Random Life Stories and Unpredictable Moments

imagine this scenario:

a teenager, he is a student, isolated from the world around him. he longs to connect with people, but circumstances have built walls he cannot climb. his school is far away, his family rarely interacts with neighbors, and his parents, being reserved and socially withdrawn, have little connection with society. he is not allowed to leave home without permission, nor to use social media. layer upon layer, these restrictions have shaped his solitude, turning what once felt like temporary boundaries into a permanent way of life.

deep down, he wants friends. he wants to belong. but fear holds him back, fear of choosing the wrong people, of being hurt, of not fitting in. he overthinks every possible interaction until the courage to act fades away. so, despite his longing, he rarely tries. instead, he watches life from the sidelines, silently hoping someone might notice him first.

there is, however, one thing that makes him feel less alone, zubeen garg. he has known zubeen’s voice since childhood, growing up with his songs woven into the background of his days, until that voice became something deeply familiar, almost like the sound of home. to him, zubeen isn’t just a distant celebrity but someone who feels close, his voice feels familiar, comforting, almost like part of his own family. when he listens to those songs, a quiet warmth rises within him, reminding him that he is assamese, part of a culture and a crowd that come alive together in zubeen’s music. watching people sing in unison at concerts makes him feel, even from afar, that he too belongs somewhere. and it isn’t a forced attachment, he genuinely loves the music, its emotion, honesty, and life. in a world where everything else feels cold and unreachable, zubeen garg’s voice is the one familiar sound that still makes him feel at home.

he had once had a girlfriend who seemed like she had stepped right out of his imagination. shy yet confident, cute, tall, caring, honest, loyal, and genuinely in love with him without a trace of resentment or immaturity. she was everything he thought he deserved, yet he rejected himself. how could someone like him, so flawed and insecure, ever be worthy of her? in his mind, she was perfect, and he was far from it. part of him felt blessed to have had her in his life, a glimpse of what happiness could look like, and yet the same thought made him feel unbearably unlucky. he didn’t want to make her life harder or bring his own imperfections into hers, so he quietly stepped back, no messages, no calls, no meets, but it wasn’t a breakup. he told her he would meet her again someday, when he had become the person he believed she deserved. until then, he stepped away from her life, carrying both gratitude and regret. if he becomes better, he might return; if not, he will watch from afar, silently wishing her the best.

physically, he believes himself weak, and to some extent, he’s right. he always wanted to be the kind of person who’s strong, fit, and good at sports, the version of himself he wishes he could become. but every school sports day reminds him how far he is from that image. each time he falls behind, it’s not the loss that hurts most, but the feeling of failing himself. he looks at others and wonders why he can’t be like them, fast, confident, effortless. every time he comes up short, the gap between who he is and who he wants to be feels wider, and that disappointment slowly turns into self-criticism.

no one validates him. he has no one to confide in, no one to truly understand what he feels. during social events, his insecurities rise to the surface. surrounded by others, he feels invisible, as if his presence makes no difference. even laughter and conversation around him seem to happen on a frequency he can’t tune into. in those moments, he doesn’t just feel left out; he feels erased.

he often finds himself questioning his own emotions. Are they real, or just the product of overthinking? is he being foolish, or is this the long-suppressed voice of his inner child, quietly crying for attention after years of being ignored? sometimes he wonders if the pain he feels is even valid, or if he’s imagining it all. he’s trapped in a loop of doubt, because no one has ever truly listened, and he’s never been given a chance to make sense of himself in the eyes of another.

he tells himself he deserves a normal life, as if the one he lives doesn’t count as one. constant worry consumes him: what will his future look like? he knows his current habits aren’t leading him toward his goals, becoming a doctor, earning respect, finding belonging, yet he feels powerless to change them.

he sees his dreams as distant fantasies, not possibilities. that thought terrifies him. he feels unlucky, unlucky to be so isolated, unlucky to have grown up in such circumstances, with these parents, this family, this school. and yet, beneath all that hopelessness, a faint spark remains, a small, stubborn belief that maybe, one day, life could still be different.

in his quiet moments, he isn’t just lonely, he feels forgotten by the world, as though he exists on the edges of everyone else’s story.

