'Unrevealed' [with a © in writer's association. Published story in UMANG]

Night is enveloping the beautiful sky in the mist where the moon hides. Rehna is sleeping on her bed flat frontwards, with her laptop. Her room is quiet a comfortable one. In the fragrance of pine and salmon, with lots of colorful wallpapers of music and hearts, her room was perfect place to be in, for a girl. She loved herself and so did she love her life. Everything always seemed perfect to her.

Her beautiful curls are falling on her cheeks with blush. Her milky tone has already flattered many boys since her teens. Oh she loved the attention she got, but it did not hamper with her soft heart and low ego.

She is chatting on friendsbook with her online friend Miyoni. Her perfectly shaped nails are softly playing with the keys of her laptop.  She had started to talk to Miyoni two years ago and they had formed such an emotional bonding on the very first chat, that they were inseparable. She loved her from the bottom of her heart but they never got a chance to meet. She shared all the deep dark secrets with her and they would talk about anything and everything. They were like two sisters who met through fate.

Miyoni is sitting in a dark room with all the lights off. Only the faint lining of the glow from the screen of her personal computer is show casting the keyboard on which she is typing something to Rehna with her small baby-like hands. There is a smell of mystery in her presence. Outside the window, she heard the grasshopper chanter in his own way.

Miyoni's Grandmother passes through the passage of her room, and observes the door carefully at the bottom for few seconds where she can see the blue light flickering. Quietly she walks away from there to the hall.

Miyoni could not hide anymore the anxiety she was feeling since the last night she had talked with Rehna. So she typed…

Miyoni- Had fun today na with siddharth?

Rehna- Totally! But I missed you yaar! I told him all about you. About us and how much you mean to me… <3>

Miyoni- Oh yeah! What did he say then? *_*

Rehna- He wants to meet you babe!

Miyoni- Oh then lets meet up na! :D The three of us?  What say?

Rehna-  Oh finally we are meeting! After like two years yaar.. Tomorrow morning? Adle’s Coffee shop? At 8 ? :D

Miyoni is getting little confused, but desperate to meet. This was day she had awaited for more than two years now, or may be since her childhood. She eagerly holds the mouse and then types, erases the half part, retypes the rest and clicks enter.

Miyoni-  Cool.. You are really more than a sister to me. Without you I don’t know what I would have been like, seriously! I love you sista.. :* I dont have a cell... But I will call u from my landline before leaving. Be there! 

Rehna- OMG! I am so excited! See you soon babe.. gn sd tc! I love you to sis! <3>

Rehna types and roles over her bed to the other end in happiness. She laughs and closes her laptop. After switching off the lights she goes to sleep.

 Miyoni walks till the window and stares at the moon. Her white frock flows with the blowing wind and her flawless hair backwards. She closes her palm over the railing and the moon again hides behind the dark clouds as it always does.

…………………………………………………………………………….

Sunshine brings beauty to Rehna’s day as she wakes up. She takes a bath and drinks her morning coffee in the balcony as she usually did. It was hardly six thirty in the morning and she could hear the birds sing in chorus as if it was her own private show.  She enjoyed the coffee and waited for Miyoni’s call.

Miyoni quietly walks into the hall as she watches her grandmother turn around to walk to the kitchen. She quickly dials the numbers on her landline and calls Rehna in haste.

 “Hello!! Miyoni here, I am leaving. Siddharth is coming na?” she speaks in her sweet tone voice.

“Hiiiii!! Yes yes yes!! I am so excited! Be there at eight for sure okay?” replied Rehna over the receiver in the tone above her usual one.

“Yup dont worry! I am soooo haaapppppy! See you there..” miyoni sang and hung up.

She observes for three second the frames of her parents which hung on the opposite wall. She absorbs the feeling she felt and swallowed inside her gut. Oh she missed them so much. Before her Grandmother comes out of the kitchen, she quietly walks out of the house. With the noise of the door her Grandmother comes out, and looks at the door, unlocked. She stares at it. Just keeps staring.

………………………………………………………………………….

