The clock blinked red against the darkness: 2:47 AM. Aris lay tangled in her sheets, her skin clammy from the heat of another sleepless night. Tossing and turning had become her ritual. Some nights, the weight of the silence pressed down on her chest until she couldn't breathe. Other nights, her thoughts ran rampant, drowning her in a sea of what-ifs and should-haves. Tonight, it was both.
Her relationship with Daren was like the bedsheets binding her now—twisted, suffocating, and inescapable. They had been together since 2018, her first love. Back then, it felt like a fairytale, a sweet dream she never wanted to wake from. He'd been so kind at first, so attentive. He called her beautiful like it was her name, brought her little gifts even when he had nothing to spare, and looked at her like she was the only star in his sky.
But something had changed, or maybe it was her who had changed. Over time, his sweetness curdled. It started with little things—a comment about her outfit, a raised eyebrow when she talked too long with a male coworker. Then came the demands: Don't wear that. Don't talk to her. Stay home tonight. Slowly but surely, he pulled her away from her friends, her family, her world.
Now, Aris couldn't remember the last time she laughed with someone other than him—or even with him. She relied on Daren, not out of love anymore, but out of fear. The fear of being alone was a gnawing beast inside her. If she left him, what would she have? Who would want her? She didn't feel lovable, worthy, or even visible most days.
Her breath hitched as she rolled onto her side, clutching her pillow like a lifeline.
---
The morning light spilled reluctantly through her window, and she dragged herself out of bed. Her limbs felt like lead, her mind clouded with the heaviness of another restless night. She dressed robotically, her mind already anticipating the grind of the day.
On her way to work, she passed a small cage sitting abandoned on the roadside. Inside, a bird fluttered helplessly, its wings beating uselessly against the bars. Aris stopped, staring at it. Its frantic movements mirrored the turmoil inside her, its small body trembling with the desperation to be free.
She felt a lump rise in her throat. Wasn't this exactly what her life had become? Stuck in a cycle of endless work shifts, tired nights, and a relationship that only made her feel more alone.
---
Work was as it always was: exhausting. The customers were rude, the hours long, and the few coworkers she had barely spoke to her. It wasn't their fault. Aris had never been good at making friends. She always felt like an outsider, even in groups that welcomed her. And now, with Daren's disapproval of her having any kind of social life, it was easier to isolate herself entirely.
Her thoughts drifted to her family as she served yet another demanding customer. She had always been close to her siblings, especially her 14-year-old brother and her two younger sisters. But her father… their relationship was strained, to say the least. He was strict, often cold, and his disapproval weighed on her like a shadow she couldn't escape. Talking to her family felt like exposing a wound, so she didn't.
As the day dragged on, her mind circled back to Daren. He wasn't always this bad. She reminded herself of the good times, how he used to make her feel like the center of his universe. When he had nothing, he gave her everything—his time, his love, his attention. But those days felt like a distant dream now.
She'd caught him cheating more times than she could count. Dating apps on his phone. Flirty texts with women she didn't know. He'd always come up with excuses, always beg for forgiveness. And she always gave it. Not because she believed him, but because she didn't believe in herself. Maybe she wasn't enough. Maybe this was the best she deserved.
---
That night, she sat in bed, her knees tucked to her chest. Daren was at work, and the silence of her room felt like a physical presence pressing down on her. Her mind wandered to the bird in the cage, still trapped, still waiting for someone to set it free.
Her phone buzzed on the bedside table, pulling her from her thoughts. It was Daren.
Daren: Where are you?
She stared at the message for a moment, her fingers hovering over the keyboard. It wasn't really a question—he always knew where she was. She never went anywhere.
Aris: At home. Why?
The three dots indicating his reply blinked on the screen, then disappeared, only to reappear again. Finally, his message came through.
Daren: Just checking. You better not be out doing anything stupid.
Her chest tightened. She swallowed the lump rising in her throat and typed back:
Aris: What would I even be doing, Daren? You know I don't go anywhere.
There was a long pause before his response, and the silence felt heavier than any argument they'd ever had.
Daren: Good. Keep it that way.
She locked her phone, tossing it onto the bed beside her. The screen went dark, but the reflection it cast lingered in her mind—a cage she couldn't seem to escape.
Tears welled up in her eyes as she thought about her life. About how small it had become. She didn't go out anymore, didn't laugh, didn't dream. She was 18, just starting her adult life, and yet it felt darker and heavier than her teenage years ever had.
Her head dropped to her knees, and for the first time in months, she allowed herself to cry.
The tears came hot and fast, shaking her body as they spilled over. She wasn't crying for Daren, or even for the pain he caused her. She was crying for herself—the girl she used to be, the girl she wanted to be, and the gap between them that felt like an endless void.
When the tears finally subsided, she looked at herself in the mirror across the room. Her reflection stared back at her, hollow-eyed and exhausted.
"I have to do something," she whispered to the empty room.
She didn't know what yet. She didn't know how. But deep down, a tiny ember of determination sparked to life. It wasn't much, but it was enough to get her through another night.
And maybe, just maybe, it was enough to help her find a way out of the cage.