Fine.

The obvious answer to that age-old question: "How are you?"

And yet... that word is drenched in so many hidden feelings. A deadly term really...

Broken. Useless. Alone. Clueless. Betrayed. Fragile. On the edge. Depressed. Anxious. Abandoned. Crushed. Falling apart. Tired. Defeated. Burden. Bitter. Vulnerable. Sad. Frustrated. Hopeless. Confused. Hurt. Unsure. Damaged. Regret. Drowning.

That inch that I allowed to slip every day has become a hundred thousand miles of pure uphill. And now it's too hard. Too hard to try. Too hard to do. Too hard to even feel.

And I literally have nobody to talk to. Nobody that will just listen. Because either everyone wants to fix it, or they judge me. And I don't have the energy for either. So I keep it all inside. I suppose that actually means I'm strong. But I don't feel that.

"How are you?" someone asks as they walk up to me with a smile on their face.

I answer without hesitation.

"Fine".