《21 Days》 30 Days before What does it feel like to be sitting in your room and doing nothing ? Well, technically the answer is to feel bored but to be honest I don''t feel bored. Bored is what you would say when you want to do something but you just don''t know what to do. I don''t think it''s the same in my case though. I don''t have anything to do and I don''t want to do anything either. I have been staring out the window for well over 20 minutes now and I can say that I am not bored. The night is warm. Too warm perhaps because I had to increase my fan speed so I don''t suffocate to death. There isn''t much to look out though. It''s basically just an empty land that has been sitting here from the day I was born. There isn''t much to listen to either apart from the neighbor''s television playing some serial. I am not complaining though ; the silence is comforting and peaceful. I try to listen harder to what my neighbor''s are playing. I don''t seem to recognize it. Huh. That''s funny. And I thought all housewives watched the same thing. I can already hear Anupama playing downstairs. After another ten minutes of staring into the distant land belonging to the silent and lonely night, I realize that maybe I do want to do something. But I have nothing to do. Okay! NOW, I am feeling bored. I decide to call my friend Vijesh. Vijesh said he would be going to Mysore and I mean ¨C well ¨C He DID go but ¨C I just thought that maybe he might not go and would hang out with me and the gang - Sunil, Sujitha, Sonali and Shreya. I dial his number and hear it ring. He doesn''t pick up. Okay now it''s starting to get annoying. It''s bad as it is that I have over two months before college starts but it''s even worse when you have no idea how to pass the time. I have binged like over a hundred anime''s. I might as well break the record for the fastest anime watcher and the most number of anime''s watched in a month. I am about to start my third season of My Hero Academia when I hear my name being called. ¡°KRIYAAANK !!!¡± It''s mom. I then hear footsteps approach my room. The tale has been illicitly lifted; should you spot it on Amazon, report the violation. ¡°Kriyank-¡± I see my room door open and my mom steps in. She looks around a bit as if expecting to see me doing or hiding something that I shouldn''t. I take out my ear pods from my ear. ¡° What happened ?¡± I ask. ¡°What are you doing?¡± she asks, still thinking that perhaps I might be watching porn or something. Yup. Suspicion level 100. ¡°Nothing, just watching a show¡± I say. ¡°What happened ?¡± ¡°I have some bad news for you.¡± Uh-oh. My college application is canceled ? I know that''s not right but that''s the only important thing ahead that I am kind of worried about. It''s always the important stuff that go wrong every time. Isn''t it ? ¡°Okay ? What is it?¡± ¡°Your friend Evelyn''s mother called. She is not in good health.¡± Evelyn ? Whoa. Where did that come from ? ¡°What happened ?¡± I ask. ¡°She''s got cancer. Stage IV.¡± * * * I think it''s been over 10 minutes since I have been staring at my phone. My eyes lingering over Sunil''s name in the contact list. Should I call him or one of the girls first ? Or maybe should I just try calling Evelyn ? No wait. What ? What the hell am I thinking ? I don''t think my brain has been this confused in a long time. It''s like a box has been opened in my brain, A box filled with emotions and memories. A box that I would have rather preferred to keep shut. Evelyn has got cancer ? Well, definitely didn''t see that coming. And that too stage IV ? Since when did she have it then ? When did it all start ? It''s like someone just threw a brick at my head and I am just waking up now. How did it all come to this ? Three years led to this ? I hear the line ring and I see Sunil''s name on the screen. Guess my brain might not have noticed my hand tapping his number. Yup ; Definitely hit on the head. I hear the line ring for sometime. I am about to hang up when I hear him pick up. ¡°Hello?¡± I hear him say. ¡°H-Hello ?¡± ¡°Yeah bro tell, what''s up ?¡± I wonder if I should just tell him directly or ask something else first. ¡°Bro you know, Evelyn''s mom called just now.¡± ¡°What?¡± I hear him laugh. ¡° Whoa, what happened ? She called you ?¡± ¡°No¡± I say. ¡° She called my mom. She wanted to tell something about Evelyn.¡± ¡°Um-mm....Okay, what ?¡± ¡°She has got cancer.¡± I hear him laugh ¡°She has got cancer-ah?¡± ¡°Yeah¡± I say ¡° Stage IV¡± ¡°Huh?¡± ¡°Yeah.¡± There''s a pause. ¡° Hey, stop lying, dumbass¡± he says. I hear him scoff. ¡°Her mother said that it''s terminal.¡± There''s an even longer pause. ¡°Are you being serious right now? ¡° he asks. ¡°She has really got cancer ?? I mean this is not like some kind of prank right ?