Miyoni reaches the coffee shop at the exact time and waits restlessly for Rehna to arrive with Siddharth. She is wearing her favorite frock and lets her hair loose with a white butterfly clip which tugged her front hair behind her left ear.

When Rehna arrives she notices her at the instant. It was not just siddharth but meeting Rehna was also she had waited for, she acknowledged the thought and hugged her tightly.

“It’s so nice to meet you finally! I can’t believe we are meeting after two years! Can you?” Miyoni said with the brightest smile on her face.

“The pleasure is all mine babe! Siddharth is just arriving in 10 mins. He is damn punctual. Which is, he is always after the time. You know, following it, behind! hahahaha” she says and laughs.

“hahahahhaha ooh I see...” they walk hand in hand inside.

“Accha tell me where do you.....” before Rehna could complete her words a ghostly face comes in the middle blocking her eyes from Miyoni’s.

“ hollaaaa!!” she heard from between the mask.

Miyoni and Rehna both shout a scream of fright and laugher, realizing their obvious reaction.

“Sidhaarth you  dumbface..!” yelled Rehna at him while siddharth had not completed with his laughter.

“Hi shiddharth!” Miyoni said sheepishly.

“Hello princcess! You are looking gorgeous. Have I seen you before ?” he says trying to recollect. Miyoni blushes and her cheeks form the color of crimson.

“Oh of course? Her eyes comes into your dreams every night haunting you to help them, don’t they?” taunts Rehna and they all start to laugh.

“ ha-ha! Good joke good joke! Hahaha” he says and they take a seat by the table.

Miyoni just smiles and they have a very good time together. They talk about their friendship and different incidents that occurred with Rehna and Miyoni. Rehna noticed all the time the growing interest of Siddharth in Miyoni and encouraged their bubbling attraction. She makes Miyoni note down Siddharth's number.

They all leave in promises to meet again. While leaving Siddharth pulled over Miyoni’s hand and gave her a half hug which left her breathless. She started into his eyes and could not help but remember the same innocence she knew, the one which sent shivers down her spine.

That night, after the meet, when Miyoni's Grandmother fell asleep, she called shiddharth from her landline. She could make out the surprise in Siddharth’s voice. Two hours had passed and yet they could not stop speaking stuffs about their life. She sensed that mostly it was Siddharth who used to speak about his life, family friends and stuffs, but then it was not the right time to speak about her past yet. It went on for few days. Miyoni could not stop talking to him for hours. They did not sleep the whole night just to talk to each other.

 Siddharth felt like dozing off many a times in between but the urge to talk to her left him helpless. It was only with her that he sacrificed his sleep. He was totally into her, helplessly and hopelessly fallen in love. They got closer and closer every night. It was as if he waited for her call ever since he kept it in the morning. He finally asked her out on a date on the weekend.

Miyoni understood that this was the best time when she would tell him about her, her life and her past. She was very happy that he atleast asked her out, which few years ago seemed totally impossible.

……………………………………………………………………………

She reached to the place where he had asked her be so that he would pick her up. Miyoni saw his car and a bright smile clung her perfect lips. He smiled at her, the smile she had longed for. She just loved him and always wanted him smiling. But this particular smile, this one laugh was for her and only her.

Oh she was falling, she was so falling in happiness of her life, she heard her mind say to her heart.  She almost had an imaginative dance in her mind, the one which people have when no one is around. She sat beside him. He was wearing a grey jacket and black T-shirt inside with grayish blue jeans. She loved his hair and couldn’t help but stare at him, now that she could without feeling awkward like earlier she used to.

He parked the car near a beach and then opened the door for her. Oh so perfect, her mind said again. He caught hold of her arms and they started to walk. He said all the perfect words a girl would want to hear, no wonder how girls back then always fell for him. They found a place away from the crowd.

Sitting together with their hands joined on the perfectly polished mahogany furnished bench they endured the silence and the beauty of the swooshing of the waves on the sand. Siddharth started to play with the strands of her hair. Miyoni felt nothing but like a princess. She ran her thumb over his palm to feel his texture, the real him. She smelled him again after so many years and it felt like heaven.

