Love Ju Short Stories Series 1- "35 Not Out"

Chapter 3

"You've known me since childhood, my parents didn't leave any shortcomings in my upbringing, they always prepared me to stay ahead. Their thinking, with their blessings, made me so successful today. I always focused on studying first, then on work, got good grades in college, took good packages. I was very happy with all this, and my parents were also very happy. But first my mother passed away, then some time later my father did too. When they were there, I never felt the feeling of being alone, but as they went away, slowly I realized how lonely I have become. I am now understanding what all I have lost." Saying this, I finished the remaining drink in my glass in just one sip.

"Yeah... so basically you're feeling lonely... just say it directly, why beat around the bush with all this melancholy," Tarun says.

Roshan gives Tarun a look and then pours a drink from the bottle into his glass.

"Listen, everyone goes through a phase in their life where they feel lonely. In fact, studies say that today 30 out of 100 people always feel lonely," Tarun says, taking a sip.

"Yeah, so now I'm one of those 30 people," Roshan says, looking up towards Dark Sky

"For that, there's a simple solution,go on holiday, have fun, chill out. Doing this will reduce your loneliness," Tarun suggests.

"I know that, but my problem is that when I come back home, I feel lonely. Even after coming back from a holiday, I'll still feel the same," Roshan says, sinking into his chair.

"So, do something you haven't done yet," Tarun suggests.

"What?" Roshan asks.

"Go on a date with a girl," Tarun says

Roshan places his hand on his forehead and looks down at the floor

"I know you don't want to do this, but actually, if you want to get rid of loneliness in your life, you need a girl who understands you, stays by your side. Besides, you're so rich, you can easily find any girl," Tarun says, finishing the remaining drink in his glass.

Roshan remains silent, lost in his thoughts.

"What are you thinking so much about? I'm not asking you to go to war, it's just a simple date," Tarun says, trying to reassure him.

"For me, this is not any less than going to war, you know I've never even made friends with a girl before, and you're asking me straight to go on a date," Roshan says.

Tarun gets up from his chair and approaches Roshan, looking at the screen of his mobile.

"Listen, this is called dating app Tinder. Here, you'll find lots of girls. You just need to send them a request, if there's a match, then you meet and start dating. Everything is simple nowadays, we just need to take a step forward," Tarun explains as he swipes through different profiles on the app.

"Are these profiles real or fake?" Roshan asks, looking at the apps.

"They're not always 100% real, but most of them are. And you'll figure out if a profile is fake or not once you match with someone and they ask for a paid service," Tarun says with a smile.

"Paid service..." Roshan says in a quiet voice.

"Leave it, I have those apps too, if you want, I can show you," Tarun offers.

"No... no... I seriously want to make friends, not this," Roshan insists.

"My brother, you should try everything, you should experience everything in life. That's what life is about, just keep experiencing, keep moving forward, and having fun," Tarun says as he pours a drink into his glass and starts dancing.

As Tarun continues dancing, he looks towards Roshan, who is still lost in thought.
Tarun then says, "How much will you think? I'll install this app on your phone." Tarun comes closer, takes Roshan's phone from his hand, and starts installing the app. He then begins creating a profile, entering Roshan's name and age as 25.

"But I'm 35, why put 25?" Roshan questions.

"You have to put less here to increase your chances of getting matches. You also have to write a bio that will quickly get your request accepted," Tarun explains as he completes the profile.

"Here you go, brother, your Tinder account is open now, and the first request is also sent. Now start choosing and sending requests," Tarun says, handing the phone back to Roshan.