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Creative Nonfiction Contemporary Sad

“Just because I am smiling doesn’t mean I am happy. Because it takes just one smile to hide a million tears.” Unknown


I hate the car. 

I always get so dizzy, and to top it all off, it’s freezing, but my little brother has insisted on opening the window. I’m sitting in the back, right behind him, so the cold air directly hits me as we ride along the freeway, at sixty-something miles per hour.

I should’ve bought gloves. Should’ve worn a jacket. 

Shoulda, woulda, coulda. 

It’s not like we were in a hurry or anything. My shoes were just all muddy and I was too lazy to untie them and run back inside to grab anything. I try to bury my hands further into my sweater, shivering.

Shops and trees pass by in a blur, and I stare at the window, trying to force my headache away. I shift my neck uncomfortably. The back of my ears are likely red by now, because of how tightly I’ve strung my mask. 

The mask I’m wearing today says ‘I’m actually smiling’, but it’s double-sided and I have it turned to the patterned side. 

Life is so boring these days. Same old, same old. 

I want to blame it on covid, I really do. I want to say that in all due time, I’ll be laughing with my friends, hugging them, going to school normally...But even if that was true, which it’s not, it’s not even the quarantine blues that have me upset. 

It’s just this purposeless life I’m just going on with, this homework, test, forget cycle. These pointless clubs and fake smiles and endless emails and the never-ending routine. All for what?

What does it lead to?

College?

Right, I’m really looking forward to more school.

I don’t even know what I want to do after college. It’s like I’m being pulled in so many directions. Society wants me to be one thing, my family another, and I myself don’t know what to choose. 

You’re still young.’ 

That’s what they always tell me. But year after year after year, it feels like I’m getting to be maybe not so young anymore. 

I turn my phone on and off, checking the time. 

2:04pm.

I tap my fingers against my jeans to no beat at all. The car stops at a red light and I relish in the two seconds of no rushing wind until we’re off again. 

Zooming through the streets. 

Zoom. 

I want to strangle the creator.

Okay, okay. Maybe it’s not zoom’s fault, and maybe, maybe, I am a little upset because of the pandemic. But who isn’t?

Did I ask for my teen years to be plagued- quite literally- by a virus? Did I ask to live my first high school year online? Did I ask for a president with a toupe and a Cheeto-colored face? Seriously, did I?!

At least the president one’s a little better now, but I really don’t remember asking to live through so much history. 

Kids in 2070 are going to have to have a lot of patience to go through Corona Time, Impeachment, Australia fires, giant wasps, and, most recently, that January 6th thing. Probably going to have a whole separate lesson on that. 

And then, for every negative feeling I get, I feel guilty immediately afterward. Because compared to some others, I’ve got the long end of the stick. I’ve still got my family, I’ve still got the internet, I’ve got a house, food, clothes on my back. I can’t complain about the small things when the big things are right there, can I? Can’t be upset about not having a birthday party when there are kids who have just seen their last. Can’t be upset about online meetings when there are people who’d give anything to go to school. To have access to computers.

But what if it’s in the little things that make me smile?

What if I just miss my friends?

It’s all online now, every little bit. 

I’m a smart kid. 

No no, allow me to rephrase. 

I get good grades.

I like school. 

Sorry, I used to like school. I enjoyed lessons and learning and teachers and high-fiving friends in the hall and winking when your crush passes by and terrible, awful cafeteria lunches, and walking up to the board to write something. Raising my actual physical hand and reading actual physical books. Riding on the school bus and rolling my eyes at the annoying kids in class. Playing my violin in class and staying for after-school clubs, and dressing up every dark morning and all my funny teacher’s jokes, and my strict teacher’s rules. Everything. All of it. 

Cause school’s just a link now, and friends are just text messages. Crowded hallways are just bad internet and clubs are just a burden. Clothes are just pajamas and learning?

Learning’s a joke.

