Dragonflies

CHAPTER 6

Being fragile itself, trust is what that makes the bond between two people stronger. You cannot live in a relationship, whether it be of any kind, that lacks trust. Yet it is so difficult to tell whom to trust and whom not to. Most of the times you would have to make a random decision based on your instincts and assessments on a person's character. There are times when you'd have to make abrupt choices and those which need a lot of thinking. But it is hard to identify which is which. It's like tossing a coin. You have equal probability of getting heads and tails. Hence, you should be ready to face the outcomes. Always keep in mind that the sculpture of your trust can shatter into tiny little piece anytime; but also, you should leave a little space for the benefit of doubt. So instead of being scared to trust someone, try your chances. The worst to happen is that you will realize you made a mistake. And when you do, move on.

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The only sounds I heard over the past fifteen minutes were the roaring of Aylan's bike and loud thuds of my heart. A few seconds later, we were moving along a narrow road. The neighborhood was silent. Even though it was only half past nine, there was nobody to be seen outside. It was suffocating inside his helmet.

'I need to take this off.'

As we were closing in on a turn near a small shop, Aylan

announced, "Here we are."

'I need air. I can't breathe.'

The bike descended towards the porch through the rusty looking gates. Somebody had left the light on, on the front. "Get down and stay behind that pillar." Aylan ordered. I obeyed like a pet.

He quickly unlocked the door as I hid behind the pillar. He got in, in a swift movement and signaled me to go inside. As soon as I entered the house, I took the helmet off. 'AIR'. Aylan shut the door behind me.

Seconds later, we tangled into another fierce lip fight.

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It was a small house with two rooms and a kitchen downstairs. One of the rooms had an attached bathroom which I didn't dare to inspect. The hall was small. Most of it was covered by the stairs. Aylan said there was a room upstairs. I didn't go there also. Behind the stairs was a washbasin and a mini-fridge. The kitchen looked disgusting. There was a rotten melon on one end of the kitchen slab. The rest of it was covered with innumerable empty beer bottles and other kind of alcohols that I don't know of.

The windows in the first room were covered with dhoti and bedsheet as they were see-through. It was the only room downstairs that had a cot and a bed. The corners of both the rooms and the hall were piled up by both fresh and dirty clothes. The room with the bathroom looked barren. There wasn't any other furniture too. Aylan cleared the mess from the floor and brought the bed from the other room. He spread a clean sheet over it to make me feel comfortable.

"You take a shower and I will clean this up." Aylan suggested. "And don't expect the bathroom to be clean. It's a guys' place. So, this is the best you can get." He added.

"I am not in the mood to take a shower. Let's sit for a while." I said.

"Okay. Before that I have something for you." I followed him to the other room. He pulled out something pink from the bag laying on the ground. Without saying anything he tossed it over to me. It was a book. 'The Forty Rules of Love.' The book cover said.

He said it was a gift. It didn't have a wrapping. It didn't contain any messages. He didn't say anything fancy. He just handed it over to me so casually. Without looking at my face. Without having any specific emotion on his either. 'How Aylanish!' I thought.