his innocent shadow

prologue- Packing Pieces of Home (Part 1)

– Packing Pieces of Home (Part 1)
The room smelled like old books and fabric softener.
Lila stood in the middle of her small bedroom, staring at the open suitcase on her bed. It looked too big for the few things she owned and too small for everything she felt. Around her, her life was folded into piles—two pairs of jeans, a handful of plain tops, her favorite sweater with the loose thread at the cuff, and the notebooks she refused to leave behind.
She ran her fingers over the cover of the notebook on top. The corners were bent from being carried everywhere. Inside were words she never showed anyone—half-finished poems, quiet prayers, reminders to herself to keep going even on days that felt heavier than others.
Her mother leaned against the doorframe, watching her with a soft, tired smile. “You don’t need to pack your entire room,” she teased gently. “The college has shops nearby.”
Lila smiled back, but it didn’t quite reach her eyes. “I know. I just… I don’t want to forget anything important.”
Her mother walked over and helped fold a shirt. “You won’t forget what matters. It’s already inside you.”
Her father’s footsteps sounded in the hallway. He appeared with a cardboard box in his hands. “I found your old calculator,” he said. “The one you used all through secondary school.”
Lila laughed quietly. “That thing is ancient.”
“It still works,” he replied, placing it carefully into her suitcase like it was something precious.
When the suitcase was finally zipped shut, the room felt strangely empty. Lila took one last look around—the chipped paint on the wall, the tiny desk by the window, the place where she had stayed up late studying while the rest of the house slept. It wasn’t much, but it was home.
The drive to Royal Crest College was quiet.
Her mother sat in the front seat, hands folded in her lap. Her father focused on the road, the radio playing softly in the background. Lila watched the city pass by through the window. The streets changed as they went—familiar corners turning into places she didn’t recognize, small shops giving way to tall gates and wide roads lined with trees.
When the car finally slowed down, Lila’s breath caught.
The gates of Royal Crest College stood before them, tall and elegant, the name engraved in metal that shone under the morning sun. Students walked in and out, some dragging suitcases, others laughing with friends or hugging parents goodbye. Everything looked polished. Expensive. Like a different world.
Her father parked the car by the gate. “This is it,” he said quietly.
Lila nodded, her chest tightening. She stepped out of the car, her shoes touching the smooth pavement. The air felt different here—cleaner, lighter, filled with possibility and fear all at once.
Her mother hugged her tightly. “Call us when you settle in, okay? And don’t forget to eat.”
“I won’t,” Lila promised, her voice muffled against her mother’s shoulder.
Her father pulled her into a hug too, rougher but no less warm. “We’re proud of you,” he said. “No matter what happens here.”
Lila swallowed hard and nodded. “Thank you. For everything.”
They watched as she walked through the gates, her suitcase rolling behind her. She didn’t look back until she was almost inside. When she did, her parents were still standing there, waving.
It was only then that the truth settled in.
This was real.
She was really here.
Inside the campus, signs pointed toward different buildings. Lila followed the one marked Dormitories, her heart thumping in her ears. The dorm building was tall and bright, with large windows and a wide entrance. Students crowded around the reception desk, collecting keys and room numbers.
After waiting in line, Lila received a small key with a tag: Room 304 – West Wing.
The hallway on the third floor was quiet, the kind of quiet that felt temporary. She found her room and paused with her hand on the handle.
This was where her new life would begin.
She opened the door.