Love on a Giant Wheel. :P

Mehul Chakravarty, a eighteen year old Bengali lad, born and brought up in Calcutta had cleared the All India Manipal University Online entrance test and joined the Medical College in Mangalore.
Life had changed drastically for him ever since he left his hometown where he was caged most of the time in his parents' 2BHK flat.

His reasons for never dating a girl was quite different from that of most of the others, and it sounded more genuine. His parents never  let him out with his friends except for the school picnic, and unlike most of the others, he never had a cellphone. His parents never bought him one because they were fearful  about his career and  did not want him to screw it up because of some girl or bad company. They did their best to cut off his almost non-existent social life as much as possible, just to make his life more vulnerable, rendering him lonely and desolate.

18 years of captivity had resulted in his extremely shy and introvert behaviour, which made it difficult for him to make friends, but people got easily attracted to him due to his charm. The first 8 days in Mangalore had been really strenuous but he eventually made his way through it. Soon, he had a set of friends who were hard to get. Krunal, Milaan and Abhishekh had been people who bonded up with him in a matter of few days and stood by his side whenever he needed them.

And now, he also had another reason to be excited about. He had a crush on a girl, which never happened to him in the past 18 years. Shanaya Awasthi, a 2nd year MBBS student, who was apparently his senior. She was the daughter of a well known Industrialist of Mangalore, and by merely looking at her, one could say that she was out of his league. He knew that too, so he never confronted her. And even if he tried winning her heart, he knew his adamant mother would never accept a non-bengali girl as her daughter in law. Ah, Mehul and his dreams.

One evening when he was standing in a queue to get the entrance tickets at the Karavali Fair near the Mangala Stadium with his friends, he saw Shanaya standing in the queue, a little ahead of him, and when she turned back to talk to a friend of hers, she smiled at him. He was jumping with joy for quite some time after that. Soon, they were inside, trying out all the rides. His friends, unlike him, were scared of the giant wheel.  As a kid, Mehul was afraid of sitting inside a giant wheel, but as he grew up, he loved it more than every other ride ever invented. He loved how one would reach great heights in half a minute, and would be very close to the ground in the next half. He found a giant wheel very much like one's life. The ups and downs, they were so similar.

So as his friends backed out, he stood in the queue all alone, only to find Shanaya right ahead of him. She smiled again, and he smiled back.

'Junior, right?' She asked, and his face drooped.

'Yes.' He muttered.

And the next minute, the cabin was full as all her friends had got into one, and the person in charge of it had shut their cabin. They tried convincing him to let her in, too, but to no avail.

'I'll stand and watch you guys.' She said loudly, looking at them, as the other cabin arrived.

'You can accompany me, if you want to. My friends are afraid sitting inside a giant wheel,' He said, smiling at her.

'To be frank, I am afraid, too. But if you insist, I'll join in,' She said, and he helped her get inside the cabin.

He followed her inside. And she sat right next to him.

' You don't puke, do you?' He asked, and the both of them laughed as she punched him on his arm.

Within a minute,they were up, in the sky, enjoying the high. Yes, he gets high on giant wheel rides, but  there was an addition to it. Shanaya, as said, was afraid of giant wheel rides, and so, she was literally holding him tight, her face rubbing against his chest, effective enough to cause a hormonal imbalance, and tightening his jeans. He slowly moved his hands around her, and held her tight as she muttered a soft 'thank you' in between her screaming sessions.

After a while, as the giant wheel slowed down, his heart beat more rapidly because he was afraid. Afraid of losing her, afraid of going away from her, and never talking to her again. He wanted the ride to go on for his entire life. He never wanted it to end. Had he been given an option between making love to her for a day and spending his entire life on the giant wheel, he would have opted for the latter.
But life never works as per our plan, and their giant wheel ride came to an end.


He got down from the cabin first, and slowly pulled her down, holding her hands.

'Would you like to join me for the roller coaster ride?' She asked, and he wasn't sure if it was happening for real or he was dreaming. If he was dreaming, he did not want anyone to wake him up from such a beautiful dream.

'Would you?' She asked again, bringing him out of the thoughts about this entire incident being a dream.

'Why not? I'd love to.' He said, smiling at her.

