Aira was feeling an emptiness inside her heart.
A strange silence.
Like something important was missing from her life.
Without Aarohi—
everything felt incomplete.
School felt incomplete.
Tuition felt incomplete.
Even ordinary days—
felt heavier now.
At school—
Aira was always lost in thoughts.
Sometimes teachers called her name twice before she noticed.
Sometimes her friends talked to her—
and she barely listened.
She was there physically—
but mentally—
somewhere else.
Mina noticed it quickly.
One day—
while sitting together—
Mina asked softly,
Mina,
"What happened to you? Are you okay?"
Aira smiled faintly.
Trying to act normal again.
Aira,
"Just missing her. But I'll be okay. Don't worry."
But even while saying those words—
Aira herself wasn't sure if they were true.
Because something inside her heart still hurt quietly.
She missed Aarohi too much.
More than she expected.
Sometimes—
without realizing—
she waited for a notification.
Waited for her phone to light up.
Waited for a message saying—
"Airu."
But no message came.
Only silence.
And slowly—
Aira started understanding how painful
silence can become—
when you get used to someone talking to you
every day.
Still—
she tried to return to her old routine.
Studies.
School.
Books.
Movies.
Normal life.
Just like before meeting Aarohi.
But now—
normal didn't feel normal anymore.
Because Aarohi had unknowingly become a part of her everyday life.
And now—
her absence stayed everywhere.
Aira thought about her constantly.
Sometimes she wondered,
"Does Aarohi miss me too?"
"Does she still think about me?"
"Or was I only a small part of her life?"
Those thoughts never left her mind.
No matter how much she tried to distract herself.
One evening—
Aira went to the terrace alone.
Just to find some peace.
The evening sky looked quiet.
Soft wind touching her hair gently.
Faraway mountains standing silently.
Aira looked at the sky for a long time.
And again—
her thoughts returned to Aarohi.
Everything somehow returned to her.
But strangely—
the terrace felt peaceful.
Like the sky was silently listening to her
thoughts—
without judging them.
Aira closed her eyes slowly.
Trying to breathe calmly.
Trying to accept the silence.
Trying to understand how to live without
someone—
who had become a habit.
She still didn't know how she would become
okay again.
But even then—
she kept trying.
Quietly.
Every single day.
Days started passing slowly.
Very slowly.
Aira was trying to become normal again.
Trying to laugh with friends.
Trying to focus on studies.
Trying to act like nothing affected her.
But sometimes—
in the middle of random moments—
her chest suddenly felt heavy again.
Like her heart remembered something before her mind did.
Every morning—
after waking up—
Aira still checked her phone first.
Not intentionally.
It had become a habit.
For a few seconds—
she expected a message from Aarohi.
Maybe a simple,
"Good morning, Airu."
But the screen always stayed silent.
And every time—
that silence hurt a little more.
At school—
everyone looked normal.
Students laughing.
Teachers teaching.
Friends talking loudly.
Everything was moving forward normally.
Only Aira felt stuck somewhere in the past.
Sometimes—
while sitting in class—
she looked outside the window quietly.
Thinking about nothing.
Or maybe—
thinking only about Aarohi.
Aira finally understood something.
Missing someone isn't always loud.
Sometimes—
it quietly lives inside everyday routines.
Inside habits.
Inside silence.
Inside moments where you suddenly
remember—
that someone who used to be there—
isn't there anymore.
And maybe—
that was the hardest kind of missing.