“Did I tell you that we were in the same school” Miyoni said breaking the silence.

“What????” Siddharth said in complete bewilderment.

“…and I loved you since standard sixth” she continued ignoring his obvious reaction.

“Whaaaaat ??????????” he said and stood up to look directly at her, into her eyes and tried to understand what she exactly meant.

“I was the type of girl who stayed in library and read stupid love stories. You were the popular hottie. I never had the guts to tell this to you. When I once did gather some courage to speak to you, you were committed to some beautiful girl.” She said plainly but deep inside she was scared to have told him the buried feelings she had for so long.

“With saloni? oh shit!! I am soo sorry!! I was such an idiot!” he said in disgust. He was feeling a mixture of emotions and was finding hard to accept even if everything now seemed so perfect. But it was the truth, he knew it was the minute she had said it. She had meant it. He could so easily sense this as it was so pure so perfect.

“I know!” she said in a teasy way with a naughty grin on her face.

“My naughty little fairy….I love you so much and I am never gonna leave you!” he said and pulled her into his arms, a feet above the ground.

“hehehe…I know! I love you too!” she said as she giggled in bliss. She hugged him back in the tightest way possible. They walked hand in hand outside till the beach end where the car was parked. And he drops her near her building.

Inside the gate, Miyoni giggles even more. She laughs and dances in happiness and fades away out of the blue…

…………………………………………………………………………

In the busy street, outside the same Adle’s coffee shop, Siddhart is waiting for Rehna. Sweat is dripping from his forehead towards his neck. He hasn’t shaved and his hair is unruly while even his clothes are not in order. Strain and fluster is all over his face.

Just as Siddharth watches Rehna come towards him, he catches her by her arms in flurry and takes her inside.

“Its been four bloody days and she has not called me. I called her on her landline once, aunty picked up so I hung up immediately. I need to talk with her or else I will go insane!” he says not breathing once in middle.

“Oh my! Wait I have her landline number...” Rehna says removing her cell phone out.

“I know her complex” he replied.

They both look at each other for two seconds, stand up from the chairs and run outside towards the car.

Rehna asks Siddharth to clean up himself and come in sometime. Just as he leaves she finds Miyoni’s floor and walks up the staircase.

She rings the bell of Miyoni's house but to her dismay an old lady opens the door.

“Hello aunty!! I am Miyoni's school friend. Actually her bag is with me. Can you please call her outside for me?”

“She is not here” she heard her grandmother say.

She says and walks inside before aunty could say anything and says, “no worries aunty! I will wait for her…” and sits on the sofa.

While scanning the hall room, she sees Miyoni's photograph in a photo frame with her parent’s side by side. There is a flower garnet over it. The type of garnet which was made of marigold flowers, the ones only hung on frames of dead people.

Fear, shock and disbelief spread over her face. Her palms were shaking and her eyes had become wet. She felt pain stabbing inside her heart like knife would. She was very close to tears but tried to control herself.

“Miyoni died in a car accident over 2 years ago with her parents. It was the new year” Aunty said as she kept her hands on Rehna’s shoulders to comfort her.

All Rehna did was stare at the frames. Shivers of fright spread over her body. This couldn’t be, she explained herself.

“Wait I will bring some water for you.” Aunty said and went inside the kitchen.

Just as aunty leaves from the hall, Rehna finds some courage to think about what actually happened with her.

How could this be? It was impossibly true! Why did such an irony occurred in her life?. Thousand questions came into her mind.

 She ran towards Miyoni's bedroom which she had seen towards the right when she had entered the hall. The room was bright. Bed was neatly folded in a corner. Wind was gushing through the window. She could see the computer. The one which connected her to her soul sister.

Rehna could almost imagine Miyoni sitting her and chatting. Thousand words felt less to explain her situation. On the top she did not know what she would say to Siddharth.

She was about to turn around when her eyes fell on a diary. It was open to some page. She quickly ran towards it and saw, there was a pen in between two pages.

June 2010

I saw you Siddharth and again you took my breath away. There is no one as innocent as you present in this world. When you smile, my heart really stops to beat for few seconds, I swear! Your eyes, they mesmerized me as they always have.

