Words of Stares

"Eyes speak far more than words ever can."

I remember the first time I came across this phrase. I laughed at how dramatic it sounded.

Until I lived it.

I was a typical child at an Indian wedding, running across the hall, colliding with another kid, and instantly turning it into a fight. Somewhere in that chaos, I remembered my mother’s warning about behaving in public.

My eyes searched for her.
The moment they found her, my grip loosened on that dumbo guy.

Her glare said everything:
“Behave.”

No words. Just a stare.

And that day, I began to notice.

A baby’s eyes softening with comfort at the sight of their parents.
A teacher’s sharp glance, and an entire classroom falling into silence.
A beggar’s eyes folding into hope as each passerby walks past.
The lingering, often unkind gaze of men over a woman’s body.

Every stare carried a language of its own.
And life, in its quiet ways, kept teaching me how to read it.

Nothing in this world comes for free.
Even a stare comes at a cost.
An expensive one.

Do you remember that moment when your eyes found someone, and without even realizing it, that single glance became a habit?

A glance at someone who unknowingly stirred something within you.
A glance that turned you into a quiet observer, trying to find a name for them beyond just a “crush.”
A glance that made you crave their presence, without reason or explanation.

Their absence felt heavier than it should have, and your day would end with a simple confession to a friend:
“It wasn’t a good day.”

A glance that turned you into a believer, praying to whoever the world believed in, just to be noticed by them.
A glance that gave you courage, just enough to think, maybe I should walk up to them.

The glance had turned into a gaze, hoping for affirmation from their confused eyes.

Then comes fate.

Will that gaze turn into love?
Or the next time you look at them, will your eyes recognize them as “past”?

But imagine, just for a moment, if it does turn into love.

Then, gaze will turn into habit.

A habit of looking at them and forgetting the weight of the world.
A habit where your eyes soften instantly, as if they’ve found home.
A habit of memorizing their smallest details, their expressions, their gestures holding onto them dearly.
A habit that makes your eyes smile.
A habit that slowly becomes a promise that someday, some special day, somehow, you belong to each other.

I used to believe there was nothing in between all of this.

But the universe proved me wrong.

It created something of its own.

A “Starelationship.”

Strange word, I know. But let me try to define it.

It’s a connection where two people repeatedly find each other in fleeting glances, even if they’ve never spoken to each other.

They cross paths. Their eyes meet for a second.
That’s enough.

They stand in a crowd. Their eyes find each other, then quickly look away.
That’s enough.

One might be wrapped in their partner’s arms, and the other one sitting quietly across the room.
Their eyes meet again.

And somehow, that becomes the longest conversation they’ve ever had.

The realization, which leads to a silent surrender.

Or perhaps,
a fierce triangle of betrayal.

A story that never began, yet somehow feels unfinished.

Anyway, I hope you carry your own version of a stare
one that speaks, even when words fail.