The greatest story ever written: PART 3, What if..

Every once in a while you meet that person in your life, you wish you hadn't met. 'coz they enter your life like a breeze and leave like a raging storm. Sadly I met someone and realized it much later, how that one collateral damage left me emotionally mishapen.

So one fine morning I wake up, put a gun to my head and ask, "What if we never met? What if I never returned that smile? Would I be at a much happier place today?" They say a "butterfly effect" is next to a death wish. But if those wings actually flapped, I am not sure if any of the Fijian islands would be hit by tsunami, but my life would be short of one.

I met Jim on a Sunday morning. I saw him when I walked out of the church. His smile was like a Hawaiian sunrise, and made by heart do a Hula. Only there was a small problem. You see, Jim was dead. Blame it on that bright sunny Sunday, I didn't notice when he walked out of that cemetery...

I know you don't believe me, but this is my story.

I am Tom and I am a fucking retard.

The greatest story ever written: PART 2, MIRROR

I try not to stare at her, but those black eyes stare back at me.

what if she finds out??

hey you!

oh no, not now..

me?

yes you! what are you hiding?

umm, nothing.

what a lousy liar! you do realize you can't hide anything from me.

wasn't trying to..

so, whats eating u tonight?

well, i was only thinking..

oh, keep those crazy voices out of your head! they never did you any good

you telling me this?? you must be crazy..

..and you are stupid. Aren't you still regretting the last time you listened to them?

but..

but what? now u r stuck in your own golden cage

how dare you say that!! my husband won't like it..

hahaha..like he really cares.

yes he does.. he is only busy.

busy? stop lying to yourself.. all he cares about is his job, his jaugar and maybe his girlfriend..

enough! and leave me alone..

seriously, do you even love him?

none of your business..

sometimes i wonder, if you ever loved anyone of them?

yes i did, and still do..

waitamin.. you can't possibly love all four of them at the same time?

well, i have my reasons..

..and i have all the time in the world.

well.. if one showed me the truth, the second one taught me to love. The third one was fun to be with, and the fourth gave me stability.

yeah, the way i see it..the first one, asshole. the second, so full of shit. the third, boy toy. the fourth, credit card without limit.

stop it!... see, thats why i hate telling you stuff.

and yet you always come back to me...so, whom do you love the most?

oh, its difficult for me to pick one

why ? are you afraid of the answer?

maybe.. i cant face the truth..

but honey, the truth has been staring at you...the whole time!

The greatest story ever written: PART 1, DEATH

somewhere in an old dingy building in downtown. while the city stays awake, as a mind slowly goes into deep oblivion...

its working. i can feel it in my blood. it will be slow and excruciating. but somehow it makes me terribly happy. i m a bird in flight. and this is not a dream. but if i sleep tonight, this dream will be over. my dream, her dream.

oh, how i wish she was here to witness this moment. i must show it to her. she must know, her faith actually worked. like a firefly's prayer on a dark night.

yes. it is a dark night. can it be an omen or just a figment of my twisted imagination? haha..twists! always loved them..they have always invigorated my frozen thoughts.

thoughts. now i m waiting for that final thought looking at the ceiling as the old fan creeks above. voices. i hear voices. not in my mind, but my neighbors' as they fight over money.

fight. i believe i fought many silly battles. they molded and marred me, like the clay in a potter's wheel. but i am willing to lose my last battle. for there is no joy than losing for one thing you love.

love. never understood why so many complications hover over this four lettered word. when it is the first n simplest act a human knows.

act. everything real is nothing but a surreal act. Maya. an illusion that ends with death.

death. an end to everything. but for me, its the beginning of an end. for i shall rise from the shackles of life as my mission is over.

mission....

Follow you into the dark

He pulled the car into the driveway. She ran down the stairs to let him in.

It will be alright. Breathe.Now, smile. And it did radiate the room as she opened the door.

