Secrets And Lies [Completed]

55. paper rings

Song of the chapter is
Can't Help Falling In Love
by Elvis Presley

-55-
-Veronica D'Rosario-
-present-

__________

Arora Residence
12 December, 2030
5:45 p.m

As I walked through the front door to his house, my eyes scanned through the place to catch a glimpse of him.

"Moose?"

But there was no answer. I took off my scarf and walked towards the kitchen to grab a bottle of water when my eyes fell on the small note sitting atop the island. Picking it up, I turned it around and read,

'Meet me at the backyard.'

My brows knitted in their place as I ran my fingers across the words. Licking my lips, I slowly made my way towards the back door to his house and stepped out. Turning left, I walked a few steps along the picket fence running around his house and paused when I caught the glimpse of what seemed like several string lights hanging between the two Poinciana trees that grew in his backyard.

My heart skipped several beats.

Trudging forward, I felt my breathing grow shallower. Several polaroids were suspended from the string lights. My eyes scanned through each and every one of them. They were pictures of us. Moose and I, from when we were young.

I was never really a picture person. To be very honest, I hated taking pictures of myself. I was among those people who felt that every fleeting moment had a time of it's own, and that capturing them into photos was equal to ruining the essence of that very moment. I was always for living in the moment.

Ahaan had always been a shy kid, so he also wasn't too enthusiastic about clicking pictures, except for the usual pink skies that appeared in Delmore once every six months. But when I had become friends with Moose and Siya, things had changed. Moose loved taking pictures. He had a small polaroid in which he used to love capturing moments, and collecting them like little snow globes. I remembered being so annoyed by him at first whenever he used to try to take candid pictures of me. But slowly and gradually, this habit of his had grown on me, just like everything else about him.

A smile blossomed on my face as I sauntered through the place, glancing at every picture. Our young budding smiles, his more, provided a gush of warmth that spread inside my heart. In one of the pictures, I had my head rolled back, probably laughing at Zoya and Ahaan bickering with each other and he was sitting next to me, with his face resting on his hand and his eyes trained on me. The scene floated in front of my eyes and I could see all of us back in our old booth at the Paper Lantern, the polaroid in Siya's hands as she, unbeknownst to us, captured this moment.