Maskman! The finale..

                                 SECOND PART                FIRST PART

The biggest problem with this mask-man theory is that it stops you from trusting the people around you. It almost forces you to believe that people are not being real to you. They have been secretive, hiding their other side, the real them from you.

“I don’t want to reveal my weakness to all the people, people whom I don’t trust. They might use it against me.” She said.

“Neither do I!” I said.

“If I’m not sharing something with someone, it doesn’t mean I’m masked. It means I’m just being cautious.”

The thing which I had always liked about her was her practicality. I may not be practical all the time. I love to live in my own world. I don’t always take decision based on practicality. On the other hand she always looks at the practical feasibility of the things. One corner of my brain was occupied by these thoughts when she was discussing with me about the masquerades. It was like she read my mind. She knew what I was thinking, about her and about myself.

“Why makes you so surreal?” She asked.

Surreal? I had to think. Was I being unreal? May be I was. But it was not the real me. May be the mask that I was flaking made her think that I was unreal.

“May be the negativity around me makes me unreal.”

I meet many people daily, in my office, at my home, on the road and invariably almost all of them carry a wave of negative energy around them. The air around me was full of negativity. At times I felt I was inhaling more negativity than the oxygen. It had left me frustrated and devoid of calmness. May be it was the reason I was shedding a mask and was being unreal. I was in need of oxygen, the positivity. I wanted to come out of the web of negativity.

Maskman! Is it so tough being real?..

Previous Part

It all started the time I woke up that morning. I quickly prepared tea, took news paper and headed towards terrace. I usually don’t read newspaper but I like to hold it in my hands. Winters were just starting and they had a positive impact on the sun-rays  they were calm! I leaned against the wall and looked on the roadside. I saw kids with their mothers waiting eagerly for their school buses to arrive.

They were jumping and screaming and the ladies were all smile, a pleasant sight. It reminded me of the days when I was a kid. It was a good start to a day but I forgot that the day had just started and had no idea that I was going to drained by the end of the day. Nevertheless, few minutes later I was inside the room, it was time to get ready for the office.  

“I’ll come with you today.” My roommate said.

“Sure but the bike is punctured. I’m taking an auto.” I grinned.

“Is it? Then I shall leave. I’m getting late.” He said and left hastily.

I could do nothing but look at him closing the doors. We were supposed to go together, I thought.

“What did you make of it? Your roommate was wearing a mask that time?” She asked again.

“I don’t know. May be he was or maybe I was thinking too much.” I replied.

“He might be in a hurry.” I added.

Our past always has an impact on our present, my manager told me after I reached office. He told me how he moved up the ladder, how he thrashed his competitors. His team was the best in business, always on the top. And of course he told about his expectations from me, they were high!! It appeared he wanted me to listen to him. He wanted me to reciprocate what he did for me. What he did for me? He recruited me but that was it. It was only me since then and not him. And he was reckless who never cared for his colleagues or juniors but for him.

Love Strings- 2

PREVIOUS PART

Varun stood near the sea shore after Pavan left. Dark clouds had started to gather under the sky and slowly the light was fading away. But they didn’t bother Varun, as they reminded him of the evenings he spent with Ananya. The memories were so beautiful that it was impossible for him to forget Ananya but everything. As he walked down the shore, he took a stroll down memory lane.

“Give me two.”  Varun said to coconut water vendor.

image courtesy- google images 

The vendor quickly chops the coconuts in two halves and hand them over to Varun. He picked them, paid money and leisurely walked on the soft sand. It was dark by now and tides coming from Arabian Sea were striking the shore the hard. People from all parts of India visits Malpe beach. It is one of the most beautiful beaches in this part of the country.

“You want to drink both?” Ananya asked from behind.

“I bought two coconuts and two straws.” Varun turned and smiles. He gave one straw to Ananya and walked close to water. They sat on the soft sand and stretched their legs towards the sea. Splashes of sea water, pleasing sound of waves, glistening moon and gleaming stars left no stone unturned in making it the most beautiful evening. The water and sand were cold alike. It was full moon and romantic.

“Why do you take me out in moonlight always?” asked Ananya staring at the moon.

“It builds an aura around you. It makes you look angelic.” Varun smiles and placed one coconut over the sand and put the straw in another coconut in his hand. He asked Ananya to put her straw in the same coconut but she snatched it from his hands. He put his palms under her palms and looked into the sky as the sand under his legs glittered. Shining stars were dazzling beneath the moon. The night had become more so beautiful.