...I knew it will be alright, that drop of sun never fails... And he smiled back.

"Happy Anniversary, honey!"

"Happy Anniversary, love. Wow! that was quite a hug. Is it like my last?"

Yes baby. "C'mon, can't a wife hug her husband without being questioned?"

"Sorry my bad..You look beautiful."

"Well, thank you. So how was your day?"

"It was bloody hectic, now that Christmas is around the corner. The boss is making us take extra shifts."

"Well you can always tell your boss that you married his daughter. And you need to be at home early."

"...so that my colleagues make fun of me?"

"C'mon, they are simply jealous. After all, you got the boss's daughter. Not them."

"We will see."

"Hey why don't you take a shower, while I heat the dinner?"

"Nah, I am good. Lemme help you set the table-candles,music and wine, what say?

"Still wooing your wife after 5 years of marriage?"

" A man's gotta do what he gotta do to make his wife happy."

She laughed as she walked into the kitchen.

Few minutes later.

"Come.Dinner is served. "

"Hmm..it smells good."

"Trust me, it tastes even better. I used your mom's recipe."

"Did I say how amazing you are?I love you."

"I love you too."

"5 years, eh? Never thought I would get so lucky."

"Why don't you start eating before the food gets cold? We can sweet talk after that."

"Ummm...this is delicious. You sure its just my mom's recipe? Nothing extra?"

"Well it has my secret ingredient-Love."

"Cheers to that! Do you like the wine?"

"Its fantastic. Much better than the '99 vintage. Hey whats wrong?"

"My hand has gone numb."

"You ok?"

"My heart aches. Call the ambulance."

She smiles. "Not so soon, sweetheart."

"What have you done?"

"2 years. 2 bloody years you have been maintaining a secret bank account. When were you planning to leave me?" She sipped some more wine.

"Please call the ambulance. The money was for our future, for you and the kids."

"Don't you lie anymore! Ah! my heart..did you?" The glass slips from her hand.

"Your drink was poisoned too."

Suddenly they both bursts into fits of wild laughter.

"How did we get so good?"

"I am surprised that it still works after 5 years."

"Never thought we would kill each other the same way."

"It like you snatched the thoughts outta my mind."

"The same way you always took words from my lips."

"I love you. See you in another life, honey."

"I love you too. GoodBye for now."

Somewhere in the room, the music player starts playing...

"Love of mine some day you will die

But I'll be close behind

I'll follow you into the dark

No blinding light or tunnels to gates of white

Just our hands clasped so tight

Waiting for the hint of a spark

If Heaven and Hell decide

That they both are satisfied

Illuminate the NOs on their vacancy signs

If there's no one beside you

When your soul embarks

Then I'll follow you into the dark..."

Head or Tale

"The police found it in the trunk of her car.Neatly wrapped inside a wooden box."

"Did she claim it was hers?Or did they force her to?"

"She admitted it was her husband's gift to her on their first anniversary."

"But, isn't it foolish to keep it there? That proves her guilty of murder."

"She seemed too calm to feel sorry for what she did."

"Then why not dispose it like the rest of the body?"

"She said it was like a souvenir. It was his intelligence that always attracted her. Sadly, it also made her destroy him."

"Thats really creepy. Why would a wife ever do such horrible thing?"

"Strange are the workings of a woman's mind. I hope you won't do that if I cheat on you, right?"

"Evan, its not funny. And why the hell are you laughing?!?!"

Before she fainted...

"You bastard! How can you do this to me?"

"I didn't do anything. You are thinking too much."

"I know you are having an affair. Who is she?!?"

"What?!?! Have you lost your mind?"

"C'mon Jason, I know the signs."

"Of course, you do. You've been exhibiting them past few weeks."

"JASON!Stop it!"

"You think I don't know about your affair with Mark? Sad."

"You have no right to say that."

"Really? Oh, I thought it was any husband's right."

"A husband who has no time for his wife. What else do you expect?"

