Alice was walking in the middle of a quiet mall, she didn’t think much of life, it just seemed like another ordinary day in the middle of December. She wasn’t alive yet, physically she was, but her soul was a dying whisper waiting to get loud. She blended into the crowd, her mask on her face and her mask on her soul, fear consumed too much of her inside that she couldn’t realize the magic within. She didn’t know her own opinions or beliefs, she just did what the news said because in her mind, why would they lie?

A man walked up to her, he stopped by her but he took a breath before speaking. His shirt read, “Wake up world” and in small letters at the bottom of his shirt it said, “The truth starts with making your own beliefs and thinking from your own mind”. Alice couldn’t quite understand the shirt, it made no sense to her and this man felt that. He whispered in her ear, “Don’t trust the media, it isn’t looking out for you. Just look around and open your eyes.” He smiled and walked past her, Alice would remember this conversation but, at the moment, it confused her very much.

A week passed, she continued working at her boring job with masked up people, but something inside of her had turned on. Alice hadn’t paid much attention to the news, for every time it was on, the ringing in her ears became so loud, her eyes couldn’t adjust to the screen and the funny conversation she had with that man became the only thing she could think about. As Alice was thinking about all of this, one of her co-workers turned on the news. Instinctually, she got up. She had no idea what she was doing, but she just couldn’t take it. In this instance, Alice’s mind followed her body as she walked out the door.

She sat on the bench outside and took a deep breath, something had changed inside. She had this inclination to research, to rebel, to change and to become something else. All of the sudden, something just didn’t feel right in her world and it all started with the whisper from that man.

Alice was so in her thoughts, that she didn’t even realize the man sitting across from her. It was the same guy who whispered in her ear at the mall, she looked up and said, “You again? Are you following me?”

The man laughed, “No, it just so happens the Universe synced us up again.”

She smiled and looked at the ground, it still felt kind of awkward to her that this man showed up again.

“Something has changed within you, I can sense it. You’re thinking and your eyes are opening, you just need to follow that feeling all the way and trust yourself.”

She opened her mouth to answer but the man was gone, like he disappeared in the wind. It was the strangest occurrence. Was she imagining this entire conversation? Maybe she was just dreaming, or had she truly gone crazy?

As she walked back up to her desk, the news was still blaring. She kept her head down and walked to her cubical, she put her head in her hands and sat down.

“What is wrong with me?”

This voice came in her head, “Nothing, you’ve just become alive.”

A Few Months Later

She sat on her couch and smiled, it’d been three months to the day since she quit her job and changed her whole life. She dove into research and figuring out what the world was really about, she began writing again. Through this writing she discovered the depths of her soul and her own truth. She started a new job that fulfilled her purpose and that made her feel alive; Alice would never again have a job that made her feel dead inside. In a few short months, she had grown so much and it all started with a whisper.

She walked into the busy grocery store filled with fearful people. She was now mask-less, nothing covering her face or her soul, she stepped in with confidence and strength. She immediately noticed all the people staring at her shirt that in big letters read, “Just Look Around & Open Your Eyes”, the six words that changed her life. Alice spotted someone her age who was masked and obviously buying into the game, so Alice strolled up to her.

The woman was alarmed and taken a back, and Alice could sense it. Alice had always hoped to repay the gift that was given to her, so she whispered into this woman’s ear, “This thing covering your mouth, it’s not for your health, it is for control. Look for the truth within because you won’t find it outside, the media is just a lie.”

The woman was speechless but, Alice wasn’t looking for an answer, all she wanted to do was help her fellow human, because sometimes the truth just started with a whisper.

Be fearless and free -Ace

Author’s Note – I normally don’t like giving my character’s names unless I’m writing a huge story or something. I try to avoid labels as much as I can. But, this story would be too confusing without her name, so I searched for names that meant truth and Alice was the first to come up. It makes sense, get it, Alice In Wonderland, going down the rabbit hole, etc.