Published on substack: https://open.substack.com/pub/ramimaalouf/p/the-courage-to-be-chalant Ember stood at the edge of MacHall, camera in hand, his heart pounding louder than the crowd. He came here to collect stories, to interview students and show them that someone cared. But as he scanned the sea of “busy” faces, heads bowed and earbuds in, a familiar doubt began to creep in.
Nobody has time. People just want to be left alone. People are too busy. You’ll look desperate. You’re only doing it for attention. They’ll think you’re weird. You’re just going to get rejected.
Every excuse that flickered through his mind felt justified, like a shield protecting him from the pain of being overlooked. He gripped the camera tighter, paralyzed by the weight of so many imagined failures.
But then, a flash of memory pierced through the chaos of his mind: his own reflection, lonely and unseen, walking these same halls not so long ago. It reminded him of why he started: to make sure no one else ever felt that invisible. The purpose returned like oxygen to his lungs.
With trembling resolve, Ember stepped into the stream of students. He approached, asked, smiled, listened. Most brushed him off, but he kept going, each “no” sharpening his resolve.
And then he found him: a quiet figure hunched over a notebook, almost hidden in the corner. Ember introduced himself. As they spoke, stories poured out — fears, dreams, and the ache of wanting more from university than just lectures, grades, and shallow parties.
Ember saw his old self reflected back in the stranger’s eyes: hungry for meaning, afraid of reaching out, aching for connection. For the first time, he shared his own journey: the accident, the coma, the isolation, and the spark that brought him back to life. The other man listened, then opened up about his own battles — how he’d dreamt of starting something that mattered, but kept convincing himself he wasn’t ready, wasn’t the right person, or that no one would take him seriously. They sat in MacHall until it was basically empty, neither noticing the hours slip by. But in those few hours, something took root that neither saw coming: A partnership that went on to change both their lives and thousands of others…
As Ember left MacHall, one truth burned in his chest: resistance is loudest right before a breakthrough so push through it. Your vision will sprout only if you carry it through discomfort, doubt, and fear. Persist. Believe. Someone out there is waiting for the best version of you to emerge. Because when it does, it won’t just change your life, it will change theirs too.
FYI: This was a story/literary scene I have created for a university course I am taking on storytelling.
Ember is the university super-connector I am building to help students effortlessly meet the right people at the right time: heyember.vercel.app
Check it out and let me know how it goes! It’s open for anyone to test for now