Chapter One The Quiet Boy
Aakash was a quiet child. He was never the kind of boy who needed a crowd around him. While other children ran through the streets, played games, and argued over the smallest things, Aakash was often happy sitting by himself and watching them from a distance. He did not dislike people; he simply found it easier to listen than to speak.
His mother noticed it early. She would often tell him that he should talk more and make more friends, but Aakash never really knew what to say. Whenever someone spoke to him, he listened carefully. Whenever someone needed help, he tried to help. But when there was nothing to say, he was perfectly comfortable with silence.
“I am listening,” he would say whenever his mother asked why he was so quiet.
That was Aakash. He did not need to be the center of attention, and he never tried to become it. As the years passed, his parents slowly understood that his silence was not something they needed to fix. It was simply part of him.
There was, however, one thing Aakash never felt completely alone with: his faith.
From a young age, Aakash believed that God was watching him. The thought never frightened him. It made him feel safe. Whenever something good happened, he would quietly thank God. Whenever something went wrong, he would sit alone and pray. He did not know much about religion, nor did he spend his childhood trying to understand the mysteries of God. To him, it was simple. God was somewhere above, God could see everything, and if Aakash tried his best to be a good person, perhaps one day God would be proud of him.
That small belief stayed with him as he grew older.
At school, Aakash was never the most popular student. He had a few people he spoke to, but he never tried to force himself into groups. Sometimes the other boys teased him for being so quiet.
“You barely talk.”
Aakash would usually smile and say nothing.
Sometimes they would make fun of him when he hesitated to speak in front of everyone. He hated those moments. Whenever someone suddenly raised their voice at him, his heart would beat faster and his mind would go blank. He rarely fought back. Instead, he would become even quieter and wait for the moment to pass.
He never really understood why he reacted that way. Perhaps it was simply part of who he was. Over time, he learned to stay away from arguments, avoid people who made him uncomfortable, and keep most of his thoughts to himself. Slowly, silence became more than a habit. It became the place where Aakash felt safest.
But being quiet never stopped him from noticing when someone else was hurting.
One evening, while returning home, Aakash noticed an old man sitting alone outside a small shop. The man looked tired and kept checking an empty wallet in his hands. Aakash slowed down and looked at him for a moment before finally stopping.
“Do you need some help?”
The old man looked up and shook his head.
“No, son. I'm fine.”
Aakash knew he was not.
He quietly bought some food from the shop and placed it beside the man. The old man tried to refuse, but Aakash gently shook his head.
“Please.”
Before the man could say anything else, Aakash turned around and walked away.
That night, lying in his bed, Aakash felt a quiet happiness inside him. Nobody had praised him. Nobody had seen what he had done. Nobody even knew why he had stopped.
He looked toward the ceiling and whispered, “I hope You saw that.”
Then he closed his eyes.
Aakash was still young, and he had no idea how much of his life would be spent trying to understand the same things he believed were already simple.
Whether God was really watching.
Whether being good was enough.
And whether, somewhere beyond this life, someone was waiting for him.
For now, Aakash believed the answer was yes.
And that belief was enough for him to take one more step.
