Srinagar, Aug. 28 -- I woke on 24 July 2025 with a rush pressing against my chest. Morning light filtered through thin curtains, falling across stacks of files and a half-packed bag. I slipped a Rs.500 note into my pocket, careful, deliberate, like tucking a small hope into a hidden corner. I was already late for the High Court. Breakfast was a luxury I could not afford.

Outside, Srinagar was stirring. Sumos rattled over potholes, street chai steamed from small stalls, faint prayers drifted from mosques, shopkeepers called to customers, and rickshaw horns buzzed.

The city moved like a persistent current. I had to swim upstream to keep pace.

From NIT Srinagar, I caught a Sumo to Exchange Road, paying the driver with coins and a twenty-r...