Fragments of Light and Shadow

Introduction:-

In every town, there's always someone who fades into the background, who walks through life unnoticed. Alex was that person. He didn't stand out in any way. He didn't try to. To the world, he was invisible—his presence barely acknowledged, his voice unheard. But that didn't mean he wasn't there. Sometimes, the unseen make the biggest impact, even if no one ever knows.

The day began like any other. The sun rose in the sky, casting its golden rays over the sleepy town of Sunnybrook. People went about their lives, hurrying to work, rushing to school, carrying out their daily routines. Among them, Alex moved like a shadow, unnoticed, unremarkable. He wasn't one of the popular kids, nor was he an outcast. He simply didn't exist in the minds of others. And for him, that was just how it was.

He lived in a small, modest house on the edge of town with his mother, Linda, and his father, Dave. The home was quiet, not much different from the rest of the neighborhood. But inside, it felt emptier than it should have been. Linda was always busy, her mind consumed with work and responsibilities, while Dave spent his days glued to his phone, always checking his emails, never really present. Alex didn't mind the solitude. It had always been this way. He was used to it.

That morning, as usual, Linda barely noticed him as he sat at the kitchen table, quietly eating his breakfast. "Don't forget your lunch," she said absently as she rushed past him, her eyes fixed on her phone.

"I won't, Mom," Alex replied, his voice soft, barely audible. But she didn't hear him. She was already out the door, heading to work, her mind a million miles away from her son.

It wasn't that Linda didn't love Alex. She did. She just didn't see him. There was no malice, just the quiet neglect of a busy life, where the most important person in her world—her son—had somehow slipped into the background, a silent figure in the distance.

Alex finished his breakfast, gathered his things, and left the house, closing the door behind him without a sound. Outside, the streets of Sunnybrook were filled with people going about their day. Cars honked, children laughed, and dogs barked, but Alex walked alone, his footsteps blending with the noise around him. He was a part of the scenery, like a tree or a building—there, but never noticed.

At school, it was the same story. As he walked through the gates of Sunnybrook High, no one glanced his way. The students were too busy chatting, laughing, and joking to care about the boy who walked among them like a ghost. The hallways buzzed with conversation, but it was as though Alex was invisible, his presence slipping through the cracks, unnoticed.

His first class was English, and as he sat down in the back of the room, he felt the familiar weight of being unseen. The teacher, Mr. Thompson, was busy reading a book at his desk, and the students carried on with their own conversations. When the roll call began, Alex's name was called, but it passed by so quickly that even Mr. Thompson didn't seem to register it.

"Here," Alex said, his voice barely rising above the noise. But Mr. Thompson didn't even look up. It wasn't a mistake—Alex had been in that seat for months, but no one ever paid attention to him. It was as though he was a part of the furniture, a fixture in the classroom that no one noticed.

As the class continued, Alex's mind wandered. He wasn't interested in the lesson. What could they possibly teach him that he didn't already know? He was more interested in the world around him—how people moved, how they interacted, how they could be so full of life and energy, while he remained silent, unseen.

After school, Alex walked to the cafeteria alone, as he always did. The buzzing noise of the students eating and laughing filled the space, but there was no seat for him. He picked up his lunch tray and sat at the back, in a corner where no one would bother him. No one ever did. He ate quietly, his eyes drifting to the window, watching the clouds roll by, wishing he could be somewhere else, somewhere where he wasn't invisible.

But the truth was, Alex didn't know how to be seen. He had been this way for as long as he could remember. His entire life had been a blur of fading into the background, of never being noticed, of living in the shadows. It was easier that way. It kept him safe.

As the bell rang, signaling the end of lunch, Alex gathered his tray and headed to his next class. The hallway was crowded with students, but no one made room for him. No one acknowledged his presence. He was just there, a figure in the sea of faces, a ghost among the living.

The rest of the day passed in a similar fashion. Class. Lunch. Class again. And then, at the end of the day, Alex went home, where the house was just as quiet as it had been that morning. His parents were busy, too absorbed in their own lives to notice him.

But as he sat alone in his room, something stirred inside him. A quiet yearning, a desire for something more. He wasn't sure what it was yet, but deep down, Alex felt a flicker of hope—a hope that maybe, just maybe, he didn't have to remain invisible forever.

The world around him might not see him, but Alex knew there had to be more to life than simply fading into the background. And one day, he would find a way to be seen.