The Coming of Age
Trigger Warning
Our story picks up five months after the last chapter, Rani has entered her second year of college and L.C. has begun driving. Things seem to be changing for the better…
Rani was getting ready to head to her English class with her boyfriend, Tyson and was in the midst of putting makeup on in her dorm room. Then she got a text from her friend Lori Foulette, “Hey Rani, something terrible has happened. Check Facebook as soon as you can.” Rani read aloud. Rani thinking that it might have been something about Lori’s family, rushed to open her laptop.
Rani then logged into Facebook and her jaw dropped. L.C. HAD DROWNED HERSELF IN A LOCAL LAKE. It wasn’t stated whether it was intentional or not. Facebook and Instagram was filled with posts dedicated to L.C. with prayers and thoughts. Did L.C. choose to end her life? There were a million possibilities, it drove Rani crazy not knowing.
As Rani read the posts, she started to cry and Tyson gave her a comforting hug. “Babe, I’m so sorry. Sometimes life deals hard cards out to the toughest soldiers.” he said. Rani replied, “I know, but L.C. did not deserve this. I was looking forward to you guys meeting over Fall break.” The two decided that attending English class wasn’t the best idea for Rani today. The two sat in her dorm, while Rani explained her pansexual relationship with L.C.
The funeral was set for Friday evening, but Rani would not be able to make it due to her being in a separate state. Rani thought about what she could do to change how people viewed suicide. While she was a film major, she did advocate for suicide prevention. She wanted to show L.C. how even in death, that L.C. was the love of her life. Tyson was a strong support throughout the grieving process.
“Rani love, perhaps you could make short films or PSAs about mental health awareness.” Tyson suggested. Rani got a lightbulb on her head, she just thought Tyson’s idea was the most creative idea she ever heard of. “Tyson, that is wonderful. We can educate people through film, I mean after all everyone loves watching television.” she replied. They got out a piece of paper and started to brainstorm.
The next week, Rani approached the chair of the film department, Dr. Reinhart about the idea. Dr. Reinhart thought deeply on the issue, considering he lost his sister to suicide, and approved the couple’s idea. They would begin filming the next day. They decided to take the approach of teen suicide and to promote the symptoms of recognizing when someone has depression. The video took two days to complete and was a thirty-minute short film.
Friday, it was aired on the campus theater blog. Rani’s group promoted it all over their social media and encouraged others who watched to share it. The video received mostly positive ratings, but the important thing was it made them think about how life can be unexpected. “L.C. would have been proud of me.” Rani thought to herself. She would have done the same thing if the situation was vice versa.
Reflecting back on their friendship, Rani realized that each person touches a live in a different way. She realizes that her friendship made her stronger as a person. Because of their friendship, she accepted herself as pansexual. Because of all these things, Rani found a big purpose in her life: To help others. As Rani stood over L.C.’s grave, she left a rose and said “Thanks for being you.”