Her friends walked up to them, and she asked him to excuse her for a minute. She spoke to them for a minute, and walked back to him.

'What about them?' He asked, pointing at her friends.

'Why are you so interested in them?' She smirked.

'No, I didn't mean that. I was just inquiring.' He retorted.

'There are better things to inquire about, Mr. Junior.' She gave a naughty smile.

'Like?' He asked, a little baffled at her statement.

'Like why I am asking you out for a roller coaster ride?'  She smile, and her cheeks turned crimson.

He smiled.

Now, all he had to do was convince his mother to let him marry a non-bengali girl. Mission impossible.


- Rounak Nayak.

:)

If it's love, it's eternal.

Manjeeth Singh was brought inside the ICU in a stretcher, half conscious, screaming in pain. He pressed his stomach hard, moaning loudly. The ward boy and the nurses around him were used to such events, and stayed calm. Hundreds of people like him were treated in K.J. Hospital everyday. It wasn't anything new to them. He was suffering from colo-rectal cancer, last stage. His rectal bleeding had exceeded all the limits, and the pain it caused was unbearable. He had drastically lost weight over the last few months. His death sentence was pre-written.Although he took a long time to digest the fact that he wasn't going to live for a long time, and the disease he had was incurable, he took it as a challenge. But now, as he lay in the ICU awaiting for his treatment, his body seemed weak and fragile. 

Dr. Sakshi Gupta, who had been an oncologist in K.J Hospital, Mumbai got a call from Dr. Santhosh Rao, Mangalore. Dr. Santhosh was Manjeeth's family doctor back in Mangalore, and as Manjeeth was in Mumbai, Dr. Santhosh knew that there was no one other than Dr. Sakshi who could manage to keep him alive for a few more months.

As the duty doctor walked into Dr. Sakshi's cabin to call her for Manjeeth's treatment, she ran towards the ICU. It was only once she reached the ICU, that she recognized a face she'd known all her life. The only difference, the once handsome face looked more like a skeleton now. His jaw bones were visible, and he looked like malnourished kid. Tears started rushing through her eyes. The always calm and composed Sakshi was shivering in horror. It was the same guy who had loved her all her life. She had rejected him in order to build her career. She burst out crying in front of the co-doctors and the nurses. Controlling her tears was impossible now. The rest of the doctors continued the operation, as she was taken out of the ICU. One of her co-doctors tried to console her, but to no avail. 

After the operation, when he gained consciousness, he saw something that pleased his eyes. It was delightful. Something, he never thought would ever happen in this life. Dr. Sakshi , no, HIS Sakshi was sitting next to him, her eyes swollen with dark circles around them. It was evident from her appearance that she'd been crying the whole night. She hugged him, breaking into tears, yet again. She hugged her tight. 

'Don't leave me, Sakshi.', he softly said. 

'I wouldn't. I love you, idiot.' she replied.

'I am glad that this dying man's wishes came true.' he said laughing. And he started coughing after that. 

'Don't you ever say that.' she looked at him in anger keeping her hand over his lips. 

She was too late to realize the fact that she loved him. But I am glad, she realized it. And thus, his love story ended on a happy note for him. But for her?

Two months later, Manjeeth passed away. She stopped working for almost a week. But then, she got busy treating her patients, just like she was before. The only difference being, now she missed him. She still loved him.

And as she was leaving for her place after a long day at work, she smiled looking at the name plate on her door. 

Dr. Sakshi Singh, it was. 

- Rounak Nayak.

HAPPINESS IS LOVING SOMEONE WHO DOESN'T GIVE A SHIT ABOUT YOU.

As you go pondering on what exactly is love, you might find weird and varied thoughts about love that would puzzle you to the core, causing an imbalance in your brain. 

Just a few days back, they were the best of friends, and it was her happiness that mattered to him the most. Although, he was overprotective about her, and more possessive than her boyfriend, if she had one, he never had any such feelings for her that a guy would have for his girl. She was all but his best friend. Nothing more than that. He cared for her. He loved her, and was concerned about the smallest mistakes she did. 

