The unknown message

The message haunted her.

Emily stared at her phone screen long after the screen had dimmed, her fingers hovering above the keypad, unsure.

> “Hey… I think I just saw you at the library today. You looked… sad. Are you okay?”

– Unknown Number

Her first instinct was caution. Her second… was curiosity.

Because no one ever asked her that. Are you okay?

Three words that felt like warmth in a frozen room.

She locked her phone and tossed it aside. She wouldn’t reply. Of course not.

…But twenty minutes later, she was still staring at the ceiling, imagining who it could be. Maybe someone from school? But everyone there either ignored her or used her softness as a game.

Still, something about the message didn’t feel mocking. It felt… real.

---

The next morning, Yorkshire was blanketed in fog. A light drizzle tapped against the windows of the school bus as Emily sat alone by the window, tracing invisible shapes on the glass.

A group of girls passed by her, laughing — none looked her way.

She didn't mind. She was used to being wallpaper in a room full of noise.

As the bus rolled through the narrow lanes, she finally pulled out her phone again.

The message was still there.

She bit her lip, heart oddly thudding, and finally replied:

> “I'm fine. Just tired. Who is this?”

She hit send — and immediately regretted it. What if it was a prank?

But five minutes later, the reply came:

> “Someone who noticed. That’s all.”

Her brows furrowed.

> “But why?” she typed.

> “Because sometimes the quietest people carry the loudest pain.”

Emily’s breath caught.

For a moment, the world outside blurred — not because of the fog, but because her eyes filled with tears.

Who was this?

---

Later at school, she looked around more than usual. Faces she’d seen for years now felt unfamiliar, like one of them might secretly hold the truth.

She spotted him in the hallway.

A boy she didn’t know well — tall, with dark hair that fell messily over his forehead, a book tucked under one arm. He was leaning against a locker, earbuds in, lost in thought.

He looked up.

Their eyes met for a second — just one.

But it was enough to make her heartbeat stumble.

Then he looked away… or did he smile, just a little?

---

That evening, her phone pinged again.

> “Didn’t mean to scare you. Just… I’ve seen you. You’re always helping people, even when they don’t deserve it. I guess I just thought you should know — someone sees that.”

She stared at the message. Her throat tightened.

Her fingers typed slowly:

> “Thank you. I needed to hear that more than you know.”

---

She didn’t know his name.

She didn’t know why he saw her when no one else did.

But for the first time in a very long time, Emily didn’t feel invisible.

And sometimes, that’s where everything begins.

Not with fireworks.

Not with grand moments.

Just… with being seen.

---

✨ End of Episode 2

Tomorrow, Episode 3 will take you closer to the mystery boy — maybe his name, maybe his past… and maybe, a moment between them that changes something inside her.

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