I never thought I could live without my voice. But today I woke up without it, and no one seemed to notice.

At first, nothing seemed different. I made my breakfast, did my makeup, and got dressed. A normal morning. But when my mom called my name, I opened my mouth to respond, and nothing came out. I was like a blocked pipe, the words all stuck. At a loss and not knowing what else to do, I decided to go on with my day. I made my way down the stairs and put on my shoes. My mother was hurriedly rushing to tie her own, not seeming to notice that anything was wrong. Curious to see when she would realize, I followed her into the car and fastened my seatbelt. As the drive began, she began to relax a little. She turned to me. “Excited for the day?” I gave her a shrug. “Got any tests?” I shook my head. “That’s great honey, have a good day!” she smiled. By then, we had arrived at my bus stop. She never noticed.

Maybe someone at school would notice. But no one did. I didn’t raise my hand one time in any of my classes, but that wasn’t out of character for me. I figured it would be different at lunch, at least. Yet nothing changed. I sat at a table with the same people I had eaten with since the first day of school, but no one noticed. I was acknowledged once, after a friend who had just come back from the bathroom looked at me, noticed my silence, and asked, “Are you feeling okay?” I gave her a weak smile and a shrug, which was enough for her. Soon, she slipped into easy conversation with several of the others at the table, forgetting about me. I quietly slipped away. 

I sat down on a bench by myself, tears pooling behind my eyes. No one had noticed. Maybe no one even cared. As the water started to spill out of my eyes, I felt a touch on my shoulder. I looked up, and I saw her. My best friend. “Are you okay? I came out late and didn’t see you at lunch, so I got worried. You can tell me anything, you know. Is anything going on?” My tears began to fall. She didn’t say anything. She just wrapped me up in her arms, and held me as I cried. Through my sobs, I couldn’t help but think that maybe I could live without my voice. As long as there was at least one person that cared about me, I would be okay.