The Quiet Scroll

Maya opened her phone before she got out of bed, as she did every morning.

She scrolled through photos of friends laughing at a party she had not been invited to.

Her thumb moved quickly, but her chest felt heavy.

Later that day, she met her friend Leo in a small café near the station.

Leo was looking at his phone too, and he did not notice her arrive.

When she asked him a question, he answered without raising his eyes.

Maya felt as if she were sitting alone, though they were only a metre apart.

She remembered a time when they used to talk for hours about nothing important.

Now their conversations were short, and most of them happened online.

Leo finally put his phone down and smiled, but the smile seemed tired.

Maya wondered whether staying connected was really making them feel closer, or just more lonely.

She picked up her cup and decided to ask him how he really felt, without any screens between them.