Love Strings- I

“Ok, so tell me again why the hell we’re on the sea shore at two in the afternoon!” Pavan reiterated.

Pavan was helping his priest father in decorating the temple when he got an SMS from Varun. He wanted to meet Pavan immediately. Locales of Udupi, a town situated near the coastline of Arabian Sea in the south-west state of Karnataka, Varun and Pavan were childhood friends. They were working in a multinational software firm in Bangalore and were visiting their native to celebrate Makara Sankranthi. However, reason to come home was not exactly the same for Varun.

"I need your advice." Varun replied after much thinking.

"Go on."

Varun sighed and looked the water drenching his feet's. Meanwhile Pavan got up and waited patiently for the reason.

"I think I have reached a state of breakthrough, I can almost feel it." Varun said as he also got up.

“And what shall I make up of it?”

“She definitely wants me back and I need your opinion.”

“God! Not again. It is over! Listen buddy, she dumped you. She made it clear when she returned everything that you gifted her.” Pavan said angrily.

Varun was still in shell shock. After being in a relationship for longest time, Varun had broken up with his long time girl friend Ananya. Varun had loved her ever since he had first seen her on his first day at the college. Ananya’s ability to think bitchy along with her great looks and a penchant to throw parties made her in every sense a true MEAN GIRL. Every girl in the college wanted to be like her and every boy wanted to be with her. Varun was no exception. Like everyone, he too fell for her when he first saw her. And it was not late when he asked her for a coffee and it marked the beginning of a most remarkable chapter in Varun’s life.

MaskMan! why do people wear masks ??..

Down in dumps I took my seat. The day was long, so exhausting. I could think of nothing but resting my overcooked body. I didn’t want to meet any one. I didn’t want to talk. I didn’t want to smile. All I wanted was to close my eyes and question him, the GOD, why? Why he created the world? A world that has no place for truth! What prompt him to create a place where human acts pusillanimously? Why is there a place for lie? Why can’t people be just real? Where has the authenticity gone?

image courtesy-  gaurdian.co.uk

I was deeply immersed in my thoughts when she snapped her fingers. I turned my face slightly to look at her.

“What is that you hate about people?”  Hate about people? I didn’t have to think much. I knew the answer. It was same thought that had been meddling with my head since morning. It was something that I had always hated in the people I interacted with. I put the Q & A with the almighty on hold and moved further to look at her.

“What?” I wanted to hear the question again before answering. May be I needed a moment to frame the answer correctly.

“What about the people that you hate?” She repeated and closed the window. It started to drizzle as soon as the train moved.

“They wear masks.” And I replied.

Back again!! Thank you Indiblogger..

And here I’m back again after a break of two months, an unwanted break. Last time, I was almost forced to take the break. Job switch and relocating to a new city were really exhausting. When I wrote after the break I was thrilled to be back on blogosphere and decided that I would never take such a long break again. But then when do the things go as per the plan? They never go as planned, at least not in my case. And again I went on a sabbatical for another two months. Oh Yes! I missed writing a lot.

Nevertheless, the reason was simple. I ran out of ideas. I didn’t know where to start? As they say, it’s not certain that when one would come out of the writer’s block. I too was waiting to come out of it all these days. As it has been the case for all these days, a couple of weeks back I decided to write and opened my laptop and again couldn't manage to write a word. It disappointed me and left me with a doubt, a doubt on my abilities.  I closed the Microsoft word and decided that I would not write a word until I feel like writing. And also it is my sisters marriage in next few days. And it has made me realized that I have grown up. Gosh!! hell lot of work. However, I can’t write just for the sake of writing. It’s not a job after all. And just when everything looked gloomy, I received an e mail, an e mail from INDIBLOGGER with a subject line -  “Congratulations - you're a runner-up in the "Love Marriage ya Arranged Marriage" contest!”

Astonished "NISHA"

Astonished "Nisha"

Her heels are making terrifying sounds as she moves swiftly. On her way she strikes into something unknown. It is dark! She couldn’t see anything. She stops when she hears a sound unknown. Frighten and horrify, she slowly turns her body. Next moment; it is brightness all over again as everyone says “Happy birthday Nisha.”

P.S. My first attempt at 55 fiction :)