Beyond 'S'

I could hear my heartbeat, ‘lup dup lup dup’ and my footsteps echoing as I walked out of my workplace. The narrow passage with the overview of the city on one side and the other was a glass wall overlooking the lab I used to work. Now it was just a room, a computer and a lot of respect. I kept walking out as the lights installed on top switched on and off along with every step I took. A piece of technology installed and devised by myself, to save power or maybe it was my way to compensate for the long drives I took by myself for no reason-“Maintaining the energy balance”. The shadows forming for an instant and vanishing in a blink of an eye and the city never looked better with all the lights. It had rained earlier and the refraction of the city lights through the drops on the glass, something I ignored. I didn’t know what time it was and it didn’t bother me. I wasn’t wearing a watch anymore because time had lost its importance in my life. It never ran slow, it did when I gave it too

I kept staring at the chandelier, the way it reflected it’s light all across the hall. A few more chandeliers in the room doing what exactly the one above me was doing, but I didn’t bother about the rest. It was like how in a Bollywood number, we look at the actor or the actress rather than the background dancers who are doing the same steps. I had a glass of wine with me and was trying to get the smell of it and move the glass around, just to make others feel that , ‘I knew my wine’. But trust me I had no idea. The color of wine shined in the presence of the chandelier which was the reason I noticed it at the first place. Looking over at the crowd that was dining a top notch dinner, I was waiting for a special person and our table to be ready. Right then, a girl in a wine red cocktail dress, a high pony and black stilettos just walked past by me as I kept sipping my wine. She sat couple of seats ahead of me and moved the strands of her hair behind her ears, waiting for her table,

I had made into the city, a bag of clothes; a will to persevere with no dreams whatsoever.  I was out on the streets roaming around with no clear goal. The light’s my source of inspiration, the chaos in the city- music to my ears, the smell- my food, the sea breeze-my refresh moment. Every face unknown, unfamiliar, yet had a bit of apnaapan in it. The old buildings were my getaway spots when the monsoon struck, when the sun was at its best it was the marine drives- The city presented to me in a way I wanted it to. I was being a part of it bit by bit, part by part. During Dasara it was the temples that fed me, Ramzan it was the flavorsome biriyanis at the mosque and during Christmas it was the churches. I was devoid of any relations to the things that mattered to a common man. I was in search of a life, a dream that the city had promised me as I left my own. A dream of a better me, a goal to bring in a change within me and around. I was quite lost in the fast moving, unparallel, inexh

“So many books, when will I get time to read all of them”, I thought. “A story lurking at every corner of the store”, I said to myself picking up a Gabo. A lady was standing beside me, gave a stare, the one that said, “Were you just talking to yourself” and I smiled. “Hi”, I waved at her. She waved back. “Advaith”, I said. “Snighda” She picked a book, I couldn’t notice the cover and then she moved to seating area. She was pretty, not so tall, long hair in short the general characteristics of a beautiful woman. I carried my Gabo and sat opposite to her. “Do you like Marquez works?” she asked. “Yeah, actually I do. The way he develops and presents the story is very intriguing” “I’ve read one of his books” “Which one” “Love in the time of Cholera” “Haven’t read that” “Ok” “By the way, what do you do?” “I’m a dentist. You?” “I’m a writer. Someday you might see some books of mine” “Ah, writer… What do you write??” “Anything that comes to my mind- The conver

I was staring at the wall, a photo frame which said “Medicine is my lawful wife and literature my mistress; when I get tired of one, I spend the night with the other” I was thinking about the quote trying to figure out the reason as to why was it hanging there? Suddenly the doctor walks in holding her schedule, she fails to notice me and rushes to her chair. She looks at me, “What the fuck!!” I have a smile on my face because that’s exactly what I was expecting. She looks into her schedule file, “Mr. Darcy 9-5” she reads it out. “You’re nowhere to be seen for a year and show up at my clinic doing dramatic things like this, asshole” “Yeah, I’ve been busy and you got married. Congratulations”, we hug each other. “It’s almost time to wish happy anniversary and you’re congratulating for my wedding. I’m pissed at you; Didn’t even attend my wedding, ass. You couldn’t wait for one day huh!!” “C’mon you know it. I’ve explained you a million times, the reason. By the way you’ve turned