The steps that fostered a friendship for life

Through the classroom window, Tiya spotted Raisha slouched on the ground. She ran down the array of stairs to call Arjun. They needed to carry her back home immediately.

When the steps decide between right and wrong
Photo prompt – copyright@soniasmusings

“I had to give up my cricket match for this wasted friend of yours.” Arjun sounded annoyed. “You have been trying so hard but she doesn’t want to cooperate at all.”

“We have been dating for two months now but do you know how scared I would feel to even walk down these stairs alone? When I shifted from Jhansi to Delhi, I was bullied incessantly in the campus for my looks and accent. Raisha barely knew me yet she stood up for me. When she realized that I missed home, she started finding excuses to take me to her house. Her mom made me feel like family. Raisha had grown up without a father but when she lost her mom to cancer three months back, she sunk into depression and turned towards drugs. How can I abandon her today when she needs me the most?”, tears rolled down Tiya’s cheeks.

Arjun held Tiya’s hands firmly. Together, they would help a friend retrace her steps towards a normal life, he promised.

(200 words)

This is the second post written as part of the #MyfriendAlexa campaign as per my theme ‘Shades of Perception’. You can read the first post written around the same picture prompt here.

For this challenge, I will be using four photos as prompts to weave two flash fiction stories and one real story behind the picture. Stay tuned to read the third post that will be about this picture and its significance. You could also consider subscribing to my blog if you like reading my stories.

I am taking my Alexa rank to the next level with Blogchatter

 

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Author: Sonia Chatterjee

An alumnus of Presidency College (Kolkata), Delhi University, and XIME (Bangalore), Sonia Chatterjee holds two post-graduate degrees in Chemistry and Management and an MFA in creative writing from Writer's Village University. With eight years of experience in the banking sector as a Branch Head, she took a sabbatical from the corporate world to start her blog soniasmusings.com. Her blog consistently featured in the Top Indian Blogs list from 2019 to 2024. Her articles have been published on various digital platforms such as Women's Web, Youth Ki Awaaz, Tuck's Magazine, and Period Magazine. She was invited as a speaker at the Breaking Barriers, Kolkata 2018 event by the Women's Web, at the Women Writer’s Fest, Kolkata, 2020, and the Crime Writers Festival, Kolkata,2025. Sonia has written two detective thrillers titled ‘Deal of Death – Introducing Raya Ray’ (2019) and ‘Diary, Deceit, and Death – A Raya Ray Adventure’ (Vishwakarma Publications, 2024) and a non-fiction book on true crime titled ‘The Sanyasi Who Became a King’ (Sristhi Publishers, 2025). Her book ‘Diary, Deceit, and Death’ was shortlisted for the PVLF Awards 2024-25 in the Best Fiction Category. Sonia lives in Kolkata with her doctor husband and nine-and-a-half-year-old son.

37 thoughts on “The steps that fostered a friendship for life”

  1. Raisha is lucky to have a true, all weather and all seasons friend. I am sure Tiya would bring back Raisha’s life on track.
    Heartwarming story Sonia.

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  8. This is a sad, but sweet vignette. It’s hard to stand by a friend who is on a determinedly self-destructive path, but Raisha’s is not of long duration and not without cause. It’s not yet a pattern she clings to, so it’s good that she has friends to help her out of the abyss. In real life, those friends should get her some professional and medical help, as well, but be there with her throughout, if they can, so she knows she’s got someone at the other end of the dark tunnel.

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  11. This reminded me of something and someone 🙂 I personally don’t believe in having a crowd of people around me, who we call friends. Honey coated people you know. And I feel blessed to have a few amazing friends in life who I know will always be there for me, no matter what. Loved the post.

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    1. Thank you for reading Anshu. Actually the third part will be the background of this click. I am planning to write 12 posts on 4 picture prompts. For each picture, two fiction in different genres and the story behind the picture. That’s what I have thought of. This story actually needed more length. But I would leave it here as of now. Probably write the sequel post Sep.

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  13. Pingback: The history and mystery surrounding the steps – soniasmusings

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