Srinagar, July 26 -- As a child, before I could answer what I wanted to become, I discovered something even more precious: the joy of true companionship. That discovery began in a school corridor in Kashmir, with a boy named Altaf.

Altaf was everything I wasn't. He had charm, confidence, and a way of talking to people that made them listen. I, on the other hand, preferred to observe from the corners.

He once led a group trip to his maternal home in Ganderbal. That place was like him: lush, alive, full of surprise. It's where I learned that friendship doesn't need similarity, just trust.

Then came Rahil, Yasir, and Mudassir. We were boys who dreamed big and studied hard. Yasir had a poetic walk, graceful like the couplets he often quote...