¡± I don''t say anything. I can still hear Anupama playing downstairs. How loud does mom have to keep the volume ? ¡°Shit bro. Now what ?¡± ¡°I don''t know¡± I say ¡°I don''t know.¡± 27 Days before. ¡°I am surprised that she still had your mom''s number saved¡± Sunil says. ¡°That''s not at all surprising for me bro .¡± Shreya says, taking a sip from the small maa-za packet. ¡°I mean I guess adults save each other''s numbers for like forty years or something. My mom''s friend from when I was a kid, all of a sudden, sent me a message like two days back, literally out of nowhere !¡± Sujitha lets out a laugh. ¡° I swear to god bro, it looks like they never forget your number !¡± I take a chip out of the lays packet and put in my mouth. It''s the green one. I don''t like it very much. I like the blue one more. Evelyn liked it too. I guess that''s one of the first things we started talking about when we all came here for the first time, to these benches in front of Baskin Robbins. I remember we had started talking about the blue lays chips being underrated and how everyone seems to like only the green one. Her eyes had spoken to me filled with ecstasy, her whole body had been jumping up and down ever so slightly ; it could have been just a small unnoticeable thing, no big deal. But for me, she felt like she was on the top of the stars ; a giddy little schoolgirl discovering the playground for the first time. I wonder if her eyes would speak to me the same way even now. ¡°Hoy bro -¡± Sunil''s voice brings me back to reality. ¡°You okay ?¡± Shreya asks. ¡°Yeah I am fine. I am fine.¡± I reply. I look up at the sky. I don''t see any clouds. It''s just a big blue sheet covering us all. I guess that day also had been something like this. A Blue world. ¡° Suji, you still talk to Evelyn on insta right ?¡± Shreya asks. ¡°Hmm yea but not that much,only sometimes.¡± Sujitha replies. ¡°And if you wondering if she has said anything there then no she hasn''t.¡± ¡°Ohh.¡± Shreya replies as she crushes her maa-za packet and places it beside her on the marble bench. ¡°I mean did you really expect her to tell us that ?¡± Sunil asks, running his hand through his hair. I see that he has grown out his beard even more. He says that the girls like it but then having said that,I guess my dad is Sanjeev Kapoor then. ¡°Yeah I mean, I thought she might at least tell Sujitha.¡± Shreya replies. ¡°What was her insta id ? I forgot.¡± I ask. Unauthorized use: this story is on Amazon without permission from the author. Report any sightings. ¡°._Eve_.lyn108¡± Sujitha replies. ¡°By the way Sunil listen, tomorrow please shave and come okay, I WANT to squeeze your baby cheek again.¡± ¡°Get lost, duffer ! My slipper you will WANT-AH? !¡± Sunil lifts up his left leg, pretending to take it off. We all start laughing. ¡° Hey Suji ! You said you were gonna cut your hair short, right ?¡± Shreya asks, collecting up her hair and taking out a rubber band from her jeans pocket. ¡°Yaaa brooo, I want to go this Sunday.¡± Sujitha replies, stroking her hair. ¡°Actually my sister said she knows this salon okay, where this lady will do all nice treatment for your hair itseems. My sister said that she and her friends used to go there only every time.¡± ¡°Yaaa-vuh ? Even I also want to come then !¡± Shreya tells, pulling her hair into a ponytail. ¡°Can I also come?¡± Sunil asks. ¡°Ya ya come come. You also come then we will trim your beard also¡± Shreya says as she laughs. Sunil says something else but I stop listening. I look up at the sky and see green trees blowing their leaves in the air. I hear cars passing by and sound of birds chirping somewhere up in the trees. The warm breeze taking me back to that day. That day when everything was sweet. Yup. That day was exactly like today. Only difference ? That day was a lot more sweeter. * * * Blue sky, winds high, flutter of laughs around ; That''s how he had seen that day to be. They were sitting in front of Baskin Robbins, on the marble benches, the seats cool from the shade of the trees but also slightly warm due to the warmth of the day. He could hear the birds chirping way up in the trees. ''Could they be talking about us?'' he thought. He looked beside to him. He could see her in the shade, the way the light danced around the leaves and on to her hair, flickering. It seemed to be shining her hair. And yet he could see all of her shine. Was it still the light doing it? She was talking about the blue packet flavored chips. It seemed to like her. That someone else apart from her likes it too. He was listening ; But now the sound of the birds had distracted him. ¡°Are they talking about us ?¡± he asked her. ¡°Huh?¡± ¡°The birds up there.¡± He said, pointing up to the trees. ''Are they talking about us ?¡± ¡°Maybe.¡± she replied. ¡°Maybe they are talking about how annoying we all are to come and sit under their home and eating chips and drinking maa-za and all.