The decision to participate in the competition grew stronger in Lina's mind every day. But this decision also carried a deep fear within her. Her heart ached as she thought of the hardness in her father's eyes and her mother's voice, "Focus on your studies instead of painting." Telling them the truth was nearly impossible.
So Lina chose to keep her dreams secret.
In the evenings, when she retired to her room, she would lock the door, open her notebook on the table, and draw for hours with her pencil. Sometimes, her head would drop onto the table from exhaustion, her eyelids heavy, but she refused to let go of her pencil. For drawing wasn't just a hobby for her; it was her very existence.
One night, after everyone else had fallen asleep, she opened the window slightly. The cool night breeze flowed into her room. She sat at her desk and began to paint the sky on the canvas. First, deep blue tones, then purple, then the white glow of the stars… With each glide of the brush, her heart felt a little freer. But at the same time, there was the constant fear of being caught. It felt like if the door creaked open, her entire world would collapse.
The next morning, she sat at the breakfast table, her eyes swollen and sleepless. Her mother looked at her intently.
"Lina, did you stay up late again? What's gotten into you?"
"I was studying, Mom," Lina said in a low voice.
Her heart clenched as she said this. Because it was the first time she'd ever hidden something so big from her family.
Her best friend, Elif, noticed her at school.
"Your eyes are red. Something's going on with you. Won't you tell me?"
Lina hesitated. Then the weight inside her couldn't hold it any longer.
"I'm going to enter the competition," she said, almost in a whisper. But no one knows.
Elif's eyes lit up.
"That's amazing! You're so talented. You should definitely try."
"But my parents... they'll never let you."
"Then prepare in secret. I'll be there for you. I'll help you."
Elif's words filled Li's heart like hope. For the first time, she felt like she wasn't alone.
From that day on, the two of them started working together after school. She browsed art books in the library, Lina sketched in the empty classrooms, and Elif gave her ideas. Every day, Lina's dream took shape and grew a little bigger.
But Lina's biggest problem was now the materials. Her small notebook sketches weren't enough to enter the competition. She needed a large canvas and strong colors. She didn't know how to get them, or how to hide them from her family.
One night, sitting in front of the canvas in her room, she picked up her brush. She dipped her hand into the paint. Her heart was racing. Maybe she would be caught, maybe her dream would be cut short. But there was no turning back now.
She whispered to herself:
—No matter what, I will finish this painting. Because this isn't just a painting… this is my dream.
And within the hidden colors, Lina began to take the first real steps on her own journey.