Soniya Ghale
Maya sat at her desk, the notebook in front of her almost mocking her. She was smart, there was no doubt about that. She excelled in every single class, her grades were perfect, and her teachers often praised her for her work ethic. But there was something no one could see, something she didn’t let anyone close enough to notice: Maya was terrified.
It wasn’t failure that scared her, she had long mastered the art of working hard enough to avoid failure. It was the fear of trying something new. The fear of being vulnerable. When Maya stuck to what she knew ,study sessions, textbooks, research papers, there was a safety in it. She controlled her world with precision. But trying something outside her comfort zone felt like stepping into the unknown, where failure wasn’t a possibility-it was a certainty.
And if she failed, people would see. They would notice her flaws, her mistakes, and she couldn’t bear that. So Maya stuck to her bubble, where the world was predictable and she didn’t have to risk being judged. The problem was, staying in her bubble had a cost.
At lunch, she ate alone at the back of the cafeteria, always with a book in her hands. The other kids were hanging out in groups, laughing, talking about the latest movies or weekend plans. Maya couldn’t connect with them. They were into things like sports or clubs, and Maya felt like she didn’t belong in any of those spaces. It wasn’t that she disliked them-it was just that they seemed… risky.
Her friend Layla, however, was different. Layla was outgoing, the type of person who could walk into any room and make a friend within minutes. She was the kind of person who made life seem easy-effortless, even. Maya admired that about her, though she couldn’t quite relate.
One afternoon, as Maya was packing her books into her bag in the library, Layla approached her with a wide grin. “Maya, you should come try out for the track team,” she said, bouncing on the balls of her feet.
Maya froze, her heart sinking. “Track? I don’t really-” she started, but Layla cut her off with a wave of her hand.
“It’s just a tryout, no big deal. You might surprise yourself. Plus, it’ll be fun! I know you like challenges.”
Maya looked down at her hands, feeling the familiar tension creep into her chest. “I’m not really a runner,” she muttered, almost to herself.
“Oh come on,” Layla persisted. “You’re always so focused on academics. It might be good to get out of your head for a bit. You might even like it.”
“I’ll think about it,” Maya said, trying to sound polite as she closed her notebook. It wasn’t a yes, but it wasn’t a no either. She didn’t want to upset Layla, but she also didn’t want to admit she was scared.
“Promise me you’ll at least show up,” Layla urged.
Maya nodded, forcing a small smile. “I’ll think about it,” she repeated, her voice trailing off as she headed out of the library.
The next day, Maya found herself standing at the edge of the track field, feeling like an imposter. The other kids were stretching, laughing with each other, their easy camaraderie reminding Maya just how out of place she felt. She wasn’t athletic. She wasn’t outgoing. What was she doing here?
She almost turned to leave. But then, she spotted Layla across the field, waving enthusiastically. Layla’s face lit up when she saw Maya standing there, and Maya couldn’t help but feel a little tug of guilt for even considering leaving.
“You came!” Layla shouted, jogging over to her. “I knew you would.”
Maya shrugged, trying to hide her nerves. “I don’t know about this,” she said, glancing at the other students who were starting to line up for the warm-up. “I don’t think I’m cut out for this.”
“You won’t know until you try,” Layla replied with a wink. “Just give it your best shot. No one’s going to judge you.”
Maya didn’t say anything in response, but Layla’s words lingered with her as she joined the other students. She felt out of her depth, her muscles stiff, her heart pounding in her chest. As the coach blew the whistle and the warm-up began, Maya stood there for a moment, uncertain of what to do.
Then something unexpected happened: she started moving. The stretches weren’t so bad. The light jog around the track felt easier than she had anticipated. With each step, she began to relax, a little at a time. She wasn’t the fastest. She wasn’t the best. But for the first time in a long while, she wasn’t thinking about how she looked or how she compared to anyone else. She was just… running. And that felt, in a strange way, freeing.
By the end of the tryout, Maya was exhausted, but there was a strange lightness to her, a sense of accomplishment. She had done something new. She hadn’t been perfect, but she hadn’t failed either.
“See? That wasn’t so bad!” Layla called out, her voice full of excitement as she jogged over to Maya.
Maya couldn’t help but grin back. “I didn’t think I could do it,” she admitted, wiping the sweat from her forehead. “But I guess I didn’t do as badly as I thought I would.”
Layla laughed. “Told you. You’ve got more in you than you realize.”
Maya wasn’t sure what had changed, but something inside her had shifted. For the first time, she realized that it wasn’t about being perfect. It was about showing up, trying, and letting go of the fear of failing. It was okay to be messy. It was okay to not always have it all together.
From that moment on, Maya began to push herself outside of her comfort zone. She signed up for track, even though she wasn’t the fastest. She joined the debate club and tried out for the school play, even though speaking in front of others still made her nervous. With each new experience, she learned to embrace the discomfort, to push through the fear.
By the end of the year, Maya wasn’t the same person she had been. She was still the smart, focused girl everyone knew, but she was also someone who had learned to take risks. Someone who was willing to try, to fail, and to keep going anyway. She wasn’t afraid to step into the unknown anymore. And that was the most freeing thing of all.