¡± He let out a short laugh.¡°Yeah I guess you are right.¡± He took another chip from the packet and put it in his mouth, crunching it. ¡°So as I was saying ¨C¡° she continued ¡°These chips are so underrated bro. Seriously, I used to tell my friends also to eat them but they don''t listen only. The green one doesn''t have any TASTE only in that. It''s so bad.¡± He could see the way the light bounced around Vijesh, Sunil, Sujitha and Shreya in front of him. The light never seemed to be hitting any of them. It just seemed to be dancing around them, trying to catch their attention. But it had caught hers perfectly. In the right spot that too. Why was that ? He reached in to the packet to grab another chip and his hand collided with hers. ¡°Oh sorry-¡± she said. He didn''t say anything. Just observed. A gentle touch with a spark. Did she sense it too ? He hoped so. How is everything today in such perfect coincidence ? He wondered. Could it all go perfectly wrong one day? 24 Days before KRIYANK : Hey. EVELYN : Hey. This text was taken from Royal Road. Help the author by reading the original version there. KRIYANK : Your mom called my mom. She told us about you. EVELYN : Yea I know. KRIYANK : Listen I am sorry. I just don''t know what to say. EVELYN : It''s ok. KRIYANK : I am sorry about what I did. ¡° ¡° ¡° ¡° ¡° ¡° ¡° ¡°''lympho-'' something cancer.¡± he replies. ¡° ¡° ¡° ¡° ¡° ¡° 21 Days before Dear Evelyn For the record, I really don''t know what I am doing here, writing this but I just wanted to do something. I mean I couldn''t just sit and keep thinking how it must be for you over there right now. Perhaps the reason why I am writing this is maybe because there were a lot of stuff that didn''t get to be cleaned between us and I figured it would be fair to get some of those things off my chest. Plus you always liked my writing so yeah, I figured this might be the only only way to say it. I know I haven''t been perfect for you. I know I have made mistakes. I know I have hurt you. But I have also loved you. Maybe I might have loved you more than myself, although that would be a bit of an overstatement but the thing is, what I have felt with you, I have never felt it with anyone else. And I don''t think I will ever feel that way again. I know this world will end for you. But it doesn''t have to end miserably. I want it to end with an explosion. A magical explosion of all the different colors that define you. For you are the rainbow that made my life a little bit more colorful and I hope that I will be able to return the favor to you before you go. Yours ever so truthfully, Kriyank. P.S. There is also something else that I have added here which I figured you might like - A world filled with darkness, A world filled with light. Which am I a part of ? I shall never know. Unauthorized duplication: this tale has been taken without consent. Report sightings. Then you came, without a word. Taking me by your sweet grace, into the world defined by you, A world ever so growing, A world ever so glowing, Into your heart. Stars colliding, Hearts breaking. For I could only see the colors, All the colors of your heart. That kept brightening into the vast. * * * ¡°Hi I am Evelyn.¡± She said. ¡°Hii, I am Shreya.¡± ¡°Hi, I am Sujitha.¡± ¡°Hi, I am Vijesh.¡± ¡°Hi, I am Sunil.¡± ¡°Hi, I am Kriyank.¡± he said. ¡°So where did you study before ?¡± Vijesh asked. ¡°I studied at Grisha International.¡± she said. ¡°Ohh nice, that''s the one near Shivjipura right ?¡± Sujitha asked. ¡°Yeah yeah, there only.¡± She replied. ¡°So how come you transferred here ?¡± he asked. She shrugged. ¡° I don''t know. Dad just wanted a change of scenery I suppose.¡± ¡°So how do you like our school so far ?¡± Sunil asked. ¡°It seems good......I mean the teachers seem decent enough. At least compared to my old school.¡± she said. ¡°Yea just wait for another two months and then you will get to see their true faces.¡± Sunil said and they all laughed. ¡°So you guys have been studying here since the beginning ?¡± She asked. ¡°Yeah bro.¡± Vijesh replied. ¡° This school started only two years back ; from sixth standard and that was when we had all joined.¡± ¡°Ohh nice nice.¡± She replied. ¡°So where do you stay ?¡± he asked her. ¡°Ohh, I stay near Devnagiri.¡± When she saw the look of confusion on his face she let out a little laugh, ¡°It''s actually to the right of Forum mall in Church street.¡± she explained. ¡°Ohh.¡± he replied. He could see her smile, a smile that is brighter than the sun. Her eyes, as excited as a little girl when she finds a plush toy. How could someone like her, be standing right in front of him? he wondered. Was it just coincidence or was it meant to be ? The call of the great unknown forces of nature existing in the universe ? How did it all lead to this ? ¡°Hey, you should come to Baskin Robbins with us, this Sunday.