We started watching the sun set from her balcony. Every single day. Without fail.

Here’s to 2021. May we always have a sunset to share.

We became witnesses to each other’s small bravery. Getting out of bed. Logging into that Zoom class. Trying again tomorrow.

I didn’t know then that those noodles would become a ritual. Or that Riya would become the anchor of my entire 2020.

That notebook became our confessional. It holds the real story of 2020 for us: the anxiety, the hope, the stupid jokes, and the tear stains.

On December 31st, we are going to video call at 6 PM. We are going to watch one last sunset of the year together, even if it’s through a screen. We’ll probably cry a little. We’ll definitely laugh a lot.

In those first few weeks, we were terrified and restless. The news was a horror movie playing on loop. So, we did what cousins do best: we created a parallel universe.