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- Story Listed as: Fiction For Teens
- Theme: Love stories / Romance
- Subject: Fate / Luck / Serendipity
- Published: 01/07/2013
1st August
Change comes and goes. It is the way of the world. But it’s not every day that you wake up and find that everything has changed from top down. That was how he felt on the first day of college. Everything around him was new and different. The change felt like liberty; because for a +2 student like him, any place that allowed freedom of thought was heaven. He staggered to get used to this new way of life. After spending a year in monotony of books, tests, exams and more exams, he could not get enough of the college life. He did not mean to sound like a stereotype first timer but he could not help it. Life seemed beautiful now.
2nd August
He was walking along the main avenue. The trees on both sides were shedding and the light falling through those leaves made him love the place even more. He liked to get caught up in surprises. There was a tinge of warmth in the air. The rustle of leaves as he stepped over them was a pleasing sound; that was when he saw her. She was walking down the road, her brows were bent in anxiety, her eyes had a fear in them and she was walking as though she had forgotten something. To him, at that moment, the world did not matter; everything around him seemed to come to a standstill. Looking at her, walking down the road, he was ready to drop dead at that very spot. She gave him a mean look as she went past him; even then he failed to realize that he was awkwardly staring at her. The blaring horn of the car coming his way snapped him back to reality. The realization sunk in upon him. He felt something that he never believed in; he fell in love.
15th August
Two weeks to the day he was bowled over. The Independence Day was a rather gloomy affair. The rain stayed put for most of the day and refused to budge. The sun was out for an hour in the morning and his friends wanted to exploit it as much as possible.
“C’mon lets go play cricket” his friend tugged at his arm and proceeded to drag him to the ground.
“Are you mad? We are first years; we can’t go to the ground. College started two weeks ago remember?”
“Last time I checked, we live in a free country. So, I am going with or without you.”
The reason was an excuse. In reality, he was trapped; trapped with himself; trapped in her thoughts. The mere feeling of being with her was enough to make his day. Every time he thought about her, his stomach did a back flip. All this was useless if he did not have the guts to talk to her. The talking came later. He had as good a chance of knowing her as becoming the next president. He wanted to know her and talk with her but he did not know where to begin. He was becoming more restless and less focused day-by-day. When he looked at himself, it was like looking at a love lost Tamil hero; only the BGM’s and villains were missing. Every time she happened to cross him, his friends yelled out his name, making him seem even more like a jerk.
College had thought him many things in a very little time; the most important of them was the value of his mother’s food. Most of the time the boarders felt like they were being treated as sick people. A hint of salt in three meals combined was an achievement. At first it seemed very good; the variety of food everyday felt hotel-like; but once the routine sunk in everybody started preferring the canteen. He wanted to spend the Independence Day with good food; the canteen more than obliged his desire. His gut feeling told him that he would see her at the canteen. At the canteen, he realized that his stomach had misinterpreted hunger as ‘gut feeling’.
21st August
The most positive thing about us human beings is the way we celebrate birthdays. Every birthday that arrives is a step closer to the end; but looking back at history, the end has not bothered anybody. The 21st of August was the birthday of his friend. The words ‘enjoyment’ and ‘fun’ where taboo in his school. Birthdays of students were never recognized. Color dresses were not allowed and birthdays were treated like every other day. He always felt a sense of excitement creep up a month before his birthday; but after getting through that school, that feeling was nearly subdued. He was standing by the window in his room trying not to think about her. That was when he heard the commotion outside. He went out of the corridor and was taken aback to find his friend lying on the floor face up, a strange mixture of soap, water, detergent, honey and a lot of other weird stuff upon him. His face was pasted with cake. On looking at the sorry state his friend was in, he proceeded to give him a hand. His friend looked up with gratitude on his face as he got up from the floor; the good gesture was met with a fair dose of cream to his face. He was a little angry but he got over it and entered the celebrations in full swing. He got so much involved that he stopped thinking about her. Everybody was caught up in a mad fantasy; the birthday celebrations were almost unreal. He wanted to believe that everything was a dream; but the only dream in front of his eyes was her. All was going well, until the talking began and naturally he became a target.
“You don’t have the guts to talk to her”
He decided to keep quiet. He could have talked his way out of it but he did not want anybody to have any hard feelings.
“Try talking to her, I bet your mouth will malfunction”
“Try? We as hell know that won’t happen, right?”
He sensed the talk getting out of control. He tried walking away but none of them would have it; they seemed poised to make him let out his anger.
“Coward”
“Spineless Bugger”
As the names kept coming, his anger kept piling until it reached a tipping point.
“Enough” He made sure that the entire corridor heard him.
“Yeah, tough talk won’t help; prove that you are brave and not otherwise.”
“Alright; I will make her fall for me; give me a month; I will get the words ‘I love you’ out of her mouth”
“All the tough talk is fine but what’s the wager; what if you fail at the end of one month?”
“I will shave my moustache.”
“Are you sure? That’s a dangerous offer.”
“Never been surer.”
