A Beautiful non-Dream

I had told her earlier that I do not want a cake and she had confirmed that she knew it. She had assured me that it was just the two of us eating out like any other day. But it wasn't just any other day. And I had no idea about it either. Absolutely nothing. Keine Ahnung. Zero. Zilch. 

Our final evaluations were already over. AN and RP were already back home by then. MR and I... we were still there in the town - both of us had some additional work. We used to meet up every now and then, but the frequency had reduced a lot even if we were in the same town, just a little over a kilometer's distance away.

So, on my birthday, MR asked me to go out for lunch together. I reminded her again that there can't be any typical celebrations (cake and dessert stuff). She affirmed that it would be just a simple lunch. 

There was no reason for me to expect anything anyway - an out of the blue event or any surprise of sorts. I mean, it was just me. In addition, it's always difficult to hide things from me. I kind of had a knack for sensing out things like that. Plus a surprise event for me was even out of imagination.So, unaware of anything, without any clue, I entered the restaurant - one of my preferred places in that town. Oh my, was I wrong? And how?

******

I love planning surprises and/or events, because I know how to do that. Most often than not, I would know everyone's preference: of food, of gift, and how best to execute everything that they would like. It always made sense to me.

Noticing or observing minor details about people's expressions while listening to them, what makes their eyes shine brighter, what makes them smile unknowingly, and thus knowing what they like had always been my thing. I have always believed that being that attentive was my self-assigned duty of sorts.

But you see, I had never been in the receiving. And I never imagined or believed myself to be worthy of that sort of privilege. For starters, others hardly ever knew anything about me or my preferences. I never imagined that someone else too can be attentive towards my jibber jabber and get to know about me from that. But they did.

 ******

Guess what... MR wasn't alone in the restaurant, AN and RP were there too! For me. For several minutes, I couldn't believe that they had come all the way just for me! Why would anybody?! I mean, it's just me! 

RP had travelled some 100+ kms, some 300 kms for AR, and even though MR was in the town, she had taken out of her work to plan this. They repeated it, in a non-chalant yet in an utmost caring way, to make me believe that whatever I was witnessing was actually happening... in this universe ... and it was not some crossover from a different universe where I can be made to feel so special. Till date, I wonder if it was just a beautiful summer fever dream.

We had lunch... together after a month. After lunch, they gave me the gift they got for me. I mean how much more could one expect... this already was far far off from any expectations I could possibly have. 

As I unwrapped the gift, I saw that it was something I had passingly mentioned months back, unintentionally. I wasn't even planning to purchase it myself. It was just mentioned in a breezy conversation and that too not explicitly. 

It was like somebody mentioning that they used to paint earlier and probably should give painting another chance, and you end up buying them a set of fine brushes and paints. Brushes and paints were never mentioned, it was just a casual conversation about painting. (It wasn't paints and brushes. That's an example to not reveal what the actual gift was.) They observed, remembered, and searched for it: exactly what I would love and use. 

Since it was a first for me, I didn't know how to express what I was feeling. And there was so much of it... the emotions. Such gesture was new... towards me. I never knew I was even eligible for such warmth. I kept wondering if it was right. 

When you put in effort for someone else, someone you care for, it doesn't even feel like an effort, but when you are the one receiving it, it means the world and more.

After talking for a bit, MR returned to her work, RP to her home, and AN stayed at my place (since returning the same day wasn't an option for her). She left the next day after breakfast. 

That was not the last time we met...the four of us together. It was once after that, the same year after a few months. Now, all of us are awaiting for our next meet up. It feels like a distant dream. But you know if something that wasn't even a dream (a non-dream, if you will) could come true, this surely will. 

Copyright © 2025 One Life To Live. All Rights Reserved

Rain and Broken Bones

It took me years to realize where the broken bones really were. I did not know there would ever be a story I would be telling when I reached that small town for my university admissions.

All I could see apart from the airport, which looked like a makeshift version of an overnight constructed luggage carousel, was the rain soaking every bit of earth it could see, while dampening every inch of whatever zeal I had left from the shortest flight I ever had. 

