Chapter 1 Once Upon A Lockdown
Lockdown didn’t teach us discipline.
It taught us how to pretend.
Online classes were on. Cameras were off. Teachers spoke to black screens while we existed somewhere else entirely. Attendance was marked, notebooks stayed empty, and nobody really cared—as long as the internet didn’t lag.
I was used to it.
Discord ran in the background of my life like white noise. The general chat never slept—arguments, jokes, polls, random flirting, all happening at once.
A lot of people talked to me there.
Some for timepass.
Some out of boredom.
Some because lockdown made everyone feel lonely.
I replied the same way every time—casual, polite, unbothered. Conversations came and went. People came and went.
Temporary. Always.
That’s why when I noticed him, it didn’t feel important.
No real name.
No face reveal.
No effort to stand out.
Just an anime profile picture and a few normal messages in the GC.
We talked for barely five minutes that day. Short replies. Half attention. Both of us busy replying to others.
Nothing that deserved to be remembered.
Or so I thought.
Days passed.
Same server. Same general chat. Same timings.
Somehow, his messages started catching my eye. I’d reply without thinking. He’d react with the same energy. It still felt casual—light, effortless, replaceable.
Just another person.
Just another conversation.
One evening, my phone buzzed.
Neev: Hi.
I read it. Didn’t rush to reply.
Me: Hello.
No excitement. No curiosity. Just routine.
A few seconds later—
Neev: What’s the voting about in the GC?
I smiled—not because it was special, but because it was… normal.
Me: The guy is winning.
That was it. Conversation over.
At least, it should’ve been.
But after that, his name started showing up more often. Late at night. Random hours. Small messages that didn’t ask for attention but somehow held it.
We didn’t flirt.
We didn’t overshare.
We just… talked.
Some nights we’d both be online and say nothing at all. And somehow, that felt comfortable.
One night, he typed—
Neev: So… tell me about you.
I paused. Not because it mattered—just because I wasn’t used to being asked so simply.
Me:
(A lie. I was actually 16. A small one. I told myself it was harmless.)
Me: Navi Mumbai.
Neev: Nice to meet you, Keya.
I’m Neev. From Nagpur.
Nagpur.
I searched it without thinking.
774 kilometres.
I laughed softly.
Too far.
Too unrealistic.
Too temporary.
Just like every other conversation.