The Next 30 Days
For those gifted with that uncanny courage, direct talking always works; for everybody else, there’s Facebook. Was it accident or a cosmological effect, he did not know but she accepted his friend request. He worked with a conflict of incentives; he was not sure whether he was attaining her by saving his moustache or the other way around. One thing led to another and they moved beyond facebook. She still remembered him as the jerk who stared at her but that opinion was fast changing. They began meeting at the canteen. She began calling him whenever she had a problem. He sent her the first ‘good morning’ and the last ‘good night’ messages. She liked the way he looked at her; there was something in his eyes. He liked the way she said sorry after arriving half-an-hour late. He liked the way she stained he cheeks with sauce while eating samosas. She became conscious about the way she looked. He started spending fifteen minutes in front of the mirror. She loved the little gifts that he got her. He burned a hole in his dad’s pocket but consoled himself by saying that it was true love.
One Month Later
Life is alright most of the time; but sometimes it is graceful and sometimes downright cruel. It so happened that her birthday was his deadline. He put his creative side in overdrive and made it her best birthday ever. He got the canteen staff to sing her ‘Happy Birthday’; he had her favorite dish cooked off the menu. He ordered all the butterscotch ice cream in the canteen, it was her favorite flavor. He smuggled a cake and saw her face light up like the moon. The gift came next; he put a lot of thought into it. Too much was at stake; the gift had to be just perfect; any gift would get the words ‘thank you’ out of her mouth but a ‘thank you’ would not be enough. He got her a coffee mug with her name, zodiac and pictures of her as a kid printed across it. Words failed to describe the expressions on her face. She kissed him on the cheek with the whole canteen watching. He was bowled over; he felt the exact same way he did when he first saw her. He was confident about saving his moustache. She held up the cup in her hands and said “I love…..” his world seemed to hang in the balance; the next word coming out of her mouth changed everything “……it” she finished pointing to the mug. At that moment all he wanted was to be that coffee mug.
The Next Day
The moustache came off in two fluid strokes. He felt like a man with a damaged identity. Everywhere he went people gave him a stunned look. Nobody had imagined him without a mustache and it was difficult to digest. The bright day did nothing to cheer up his mood. He was sitting alone in the last bench waiting for classes to commence. He arrived at the class early so that nobody would make fun of his look. From outside the classroom he heard her voice; he rushed out to see her standing outside wearing the same dress as the day he saw her.
“I remember this dress; it was the day you first saw me. Listen I have something to tell you; I did not want to tell it in front of all those people yesterday. Actually, I am a little scared so here” saying so she reached into her bag and pulled out a large envelope. Inside it was a card filled with poetic verses. At the end, written in bold red letters, were the words “I love you”.
Love grows fast; he saw that for himself; mustaches, sadly don’t.
One Month Later(Ram Prabakar)
1st August
Change comes and goes. It is the way of the world. But it’s not every day that you wake up and find that everything has changed from top down. That was how he felt on the first day of college. Everything around him was new and different. The change felt like liberty; because for a +2 student like him, any place that allowed freedom of thought was heaven. He staggered to get used to this new way of life. After spending a year in monotony of books, tests, exams and more exams, he could not get enough of the college life. He did not mean to sound like a stereotype first timer but he could not help it. Life seemed beautiful now.
2nd August
He was walking along the main avenue. The trees on both sides were shedding and the light falling through those leaves made him love the place even more. He liked to get caught up in surprises. There was a tinge of warmth in the air. The rustle of leaves as he stepped over them was a pleasing sound; that was when he saw her. She was walking down the road, her brows were bent in anxiety, her eyes had a fear in them and she was walking as though she had forgotten something. To him, at that moment, the world did not matter; everything around him seemed to come to a standstill. Looking at her, walking down the road, he was ready to drop dead at that very spot. She gave him a mean look as she went past him; even then he failed to realize that he was awkwardly staring at her. The blaring horn of the car coming his way snapped him back to reality. The realization sunk in upon him. He felt something that he never believed in; he fell in love.
15th August
Two weeks to the day he was bowled over. The Independence Day was a rather gloomy affair. The rain stayed put for most of the day and refused to budge. The sun was out for an hour in the morning and his friends wanted to exploit it as much as possible.
“C’mon lets go play cricket” his friend tugged at his arm and proceeded to drag him to the ground.
“Are you mad? We are first years; we can’t go to the ground. College started two weeks ago remember?”
“Last time I checked, we live in a free country. So, I am going with or without you.”
The reason was an excuse. In reality, he was trapped; trapped with himself; trapped in her thoughts. The mere feeling of being with her was enough to make his day. Every time he thought about her, his stomach did a back flip. All this was useless if he did not have the guts to talk to her. The talking came later. He had as good a chance of knowing her as becoming the next president. He wanted to know her and talk with her but he did not know where to begin. He was becoming more restless and less focused day-by-day. When he looked at himself, it was like looking at a love lost Tamil hero; only the BGM’s and villains were missing. Every time she happened to cross him, his friends yelled out his name, making him seem even more like a jerk.