As time passed by, his feelings changed. He fell for her one night when alcohol ran through his blood. She fell for him, too. But she realized it wasn't love when she got back to her senses the next morning. He certainly couldn't get back to his senses. Bloody alcohol. No, bloody him.

It's only then, his unconditional love for her turned narrow, and he started expecting from her. Expectations lead to sorrows. And the river of sorrow was awaiting a flood of sorrows in his life. From her happiness, now it was his selfish desire to have her in his life. He wanted her to be his. Forever.

It was etched in some corner of his brain that she loved him, too, but it was a preconceived notion and not the reality. The reality was too harsh for him to handle.

Initially, he wanted her to be happy, and he wouldn't mind selecting the best of guy for her after making the guys go through a bloody tough loyalty test. But now? He was being a selfish loser. He believed that he could keep her happy, when her happiness belonged elsewhere. He couldn't see more than what he wanted to see. 

Happiness is loving someone who doesn't give a shit about you, read a post from 'The Happy Page'. Well, that's not happiness. That's stupidity. And for stupid people like him, who always get attracted to people who don't give a shit about him, inspite of there being hundreds of others who would be dying to be with him, it's actually happiness. Stupidity for stupid people is no doubt, happiness. But how long can you be happy loving someone who doesn't give a shit about you? A day, a week, a month, a year? A decade? Or forever? Well, forever sounds sweet and the certainly the purest form of love, but at the same time, it's the stupidest thing to do, no matter if the mere existence of that person is a source of joy for you. 

Maybe, it's just a distorted form of love. Maybe, it's not love at all. Maybe, they are meant to be the best of friends, for some people make better friends than couples. Maybe, it's all meant to be. 

That shitty feeling we call love!

It's just the bloody idiotic, stupid and shitty yet sweet and wonderful feeling that creeps into your heart in due course of a conversation, that we end up calling love as we are coerced to because of the surroundings. May it be the movie you watched last night or the novel you've currently been reading, it is the sole culprit behind feeding this idea into your empty piece of curved substance which rests on the extreme top of your face. How can we call some random feeling love when we ourselves don't know what it feels like to be in love or to be loved. Attraction to infatuation and lust, everything seems to be love to a moronic idiot hit by the virus. 

Frankly, it's much more infectious and vulnerable than the virus that causes AIDS. A massive youth of the country is suffering from heartbreak and people say heart attack is scary? Can't they just open their eyes to see the people whining about their past love and how they were ditched or dumped? Or do they think everyone has been trying the sympathy trick to score a partner and get into their pants?

Everyone tries defining love and these days I see a lot of people talking about it on the radio and reality shows advising people how to cope up with love from their own screwed up experiences. But deep down, they are themselves searching for the true meaning of love. In this era where love is sold by the Indian authors at around 100 bucks and foreign authors for a slightly expensive price, there are hypocrites who still deny believing in love, but at the corner of their brain, they are still waiting for that special someone to come into their lives. 

But this sweet little spice apparently called love which may or may not be love enters into your mind like a bomb thrown by some terrorist group which even Major Samar Anand cannot dispose off and ruins your entire life and destroys your friendship if the person you assume to love is your best friend.

Nothing appears to be the same once this bomb of love explodes in your life leaving every part of your body burning and your heart broken into a thousand pieces. Not even the friendship you once shared. But no matter how harsh the consequences could be, you still go ahead with it, because it has effect over your nonsensical brain more than that of a bottle of rum. No matter how broken you'd be, you still make attempts to get destructed again. Well, that's the irony of life.

Well, the darker side of love still seems brighter than the candle light dinner you've ever had? I salute you, then. 

So, the point is, no matter how messy it is, always be in love. Bullshit. That's what Ayushmaan says. Keep calm and write about love. You may some day find it when a person you don't even know or haven't even met reads what shit you've written about that shitty feeling and falls for you. Well, for me? Love is injurious to my health. I should stay away from love, even if the Ted Mosby in me is too desperate to find the love of my life and the would be mother of my kids. 

The Lone Traveller.