But I am not the type of girl you would like to hang out with. You don’t even know that I exist.  Hope you smile always.

Lots of love,

Miyo.

Rehna flipped random pages.

July 2010

Baby you are nowhere to be seen. Your name "Siddharth" runs in my head like forever. I hope you are well! See you soon again :)

I love you so much. Hope you would notice me someday.

Lots of love,

Miyo.

Rehna could not believe her eyes and the sudden storm of things that were happening with her.

August 2010

You won football match! I knew your team would!

You rock! I prayed for you na! You had to win! I won my debate competition too. I am very happy! 

Lots of love,

Miyo.

September 2010

It was really hard for me to find courage to come up to you, but then, you shattered my heart when you were walking hand in hand with the miss popular of our school. I know she is beautiful... but it’s not love you feel for her, cause your eyes wander away when she came to kiss you in the canteen. I know it’s not love, then why ???

“Make me Alive”

Unfold me, see through my soul,

Evoke the volcano of hidden passion; let me be myself…

Get back the inner voice,

The voice who is shaken…

Deep inside where in the house of glass,

the walls are broken…

Buried in the coffin of feelings,

Pave the lost path back…

Where my heart can walk till yours; with no fear of losing the right track.

Oh! Make me feel love,

The one I deserve,

Cause in the true need I wish…

I wish love and only love in my dish to be served.

Mend the broken pieces,

They need a chance fair;

As life doesn’t come with a manual which says-

“Please handle with care!”

With all the broken pieces of my delicate heart, I wish you were mine

Lots of love,

Miyo.

October 2010

I cant express how I feel today. I wish you searched for love. I wish so many things.. but this is not the right time I guess.

Lot of love,

Miyo.

December 2010

Today you were fighting with her. She was behaving in an improper manner with you. I knew you both won’t last. Because it was just a relationship and not love!

She abused you, true lovers wouldn’t have ever! I wish you would open your eyes and know that you are not in love and that your love is someone right there observing you, day after day. Your love is in me.. as I love you for who you are and not your popularity. Your love is right here, thinking about you and only you, if only you would notice me out of your kind of crowd and love me for who I am. Love me even if I am not popular someone. I hope you would see, that popularity brings only fake pleasure…

I don’t see your reason to patch up with her.

I love you to the core. And every day I love you more than I did before.

Lots of love,

Miyo.

December 2010

Its been more than 5 years now that I love you.

This is for you, for the upcoming new year soon...

"Unrevealed"

My love was unrevealed,
Waiting to get noticed.
Day after day I was getting deeper inside the shield,
Scared and left un-believed.

Popular as you were,
Something inside me was afraid..
Cause deep down inside my heart, there…
It was only you, and you were all I cared.

All my courage was lost,
When I saw you with another girl,
As wannable she was, you didn’t want to leave her at any cost!
I knew it was not love you felt,
But tears and hurt that were stoned for so long, after all did melt.

Ever since then, all I could do was see you smile
with that girl in high heels,
You walked miles after miles...

One day I will b back for sure,
When it is love you need and it is what you will be waiting for.
To prove that love is above all needs,
You will love me for my beauty inside and only for my deeds.

No more things I got to say.

Lots of love,

Miyo.

……………………………………………………………………………

Rehna has tears spilling outside and she is left speechless.

“Siddhaaaarrtth!” she screams and runs out of the house with the diary.

…………………………………………………………………………………

Siddharth drops the diary on the floor after reading the poem and the pen roles out at the rare end near the door. Tears are run down his cheeks. He walks towards the window of his bedroom and looks into the sky. Life was so wrong, and he had no option but to move on. He could feel her presence. He strongly felt her presence as if she is holding his hands. As if she was right there beside him, comforting him; loving him. He could almost see her face and touch her hair. Damn she was here and he was not dreaming!

A note-

"Find love, not relationships. Relationships give temporary happiness and satisfaction of pleasure. But when you are in search of true love, you will know it that you have found it and treasure it. You might never know when due to your mistakes by choosing the wrong person, you lost your true love."

-Aditi Gandhi