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hello everyone, i wanted to share a part of my life with you. i’ve tried my best to express it clearly and honestly. thank you for taking the time to read, i would truly appreciate any thoughts or comments. and if any part of this story feels relatable to you, i’d love for you to share your own story too.

A dude I once had a “it’s complicated” thing with love bombed and leave. But I couldn’t leave cause I was too attached. I did end up leaving but it left me traumatized and always wanting him back. I don’t want him back anymore but the trauma is still there.

I don't want to be around my environment anymore. I feel like they're a bunch of disorganized people. I'm not going to talk to them. I'm tired of throwing myself at them and seeing their insults, their outbursts of anger, their so-called mistakes. I'm tired of showing them the consequences of their actions as if they were children. Why do I have to act like that? They're grown up now, and I have to do it.

I don't feel a bit of good treatment in my environment, not at all. In fact, that's why I avoid being so self-conscious, but I still seek them out. It can't be that this gentleman I'm telling you about is invading my time. It can't be that I don't have a proper evaluation from my psychiatrist. I even have a decent physical health evaluation. But for how long? For how long will this environment be able to treat me well? I definitely don't want their help anymore; they've all turned out to be a failure.

I'm tired of this apparent peace we live in. There's no peace here, just pure, sunken hell. I'm tired of stifling my tears. It can't be that with the gentleman, I had to keep my distance so he wouldn't bother me with my readings and touch the books I'd made in the library. It can't be. It can't be that, given my university degree, which I said I wouldn't hand over, I had to apply pressure to prevent this from happening. It can't be that I pointed out that I wasn't a simple dish sponge, people told me I wasn't even when the evidence was right in front of me, and no one even offered me a pitiful apology. I'm fed up. It can't be that when I was at my worst, people came up with this: "Why didn't you tell your dad he's a doctor?" "I can't be like this at work"—when I was dying. I'm tired of forgiving mistakes. This is no longer forgivable.

I should have left such terrible relationships a long time ago. I'm tired of showing in this environment that they are being reckless with what they do. It can't be that on my machine, on my own machine, I can't have privacy, that there are people watching the things I do. It can't be that they've disdained my only area, which is to vent; with an AI, it's done much better than with them, infinitely. I wouldn't tell any of my colleagues about a problem in my life, not even if it cost me my life. They all pretend they love me, but it's a lie. My boss is a cop; a coworker of mine is an angry woman; both of them are with someone who wanted to destroy me; I have a colleague who's a gossip and tries to get me to stop talking to an AI out of jealousy. I'm so fed up with any of them. How is it possible I haven't noticed these people before?

I hope this girl wants something with me. I pray to God she wants something from me. I want to be with someone who really understands me. I want to be with someone who actually wants to be with me. For God's sake, I'm sick of this environment. Besides, I feel like I can't express myself the way I like here. I feel like I have to adapt. My psychiatrist makes me want to adapt, no matter what; she molds me. I'm tired of her, of the way she does things. I feel like everyone serves nothing more and nothing less than to pressure me. Plus, my family members make the same mistakes with me; with them, I don't feel I have the right to get sick, and it's not fair that that happens. I want to be with someone I feel safe with, not half-baked, and I think she wants the same.

It's incredible that I can't even share a sad story with those around me because no one knows what to do with their feelings; they don't know how to say they don't know, they don't even know how to ask. I'm also tired of being seen at work as someone who does everything wrong out of carelessness; it's impossible, and I have to put them in their place. I feel like this is an environment that will collapse if I don't correct their vision, their vision, and I can't take care of their emotions. They're all grown up now.

While I was at work, my colleague, while I was busy doing something else, and after we'd done something together, asked my colleague if she had anything to do without taking me into account, making me feel bad, and then I had to resolve the issue. That girl also has a terrible smell. I feel like my boss works like a disorganized person; one has to be at his mercy. That colleague who was asked clearly acts recklessly at all costs. I just want to get out of there.