If you noticed the unnecessarily long and dragging single sentence, that's how the first day felt to me. Anyway, let's start from the start. 

The sun was on the verge of setting down. As I waited for the cab that would drive me to the small town where I was headed, I called a friend. The usual greetings later, I told (complained mildly) that it was raining. Heavily. Continuously. The reply was yes. I was as perplexed as you probably feel now. 

They elaborated further, saying that upon asking around about that place to people who had been there before, they heard that it rains there almost every day...round the year. Every nerve in my body must have witnessed an unnerving malfunction upon hearing that. 

I could just think... what? All throughout the year? You can't be serious. And I am here, almost committing two years of my life to this place! 

Despite every fit I should have thrown, despite every resistance I should have shown, despite the small voices in my head asking me to take the next flight back home, my body moved towards the cab...like clockwork. I was heading towards that small university town... the very one that I wanted to run away from even before arriving there. 

The hotel I stayed in, the mountainous roads, and the drenched green trees in that town were asking me if I was really going through the admission process that was scheduled the next day. And then among contemplations of various kinds and forms, the day, or whatever was left of it, ended. 

Early in the morning the next day, I decided to just check the campus and if still I couldn't find anything that I find agreeable, I would not join the university. After a while of looking around, as I was going towards the waiting room, I thought (was I thinking or was it something else?)... 

almost every student here has a fractured limb. Probably because of the treacherous roads. The rains were not making it any safer. I must be careful in these two years not to break any bone. 

What? When did I decide that I was going to stay the 2 years here? Was it some kind of indication? And just like that...abruptly... I knew I was going to stay. And I did. 

Every day was passing by fast. And slow. And every night I would thank the universe for letting me survive another day without a broken bone. I changed my footwear too. I gave up on any and every kind of heeled footwear and chose the safest ones. I counted each step more carefully than I had ever done. I alloted an additional 10 minutes than it was actually needed to walk from the classrooms to the hostel rooms. 

Whenever I wandered on the streets, even though I wasn't mindful of my thoughts and my existence, I was mindful of my steps. And a semester ended - the first one. I was ecstatic to go home and exhilarated to stop worrying about broken bones for a month. 

The night before leaving for home I received a text from a friend asking me if my semester was fine. We chatted for a bit over text...about plans for the vacation, my flight timings the next day, their university's semester schedule, their travel destinations, and the like. 

When asked about the top 3 things that I was looking forward to during that vacation, I remember excitedly replying : not having to worry about broken bones, not having to wake up that early, and being able to sleep early. Yes. That was my list... I didn't realize it then and not even for the next few years. The reply I received for that list was in the form of a combination of laughing and wondering emoticons. 

Anyway, they wished me the best for the last few hours in that place before vacations and I went off to sleep. The next morning, thankfully, was a sunny day. I took a cab to the airport, happily if I may add. 

Just before boarding, my friend again texted me to wish me a safe journey and to take care. Not TC or a a shortened version or a sentence without the ending punctuation. Take Care. With the period punctuation. Those were the last two words, ever, in that chat window. 

I survived. I survived the next 3 semesters. Without a broken bone in my body. I was careful enough... more than enough perhaps. Even though I was aware of the 'broken bone theory', I perhaps never took it seriously and I am not sure if I still do. Perhaps, I overlooked it without even realizing.

The rains in that place washed away that realization... perhaps. Even though it didn't rain everyday as my friend had mentioned, but it did for most part of the year. And that was sufficient enough to wash away many things that I held dear. And...

It took me years to realize where the broken bones really were. 

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A Little Something:

1. This is a fictional story written from a first person perspective.

2. The 'Broken Bone Theory', which can be considered an urban myth, suggests that if a person has never had a broken bone in their life, they may face duress/challenge in their emotional or spiritual aspects of life which will be similar to the physical pain of a broken bone. 

3. In this story, the protagonist was busy in avoiding the physical pain of a broken bone/fracture, but had to undergo a similar (or perhaps more) pain emotionally, the pain of losing a friend being one of the many aspects. Just like physical pain sometimes numbs the body (if it is too much to bear), emotional pain too can numb an individual to an extent where they don't realize the extent of the loss and pain.

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