More than a blog, it is a short story
Chapter 1
Characters: Lily, Joseph Gomes, Meera
Lily, is not just another girls – she can be me, or you or someone like your childhood friends
Joseph Gomes – another typical father. Paranoid but disabled – unable to express his love towards his own daughter
Meera – character in Lily’s story
She looked like a girl you would see in a city bus or sometimes in a metro, reading some paperback book from the library about plants or mythology. She might be wearing a scarf around her neck, not as a style statement but as she is anemic and fears catching cold.
One might take her to be a typist or a class D staff of some small office. Nervous hands, foot tapping, biting lips, conscious about her distance with the co-passenger.
She is a regular girl, low on confidence, carrying some anonymous purse, eating from a small packet of peanuts rolling between her fingers, sucking in her cheeks, staring anxiously outside the window.
In the morning, the anxiety is out of the fear of getting late for work and in the evening the reason can be Dad waiting for her to cook dinner. Her face is pale, lacking the glow of happiness and make-up as both comes expensive. She has given up on trying to cover the blemishes and marks of acne on her face that no longer bothers her as it used to. Looks as pale as the winter in her own small town.
Her life is pretty much like a loop. She wakes up early in the morning, finishes the chores, goes out in the market for some fresh egg and milk, might pick up some vegetables while coming back home, or a small piece of a fish as much she can afford. Cooks lunch for dad, packs her own, takes the bus to office by 9 in the morning.
Usually she picks up a book once or twice a week from the office library, reads while travelling, has dinner after finishing chores and goes off to sleep. That’s her small world, herself and her dad. No friends, no relatives, no one to ask how she is feeling. A small kiss on her forehead from her father every morning keeps her going. That’s the only love she has ever experienced.
She only lives in a different world, some other reality, as she continues writing that story every night. It is about a girl, named Meera, who has the liberty to choose her own life, do everything she wants to do, luxury of having a family — unlike Lily Gomes. it’s probably the natural flair of writing that’s the only thing Lily and her Dad, Joseph Gomes, shares in common. She has probably got it from her father, who never stopped writing since the time he has started living his retired life.
While doing dishes after dinner, she realized Meera is going to come to meet her, just like every other night, in her dreams, making her feel worse about her own life. “Tonight I have to stop this, tonight I have to kill her. Will start a new one.” she says herself. She makes bed, pulls the blanket takes her diary, and feels like for the first time she is taking the liberty of writing Meera’s fate.
The next morning Lily wakes up late. Unusually distracted and in a rush. Broke her favourite coffee cup, hurt herself while cutting vegetables for lunch. “what’s wrong with me!” she tries to keep her head straight while trying to get out of the guilt of a murder she committed last night!
Takes a bath, fixes her clothes and face just as much needed to go out for office. She almost runs to the bus stop as she noticed her finger is cut badly to bleed enough to stain her only good dress, she is wearing today for the appraisal meeting. She checks her watch and looks around. it’s still almost 5 minutes for the bus to pick her up.
She looked straight at the medicine store across the road, almost ran towards it, overlooking the honking truck coming from the other end in it’s full speed till she could feel the dust in her breath and suddenly everything was dark in front of her eyes.
Probably it wasn’t only her finger that was bleeding by then.
Chapter 2
Characters: Danish Ahmed, Meera, Sameen, Joseph
Danish – celebrated author, father of Sameen, husband of Meera
Meera – famous journalist, wife of Danish, mother of Sameen
Joseph – character in Sameen’s story
Danish Ahmed stopped writing putting a dot after the last word, ‘dead’, of his story about the life of a small town girl called Lily Gomes. He closed his diary as it’s almost time for his evening prayers.
He got up to make himself a cup of his favourite black coffee, to shred off the tiredness out of writing at a stretch for almost 2 hrs now.
Danish Ahmed is not a regular Man.
A celebrated author on way to give another bestseller, a proud father and the husband of a very successful journalist Meera. Still coping with Meera’s death, that happened 2 days back – he opened the door of the balcony, stood at their regular spot, took a sip of the horrible coffee he made himself — all alone, lost in thoughts.
A careful yet warm touch on his shoulder brought him back to reality. Sameen, their daughter. Such a bright 19 yr old girl, seems to have lost all her charm in just two days. Pale skin, swollen eyes, dry hair, hugged her dad to ensure a sense of assurance and her presence.
She has made herself a cup of tea and her dad’s special coffee, she had learnt few days back from her mother. She seems to have gotten the selectively best qualities from both her parents, courage and perseverance from her mother and the flair of writing from her father.
They both sigh silently as they felt the charm of their home is taken away by someone along with Meera.
But Life doesn’t stop.
Danish went back to his study. it’s time to read the piece he has just finished. Sameen went back to her room, she wants to continue writing the story about the man she loved and lost. She has broken up with Joseph last month. They used to often talk about how their old age will be, together, and here they are!
Her diary seemed blur in front of her eyes, tears rolled down her pink, pale cheeks. “Why does everything have to happen together?” She looked at her Mom’s picture on her bedside table. A feeling of guilt cropped in. Meera tried to speak to both of them about the last case she was working on. She was a crime journalist.
Sameen was busy with her college fest, Danish with his book release, when they got a call from the Police with the news of a murder happened early morning. World seemed to shatter around them. ‘Isn’t her breakup responsible for all of this?’ she asked herself. Since the time they parted ways, she had started to keep herself busy in some way or the other.
“I should’ve listened to her, what if I could help! She would’ve been here” she broke down into tears.
Controlled herself in a while, rubbed her eyes, picked up the diary and wrote the last few words of her story – ‘and Joseph lost everyone he loved, lived a miserable and long life, Alone.’
Chapter 3
Characters: Joseph Gomes, Sameen
Joseph – Lily’s father
Sameen – A character in Joseph’s story
It’s been 10 days Joseph is living alone. No one to cook for him, or to help him walk, bring eggs and milk for him, to care, to talk. The walls around him suffocates more and more everyday. Life seems to be long and miserable, time seems unending. He had so many dreams for his beautiful daughter’s future.
it’s been days, and he is still failing every-time he is trying to hold his tears.
He picked up his book and his pencil. His story was his way of escaping reality.
In his story –
He is a proud and successful father, who is able give his daughter a good life, education and everything he wanted to offer his little Lily.
Living the life he wants, doing what he always wanted to do.
In the story, he is a CELEBRATED AUTHOR, living with his daughter, SAMEEN.
Food for thought
It’s time for us to take a minute and THINK.
ARE WE LIVING THE LIFE WE THINK WE DO?
OR
WE ARE ALSO A CHARACTER IN SOMEONE ELSE’S STORY??
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