It was twilight. The air resonated with the sounds of all kinds of birds returning back to their nests, calling it a day. As Abhishek walked through the front gate of his house, he felt the radiant sun’s warmth on his face. For a moment, he paused and looked up towards the sky. The sky looked exquisite, as if someone had painted a blue canvas with shades of red and orange, with white clouds like cotton gliding freely across it. The squirrels in his garden seemed to enjoy the weather, as evident by their squeaky chirrups. 

But despite all this, Abhishek did not smile; his lips didn’t as much as twitch. Even the brilliance of a rainbow would fail to bring a smile across his speckled face, let alone the dreamy sky. He briskly paced across the porch, forced his face into a grin so faint that even a toddler would realize it’s fake. He walked over to his parents, chit-chatted for a bit, and then headed straight for his room. He went inside, shut the door, and hurled his school bag towards the chair with such brute force that the chair was knocked off the floor. He then quietly proceeded to lay his weary body on the bed. His head sank into the pillow, and tears started draining from his scarlet eyes into the silky pillowcase where he was resting his head.

It had been almost two months now. It first started in April when he refused to be a part of an elaborate scheme to cheat on a unit test. Since then, Abhishek had been the recipient of regular bullying at school by a few of his classmates. He initially thought it would go away, but it kept getting worse and worse, like an iron sword touched by rust. And that was the reason for his progressively deteriorating mood every day. He felt helpless and humiliated with no one to complain to! He couldn’t snitch on those bullies for the fear of being treated even worse, though he felt he was at rock bottom. He didn’t want to be the “Tattler” of the class. He couldn’t talk to his parents; it would give them yet another concern as if they didn’t have enough on their plate. They both worked full-time jobs. So, all Abhishek could do was muster up his strength to tolerate each morning and sob silently in his room where only the walls heard him.

That night, his parents had gone out for dinner, and he had the whole house to himself. He arose from his bed, wiped the tears off his rosy cheeks, and with a sobbing stutter, yelled, “Why, God, why? What have I done to deserve this!? What horrible thing could I have manifested to deserve such a life??” Though his voice was shivery, there was anguish in his voice with a touch of fury. He picked up his phone, slammed the door behind him, and marched towards the terrace, determined to alleviate his sorrows with music. It was dark outside; the moon was covered by dark clouds that had no intention of letting any moonlight pass through them. “Nothing can go right, can it? Even the ethereal moon has been shrouded by darkness,” he remarked in frustration as he had to turn his flashlight on.

He was just about to hit play when something just a few blocks away grasped his attention. A small dog with fur as white as ice and surely soft was cornered by two massive, aggressive dogs who were growling angrily. The small pup wasn’t able to break the deadlock; the massive “bully dogs” wouldn’t let him. Seeing this image, Abhishek was stunned.

He couldn’t help but sympathize with the innocent pup, as the resemblance in their situations was unmistakable. What was even more astonishing was the way the puppy was behaving. He didn’t look scared. He obviously couldn’t take on those wolf-dogs, so why wasn’t it scared? Abhishek was half perplexed and half filled with pity for the little guy. He picked up a nearby stone, ready to help the pup, and just then, his heart throbbed. The little puppy had launched its tiny jaws onto one of the dog’s legs and very shrewdly escaped from the side, bypassing the giant canine. The other dog was too puzzled to do anything.

Abhishek was taken aback at the sight of this unimaginable courage from an animal so small. At precisely that moment, silvery moonlight gleamed through the dark clouds, obliterating the last vestiges of darkness. Abhishek looked up, and the celestial sphere was shining brighter than ever.

That night, Abhishek had an epiphany. After staring at the moon and the starry sky for quite some time, he started making his way down towards his room. But something was different: his face now held a wide grin, and his eyes housed firm resolve. He had decided to stand up to his bullies and even complain to the teachers if necessary. When he thought about “getting treated worse,” he scoffed, “so what?” ; he wasn’t being treated like a prince now anyway. With a genuine smile on his face and calmness in his mind, he lay on his bed to sleep peacefully for the first time in months. 

“Whatever destiny may have in store for him, he had found his true courage and wasn’t afraid to take anyone head-on.”