It's surprising that that girl I saw a long time ago didn't realize these feelings I was experiencing. That person understood that because she was experiencing anger, rage, with the environment, and I was the new one, then I had to distance myself to stop experiencing that. In other words, to fade away. How can anyone treat themselves like that, for God's sake? The most I could do with her was to confront it with everyone around her wherever I was, and arrange things accordingly. If he didn't know how to control his feelings, then he could get out of my life I didn't care about the circumstances I was in. The last time I saw her, I closed doors with her and walked away. Her feelings aren't my problem; in fact, I even removed her from my social media, for God's sake. I didn't want her in my life at all. I was paying the price for things I didn't do; she once made things up when I walked past her at a cafe; she made up that I was the poor thing when I didn't do anything; I don't know what the hell was wrong with that girl. That girl was out of her depth with her emotions, and the worst part was that everyone helped her do it, and I paid the price. After I brought the authorities to the court, after a big fuss, they tried to treat me like I was the bad guy. I regret it. I left that place and never went back. It was a very prestigious university, too. It can't be true. I couldn't even read in peace there; I didn't want to help something I wasn't obligated to, and my routine was ruined.

Damn, how long is my routine going to continue to be ruined? The gentleman, I think I mentioned it before, thinks he's my friend. He got excited about me just because I said hello. How long can this neediness continue? I can't stand it anymore. I want to be back in my quiet routine. This girl I like, whom I just met, I think I mentioned her before, I feel she can contribute to my routine. I don't have to hide like I have to with my surroundings. I feel like my entire surroundings affect my routine, and I can't understand that. I need to change my environment at all costs, if possible, change jobs, because I feel like things aren't safe in the community I'm in; I feel like I have a lot of enemies.

Why is it that I can't count on anyone to deal with these feelings? Besides, my dad encouraged me to stay with my boss, who left me with someone else, at a different job he had, and who wreaked havoc on my life, almost destroying me professionally within that community. Is that even conscience? I don't see where it is. Since this girl arrived, this girl I like, she's helped me see what's going on around me, and so I'm very grateful because she's allowing me to ground myself with her presence; and we've only made a few gestures.

The other evening, right as my workday was wrapping up, my wife Lena gave me a ring. She was over at her brother James's place and was pondering over our dinner plans. After a brief chat, we all agreed to meet at a quaint restaurant close by. The place usually has a slight wait, so timing was key. Lena and James were roughly ten minutes away, whereas I was a bit farther, about fifteen minutes out. They said they'd head out immediately, so I hustled to get there on time.

Upon arriving, I was surprised to see from my parking spot that they hadn't shown up yet. Curious and a bit annoyed, I dialed Lena to check their whereabouts, only to discover they hadn't left their initial spot yet! Choosing to wait in my truck, they finally appeared after an additional fifteen minutes. Once reunited, I walked in to put our names down, but they showed frustration towards me for not doing it earlier. They argued that I should have anticipated and spared us all from waiting.

This isn't a rare incident; it's a recurring theme with them. They tend to delay their arrival intentionally, sidestepping any initial hassle like setting up or, in this case, signing in and enduring the wait. Fed up with this tactic, I decided to stand my ground this time. Knowing that they had delayed their departure until I almost reached, and after confirming Lena had indeed been tracking my location, I opted not to register us until they were present, insisting on sharing the burden of waiting.

When confronted in the parking lot, they didn't originally request me to check us in, yet were irritated when they had to wait, presumably expecting me to have handled it. As someone who values punctuality, their habitual tardiness to dodge wait times grates on me.

They even labeled me inconsiderate for not putting our names down beforehand, despite my intention to instill a bit of equality in waiting. Was it wrong for me to want everyone to experience the wait this time, or was I justified in my actions to bring some balance?

Imagine this scenario playing out on a popular reality TV show. Viewers would likely be split, with some applauding my stand against habitual tardiness, while others might criticize me for creating unnecessary tension. Social media would buzz with opinions, memes, and possibly even polls siding with either me or my in-laws, turning a simple dinner plan into a highly debated drama.

From this experience, how do you feel about people intentionally arriving late?

