Akhil felt his eyelids grow heavy as he struggled to open them.
Slowly, his consciousness began to fade.
One of the girls in the crowd immediately called an ambulance.
A few minutes later, an ambulance arrived at the scene, and the paramedics immediately placed him on a stretcher.
Inside the ambulance, a medical staff member took Akhil’s ID and contacted his college to inform his parents.
When Ramesh and Rhea heard the news, their hearts nearly stopped.
They rushed to the hospital.
Rhea’s face was clouded with worry and self-blame.
Ramesh drove his bike toward the hospital, trying to comfort her along the way.
Soon, they reached the hospital and rushed to the reception desk to ask where their son had been admitted.
They reached the room where Akhil had been admitted and opened the door.
Inside, they saw a doctor standing beside their son, giving instructions to a nurse who was taking notes.
Rhea asked, her voice filled with panic and fear.
“Doctor, what happened to my son?”
Ramesh also stepped forward to stand beside his wife, his face etched with tension.
“Nothing serious.”
Hearing that, both Rhea and Ramesh sighed in relief.
The doctor continued.
“He’s been under a lot of stress.”
“Just let him spend the next few weeks doing what he wants.”
As he spoke, he turned to the nurse beside him and gave her further instructions.
“Give them the prescription I wrote.”
With that, he walked out of the room.
The nurse took the prescription the doctor had written earlier and handed it to Akhil’s parents.
Meanwhile, inside Akhil’s mind,
Akhil glanced around the room.
He was in a rectangular-shaped room, and no one else was there beside himself.
“Where am I?”
He asked himself with a puzzled look on his face.
Suddenly, a phantom-like figure appeared before him.
It looked exactly like him.
“Who are you?”
Akhil asked the figure, his voice dripping with fear.
He did not like ghosts or supernatural beings.
The figure looked at him in disdain.
Akhil felt his anger surge inside him.
“Did you not hear me?
I asked who you are.”
The figure drawled.
His voice was filled with mockery and contempt.
“Who am I?”
“I am you.”
The figure leaned toward Akhil and asked,
“I mean, what’s your problem?”
“Why are you taking your anger out on our parents?”
Akhil felt his forehead twitched a little and replied furiously.
“You bastard!
How dare you call my parents yours?”
“Do you want to die?”
The figure didn’t reply immediately.
Instead, he looked at Akhil for a few moments before him.
“Let’s say you are right.”
“Why would you take your anger out on your parents?”
Akhil hesitated and explained.
“Because I am angry.
I didn’t want to take my anger out on my parents.
So, I rudely cut off my mom while she was speaking to me, fearing that I might say something I would regret.”
Akhil knew if he wanted to leave this place, he had no choice but to answer the question the figure asked him.
The figure sighed.
“Why are you angry?
I knew it’s difficult to answer such a question when I’m just a stranger to you.”
“But you can tell me everything you’re feeling.
I can listen .”
Akhil was taken aback by his response, but he found himself agreeing.
He had been wanting someone to talk to.
He spoke slowly, his voice filled with melancholy.
“When the bank officer caused trouble for my family, I couldn’t do anything but stand there and watch like an outsider.
That’s when I realized I couldn’t do anything to protect my family without power and status.”
“Divya’s offer to join the police is something I really don’t want to accept but after seeing what happened yesterday made me keep thinking whether if I should accept Divya’s offer to join the police , I could protect my family if trouble ever arose.”
“My cousin’s referral to IT company is something I really want to join but even if I became the Software Engineer, can I really protect my family if something happens?”
“Divya’s feelings toward me are another burden weighing on my shoulder.” Find the original chapter at g.com.
“Today, when I woke up, aside from Divya’s feeling toward me, nothing else bothered me.
But when my cousin brought up the job referral, I could not control my emotions anymore.
Which choice should I make?
What if I choose something and end up regretting it.”
“My minds keeps going back to it?”
“So, what do you think I should do?”
The figure looked at Akhil for a long moment before answering.
“Listen, Akhil.
Yeah, what you’re thinking about is certainly a difficult choice.”
“You are still a second-year student at Velammal Engineering College.
You still have a lot of time.
Don’t overthink it.
Make the decision gradually.
”
“But when you said you wanted to protect your family, why are you worrying about a future that may come or may not come.”
“See, today, because of your action, you caused your parents to worry, and they are blaming themselves for what happened to you.”
“The future is important but don’t forget about the present.”
Akhil lowered his head, suddenly understanding what he had done.
He was filled with guilt and anger at himself.
He looked at the figure before him and asked hesitantly.
“Can you tell me who you are?”
The figure chuckled, his laughter echoing across the room.
“Didn’t I already tell you?”
“That I am you.”
The figure dissipated into thin air.
Then Akhil looked at the room and thanked the figure.
“I still don’t know who you are but thank you for your help.”
His voice echoed across the room.
Slowly, Akhil’s figure also dissipated into thin air.
After Akhil disappeared, the phantom-like figure reappeared in the room.
“Don’t worry, Akhil.”
“Whatever problems you face, you can always talk to me.”
“I just want you to enjoy your life however you want.”
The figure paused for a moment.
A smile spread across his face.
“After all, I am you.”