This is a story of a boy who is on the verge of teenage or rather 14 when he first falls in love. The girl is not the protagonist here. But after having a crush on a few more girls, he realizes that he is capable of loving not only girls but guys to...
He did not know what had happened and I acted the same. If he had known that I had been hurt due to him he would go mad. He beats up the one who hurts me. He would commit suicide if he happened to see my cut.
"You will watch porn but not make it. Why is that so? You will have sex with me. Now." And just then, the candle went out. I grabbed the opportunity and texted Aditya my location and the shortest precise sentence I could think of.
"Babu...You okay? Say. God damn it." He stubbed his toe against the chair. And my heart sank. I loved him as much as he loved me. Out of humanity, I felt a strong surge of pain when somebody got hurt. Like a blind man, I found my way to him and helped him stand.
"Babu. You are okay? I am sorry I should have turned on the lights. I am so sorry. I am..." Before he could say anything, I kissed him.
I could feel the ridges of his lips. His teeth were dipped in wine and his tongue as chaste as I had left it. He tasted like a fresh packet of grapes. Our closed eyes were a symbol of our shameful deeds. I did not want to see what he had done while he was too ashamed to look at what he had made of me. Blood was trickling from my brows and neck. His presence was everywhere. On my neck, collar bone, around my waist, my hands, underneath my jaws, my mouth, my heart and my brain. I let time flow because this would be the last time I would be kissing him. The last moments with him. The last moments in heaven before I went back home.
Our kiss was interrupted by Aditya who grabbed him and dragged him to his car. Deepak was reluctant. He did not want to let me go. He fought back but the alcohol was kicking in slowly. Amidst this chaos, Deepak held the tablecloth and dragged it. The white satin flailed in front of my eyes. It was a panorama of our white lies and pure love. The glasses fell and broke into several pieces. It reminded me of the dreams of our crashing and withering into dust. The candles rolled across the room and hid themselves under the drawer. I saw my lover being dragged by his best friend to his car. The car door shut out his cries and the engine revved up and outcried his ones.
In no time, I was crying. I looked around. I saw several pictures of mine smiling back at me. This boy had everything in his pockets. I ran my fingers across the intricate detailing of the borders he had made. I felt his presence everywhere. The doorknob he opened every day after sunset, the drawer he opened to apply glue to my new picture and the smiles in the air were too frequent in this room. I was jealous of the walls and the mirror who saw him smile more than I ever could. But all this had to end.
I pulled out the lighter and lit it. The flame was scared by the depression on my face. Tonight I would end things forever. Without any second thoughts, I lit the pictures. Slowly the fire engulfed every single picture. The reality of this cruel world and sinful humanity is like fire devouring nascent love. The amber flames were his eyes witnessing the vestige of our love and destroying it. Our castle was crumbling into ashes. We were in ruins and I was on my knees.
I started picking up the glass pieces of the wine glass from the floor. One by one, I carefully picked up the transparent pieces of the glass which were the remnants of our incomplete love story. I could see the days we spent and the happy hours in those small pieces. And then one hurt. It pricked my finger and it bled. Like the first day when he had ignored me completely and driven away. Occasionally one or two hurt but after picking up most of them, each one did. Each memory was painful and made our love vulnerable to destruction. Once I was done, all the pieces in my hand pricked my palm. I smiled at the symbolism. With time and the increasing painful memories, the good times start hurting and this is why people feel love hurts.
I was cleaning the floor when the room was on fire. The doors, the windows, the curtains, the pictures: everything. And then I felt the entire room collapse. I was under the heavy framework of the door. Time was slowly passing by. I had a few minutes left. I closed my eyes and I saw everyone I loved. And then I opened my eyes to have a look at the stray dog standing outside the house and watching me die. Its black round eyes shone in the dark but he hung his head ashamed to see a painful death.
Now I could leave the world for I had a mute testimony. I closed my eyes and the house collapsed into dust.
And I was nothing but a distant memory and a flowered portrait.
