When a truth-and-dare question turns Chavi's life upside down and pushes her toward the only person whom she had pulled with herself, Garvit, in the turmoil.
dive in for some sour and sweet banters and most of all, teenage romance!
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The fresh scent of freshly cut grass filled the air as Garvit sat beside his grandfather, digging his hands into the dry soil to pull the weeds from among the summer crops his grandfather had planted in his small garden. A soft wind took over, carrying a guava flower from the orchard nearby.
His grandfather had an orchard of guava trees from which he would send them guavas every September, and fell on the soil beside Garvit's fingers, his eyes fell on the tiny white flower as he pulled another weed which had grown amongst the potato stems and placed it beside a plant, a small smile adorned the corner of his lips.
After uprooting the weeds from one row, Garvit stood up to stretch his back and muscles. His eyes fell on the guava flower again, its white petals contrasting with the mushy brown soil—so different yet went well together.
His thoughts drifted to the beautiful golden light hour where he had met Chavi, the memory felt clear as a day despite the passage of time, he had been here for quite some days.
. . .
They sat on the footsteps that had been elevated from the ground as the evening wind played with her opened curls and the ice cream cone she held in her hand which was melting slowly. She kept it away from her body, licking once in a while to keep it from turning into a mess.
"I'm sorry," Garvit finally said, the words that had been stuck in his throat and gripping his heart finally finding release.
"Hm?" she questioned, turning towards him as she took the last bite of her ice cream.
He took it as an indication to continue, as his eyes fell on the beaded jewellery she wore all the time to keep his eyes somewhere else and said, "When I asked you about your family?" he continued, "I think I understand your frustration because if you had asked me about my family, I know I wouldn't have responded positively".
"Sometimes your strengths are your weaknesses as well", she replied thoughtfully.
They didn't speak after that, he didn't say anything and she didn't ask, a calm silence washed over them and they relished in that peace, the ending of a beautiful day.
When it was time to part, Garvit didn't know if he should tell her that he was visiting his grandfather. A cool breeze washed over them, billowing their hair. Chavi took out a pink hair tie and tied her hair back, a small smile on the corner of her lips. As Garvit looked at her, he realized the warmth he felt inside and smiled back.
.
.
.
Garvit looked at the hand outreached in front of him, holding a batch of garden peas freshly plucked from their grandfather's garden, it was Ishar. He offered some to Garvit. Ishar had arrived a few days after Garvit, before their mother came. Their father had booked the earliest cab and sent Ishar to their grandfather's place.
"I don't blame you," Ishar began, his voice soft. "You can be mad at me. I was scared because of the past experiences of my life. Chavi is nice, and so are the people at college, but I don't want them to look down on me. That's why I didn't dare tell anyone."
"I was scared," he confessed, the words leaving him in almost a whisper.
Garvit listened to his brother but showed no signs of responding. After some time, when he had finished cutting all the grasses, he offered Ishar half a shell of the sweetest garden peas and asked, "Will you munch on them or are you scared of this too?"
Ishar laughed, rubbing the corner of his eyes where a tear had accumulated. Garvit wondered if his brother was happy or sad,
maybe a little of both
As the afternoon sun hit the front bushes of the roses and the wooden veranda of their house, Garvit felt a sense of peace. The garden, his grandfather and their childhood home, all felt like pieces of a puzzle coming together, he felt at home. Yet, despite the peace that felt like a warm hug of a parent, a flicker of worry began to gripped on his sides. His mother must have arrived today, and with her arrival, myriad of emotions and uncertainties.
He remembered his 12-year-old self, and while his present self might had forgiven his mother, his 12-year-old self couldn't. He remembered her weekly visits, which soon deteriorated to monthly and eventually to once a year.
Would she stay this time or leave the same day? The thought unsettled him. His mother's visits were rare and brief, often filled with a heavy tension that hung in the air like a storm cloud. He didn't blame her; it had only helped him grow. Yet, he still wished for a miracle for his parents to be together.
dreams only come true when they don't matter anymore
'sometimes your strengths are your weaknesses as well'
He remembered Chavi's words as he closed his eyes leaning against the bark of the huge Guava tree to take shelter under his cool shade. His parents had been his strengths, but their broken relationship had also been the source of his deepest pain but he was grateful for his father and dedication for keeping them as priority and not remarrying just how his grandfather wanted him to do.
Was it selfish of him or the selfishness on his grandfather's part or was it his mother who had been the most selfish amongst them all, he didn't know when he hadn't worn their shoes and hadn't walked their life.
A burst of laughter pulled Garvit from his thoughts, there was a commotion in front of the house. Ishar stood half-naked under a makeshift shower he had created using the water pipe, spraying water on their grandfather who was trying to dodge while making the water in attempts to grab the hose from Ishar's hands.
Maybe it was love—the love his grandfather had for his father, the love his mother couldn't return to her father, and the love that bound them all together. It all started with a little bit of selfishness, the desire to hold on to that love tightly, to have something to call their own.
