Who Am I?

"Meera! Wake up! You're going to be late!" her mother shouted from downstairs.

Meera groaned and buried her face in the pillow.

"Just five more minutes!"

"You said that ten minutes ago," her father called out.

With a sigh, Meera finally got out of bed. She looked at herself in the mirror and smiled faintly.

She was just an ordinary sixteen-year-old girl.

At least, that's what everyone thought.

She had loving parents who cared for her, a best friend named Aishu who never let her feel alone, and a boyfriend named Josh who could always make her laugh. Her life was simple, peaceful, and normal.

But there was one thing Meera never understood about herself.

Every night, she had the same dream.

A dark road.

Heavy rain.

A girl standing in the distance.

And a voice whispering her name.

Whenever Meera tried to get closer, she would wake up.

The dream felt so real that sometimes she wondered if it was actually a memory.

"Meera!" her mother called again.

"I'm coming!"

She quickly got ready and rushed downstairs.

"Eat first," her mother said.

"I'm already late."

"No breakfast, no school."

Meera laughed and sat at the table.

Her father folded his newspaper and looked at her.

"You look tired."

"Bad dream."

"The same one?" he asked.

Meera nodded.

Her parents exchanged a glance, but it disappeared so quickly that she barely noticed.

Soon she left for school.

Outside, Aishu was waiting.

"There you are!" Aishu said. "I thought I'd have to drag you out of your house."

"You probably would have."

The two girls laughed and started walking.

As they reached the school gate, someone called out.

"Meera!"

She turned around and saw Josh running toward them.

"Morning," he said with a smile.

"Morning."

Josh looked at her carefully.

"You didn't sleep, did you?"

"Was it that obvious?"

"A little."

Aishu rolled her eyes.

"She's been thinking about that dream again."

Josh's smile faded.

"The same dream?"

Meera nodded.

"I don't know why it keeps happening."

"It's probably nothing," Aishu said.

Maybe it was nothing.

Or maybe it wasn't.

Lately, strange things had been happening.

Places she had never visited felt familiar.

Sometimes she recognized faces she had never seen before.

And every now and then, she felt as if someone was watching her.

Not in a frightening way.

In a familiar way.

As if they already knew her.

As if they had been waiting for her.

The feeling sent chills down her spine.

For years, Meera had ignored these strange moments.

For years, she convinced herself that she was imagining things.

But deep inside, she knew something wasn't right.

Something was hidden.

Something important.

And she was about to discover it.

A truth buried in the past.

A secret her parents never wanted her to know.

A mystery connected to the dreams that haunted her every night.

A mystery that would change her life forever.

Because sometimes the biggest secrets are not hidden in the world around us.

Sometimes they are hidden within us.

And Meera was about to uncover hers.

The answer to a question she had unknowingly been asking her entire life—

Who am I?

The Girl in the Dream

The rest of the school day passed normally, but Meera couldn't stop thinking about her dream.

The girl standing in the rain.

The voice calling her name.

And the strange feeling that she knew that place.

Even though she had never been there before.

"Meera!"

Aishu waved her hand in front of Meera's face.

"Earth to Meera."

"Huh?"

"You weren't listening again."

"Sorry."

Aishu crossed her arms.

"That's the third time today."

"I'm just tired."

"You've said that all day."

Before Meera could answer, Josh joined them.

"What's going on?"

"Meera is lost in her own world again," Aishu replied.

Josh looked at Meera.

"You okay?"

Meera nodded.

"Just thinking."

"About the dream?"

She looked surprised.

"How did you know?"

"You always make that face when you're thinking about it."

Meera laughed softly.

"Am I really that obvious?"

"Very."

The three friends walked toward the school gate together.

As they reached the road, Meera suddenly stopped.

A cold shiver ran through her body.

Across the street stood a woman.

She was staring directly at Meera.

Not smiling.

Not moving.

Just staring.

Meera felt her heart race.

There was something familiar about her.

Something she couldn't explain.

The woman slowly raised her hand.

Then a bus passed between them.

Only for a second.

But when it moved away—

The woman was gone.

Completely gone.

"Meera?" Josh asked.

"What happened?"

"There was a woman."

Aishu looked around.

"Where?"

"Right there."

The road was empty.

Josh frowned.

"Maybe she walked away."

"Maybe."

But Meera wasn't convinced.

The woman's face felt familiar.

Too familiar.

As if she had seen her before.

