Know your worth
Sara loves spending time alone.
She believes that solitude brings peace and well-being.
This often makes the people around her wonder how she became so mature at such a young age.
She sat in the balcony, with her wheelchair facing the vast paddy fields bathed in golden-brown rays from the setting sun, with a book resting in her lap.
In the far distance, she noticed dark clouds approaching. She wondered why they caused lightning.
The uniform swaying of the paddy fields in the cold evening breeze always calmed her mind.
She slowly got immersed in her book, unaware of how much time had passed.
By the time she looked up, it had grown dark, and the first raindrops from the clouds began to fall on her.
As she lifted her head to the sky, a sudden bolt of lightning struck a tree nearby.
A chill ran down her spine; her body temperature dropped instantly.
The sound that followed was so deafening that a little more of it might have shattered her eardrums.
The rain started to fall heavily.
She gently rolled her wheelchair back, just enough to be inside and avoid getting wet.
Suddenly, everything became calm.
Silence
Not real silence — but the kind that feels heavy, like the air is listening.
The thunder had faded.
The sound of rain on the roof echoed through the room.
The rhythm of the rain matched her heartbeat—uneven, fast, and anxious.
Something felt off.
A sharp sound echoed—like wood being struck by an iron rod.
Her breath caught.
The front door?
She didn’t know what to do.
She was about to call the maid when a sudden gunshot pierced the silence.
A woman screamed.
The gunshots now blended with the sound of the rain on the roof.
She could no longer tell them apart.
The cries of people she loved dragged her into shock.
Suddenly, she snapped back to her senses.
She wheeled herself to the darkest corner of the room, diagonally opposite the door.
There was no electricity—just darkness and dread.
She heard footsteps approaching.
Slow.
Heavy.
Deliberate.
Each step was heavier than the last.
She could feel the bloodlust radiating from the intruder—just from his presence.
He was searching for something.
Something valuable.
Or perhaps... it was her.
But why?
She had nothing to offer.
Or maybe… it was the past he came for.
The footsteps stopped.
The doorknob began to turn.
The door opened slowly.
A tall, dark figure stood there with a gun pointed at her.
But then… he slowly lowered it.
And all she could hear were three words:
"Know your worth."
That’s all.
He walked away without saying anything else.
Her mouth remained frozen in shock.
The room still echoed with the remnants of his presence.
Who would ever know?
She was just a young, broken girl who didn’t want to interact with anyone…
Not because of her so-called maturity—
But because she couldn’t bear the sympathy that came with her condition.
