Vikramaditya, or Vikram, was a 25-year-old B.Sc. graduate stuck in a web of frustration and uncertainty. Despite completing his studies, he had yet to find a job. His parents, though loving, had grown increasingly concerned.

“You can’t keep sitting around, Vikram,” his father would say, his tone tinged with a mixture of love and impatience. “You need to get a job, find stability.”

Vikram felt the weight of it all. He wasn’t lazy, but every job he applied for felt wrong. The typical paths didn’t appeal to him. He wanted something more, but he didn’t know what. Everyone around him seemed to have their lives figured out—his cousin, Arun, was already making a name for himself at a tech company, while Vikram was stuck, searching for meaning and direction.

Vikram’s best friend, Rina, tried to offer encouragement, but even her words felt hollow. She was always so certain of her path—working at a well-known marketing agency and climbing the career ladder. But Vikram didn’t want to follow in anyone’s footsteps; he wanted to create his own path. Yet, the path was unclear.

One evening, feeling the weight of another failed interview and the frustration of his endless job search, Vikram decided to drown his thoughts in alcohol. He wasn’t used to drinking much, but that night, he drank far more than usual. His mind was foggy, and his body heavy with the weight of it all.

Wandering aimlessly through the streets, he stumbled upon an alley he didn’t recognise. The city around him felt foreign, even though he had lived here his whole life.

That’s when he saw him. A figure in the shadows, standing at the entrance of an old, unassuming building.

“You seem lost,” the man said. His voice was calm, almost knowing, as though he could see the turmoil inside Vikram. “Would you like me to show you a way out?”

Vikram, disoriented and desperate, didn’t ask questions. His mind was clouded, but part of him felt that this moment was different—this could be the answer.

“I don’t know what I’m doing,” Vikram mumbled, his voice thick with alcohol.

The man’s eyes gleamed in the dim light. “I can show you a world where everything you want can be yours. But you must step inside and leave everything behind.”

Vikram hesitated, but something inside him urged him to take the leap. He nodded.

“I’ll do it,” he said, though his words were uncertain.

The man smiled and led him inside.

The man, who introduced himself as Mr. Infinity, led Vikram into the building. Inside, the room was filled with strange devices, books, and unfamiliar objects. It felt like stepping into another dimension, or perhaps into his own subconscious. The air was thick with the weight of mystery, and the man’s calm presence seemed to absorb Vikram’s confusion.

“I’m not here to guide you,” Mr. Infinity said, almost as if reading Vikram’s mind. “I am simply opening the door. What happens next is up to you.”

Vikram didn’t fully understand, but the idea of escaping his troubles was too alluring. He stepped forward, and everything around him shifted. The world dissolved, and Vikram felt himself slipping away into a new reality.

When Vikram opened his eyes again, he was no longer in the dimly lit room with Mr. Infinity. Instead, he found himself standing in the middle of a bustling city—a city that was eerily similar to his own but slightly altered. The streets, the people, the atmosphere were all just familiar enough to feel real, yet there was something magical about the place.

“I’m in a different world…” Vikram murmured, his thoughts racing.

“This is the world you can live in,” Mr. Infinity’s voice echoed from somewhere far away, fading with each passing second. “The world where you can be whatever you wish.”

Vikram looked around, disoriented but intrigued. In this world, there were no boundaries, no limitations. Here, anything was possible.

Vikram quickly realised that this new universe was different from the one he knew. Here, everything he wanted came to him with ease. The struggles and frustrations of his real-life—job hunting, rejection, the pressure of expectations—seemed like distant memories. In this world, all he had to do was wish for something, and it materialised.

Vikram first explored the idea of being a lawyer. In his real life, he had always been interested in law but had never pursued it due to the demands of his family and the pressure to find something practical. But here, in this universe, Vikram simply stepped into a law firm, and within days, he was a fully-fledged lawyer. The work came to him easily, the cases were straightforward, and he won every trial without breaking a sweat. He made a fortune in record time, with none of the struggles or years of hard work usually required to reach that level.

He was respected, admired, and wealthy. Everything seemed perfect… until a client came to him with a complex case—one that weighed heavily on Vikram’s conscience. The case involved a large corporation that had knowingly harmed a group of workers, and Vikram had to decide whether to defend the corporation for the sake of his own career or fight for the workers, risking everything he had gained.

For the first time, Vikram felt a moral dilemma. As he sat in his office, staring at the documents, he realised something. The wealth, the fame, the power—it all felt hollow. His success had come too easily, and it didn’t feel earned.

Vikram tried his hand at civil services next, becoming a high-ranking government official. In this world, he had all the power he could dream of. He controlled policy, shaped the lives of thousands, and lived in luxury. But as he spent more time in the corridors of power, he realised the darkness behind the shiny surface—corruption, manipulation, and the lives that were destroyed in the name of bureaucracy.

The realisation struck him hard. His power felt tainted, and every decision he made weighed heavily on him. Despite the respect he received, Vikram could no longer ignore the truth: power without responsibility was a dangerous thing.

Vikram decided to become a doctor, hoping that saving lives would give him meaning. The work came easily—he diagnosed diseases with precision, performed surgeries effortlessly, and gained the respect of his colleagues and patients. But one day, a patient died under his care, and the loss hit Vikram harder than he expected. He realised that despite his skill, he could never truly control life and death. The responsibility of saving lives was a heavy burden, and the emotional toll of failure was something he could never escape.

The walls of the hospital felt suffocating, and the faces of the patients he couldn’t save haunted him. Every life he saved brought relief, but every failure left him shattered.