In her dream.

"No," Meera whispered.

"That's impossible."

"What?" Aishu asked.

"Nothing."

Meera forced a smile.

"Let's go home."

That evening, she couldn't stop thinking about the strange encounter.

After dinner, she sat by her bedroom window.

The sky was dark and filled with stars.

Her phone buzzed.

It was Josh.

Josh: Still thinking about that woman?

Meera: A little.

Josh: Want to talk about it?

Meera: I don't know.

Josh: Whatever it is, you're not alone.

Meera smiled.

Meera: Thanks.

A few minutes later, another message arrived.

This time, it wasn't from Josh.

It was from an unknown number.

Meera frowned.

She opened the message.

Her smile instantly disappeared.

The message contained only three words.

"I found you."

Meera's hands began to shake.

She quickly checked the number.

It wasn't saved in her contacts.

Meera: Who is this?

A reply came almost immediately.

Unknown Number: You don't remember me?

A chill ran down her spine.

Meera: Who are you?

For several seconds, there was no reply.

Then another message appeared.

Unknown Number: Look at your dream carefully.

Unknown Number: The girl is waiting for you.

Meera's heart pounded.

How did this person know about her dream?

She had never told anyone except Aishu and Josh.

Before she could type another message, the number went offline.

Meera stared at the screen in shock.

Outside her window, the wind suddenly picked up.

And far across the street, someone was standing under a streetlight.

Watching her house.

Watching her.

To be continued...

The Message

Meera couldn't sleep that night.

The mysterious message kept replaying in her mind.

"I found you."

"The girl is waiting for you."

Who sent it?

And how did they know about her dream?

She checked her phone again.

No new messages.

Finally, sometime after midnight, she fell asleep.

---

Rain poured from the dark sky.

Meera stood alone on a deserted road.

The same dream.

The same place.

The same feeling.

This time, however, something was different.

The girl standing in the distance slowly turned around.

For the first time, Meera could see her face.

Her heart stopped.

The girl looked exactly like her.

The same eyes.

The same hair.

The same face.

"Who are you?" Meera shouted.

The girl smiled sadly.

"Find me."

Before Meera could move, everything disappeared.

---

Meera woke up, breathing heavily.

The alarm clock showed 6:00 AM.

"It was her..." she whispered.

"It was really her."

Her phone suddenly buzzed.

A new message.

From the unknown number.

Unknown Number: Did you see her face?

Meera froze.

How could they know what happened in her dream?

With trembling fingers, she typed a reply.

Meera: Who are you?

No answer.

Meera: What do you want?

Still nothing.

---

At school, Meera immediately told Aishu and Josh everything.

"What?!" Aishu nearly shouted.

"The girl looked exactly like you?"

Meera nodded.

Josh looked serious.

"This is getting strange."

"That's not all."

Meera showed them the messages.

Aishu's eyes widened.

"Okay... now I'm officially scared."

Josh carefully read each message.

"Maybe someone is playing a prank."

"No prankster can see my dreams," Meera replied.

Neither of them had an answer.

---

After classes ended, the three friends decided to investigate.

The unknown number was their only clue.

Josh tried calling it.

The call failed immediately.

"Number unavailable," he said.

Aishu frowned.

"That's creepy."

As they continued walking, Meera noticed something.

At the end of the street stood an old bookstore.

She had never been there before.

Yet it felt familiar.

Very familiar.

"I've seen that place."

Aishu looked confused.

"When?"

"I don't know."

Josh followed her gaze.

"Want to check it out?"

Meera hesitated.

Then nodded.

---

The bookstore was small and dusty.

Old books filled every shelf.

An elderly man stood behind the counter.

The moment he saw Meera, his expression changed.

Almost as if he recognized her.

"You..." he whispered.

Meera stepped closer.

"Do you know me?"

The old man stared at her for several seconds.

Then he shook his head.

"No."

But his voice sounded uncertain.

"You look exactly like someone I knew many years ago."

Meera's heartbeat quickened.

"Who?"

Before the man could answer, the lights suddenly flickered.

The room went dark for a second.

When the lights returned, a photograph had fallen from a nearby shelf.

Meera picked it up.

Her hands began to shake.

The picture showed a young girl.

A girl who looked exactly like her.

And standing beside the girl was the same woman Meera had seen across the street yesterday.

At the bottom of the photograph were four words written in faded ink:

"Don't let her remember."

To be continued...