November 2, 2014

Happy New Year




(1)
At 11.59 PM, he leaned over to kiss her. With his eyes closed and lips quivering, all the years spent with the anguish of being on the fringes, leading to this, flashed in his mind. This was his moment to seize.


At 00.00, she raised on her toes, reached for his face and  gave him a peck on the cheek.

And suddenly, January 1, turned into any other day of the year.

There are still 365 days in this year, he thought to himself.

........................................................................................................................................................................

(2)
At 11.59 PM, he looked around the house once again making sure that it was just two of them. It's been years since the kids' room was vacant but he hadn't got used to it. He leaned over to kiss her. With his eyes closed and lips quivering, he felt anxious just like the first time they had kissed. 30 years of marriage had turned them into familiar strangers.

At 00.00, she raised on her toes, reached for his face and  gave him a peck on the cheek.

And suddenly, January 1, turned into any other day of the year.

There are still 365 days in this year, he thought to himself.

........................................................................................................................................................................

(3)
At 11.59 PM, he clenched tightly to his walker, tested the strength of his creaking bones to the maximum, stood up, and walked to her bed. With his eyes closed and lips quivering, he held her hand in his and kissed her.
When medical science has failed, it's his gestures that will wake her up, from the vegetative state, he believed.

She didn't.

And suddenly, January 1, turned into any other day of the year.

There are still 365 days in this year, he thought to himself.

............................................................................................................................................................................








P.S. I would like to credit my friend ARA from But The Words Prevailed  for invaluable inputs

P.P.S. I look up to my peers and readers to  share and promote my work, if they deem it worthy. My sincere thanks and regards to all of you.

14 comments :

  1. Life! A beautiful post, Prateek. I love the second fiction. There is so much depth in it.

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    1. Thanks for reading Saru. The idea of how love changes or evolves with age, has always fascinated me. I think I will write one more post on this :).
      The second story is by my friend ARA, who I credited.

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    2. Looking forward to read it. You know what's more fascinating these days to me, what goes into the mind of the author, how he comes with the idea.

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  2. I think I liked the third one more. There is still so much hope.

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  3. Remarkable... it is so abstract yet so detailed... masterpiece..

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    Replies
    1. Life and love are both abstract, with no explanations and sometimes even logic!
      Thanks for visiting :)

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  4. Prateek this was beautiful! I loved the transition and emotions in the three pieces!

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    1. Thanks Aditi. The idea was to show transition but part of me believe that these could be concurrent stories too :)

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  5. that was very touching...a few weeks back i painted something like that depicting life and stages, reminded me of all those feelings I had experienced while painting that work. Nice post and nice blog :)

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    Replies
    1. Thanks Ankita :). Always good find an artist with the same mindset. Just saw your blog and loved it...

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    2. Thanks! I love your blog too :)

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  6. Life! Ahh...so long when you look into it. Yet when it's struggling on its last leg, it's just another day.
    Lovely blog. :)

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  7. T'was really so beautifully written ...
    Loved it..♥

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Now, it is time to be honest !