He held her close. She could feel his breath on her face. Pretty face.. lovely eyes...the innocent, terrified look on her face that always amused him .He wanted to tell her that he had looked for her all his life. How he wanted to tell her that his feelings ran deep for her. She was his first crush. First crush or his first love? He could never tell. All he knew was...he could never forget her and with each passing day, he loved her and wanted her more. It was a beautiful starlit night. The gentle breeze caressing her cheeks, her thick mane as dark as the sky above covered her forehead a few stands of which swaying with wisps of crisp breeze. Suddenly something strange happened. There was a brilliant flash of light right above their heads. What the hell was that? Was it a flash of lightning? Both of them raised their eyebrows and looked up to the sky. What they saw amazed as well as petrified them. Was it a U.F.O? Well...it did look something of the sort! The thing that appeared , somewhat resembled a saucer with an inverted cup kept over it. The lights beneath the saucer threw lights on them criss-crossing the entire area on the earth they stood on as if searching for something. The saucer with the inverted cup came close...closer..whaaaa!!!!!!The door opened. An ugly creature peeped. All three of them looked at each other....opened their mouth and screamed...AAARRRRRGGGGH'HHHHiiiiinnnnnnggggg!!!!!Riiinng...riinngg....screeched the alarm clock. It was seven in the morning. 'What a crazy dream' thought Rishabh. 'Thank God it's over'. It must be the work pressure that's playing on my mind. Another manic monday . Another hectic week ahead. The very thought made him feel tired. A responsibility is a responsibility and a job is a job. He left the bed reluctantly and glanced at the watch. It's seven. I have half an hour to start my daily routine he reminisced .He settled into an armchair kept in the verandah that overlooked a small garden maintained by his gardener. The sight of beautiful blooming roses lifted his mood and he traversed back the path of the journey of his life. He closed his eyes .Her face flashed again. He was in standard tenth .She was in ninth. He liked her and often thought of telling her about his feelings. Never could he gather his courage to do so. All he would do was to admire her and fantasise about her. She would look at him and they would exchange glances whenever she passed him by. He loved her eyes. She had the most beautiful eyes in the world. The way she looked at him , intoxicated him. He always feared the possibility of someone else in her life. The worst happened . One fine morning he heard what he had been dreading all this long. She was seeing somebody. Who.... it did not matter. For his heart was broken and his dreams shattered. The pain he experienced...the pain of losing her was excruciating .He smoked his first cigarette. There will be no other he resolved. No more pain . He would become a successful man so that no one...no one would ever deny him. The struggle started...studies ...competitions...engineering from a prestigious institute. The campus interview and the dream job. He now had everything that a man his age dreamt of. But where was she? She still haunted his memories. Did he want to become an engineer? He asked himself. No... came the answer. He did it for her. He wanted her ,to be with her forever. His search for her started... Ah. .finally ! Her friends informed him of her marriage. Oh...she got married last year itself Rishab. Why do you ask? Yes why did he ask? Why did he look for her in the first place? The rays of the rising sun caught his eyes. OH!! It’s almost time. I should start getting dressed up for the office or I’ll be late again. His wife called from the kitchen.... Rish, are you ready or not? You’ll be late again.
Rishab gratefully ate his breakfast. Yes he was grateful that he had somebody to take care of him .He had spend many lonely years. He looked at this pretty petite figure admiringly. Yes I love her he thought. Picked up the project report and started for the office. His mind wandered again. Rishab, your mother is no more. His father had informed him. He stood speechless. He wanted to cry but no...he will not . For he was a man now .He could not gather his courage to tell his dad that he had lost his job too. He had lost everything . His new job did not pay him well. His girl left him. She did not want to carry on an affair with lowly paid man.He felt disgusted . His fate had stripped him of almost everything. Many a times he fell short of money. He considered asking his dad for money. But no, he cannot do that. For he was a man. Men were supposed to take care of elderly and not depend on them. The idea of stealing tempted him. No ...he had a set of morals and principles which he lived by. He wanted to yell .He wanted to cry. He cried. He did his crying in the rain.
Today,as a vice-president of a company....at the age of 39, he was satisfied. A handsome salary of 4.5 lacs per month ,a wife ,a kid and his father to go back home to, he was satisfied and happy. In fact, he was the happiest man in the world. He had everything he could have asked for except her. He still missed her .Suddenly he felt a thrust. His car swerved. A heavy vehicle had hit his car.His four wheeler was out of control now .He panicked...applied brakes with all his might,but the car wouldn’t stop. He saw a truck heading towards him. Distance between the two vehicles lessened .Was he going to die? Is this the end? What will become of his family? Their faces flashed before his eyes too.Her ‘s too. If only he could meet her ....just for once .....Everything stopped. Everything went white. Heavenly white.
Kaabooomm!!!...Clouds thundered, lightening flashed as if about to strike the earth.It was well past midnight. She checked on her kids to see if they were frightened. Cosy in their beds they were fast asleep blissfully unaware of the stormy weather. She sighed. This weather always made her restless. She would feel strange vibes,as if someone was out there calling out her name. Getting drenched ,crying...someone ...who was attached to her. But who? Why these strange vibrations? She could never understand. All’s well...she thought.. Her entire family was with her at home,safe and sound .No reason to worry .She went to bed .Lying next to her husband,she felt secure and happy.Yet something was amiss. She pushed these thoughts away from her mind and closed her eyes.
She found herself gazing at the sky .The weather had cleared. Stars were shining brilliantly..What was that? Up there in the dark sky ? A light? Thousands of 100 watt bulbs switched on together? The light was coming close .It was approaching her. What was it? A U.F.O? The door opened someone peeped. The face was so familiar. Yes, she recognized this face.I t was Rishab! Her first school crush!Oh...how she had waited for him .She wanted to tell him that she loved him! Happily she looked. He was smiling. He had a peaceful look on his face. He stretched out his arms. She ran towards him. Kaabooommmm.....!!!! She sat up on the bed. It was still raining, lightening flashed as if about to strike the earth.......................