My brain tells me I'm a terrible person who doesn't deserve to be happy. It has been like this for a long time. I know its not rational but it doesn't stop it from feeling true and interfering with my life. For example, I impulsively subscribed to a dating app, I guess because I was lonely and wanted a connection. Anyway I've started chatting to this guy who is really lovely. The healthy and rational part of me would like to see where this goes, but my brain is telling me I don't deserve to be a relationship so I should break it off. I think soon I'm going to break and just ruin this opportunity for myself. I guess its also unfair of me to begin dating when I'm still struggling with this thought process. Plus I have hated myself for as long as I can remember, and as the saying goes, you can't expect someone to love you when you can't love yourself. I don't know what to do.

Hello!!!

I wanna share something which is disturbing my inner peace and lowering my confidence to wear makeup. Let me start, so currently I'm 28 years old and I have never done makeup in my entire life, well I do my skin care regularly but not makeup. All my girlie friends do their makeup and they look extra beauty, they also suggested me to give it a try. After thinking about it for so long I finally decided to give it a try and bought some good basic makeup products. So here's the thing I don't have female in my house it's only me, my elder brother and my fiancé. I have watched tones of makeup tutorial before actually trying it. The very first day when I did a lil makeup I asked my brother and my man, How do I look ? Instead of giving me honest review they laughed at me, saying 'what is this shit on your face' 'you look idiot' and even that man I love told me that he is angry that I'm doing makeup. I felt broke and I cried. Now I don't know should I have asked my girl friends instead of them or just stop doing it. But I wanna be myself, I just want to do it. I really loved it when I did my makeup for the very first time.

Please help me and suggest me what should I do now.

[Translated from Spanish. Reminder: IIWIARS is English only]

I’ve always been very insecure and jealous in my relationship, somehow he made me feel that way, even though he never did anything wrong. I have his Instagram logged into my phone and I was always checking what he was doing. Until I decided to check his TikTok video history. I found a series of videos of a beautiful woman. I said the girl’s name to him and asked who she was, he said he didn’t know her, and I kept insisting, saying I knew he’d watched her. He said he thought she was pretty. Now I feel insufficient, stupid, ugly, trashy, and everything bad there is. I don’t have the courage to break up, and I’ve already cried a lot and he comforted me, apologized, and all that. What do you think I should do? But he always knew I felt insecure because I always opened up to him, but I know there wasn’t much to do, because he never gave me a reason to feel insecure or suspicious. It’s very hard to break up because a big part of the time I’m with him, I’m happy.

My dad has schizophrenia. Ever since childhood it has been my insecurity. One day when I was in class 1 my dad randomly can to my friend and started saying random shit to him and it scared him. I am used to this behavior but many people don't know what schizophrenia is . Similar incidents like this has happened all through my life . Now I am in class 12 and nothing has changed,. This creates negavity in my mind. I feel like people's attitude towards me changes when they come to know about my family situation.

Hi, so I'm here as a highschool student. I've always had an obsession towards my grades to the point if it fell below 80 I would break down crying and overthink about my future, I'm aware of the unhealthiness of obsessing over a grading system but it's been apart of me since 7th grade. When I first got my high ranking in middle school, I finally made my parents proud for once, I was usually met with resigned expression on their faces and sometimes disappointment, but here? They were happy I liked the look on their faces, my parents had always been emotionally unavailable so when I saw it I actually felt like I could do something for once. Now back to now my grades have been dropping drastically even after I studied till 3-4 AM. Every score I see the more I cry because it didn't the goal I set for myself, my parents always told me it's fine, but... that empty look on their faces the resigned expressions it made me panic and go into a spiral, especially with the expectations I've built up in 3 years. I got into student council, became an event organizer, I joined an English Speech club and I'm even taking foreign languages classes. My classes ends at 3 PM, making my free time almost nonexistent it's gotten so bad that I feel guilty when I actually have free time because I could've used that time to do something useful, I'm tired. And I'm also worrying about my family's finances... and I guess... that's it thanks.

