The room was but a simple square. Upon entering, I noticed how my eyes had to immediately adjust to the new scenery, since there appeared to be no sunlight streaming in from any windows. As I continued to shuffle in to further invest this phenomenon, I soon realized that massive, light-washed curtains were draping over the windows, imprisoning any sunlight from illuminating the room. Being so, the only light within the walls was one that came from a single lamp precariously placed beside one of the two beds, just close enough for the one actually in the bed to switch on the light at a moment's notice. Better to be safe than sorry, I thought to myself.

Speaking of the bed, I found my eyes soon dart to the twin size bed about two inches away from the lamp. The bed frame resembled one in which a nurse would use to aid the injured. Yet, it was neatly coated in white paint that had clearly faded to a meer yellow over time. Think of an onion that had been stuck at the bottom of the vegetable draw for over a month. Swirls and curly-qs danced around the white sheets, which I could just see peeking out from under a rainbow of a blanket. It was like the rainbow was cuddling the designs. The sheets were perfectly folded over, with only a single crease to signify that the bed had actually been used. As I strolled over to the other side of the bed, my feet shivering as they surrendered to the bare wooden floor, I noticed a smaller pillow, laying atop the bigger ones, personalized with the room owner’s name and birthday. It was almost as if the one who slept in the bed had to be constantly reminded of their identity. To be reminded of their true self.

Alongside the bed was a dusty desk who had obviously seen better days. The sides were chipped and the whole contraption began to wobble as I approached it, in order to observe it more closely. The moment I reached the head of the desk, there seemed to be a full-blown office supply store on the top. School supplies of every shape and size flooded the right side of the desk. There were pencils, pens, sticky-notes of every color, index cards, etc. Basically, every single school supply a student would ever need to survive. Aside from the supplies, the only other items on top of the desk were a few decorative images of various dance poses, and a laptop, covered to the brim in scratch marks. In fact,  all the objects on top of the desk were covered in scratches. Either the owner of this room used their items too much or they had been reused and recycled quite a few times.

The rest of the room consisted of a dresser, drowned in sculptures and pictures, and another bed. Unlike the bed that was perpendicular to this one, this bed was dressed only in white, the same material and design as the other one. However, there was nothing atop the bed besides a small pile of different school related items. Things like old school textbooks, extra notebooks, and an accumulation of novels from previous school years; all which appeared to have no other home to reside in. Being that the head of the bed currently inhabited a corner, there rested a portable lamp hovering over it, but it was unplugged and drooped over the side of the bed. By the looks of it, this bed’s function seemed to serve more as a table than a bed. Which led me to the question: Who had slept here? And, where are they now?

The last part of the room was a closet. As I cautiously took hold of the door to open it, the hinges made a creaking noise, as if to warn me of the horrors that awaited if I continued to peek inside. However, once I was inside, the closet showed to be very much vacant. The majority of the clothes were neutral jackets and jeans. The only dress inside looked like it was designed in the 80s. Looking down, I could see a row of shoes, some on racks probably bought at stores like Target, others just occupying the ground. Most of the shoes, if not all, were boots. There was but one pair of high-heels among all the others, but they were as shiny as a freshly polished penny. Lastly, in the corner, I noticed a black bag with shoes hanging over the sides, but they were not normal, everyday shoes. These were a faded pink color with ribbons attached to the sides, while the tips were almost completely flat. I could tell by the weariness and dirtiness of them, that this person had in fact discovered at least some of their identity. I prayed they would find it all one day.

As I made my way to the door, being that it was directly to the left of the closet, my peripheral vision caught a glimpse of a drawing hanging on the wall. Naturally, curiosity won me over and I took a step back to examine the picture in more detail . To be quite honest, it was not as intricate as I had expected. It was a simple sketch of a teddy bear laid on its side in what appeared to be water. Although there was no context behind the drawing, I could tell there was a quite a story behind it. Hopefully, the next time I visit this bedroom, the owner will be willing to tell me.

And, with that, I made my way back to the entrance, turned around for one last look, and swiftly exited, closing the door behind me.