¡± Shreya suggested, her voice interrupting his thoughts. ¡°Yeah yeah sure.¡± she replied, with a laugh. 18 Days before ¡° ¡° ¡° ¡° ¡° ¡° ¡° ¡° ¡° ¡° My Hero Academia. Figured that''s why she hasn''t said anything back. This text was taken from Royal Road. Help the author by reading the original version there. Dear Evelyn I hope you have read my previous two letters.''Cos if you haven''t then I am gonna be really sad :( You shouldn''t betray My Hero Academia like that. Your beloved blue chips will go to hell if you do. Also I thought of sending you the blue chips but if you don''t read then I won''t, hehe :) You know, the other day I was thinking about the first day we met. When you became a part of our group. I still remember our very first conversation, where you tried to tell me where you lived. And I have always wondered, how was that moment so perfect ? How did everything go so perfectly during that time ? It almost felt like I was in a scene from a movie. You know ? The classic scene where the boy is sitting in class and all of a sudden the girl enters and the boy has this dreamy look in his eyes and starts seeing hearts flying around her head with some romantic song playing in the background and everything is perfect in that one moment? That''s how it felt. A magical moment for me. I still remember the joyfulness that I saw in you when you were talking to us. I had never seen anything like that before. You were like a little box filled with surprises. Also the day when we had all gone to Baskin Robbins, you had come with us for the first time. Everything about that day, it didn''t seem real to me. The way the light danced off your hair, coloring it in it''s warm hazel. The way the breeze carried your laugh. The sun, the shade, the birds chirping combined with your laugh, that could make anyone feel alive ; I really felt blessed on that day you know. And trust me you continued to make me feel that way , for a long long time. Yours ever so truthfully, Kriyank. P.S. - Hey ! Here''s another one of my surprises :) You made stars reborn in my eyes, A thousand nights to go on for. But the one to come first, was the one that made me sure. Too many things going slow, And yet I can''t make it stop. How will I ever live it thoroughly ? Only you shall let me know. For everything that I have seen till I grow old, Never will I see, the way the light shines on you For you start to shine, my dear In the colors of hazel and gold. I have seen the blue in your eyes, the scent of the summer that made me choose. Your laugh in the husky dawn, a thousand lives That would stay with me in a million hues. 15 Days before The narrative has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident. Dear Evelyn Do you remember your birthday ? I mean ¨C the birthday where I was there, for the first time. It''s a moment that I would never forget. The moment where I guess I might have shown my most selfless love for you. You had never asked for a birthday party. You said you were not a big fan of it. I don''t know why but it just came to my mind. To give you a surprise. I still am confused to this day as to why I did it. Was it because I wanted to see you happy? To see your precious smile and your unstoppable energy ? Or was it because I wanted you to see me ? To see how I was there for you. Looking back now, I don''t know if what I did was actually out of love or whether I was just pretending to be good to fit into your good books, I will never know. But the truth is, I can say without a doubt that seeing you that day the way you were, made me happy. I will never forget the shocked look on your face when you realized I was there at your house. To see you skipping down your apartment corridor and coming towards me. To see you in your black t shirt and your hair bounce behind you as you jumped. Your bubbly squeak at that moment that made my heart skip a beat, feeling like it was up there in the sky. Your excitement that day was anything I had ever seen. I realize now that whether I was being pretentious or not, what I did made you happy. And seeing your restlessness happiness that day, truly made me happy. And I guess that is all there is to it, to be asked for. Yours ever so truthfully Kriyank. P.S. A glass of wine As intoxicating as it can get Can never be as same As living the day with you. Your soul, darling Is as old as it can get. To have your kindred-spirit, Is to be drunk on lover''s edge. Will your love ever feel old ? A chance that I dream high To spend your every night. For your love, my dear Will always be as new as gold. A gentle touch, you make me feel Makes my intoxicated heart even more. For here I am to wonder, What am I without you ?