College had thought him many things in a very little time; the most important of them was the value of his mother’s food. Most of the time the boarders felt like they were being treated as sick people. A hint of salt in three meals combined was an achievement. At first it seemed very good; the variety of food everyday felt hotel-like; but once the routine sunk in everybody started preferring the canteen. He wanted to spend the Independence Day with good food; the canteen more than obliged his desire. His gut feeling told him that he would see her at the canteen. At the canteen, he realized that his stomach had misinterpreted hunger as ‘gut feeling’.
21st August
The most positive thing about us human beings is the way we celebrate birthdays. Every birthday that arrives is a step closer to the end; but looking back at history, the end has not bothered anybody. The 21st of August was the birthday of his friend. The words ‘enjoyment’ and ‘fun’ where taboo in his school. Birthdays of students were never recognized. Color dresses were not allowed and birthdays were treated like every other day. He always felt a sense of excitement creep up a month before his birthday; but after getting through that school, that feeling was nearly subdued. He was standing by the window in his room trying not to think about her. That was when he heard the commotion outside. He went out of the corridor and was taken aback to find his friend lying on the floor face up, a strange mixture of soap, water, detergent, honey and a lot of other weird stuff upon him. His face was pasted with cake. On looking at the sorry state his friend was in, he proceeded to give him a hand. His friend looked up with gratitude on his face as he got up from the floor; the good gesture was met with a fair dose of cream to his face. He was a little angry but he got over it and entered the celebrations in full swing. He got so much involved that he stopped thinking about her. Everybody was caught up in a mad fantasy; the birthday celebrations were almost unreal. He wanted to believe that everything was a dream; but the only dream in front of his eyes was her. All was going well, until the talking began and naturally he became a target.
“You don’t have the guts to talk to her”
He decided to keep quiet. He could have talked his way out of it but he did not want anybody to have any hard feelings.
“Try talking to her, I bet your mouth will malfunction”
“Try? We as hell know that won’t happen, right?”
He sensed the talk getting out of control. He tried walking away but none of them would have it; they seemed poised to make him let out his anger.
“Coward”
“Spineless Bugger”
As the names kept coming, his anger kept piling until it reached a tipping point.
“Enough” He made sure that the entire corridor heard him.
“Yeah, tough talk won’t help; prove that you are brave and not otherwise.”
“Alright; I will make her fall for me; give me a month; I will get the words ‘I love you’ out of her mouth”
“All the tough talk is fine but what’s the wager; what if you fail at the end of one month?”
“I will shave my moustache.”
“Are you sure? That’s a dangerous offer.”
“Never been surer.”
The Next 30 Days
For those gifted with that uncanny courage, direct talking always works; for everybody else, there’s Facebook. Was it accident or a cosmological effect, he did not know but she accepted his friend request. He worked with a conflict of incentives; he was not sure whether he was attaining her by saving his moustache or the other way around. One thing led to another and they moved beyond facebook. She still remembered him as the jerk who stared at her but that opinion was fast changing. They began meeting at the canteen. She began calling him whenever she had a problem. He sent her the first ‘good morning’ and the last ‘good night’ messages. She liked the way he looked at her; there was something in his eyes. He liked the way she said sorry after arriving half-an-hour late. He liked the way she stained he cheeks with sauce while eating samosas. She became conscious about the way she looked. He started spending fifteen minutes in front of the mirror. She loved the little gifts that he got her. He burned a hole in his dad’s pocket but consoled himself by saying that it was true love.
One Month Later
Life is alright most of the time; but sometimes it is graceful and sometimes downright cruel. It so happened that her birthday was his deadline. He put his creative side in overdrive and made it her best birthday ever. He got the canteen staff to sing her ‘Happy Birthday’; he had her favorite dish cooked off the menu. He ordered all the butterscotch ice cream in the canteen, it was her favorite flavor. He smuggled a cake and saw her face light up like the moon. The gift came next; he put a lot of thought into it. Too much was at stake; the gift had to be just perfect; any gift would get the words ‘thank you’ out of her mouth but a ‘thank you’ would not be enough. He got her a coffee mug with her name, zodiac and pictures of her as a kid printed across it. Words failed to describe the expressions on her face. She kissed him on the cheek with the whole canteen watching. He was bowled over; he felt the exact same way he did when he first saw her. He was confident about saving his moustache. She held up the cup in her hands and said “I love…..” his world seemed to hang in the balance; the next word coming out of her mouth changed everything “……it” she finished pointing to the mug. At that moment all he wanted was to be that coffee mug.
The Next Day
The moustache came off in two fluid strokes. He felt like a man with a damaged identity. Everywhere he went people gave him a stunned look. Nobody had imagined him without a mustache and it was difficult to digest. The bright day did nothing to cheer up his mood. He was sitting alone in the last bench waiting for classes to commence. He arrived at the class early so that nobody would make fun of his look. From outside the classroom he heard her voice; he rushed out to see her standing outside wearing the same dress as the day he saw her.
“I remember this dress; it was the day you first saw me. Listen I have something to tell you; I did not want to tell it in front of all those people yesterday. Actually, I am a little scared so here” saying so she reached into her bag and pulled out a large envelope. Inside it was a card filled with poetic verses. At the end, written in bold red letters, were the words “I love you”.
Love grows fast; he saw that for himself; mustaches, sadly don’t.
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