New perspective: A Retelling of D3 Dil Dosti Dance

not alone

Headnote:

This is the counterpart to chapter 2, so they share a soundtrack. For maximum feels, follow instructions :))))

[Mumbai, July 2011, Dusk]

Rey took his shoes off and and tried to place them on the rack, only for them to slide right off, getting mud all over the floor. He cursed and fumbled around in the dark, his fingers searching for the switch board.

His afternoon run had kept him outdoors for so long that it had gotten dark. Of course, the run itself hadn't lasted very long. Without really meaning to, he had sat down on a bench, on the corner of a crowded street. And, just like that, without meaning to, he had closed his eyes and let thoughts of kriya take over.

Thoughts of Kriya came like a tidal wave- heavy, vast, confusing. He felt like a child, lost at sea. Momentarily, as he would open his eyes to the traffic, the lights and the noise would keep him afloat; and then another would memory would pull on his eyelids and he would forget where he was.

// Here, I urge you to pause, listen to 'Baat Unkahi' and feel Rey's feelings with him.

https://spotify.link/V2VhzEIUsDb

Okay, now feel free to go ahead with the chapter //

It was his ringing phone that eventually broke his trance.

"Sunn. Kahaan hai tu?"

"...Swayam?" he asked, confused.

There was a pause.

"Tu theek hai?"

"Yeah... I'm fine. Kya hua?" He let out a breath.

"Nothing, main tere ghar gaya tha. I figured ki Sharon would have left, and maybe you still needed company? ... You know, kal ke baad?"

Rey smiled despite himself. "Nahi yaar. Main theek hoon, I'm okay." He paused. "Kal milta hoon tujhse, I'll see you tomorrow?"

"Accha. Okay, if you're sure."

"Chal, bye"

As Rey walked home, it started to rain. The droplets felt odd against his skin. He wondered how this drizzle could be made of the same thing as tidal waves. How could something so gentle be so harsh when it wants to?

'No.' He shook his head, trying to snap out of it. 'I opened the gates. I can't let that happen. It's too much. Too much, all at once.'

The footpath wide in front of him, he broke into a run. Running helped. It always helped. It kept his thoughts lighter. Now he thought of Sharon- of how grateful he was, to have her; of how patiently she had listened to him that morning; of how oddly determined she had seemed as she was leaving('Whatever was that about?', he wondered), and how furious she had been, the previous night- 'No! Let's not go there, again.' He thought of Swayam, and the rest of his friends, all of whom had sent him multiple texts asking him how he was doing.

Slowing to a jog, he pulled out his phone, to look at the messages. Vicky's chat was at the one at the top, and was the one with the most texts. He shook his head, already knowing what it was going to be. And he was right- all memes, most of them terribly offensive. Nil's was right under it. It was a video of Vicky ranting. "Listen to me, mere Bhai", he was saying. "Tujhe koi bhi mil sakti hai! DO YOU HEAR ME? You just tell me what you want! I will line women up for you! NIL TU BATA YAAR ISKO, SAMAJHTA NAHI HAI YEH!' He was yelling at this point. Rey moved on to the next text, making a mental note to tell Nil, in person, to not send him this same video every day that next week, as was his habit, and as Rey completely expected him to do. Simi had sent him the link to a Ted talk on how to deal with break-ups. There were 17 voice notes from Rinni, which would, no doubt, be of her rambling because she forgot what she wanted to say, originally; He grinned, anticipating. Of all the texts, this was his favourite.

There was, however, one more, that he wasn't expecting. It was from Neha. It was the shortest, but had the most impact.

It simply read 'Rey. I'm sorry you're going through this. I know how you feel.'

He believed her.

It was only then, that he realised, it wasn't just him who had been left behind. 'Her friends,' he thought. 'They had her before I did... they loved her before- No. No. Stop.'

He was almost at the front porch. The lights were off.

"There's no point in thinking about this," he said out loud. "We all have each other"

He opened the door, fumbled with his shoes, finally found the light switch, and turned it on.

He took one look at the large, empty house, and dialled Swayam's number.

"...Hello?"

"I changed my mind. Abhi mil sakta hai?"

"Apne chai spot pe?"

"Yep"

"Okay, I'll see you in a bit."