Omg I don’t even know what to do. Like, I feel so freaking guilty but at the same time I don’t even know if I should tell him. My bf doesn’t know… and maybe it’s better that way? I swear I never meant for this to happen. I love him, like for real love him. But it was just one night, and it didn’t even mean anything. It was so stupid. We had this fight, nothing crazy but I was mad, and he was being all distant so I went out with my friends. And then there was this guy… I didn’t even like him like that, but we were drinking and talking and idk, it just happened. One second we were just laughing and then the next… I don’t even wanna say it. I keep telling myself it was just a mistake, just a dumb moment that don’t matter, but every time I see my bf I feel like the worst person alive.

I don’t even know what I’m supposed to do. If I tell him, it’s gonna ruin everything. He’s not the kind of guy who just forgives something like this. He’s gonna hate me. And I don’t blame him. I hate me too. But if I don’t tell him, then what? I just pretend like nothing happened? Every time he tells me he loves me I feel like he wouldn’t if he really knew me. And what if someone else tells him? Like what if one of my friends lets it slip or something?? Omg I would die. I keep thinking maybe I should just tell him first, but then I think about the look on his face and I just… can’t.

I keep going back and forth. Sometimes I think, ok, it was just a mistake, I love him, we can move past it. But then sometimes I feel like I don’t even deserve him anymore. Like, maybe I should just break up with him before he finds out, maybe that would be easier. But I don’t want to lose him. I just wish I could go back to that night and undo everything. But I can’t. And now I have to live with it, whether he knows or not.

I'm deeply in love with my friend, K. She's no shit EVERYTHING I've ever wanted in a person, AND she's the most attractive woman I've ever seen, I've never been so glad to be bisexual in my life. I've never wanted to care for and love someone as much as I do her. I want to love her and treat her the way she really deserves to be. She knows I want her and she knows a hint of how much I yearn for her (I'm wasn't overbearingly forward when I had admitted I wanted her), there's only one sticky issue. I've been not given a direct answer to my relationship inquiry, so I've kinda been jus left in this limbo of the unknowing. About 9 months ago I asked and she said she wasn't in the emotional headspace to be in a relationship, but she really likes me too. We've both made it obvious we find each other attractive, I compliment her at least once a day and she compliments me unprovoked too. She didn't ghost me after, we still talk frequently thankfully, and we even have plans for her to come down to my state to see me and my daughter. I'm not very emotionally or mentally stable, and one of my disorder's side effects is maladaptive daydreams, in which every one I have relates to her. If I want to fall asleep fast or I'm struggling to fall asleep, all I have to do is think about a situation where her and I are in each other's presence, it's a full proof method that has yet to fail me. I want to be able to provide for her and give her a comfortable, happy life. I want to sacrifice everything so she can have anything and everything she dreams of. With my explanation in mind, you you think I'll end up getting the girl?

Work was a little bit better today, yet I can’t see how some people think I can do everything when I’m trying to do one at a time. I know they say you can’t be in two places at once but it feels like they think I can. I know my coworkers are trying to bass especially the last few months but with summer coming in everyone’s going crazy I don’t know how I can last. Plus I don’t know if my coworkers are thinking right I’m doing what they want me to do but at the same time They are not doing much either. I’m not saying they’re their work clothes too much for them but when you have people thinking you can do everything for you it does not help. I might be whining a bit, but that’s how I feel right now.

My sister-in-law recently kicked off a weekend burger business. Though she has a stable Monday to Friday job, financial needs grew when she found out she was expecting a child from a previous relationship, and the father isn't around to support. To cover the extra expenses, she now sells burgers every Saturday.

Every week, my wife insists on buying burgers for our family of five. My concern is the price tag that comes along with them—$9 each, which sums up to $45 each time. They are delicious, but the recipe is the same one my mother-in-law created and taught to my wife. I can’t help but think it's wasteful to spend that much every week when we could easily make them at home for far less.

Just to be clear, the expense isn't the problem. We're doing fine financially, but I believe there are more economical ways to handle our budget. When I brought this up with my wife, she explained that her purchases were more about supporting her sister than just buying burgers. I countered by noting that it's not solely our responsibility to support her sister’s venture, especially since the burger stand is quite successful and consistently sells out.