Curious about the world of law enforcement, Vikram took up the role of a police officer. At first, he enjoyed the power—he was respected, feared, and had the authority to bring criminals to justice. But as he investigated crimes, he saw the damage that law enforcement could cause. The violence, the corruption, and the constant threat of danger weighed on him. Every arrest, every case left a scar on his soul. It became clear that the power he wielded came at a price.

He began questioning whether the system was truly just or if it was simply another mechanism for perpetuating control. The power he had so eagerly embraced was now a chain, and the faces of the criminals he had apprehended—and the innocents caught in the crossfire—haunted him.

Eventually, Vikram tried becoming a simple shop owner, hoping to escape the complexity of power and responsibility. He envisioned a life of simplicity, free from the complications of authority and prestige. But even here, things weren’t easy. Running a business was full of its own problems—dealing with demanding customers, keeping up with competition, and managing finances. And despite the hard work, the shop never seemed to be enough. There were always more problems, more challenges.

The life of simplicity still came with its own pains, and Vikram found himself longing for something more. He couldn’t escape the feeling that no matter what he did, there was always something missing.

With each new role, Vikram began to see the same pattern: every job, no matter how easy or prestigious, carried its own burdens. Whether it was the pressure of responsibility, the emotional toll, or the moral dilemmas, there was always a cost. No life, no work, was without pain. In fact, the more he experienced, the more he realised that the easiest jobs were often the most hollow.

As he went through these roles, Vikram felt himself growing more distant from who he was. He had everything he thought he wanted—wealth, power, respect, love—but he realised it didn’t mean anything if it wasn’t earned, if it didn’t come with true struggle and growth.

One day, as Vikram wandered through the city, he found himself at a crossroads—a literal and metaphorical one. He stood in front of a familiar place, one that he had passed many times in this universe. But this time, it didn’t feel right. The tall, gleaming buildings, the smooth, effortless lives of the people, all seemed distant. The world felt empty, devoid of the deeper meaning he had once longed for.

He looked around and realised that no matter what role he took, no matter how perfect everything seemed, it didn’t align with who he was. The power, the success, the admiration—it was all fleeting. The weight of the realisations he had been avoiding hit him like a ton of bricks. The endless pursuit of ease and perfection had hollowed him out.

With a heavy heart, Vikram made the decision to leave. He knew what he had to do: step away from the perfection, from the illusion, and return to his real life. He had to face the struggles and the unknowns once more, but this time with a new understanding.

As he walked away from the city, the buildings, the people, and the easy life began to fade. The bright lights dimmed, and the air felt heavier. The parallel universe dissolved, and he felt himself pulled back toward something real—something grounded. Vikram’s surroundings shifted, and he found himself standing in the same alley where he had first met Mr. Infinity.

Vikram opened his eyes to the familiar sight of the city he had known all his life. The sounds of traffic, the hum of the street, the distant chatter of people—it all felt the same. But something inside him felt *off*. The colours seemed a bit brighter, the air too still, as if the world was holding its breath.

He stood in the same alley, but there was an unsettling quiet to it now. The old building where he had met Mr. Infinity wasn’t there. It had vanished, leaving only a blank wall. His mind raced, replaying the events of the past weeks—or had it been months?—and the overwhelming feeling that something wasn’t quite right.

Vikram walked home slowly, the quiet echo of his footsteps making the city feel strangely empty. The world seemed like a mirror, reflecting the one he knew but subtly altered, as though he had never truly left the world he had known.

Was this his life? Or had he woken up in another version of reality, one that he couldn’t fully see or understand?

As he approached his apartment, he noticed the usual sounds of the neighbourhood—children playing, the distant bark of a dog, the street vendors calling out to passersby. Everything seemed normal, but the weight of uncertainty pressed against him. The thoughts of the parallel universe lingered like a faint echo. He felt like he had left something behind, something important. But what was it?

He turned the corner, heading toward his building, when something caught his eye—a figure standing in the shadows of an alley up ahead. The familiar silhouette.

It was Mr. Infinity.

Vikram’s heart skipped a beat. The man’s face was partially obscured, but there was no mistaking the glint of recognition in his eyes. He stepped back into the shadows, vanishing as quickly as he had appeared.

Vikram’s pulse quickened. Was this real? Had he truly returned, or was he still trapped in some dream, unable to break free from the illusion?

The world seemed to close in on him. He stood frozen for a moment, trying to make sense of everything, but the more he thought about it, the more the lines between reality and illusion blurred. The deeper he searched for answers, the more elusive they became.

Perhaps that was the true lesson—no matter what path he took, no matter what reality he inhabited, the search for meaning was never really about finding external answers. It was about how he saw himself in relation to the world around him.

Vikram slowly walked away from the alley, the unease still gnawing at his mind. But this time, there was a strange sense of peace that settled within him. He didn’t have to know everything. He didn’t need all the answers.

He simply needed to live.

Vikram sat by his window that evening, watching the city’s lights twinkle against the dark sky. The world outside seemed just as it had always been, but within him, a shift had occurred. He realised now that the journey he had undertaken wasn’t one of escaping reality or achieving perfection—it was about embracing the struggles and contradictions that life inevitably brought.

As the night deepened, Vikram smiled to himself. He no longer felt lost. The uncertainty, the confusion—it was all part of the journey. The infinite journey.

In the distance, he could have sworn he saw a figure standing at the edge of his street. But this time, he didn’t feel the need to chase after answers. He simply let the moment pass.

After all, the search was never really about the destination.

.    .    .