My brother finally closes the window, and I flex my frozen fingers. My phone dings and I resist the urge to throw it across the car. I settle for pushing it across the backseat. It rolls off and lands on the car floor. 

Good. 

Not like it’s that useful anyway. 

Entertaining sure, but call me old-fashioned if I say it does more harm than good. 

Checking for message after message cause maybe someone cares or something important is happening, when the only news is bad and the only notification is from that game I never deleted. 

First, we hate normal, then we hate abnormal, then abnormal becomes the new normal, and the cycle restarts. We’re at abnormal being the new normal right now. At empty toilet paper aisles and mass murder on the news, policemen doing the opposite of their jobs, and doing school from home. 

I wish I could just live in Harry Potter’s world instead. Wish I went to Hogwarts. 

I’d rather deal with Voldemort than whatever you wanna call life’s problems now. 

I try and look at the bright side. Because I’m the optimistic one. I’m the goody goody. 

But trying to look at the bright side right now is like pressing your hands over your eyes in pitch-black night and squeezing your eyes shut to make up colors in your brain. 

I just want to be happy. I just want to smile, to be able to ignore everything else, to be able to bear it. 

But the tears still fall when I tell them to stop, and the stress keeps pushing when I try to stay calm, and the smile is still fake, no matter how hard I try. 

The car stops, and I unbuckle my seatbelt, placing my mask over my nose. 

The only good part about this is that no one can see my frown underneath.


March 07, 2021 04:11

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37 comments

Radhika Diksha
14:17 Mar 07, 2021

The car stops at a red l light and I relish (You have an extra I here) At least the president one’s a little better now,(I think you should have this instead of the) “Just because I am smiling doesn’t mean I am happy. Because it takes just one smile to hide a million tears.” Unknown I think this proverb fits so much for me and my life. I felt like the whole story was narrating my life. even I go through these emotions on daily basis. Seeing the bright side too is a tough job. Sometimes being too optimistic leads to being permissive. I don't ...

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Amany Sayed
17:07 Mar 07, 2021

Gosh, thank you for catching those. Ugh. I want to tell you it'll get better, but who am I to talk? I feel you too. Thanks for reading.

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Sia S
06:07 Mar 07, 2021

Too relatable.

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Amany Sayed
17:08 Mar 07, 2021

Indeed.

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05:53 Mar 07, 2021

loved it! so deep in a weird way..., like..., em, i am out of descriptions hope that you will keep on writing great stories Happy today!

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Amany Sayed
17:08 Mar 07, 2021

thank you! i'll try. You too!

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14:35 Mar 18, 2021

WOW. so relatable. and the pressing your hands over your eyes metaphor is AMAZING!

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Amany Sayed
17:35 Mar 18, 2021

Thanks so much!

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Pippin Took
19:38 Mar 16, 2021

I like it!

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Amany Sayed
17:35 Mar 18, 2021

Thanks!

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Victoria Bogatz
17:22 Mar 16, 2021

It's so hard right now. Thank you for this story.

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Amany Sayed
12:28 Mar 17, 2021

Indeed it is. Thanks for reading!

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04:31 Mar 15, 2021

This was veryyy relatable! And I sensed some of your feelings in there! This was written softly and carefully, I like how you express what the characters feel but also looking at the other side of reality, where some families don't have that oppurtunities, it was really nice how you showed one feeling without validating the others! Great job Amany! And keep writing!

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Amany Sayed
17:22 Mar 16, 2021

Thank you! Yes, for sure. Thanks so much! Means a lot :) I will, always!

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Niyyah R. Haqq
16:38 Mar 14, 2021

I felt her anguish even though I'm far removed from being a freshman, this was well done!

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Amany Sayed
17:22 Mar 16, 2021

Thanks! Much appreciated!

