Daiva - A Modern Tale of Indian Mythology

Inara's Prologue

I blame my impulses. Here I am stuck in this weird building in some random alley running away from a possible bone-breaking fight. I can't be blamed entirely though. You can't expect me to see a dude being mean to an old lady and a cow and not punch him straight in the face. I mean, I did ask nicely but he didn't listen and now I'm hiding in a random building, panting like I ran a marathon, which I technically did, with an aunty staring at me like I'm insane and a group of weird teenage men chasing me. How amazing. All I had to do was get a packet of milk and rush home but here I am, putting myself in danger.

Today's been going shitty. Firstly, I'm stuck in one of Hyderabad's random buildings as I run from a dude and his friends whose nose I broke and who will probably break mine too, and secondly, I'm probably gonna get killed because I received a message from my parents telling me we had to 'talk' and that I better get home soon with the milk. The word 'talk' coming from them is equivalent to death and shitty might just be an understatement.

╰──╮・ꕥ・╭──╯

Well, In the end, I finally made it home with the milk packet, a few scratches, and no broken nose. The scratches were barely evident and my parents wouldn't even notice until they took a closer look. 1 - me : 0 - creeps, HAHA.

I walk in quietly only to find both of my parents waiting for me on the couch and from the way they're looking at me I can feel my soul wanting to leave my body and the anxiety creep up my shoulder.

"Inara, we need to talk to you," Mom says and I come sit down on the couch parallel to them, passing the milk packet to my younger sister who runs into the kitchen to put it in the fridge. "You're going to boarding school in Kerala." Dad continues and my brain short circuits. Nothing seems to make sense. "Why?" I ask, almost too quiet to hear. "Why? Because your grades, your behavior, your habits, nothing has been right and maybe this will help shape you." Ma answers and I can feel the waterworks flooding in. "When do I leave?" Is all I can say. I don't have the energy to argue and I know even if I did it wouldn't work. I'll never be enough for them. "Tomorrow" she replies and I just nod and walk into my room to pack. 0 - me : 1 - the universe.

Honestly, I don't know what to pack. Part of me hates how no matter what I do they'll never be proud enough but the other half is relieved that I don't have to put on a show anymore. That I don't have to work every cell in my body for an "I'm proud of you" that I'll never get. I walk up to my closet and take a look at the contents in it. What do I pack? I look around and see a stack of white uniforms. I can definitely be trusted with white. I grab the uniforms and the sticky note on top of them which says "Pack some of your clothes too. The uniforms are only a mandate on the weekdays." Great. Ma couldn't even tell me this.

I walk back to my bed with my uniforms in hand and about an hour later I'm done packing. A set of uniforms, a few jeans and tops, my flute, a few books, my diary, and headphones all stuffed away to join me on my journey and now that I'm done packing I don't know what to do.

I lay down on my bed and stare at the ceiling. I'm not too sad about leaving Hyderabad, the city doesn't have anything left to offer, and neither do I have anything to offer to the city. Hyderabad is my home, and yeah I do love it, but sometimes, letting things you love go is better than holding on. 

╰──╮・ꕥ・╭──╯

I fell asleep and woke up at around ten in the morning and I spent the whole day just getting ready for my departure, and finally, after a long, awkward and mentally tiring day later, I'm on my way to the airport.

My parents dropped me off at the airport and that was probably the longest hour of my life. I've never been this awkward in my life. As I stand outside the airport my parents pull me into a hug, soft smiles on their faces. I leave them with an awkward hug and quickly run in. This awkwardness is gonna kill me. Another hour later I'm done with all my procedures and I'm on my plane to Kochi.

╰──╮・ꕥ・╭──╯

The plane ride was a blur. It was just me sleeping, staring out the window, eating, listening to music, and creating poetry and daydreams in my head. In a total of an hour and forty minutes, this is all that I did. I landed in Kochi at eleven and it took me half an hour to find the exit.

I walk through Cochin airport's large door and I see the bus of my new school, shining through the darkness, waiting just a few meters away. Call me a romanticist but the moment I looked at the logo a shiver went down my spine and it felt like magic went pulsing through my veins and whatever brought me here it was definitely meant to be.