FORCED ATTENTION

But what if I made you listen and filled in all the gaps in your knowledge? For what reason did you stop and take notice? If I told you about the times I cried myself to sleep, about the hurt that sat unhealed inside me, would you hear me? Do you even want to know? Or are you going to keep acting like I don't exist? If I made you experience what you've been missing, would you like it? Similar to the scars on my arms and legs, you will be cast aside. If I showed you my heart cracking, would you realise it had been happening for years? You had no idea how many people were crying around you. Not at all, I assure you. Maybe it's about time you started paying attention to what's been happening before your very eyes.

That one and only,

Danielle.

As I'm setting down the letter, I hear a knock at the door. It's her.

Danielle…

"Why are you even here, Danielle?" I inquire in a tone tinged with surprise.

Forewarned is forearmed; "I told you that I was coming for you and I'm here for you." As she approaches me and speaks, I hear her reply. After pressing the emergency button, security personnel promptly arrive. A short while later

"Ma'am, could you please move over here?" She ignores what the first guard says.

When she asked, "Madam, who are you?"

"You don't recognise me, do you? Really worthless! I am the woman who always puts on a brave face. I appear to be the tough girl, but that's not really me. I'm the girl that has a lot going on internally but will not discuss it. I'm the one who keeps the secrets. Every once in a while, I just need to vent to someone. A person who cares about how I am doing. A sympathetic ear for my worries. If I'm going to cry, I need to be held. The attention of a kind person. Nobody has any idea who I really am. No one can relate to the struggles I face every day. No one can relate to the struggles I face every day. No one suspects that I am not who I say I am. And I'm the girl who always cries herself to sleep at night. I'm the girl that Damien screwed over. When Danielle finally responds, I groan.

They just need your name; no need to give a whole bio. Leave in peace. My time is better spent elsewhere. I hope that's the last time I see or hear from her before the security personnel whisk her away.

Another letter awaits me, and I begin reading, but this one won't take long.

A single star glows brightly above. Beginning to blink and cry out. Each of us is guarded by a single star.

It lurches forward before crashing to the ground. A single star falls from the sky like an apple from a tree, yet it keeps its frown even as it does so. As it rests on the ground, a solitary star looks up at the moon, the only place it has ever known as home. A lonely, shivering star whose light is fading. She felt like she'd spent her whole life waiting for something. A lone star waves goodbye with her blinks. As she slowly dies, her brilliance dims.

I just needed someone to read it, and you happened to fit the bill. We appreciate your patience.