- What if the world told you 'men never change'. Would you still believe in redemption?
- What if your whole life is shrouded in secrecy. Would you shed your mask for one person anyway?
- What if an avatar intrigued you. Could you fall in love with...
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Ameerah
My alarm was always set for 7 am on weekdays. Though, for the last two weeks in a row I had been jumping out of bed well before then. In fact, by the time my alarm rang, I was already showered, dressed and instructing our cook to put the second cup of chai I had made in a travel mug.
"That boy is driving you to work again?" Abu asked as I gobbled down my toast coated with a thin layer of cottage cheese.
"Mhmm."
"Any updates on who sent you the cards? I'd really like to get Raja back to work. I already told that detective he is innocent."
That was a question I honestly did not want to know the answer to. It had not been easy for my parents to get around the city without the driver and with us sharing only one car, I realized that, but an end to the anonymous cards saga would mean an end to the rides back and forth from work with a man whose silent presence was starting to become the highlight of my day.
His nods and grunts and muttered words had become a language I was becoming fluent in. We seemed to have an unsaid pact where I spoke to my heart's content, and he simply listened. One might think it was a one-sided affair, but only I knew how perfectly in tune his facial expressions were. The clenching of his jaw, a frown on his forehead, a hint of that smile I craved so much - they all meant something. To him, I wasn't just a fool yapping my head off.
The forty minute daily commute was the quiet comfort I feared would leave an indescribable void when the identity of the card sender was revealed.
"Not yet," I told my father, dreading the day when my answer would be to the contrary.
Zain
It was never too long after entering her apartment complex that I would see her skipping down the stairs, wisps of hair trailing behind her, that smile - like dawn breaking over a serene landscape - always reaching her cheerful eyes, captivating me even before she saw me.
Enjoy your luck, I'd tell myself. It was past its end date anyway.
"Chai?" She asked as soon as she got closer and extended a travel mug towards me.
I'd never been a big fan of chai, one cup a day was all I needed. Till the night I sat with her on the seaside.
Now, it was my favorite beverage.
"Thank you." I took a sip. Perfection.
She slipped into the seat next to me and I waited to see if she'd put on her seatbelt. She did, on her own, after days of me chiding her. Good, she knows how to listen too, I told myself. It wasa reassurance I needed from time to time.
"Kaise ho?" she asked.
"Theek," I replied.
When silence inundated us again she poked me on my shoulder. "Mujh se bhi poocho mein kaisi hun."
