Chapter 1: I do not care
Okay so now you know what is the apparent end of my love story let’s start off from the very beginning. How it all started and how I was successful in fucking up my family’s life as well as my ‘life’s’ life, if you know what I mean!
It was the Indian summer of 2009, I was in class 11th, a tender age of 17, with the summer vacations on and a lot of work to be done and yet studying occupied the minimal time. I wouldn’t blame myself but my age for it. Such behavior is expected from every teenager, of course, apart from those nerdy ‘IIT material’.
As was my outlook towards life, I didn’t like to do a lot, yet I always kept whining that I was bored. Hence, once the holidays began, as was customary, I was off to my cousin’s place in Dehradun to make the vacation feel like a vacation!
Even though it wouldn’t be as much fun for I would miss the fifty degree centigrade temperature of our very own Delhi in the month of June! (Yes, I am destined to instigate sarcasm wherever I can.)
Spending the time with the cousins, Kabir, who was an year older, Ayesha who was an year younger and my real sister, Simran, was always magical and amazing. The sweet banter, a number of practical jokes, late night chit chats, late night movies plus no early mornings given the fact that all of us were jobless and fully agreed with the great man who once said, “Early to bed early to rise, go man get a life!”
We were carefree souls with nothing to worry about. This is one thing I have always cherished about summer breaks, there aren’t any exams round the corner and hence there isn’t much to think about as far as studying is concerned. Even though school days are when a child is scared shit of exams and studies round the year, we all had pretty much formed the habit of a college going kid. Maybe we were trying to familiarize ourselves with the custom of college. Which custom? Well, all it takes is 24 hours before the exam to complete the course book be it 400 pages or 800! I love this custom to be honest, oh and I forgot about the nerds, the few of them who weren’t able to go through their nerdy IIT dream and end up being in a college which I might eventually go to, will aim for the IIMs or have an equivalent nerdy dream and yet again stay busy with the books day in and day out! Anyways I will rather leave the nerds alone for I know none of them is going to read this book so I would rather let them study for now or maybe forever.
Simran and I arrived in Dehradun on the 6th of June and we had already started following what the ‘great man’ had once said. We saw a movie, played the classic truth and dare game, the banter went along irrespective of what we did. The next day, I woke up at around 2 in the afternoon.
By the time I woke up, the other occupants of the house and my three partners in crime were already up and ready. Turns out there was a party at the neighbor, Ayesha’s residence and all of us were invited, the reason being, it was Ayesha’s best friend, Tanya’s birthday party and Ayesha was going to skip it given that we had come over but Tanya wanted her best friend to be there so she invited the rest of us too. Even though I am one of those fun loving guys who is always trying to be happy, trying to make people around me happy and trying to make them smile, but social gatherings appeared pointless to me especially when you know no one present there. You are introduced to people; you look at them, judge them, get judged by them, pass a smile and move on. It’s a rarity where you meet someone whom you really think is worth spending the night with (no puns intended whatsoever)!
I didn’t really want to go so didn’t even bother getting up. I was woken up at least 5 times by Kabir but it is almost impossible to wake up an already awake human being unless the person himself wants to wake up!
“Get up. Next time it will be water on your head that will wake you. Also, I don’t want to hear any fuss about not going to the party. Either all of us are going else none of us is!” Ayesha said.
I was undeterred by Ayesha’s threat, trying to play it cool thinking that she was playing a bluff and wouldn’t actually do what she had just said, but it looked like I had stretched it a bit too far.
She was standing with a bucket full of water right next to me, a mug in her hand ready to spill water over me and hence I had to give in to the demand. I got up, hurriedly and disinterestedly got ready for the party, didn’t bother to shave, wore my usual clothes and came out.
“I am ready. Let’s go.” I said.
“You are going to wear this to the party Vishal?” Ayesha questioned with a frown on her face.
“Yes….I guess so. What’s the problem with these clothes?” I said.
She looked at me from top to bottom and then back up, then at Simran and then at Kabir, as if to gain any sort of support from them and make me change into a little more decent clothing.
“I think you should change bro. It’s her friend’s birthday. Wear what she wants you to wear.” Simran said supporting Ayesha.
“Oh come on. This is fine.” I argued and looked at Kabir for support.
“I am with Ayesha on this one. You should change.” Kabir said and smirked. This was expected from the two of them, none of us ever left an opportunity to irritate each other.
We were pure followers of the rule. “To avoid a quarrel, be with the majority!”
"My reputation is at stake and well its Tanya’s party who knows what might happen. When I picture in my mind you sure will make a cute couple.” Ayesha mocked.
“Oh get lost. What do you want me to do, tell me?” I said pretty much irritated.
“First of all, shave off you beard till then let me take a look at your wardrobe and find something that is close to worth wearing to the party for I know you won’t have anything ‘worth’ wearing so I will only search for ‘close to worth wearing’ clothes.” Ayesha mocked again.
“But of course.” I said and went to shave off my beard.
After twenty odd minutes, I was clean shaven, wearing a formal shirt and a pair of jeans.
“Now you will make an even cuter couple.” This time Simran mocked.
“Oh shut up. What the hell is wrong with you people? I haven’t even met her. Where is all of this coming from? As it is, I don’t care!” I replied.
None of them said a word and kept smiling to themselves.