The doll had been sitting on the shelf for two years—emotionless, hollow, lonely—until one day the owner walked into the room holding a cage containing two birds: a boy and a girl. For the first time in two years, a smile sat on the doll’s face. A couple of months went by, and the doll became friends with the two birds in the cage. One day the owner walked in and opened the cage. He attached a chain around the girl bird’s foot and placed a tape on her mouth. “You are free to roam around the room.” He said to the girl bird. “You are free to go wherever you wish to travel to.” He said to the boy bird and opened the window for him. At first, the girl bird was happy for her freedom. However, after a week of roaming around the room, she noticed how not free she was. Her brother could travel the world whenever he wished, but she could only dream of it. She could only imagine being independent, flying high, laughing out loud, and being free. She was forbidden to experience them in real life due to her gender. Being a girl was her punishment. She stopped roaming around the room and stopped hoping for something more. Each time her brother told stories about his travels, the chain felt heavier and heavier. She was feeling suffocated by her thoughts, muted voice, tears, and dreams. The doll on the shelf saw how the girl bird was losing her hope, joy, and smile. She wanted to do something, but she was helpless. She was chained to the shelf as well. One day the boy bird flew to travel again. The girl bird tried to leave the room too but she kept being pulled back into the cage harshly due to the heavy chain. The doll on the shelf witnessed how the girl bird lost her spark, her last drop of tear, and her last breath. She saw how she was lying on the floor without any soul to be crushed anymore. And after two years, the doll let out a loud sob, causing the room to crumble down, though the scream was muffled due to the tape on her mouth.