I stand here, at the Kannur railway station leaning against a pillar, that has a charging socket, trying to plug in my phone which constantly displays ‘Connect the charger’. Once, I am done connecting the charger, I stand looking around aimlessly. As I wait for my train to arrive, I look around to notice a bunch of students laughing over some funny joke, some couples mush up, some children who fake a cry to catch their parents attention to buy them something or the other, and a lot more. A few of those sights are pleasurable and soothe my eyes and turn me nostalgic, while the rest daunt me, turning me bleak and depressed. 

I look around, and a drop of tear escapes my eyes. Journeys have consistently and repeatedly played a crucial role in moulding me as a person, and it holds paramount significance in shaping my character. No matter how protracted or short the journey would be, the change that the journey would induce in me would be inevitable. Every journey transforms me into a better person. From answering my inmost unanswered and baffling questions to solving my mysterious problems, it would do it all. And there have been times, I have been extremely lucky to meet the best of people in the course of travelling. Those people would say things that would somehow change my mindset regarding certain concepts I've been stubborn about.
To be precise, journeys have always been helpful and considerably important part of my life, and I wish the same from this journey.

Hearing the announcement about the arrival of my train, I unplug the charger, and roll it and keep it in my bag. I make myself ready to get into the train. Mangalore isn't far from here. It’s just 2 hours. But I hope these two hours change my life forever. This journey would probably be one of my shortest journey, but I have faith in my destiny, and myself, that I would benefit myself through this journey. 

As I am sitting on the window seat, snatching it from a fellow passenger, I realize how beautiful life is, as the raindrops start hitting my face hard, and I close the emergency window. There are a couple of students sitting next to me, talking in Malayalam, so I am unable to understand what they talk. I laugh at a joke of theirs which I somehow understand, thanks to my Malayali ex-girlfriend. And thus, the introduction begins, and the conversation starts. And what happens next? Too much of fun. Total fun. 

As long as you’re having fun, what change do you wish to seek? 

Lucky me! :D

I sat below the banyan tree in my college campus, restlessly writing my assignment which I had to submit three days back. I'd crossed the deadline as usual and I was a bit dubious of completing it even today. There were more than hundred pages to be written, and I was the only one left to submit the assignment. I was in despair, and the anguish of not completing my assignment was writ all over my face.

Just then, I saw Niyathi passing by my side, stopping to look at me in my worst state. She was the 'Scholar Naina' but she never talked to any guy, and thought a little too much about herself. But, she was beautiful. In fact, irresistible. I acted like writing my assignment, although I had been glancing at her through the corner of my eyes. She probably noticed that, as I wondered why she stood for so long looking at me when I was panicking over my incomplete assignment.

'You want me to write it for you?', she asked sweetly.

'Uh, yeah, I wouldn't mind if that's fine by you.', I said somehow unable to believe that she had agreed to write my assignment when I didn't even ask her to. She was not even a friend of mine.

Whatever it was, I was happy about the fact that my assignment would be complete in no time, and even happier at the fact that Niyathi, the hot nerdie of our college herself asked me if she could write my assignment when there were hundreds of guys who kept insisting her to write theirs. 

Sometimes, it's just your lucky day.

The girl who never believed in love!

Love was something unknown to Kavya. She'd never been in love. But, he still tried hard to flirt with her, although she was extremely busy working on her patient. She kept quiet although his intermittent flirting was pissing her off. It was getting on her nerves. She slapped him hard in front of all the patients the very next instant he tried flirting. 

He smiled, and left the dull general ward of the Hospital which was suffocating him now. 

And after a while, she felt bad about whatever took place there in the general ward. She left the general ward to apologize to him, as the patients were looking at her in horror. She reached his cabin too late to find him there. She made her way to the parking expecting him to leave after that embarrassing incident. 

But what she saw in the basement parking lot was disgusting. He was busy making out with a hot female intern. She wasn't remorseful anymore. She was glad about what she'd just done. He had proved her right. She lost hope in what she never believed. She realized that love looks beautiful only in movies and novels. She felt an urge to cry, but she managed to control her tears. She herself didn't know why she wanted to cry. She never liked him at the first place. 

Just then, someone tapped her shoulders. It was her patient, Rehaan.

'Coffee?' he asked. 

'Sure', she replied, managing to smile in spite of the tears welling up in her eyes.

And they headed to the coffee day which was on the ground floor of the Hospital.