stayed.
Even after it passed.
Even after the day ended.
It followed her.
Not loudly.
But quietly.
Inside her thoughts.
And slowly—
it started affecting her.
She became more aware.
More careful.
Not just in that place—
but everywhere.
Especially around boys.
She avoided standing too close.
Avoided unnecessary conversations.
Avoided eye contact sometimes.
Not because she wanted to—
But because something inside her had changed.
That one moment—
was enough.
To create a distance.
A distance she didn't even realize she was building.
She tried to act normal.
Tried to continue like nothing had happened.
But it wasn't that simple.
Because even small situations—
started feeling different.
Her mind would overthink.
Her body would react.
And she couldn't control it.
She didn't talk about it.
Not to anyone.
Because she didn't have clear words.
And somewhere—
she felt no one would fully understand.
So she chose silence.
Again.
But this time—
that silence felt heavier.
Because now—
it wasn't just about hiding something.
It was about carrying something.
Alone.
Days passed.
But that feeling didn't go away.
It became a part of her awareness.
A part of how she reacted.
A part of how she saw people.
And slowly—
without realizing—
It changed something inside her.
Something that stayed.
Quiet.
But real.