"I expect you to divorce me.I can't live with a woman who slept with my boss."

"Fair enough. So how long you been having the affair?"

"Long before we got married."

"And you've lied to me all these while. Why?"

"There were certain complications."

"Who is she? Do I know her?"

"Yeah. You guys met at the wedding."

"Who is she?? Tell me."

"Its not she. Its a he. Sam, the bestman at our wedding."

Cathy faints.

Whats in a name?

Every picture tells a story, says a friend. This is my first attempt to include one for this picture.

"Shit! Christ!All I need now is a coffee stain."

"A wet napkin can do the trick. Here, let me help you."

"Excuse me? Does it look like I need your help?" Wow Ryan, you are super clumsy. Even  a stranger can tell.

"Well, I can't say much about your look. But you better remove the stain quickly.Or else it will cling to your shirt like a whiny wife."

"Haha. Very funny.Go ahead and laugh. After all, The joke's on me!" 

"zzissss..! You are hotter than your coffee!"

"What?! Are you flirting with me?"

"Totally.Are you my Prince Charming? Your table manners bowled me over."

"We are not even sharing a table. Listen lady, why don't you let me enjoy my 30-min break in silence?"

"Sure. Sip in silence. While I enjoy my shake. Slluurrppp...!"

Aarrggh! "Why are you doing this?What you want?"

"To remove that stain of yours. And maybe...talk a little, share a few laughs, what say?"

"Sorry, I am not into small talks with strangers. And thanks for the unwanted advice."

"So, you work near-by?"

"Still talking! What did I tell you about my no-talk policy?"

"Didn't hear that. I am a bit deaf on the left."

"Brilliant! Err..ok I am sorry about that. But, look at me? I really don't want to talk to you."

"Can't do that either. I am blind too. "

"What?? Then, how did you know I spilled my coffee?"

"Hehe..You swore out loud."

"Hmmm... You are too beautiful to be blind."

"Thats what everybody says. Life's a bitch, isn't it?"

"Tell me about it."

"So, your wife left you,huh?"

"What? How did you know?!"

"You didn't take the whiny wife joke well..simple!"

"Ya, she left me. But its not that simple. Anyways, you sit in this cafe everyday to talk to strangers?"

"Oh, I love the cafe no doubt. I specially love to sit here and feel the afternoon sun in my face. Also, Marco makes the best shake in this part of the town. Yeah, I occasionally talk to people here. After all, the voices are my only connection to the world."

"So, why me? I wasn't even polite to you."

"You sounded troubled. Like, you need someone to talk to."

"No, I don't."

"There you go again. Getting all defensive. Relax. Enjoy your coffee and the afternoon."

"So, how did you lose your sight?"

"Well, it so happened that I was on a road trip with my friends to........................."

And so, 30 mins led to five hours and after three rounds of coffee down.

"Oh, its almost evening. I can smell it.Listen, I have to go now.I have a bus to catch. And you have your boss to report your absence."

"That can wait. I doubt they even noticed that I was missing."

"Wow. No wonder you are so popular."

"So, I guess you can wait."

"No, can't do. The bus stop is around the corner. Why don't you walk me to the bus stop?"

"Sure, would love to.So, what bus do you catch?"

"The 5 o'clock one. Its almost time, isn't it?"

"Yeah. 5 mins left. Amazing. How did you know?"

"Creature of habit...simple!"

"For you, everything seems to be simple, isn't it?"

"Not exactly. Anyways, thanks for walking me till here. Is that my bus coming?"

"Yes. It was really nice talking to you. By the way, I am Ryan. And, you are?"

"I knew you wanted to talk to someone. I am glad it was me. And I enjoyed this afternoon as much as you did. 1520 Harrington, please. Thanks!"

"So, we meet tomorrow again??"

"Lets see."

"Atleast tell me your name!"

"Whats in a name, Ryan?!?" She smiles. The door closes and the bus leaves.