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Maddy Writes
23:13 Mar 13, 2021

OMG! I love the ending, this is so inspiring and creative, I also really enjoyed how you wrote out the story towards the plot! Best luck with the contest :)

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Amany Sayed
01:35 Mar 14, 2021

Thanks a ton! By the way, love your pen name! So mysterious, I might have to steal that as a character idea for a future story ;)

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Maddy Writes
02:52 Mar 14, 2021

That would be awesome! Actually "the rose witch" would be a great story!

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20:45 Mar 09, 2021

This was so good! It was simple, yet it told alot about the character. I also liked how you talked about her mask. Flipping the words away from others is such a little thing, but it’s satisfying. I also thought that the part about the president was SO funny. I’m right there with you lol This is probably one of my new favorite stories on reedsy now! I cant wait to see what you write next

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Amany Sayed
03:23 Mar 10, 2021

Aw, thanks! Lol. Aw <3

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Polly R.
14:38 Mar 09, 2021

this is so good! i love the idea a lot and the quote at the beginning and i love how it was a little rant-style while still being poetic and nice to read!!

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Amany Sayed
03:23 Mar 10, 2021

Thanks so much!

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Polly R.
13:01 Mar 10, 2021

of course! you’re such a great writer i definitely aspire to be like you!

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Sia S
04:19 Mar 09, 2021

New Bio! ;)

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Amany Sayed
04:26 Mar 09, 2021

I like it :)

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Sia S
04:42 Mar 09, 2021

:))

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Sia S
04:02 Mar 08, 2021

Heyyyy!! Mind saying how you think of me (personality) and like, describing me in a sentence, and how do you think I look like? Its for my new biooo!!

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Amany Sayed
01:30 Mar 09, 2021

Aheeeeeeeeeem "Sia is a pessimistic but oddly happy girl who's literally living in a dramatic coming of age movie. Just read her based on real life 'crush crisis' series to see what I mean. She's obsessed with horror, but she isn't scary and she's super nice. She could beat you in a comeback fight but I feel like this quote encompasses her 'I'm not as mean as my walking to class face, I promise.' " There you go!

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Sia S
01:32 Mar 09, 2021

Hehehe Haha oml thanks!! Reading such stuff os so funny, lol I'm redoing my bio!! Aaaaaand it's almost dooone... Done! Ty!!

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Sunny 🌼
15:32 Mar 07, 2021

That quote at the start tho- Honestly, this whole story was just a mood.

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Amany Sayed
17:06 Mar 07, 2021

Right? A whole rant to be honest. Thanks for reading!

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20:42 Mar 09, 2021

Yeah I love the quote!

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14:27 Mar 07, 2021

Ooh that quote in the beginning hits DEEP! This made me feel depressed, ngl. (Add the 'sad' tag.) But this also made me laugh a lil' bit. Like this line: 'Did I ask for a president with a toupe and a Cheeto-colored face? Seriously, did I?!' And this: 'Kids in 2070 are going to have to have a lot of patience to go through Corona Time, Impeachment, Australia fires, giant wasps, and, most recently, that January 6th thing. Probably going to have a whole separate lesson on that.' You somehow made the thoughts of a freshman in a car interesting. I...

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Amany Sayed
17:05 Mar 07, 2021

Sorry for the sadness, hope the laughter makes it up. Thank you. Wow! What an accomplishment. It's called Happy because the mc (basically me) in relation to the prompt wants to be happy, but it's been made hard by the pandemic. Does 'Fake Smile' fit better maybe? Thanks for reading.

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Mila Van Niekerk
07:02 May 10, 2021

I relate to this so much is actually embarassing. (I can not spell that word to save my life ) because, my last year of primary school was ruined because of Covid, and now my first high school year is getting eaten up by it as well. It's getting a bit better, we're going to school now and soon every day, but it's not the same. Well done putting all those feelings into words, because it's something I can't ever seem to do properly. -Mila

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21:11 Mar 18, 2021

I loved your story! Totally relatable, and that ambivalence between feeling upset and trying to keep a grateful attitude is a HUGE accomplishment, even if you only put it on paper.

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