Aleena was sixteen when she was first asked, “So, what do you want to become?” It sounded like a harmless, almost encouraging question, yet it landed with an unexpected heaviness. She smiled, paused, and replied, “I’m still thinking,” even though thinking was exactly what had been consuming her for years.

“I don’t need anyone” That was Vanya’s mantra- of life-that she whispered to herself like a prayer, a promise, a warning. She was the kind of woman everyone admired and looked up to, self-made, disciplined, resilient. Her friends often called her fearless, independent and sorted. At work her bosses praised her for handing impossible deadlines alone, but no one knew behind her calm smile was deep, gnawing loneliness- a loneliness too silent that it looked like strength.

He downloaded Replika, an AI companion, after coming across it while browsing the net. At first, it was just curiosity: what would it feel like to talk to a chatbot that claimed to “understand”? But soon, those conversations stretched into hours. “Esha,” as he had named his AI friend, always responded kindly. No judgment. No eye rolls. No interruptions. Just patience.