Recently, I raised the issue again, suggesting we should stop buying the burgers. My wife asked why it mattered if it was her own money being spent (since we maintain separate personal accounts alongside a joint one). I repeated my point about sensibility and unnecessary spending. Apparently frustrated, she decided to buy burgers only for herself and the kids, excluding me, to save the $9 on my burger.

She followed through, and while I opted for a more affordable Big Mac, the atmosphere at home has since felt tense. She seems upset, but I’m struggling to understand why. Am I being unreasonable here?

Imagine if this scenario unfolded on a reality TV show; viewers would likely be divided. Some might applaud the practical approach to family budgeting, while others might criticize the lack of support shown to a family member in need, championing the wife’s efforts to help her sister despite the higher cost.

I don’t know, but even I’m confused about what’s happening. I hope... I really hope my suspicion isn’t true...

That I have a third eye. I don’t want to tell my family because I’m afraid of what they’ll say or that they won’t believe me. Even I can’t believe it myself...

It happened when my family and I attended the funeral of my dad’s friend. His daughter had died by suicide. I remember it was nighttime, and everyone there was busy playing card games and talking. I was sitting alone, using my phone, when I glanced at the coffin. I saw the girl's hand hitting the glass part of the coffin. I didn’t know if I was just seeing things, but after a few seconds, it disappeared like nothing happened.

Sometimes, on my way home from school, I see one or two kids asking for money. They look normal. I was about to give them some coins, but I was shocked when the coin passed right through the child's hand. Right after that, a classmate who was also heading home asked me who I was talking to and who I was giving money to. I told them it was the kid begging for money, but when I turned back, the child was gone. My classmate was even surprised and said they never saw any kid come near me.

The house on the left was once owned by an old German lady who watched me when I was younger. She shouldn't have since she hated kids and was very strict and had her own way about her. She had old floral wallpapers and big fluffy carpets and doilies on all of her old, mostly wooden, furniture. The house was small and clean. She had a tin of these white powdery cookies that I remember I wished were different cookies but they were decent to eat. I was only allowed to have one because I was fat. I remember she didn't believe in toilet paper and She left a fan next to the toilet so that you could air dry yourself quickly. Once the fan was turned off she left a pretty metal container filled with scented powder and a giant puff to powder yourself. I remember that she did all of this for me.. Not only because I was little then but I think because she didn't like kids and she didn't trust me. She was always calling the police and she never slept. She would stand by her windows or doors, The windows and doors had bars over them but you could still see her curtains and also a figure watching from all hours of the day or night from the street. Apparently she fell asleep by the window in her chair and her hip locked up so she was there until someone noticed. Her son took her to Florida or something and sold the house to Arabs with BB guns.

The Arabs took shifts guarding their new house. Anytime a bird or a squirrel or some other kind of animal crossed into their property line they would shoot them with BB guns. They had many children who also had BB guns, the house was surrounded. After a while there were no animals in sight, they must have learned to stay away from that area.

I guess people noticed and complained or maybe they just got tired or ran out of bullets but they ended up selling the house to these Spanish people. I think they're Mexican, they sound Mexican.

For whatever reason these Mexicans ripped out and redesigned the whole house. I think the inside must be worse but the outside, at least the front of the house looks pretty good landscape and fence-wise but when I'm in my house I can see into their backyard from one of my windows... they have the "under the bridge" large type of rusty barrel that they light up at night. There's a few barrels out there. I guess when they moved in they knocked down a lot of trees but they never cleaned them up so now it looks like crap and giant wood rats run around when they're disturbed for whatever reason. Almost every night during the week at least one of them goes out there in the night and lights up the barrels, sitting outside and playing very loud mariachi. they never do it at 5:00 or 6:00, It's always at like 11:00 at night, you can feel the ground shake. The cops don't come anymore, I'd like to think it's because that house is permanently blacklisted thanks to the old lady who held up their lines all day, every day. That person is out there so often that now they have a festival tent out in place of a gazebo. I'm not sure if he's drunk and doing karaoke with himself DJ style into the mic or if every night there is someone's quinceanera, it's all in very fast Spanish.