There's Something About Mira

by Sonali Dev

No one says exotic anymore, but it’s what I got called all the time back in school, even by my teachers. I didn’t know any of the baggage the word came with until much later, but even back then I knew something was off about it, a stamp pressed into my skin that marked me as different in a seemingly desirable way that didn’t feel desirable at all.

“It’s really hard to explain my childhood, but it was restrictive. Like living inside a cage. At seventeen, I had never been to a party, a sleepover, not even a playdate, really. My parents didn’t trust anyone. They didn’t trust us to not be influenced by other people’s homes and lives and still be controllable. It worked. At least it worked with me.”

Oof I can relate

“People are dicks, Miru. Society has given them permission to be dicks as long as their evil is focused on those who can’t protect themselves.”

Ain't that the truth