A Lot Like Moon & Stars | ✓

10 | alnilam

i n t e r l u d e

VIRAT'S POV

x.

A L N I L A M (the blue star)

"Hello, Mr. Arnav Dobriyal? -"

•••

A flashback :

"How far of a fall do you think it is?" Tara asks, holding her hair which gets constantly cluttered because of the blowing winds. "Maybe a little less than the time I would be alive?" she answers herself rheotorically, giving me a pondering look.

"Careful Tara." I warn her, noticing how close she is standing close to the edge. "Wouldn't want you to fall now, would we?"

Her eyes catches mine almost instantly. Her gaze makes my heart clenched, and I inhale the air sharply. Tara slowly leans forward as she speaks out, "And what if I do?" The tone of her voice suggests that she doesn't mean physical meaning of falling, that the word falling for her has an entirely different meaning. "Tell me, Virat. If I fall, will you catch me?"

I smile at her, shoving my hands in the jeans of my pocket. "I'll always catch you."

•••

Fast-forward :

"Tara?" I call out aloud, standing outside her mansion but to my unfortune, no one answers.

"Tara?" I call out again. Frustrated, I dig inside my pocket to take out my phone and dial her number but no one answers.

And what I simply do is wait.

•••

Fast forward :

"Virat, you can't extend your holiday for long. Everyone's asking for you." Mahi bhai speaks at the other end of the call.

"Mahi bhai." My voice is clogged with thousands of unspoken words. "I'm coming tomorrow." I answer.

"Okay, we'll be looking for you at tomorrow's practice."

"Okay bhai." I smile contemptuously even though he cannot see me.

I couldn't wait anymore. Sorry Tara.

•••

Fast forward :

It feels weird being back in Delhi after being gone for so long, but it's comforting to know that a lot has not changed. The traffic is still horrible, and the sunsets are still as beautiful as they have always been.

I liked to think that the sunsets in Dehradun were the same as the ones in Delhi, but they weren't. The colors were deeper in Delhi. The oranges and reds were burnt, making the sky look like as if it were on fire. Whereas the sunsets in Dehradun were softer. The pinks and light yellows swirled in the sky, and hid behind the scattered fog and mist.

"I bet you didn't miss this." Rohit sighs as the car comes to an unnatural halt due to the sickening traffic.

"Dehradun had worse. Landslides. Now imagine," I reply with a shrug, leaning on my seat. He has a playful smirk on his lips and I can very well imagine what's going on in that meathead's brain.

"Hot girl?" he asks playfully.

"Beautiful girl." I chide, increasing the volume of the music.

Rohit pokes my arm as he says, "My brother is in love -"

" - the traffic is moving." I cut him short, shuffling in my seat.

And I had to move on.

•••

Fast forward :

567 missed calls for Tara Dobriyal. I know she never loved me and all, but why would she just disappear like that from my life?

Cricket was my life; and somehow during the series against Australia (which we won by 4-1) I could forget about Tara momentarily. But now, I had no distraction. I could feel the tick-tock of the second hand of the clock, each second passing away like glass -slow and transparent.

The wait for Tara is killing me.

I try to search her on Facebook. I can feel my heart hammering against my ribcage in the most violent manner as I type down: Tara Dobriyal.

My hands begin to shake in a way, I cannot control as I scroll down the page. Everything stops. The bone-chilling winter winds stop, the air becomes bereft of oxygen so that my breathing stops. And most importantly, my heart stops. It stops beating, and for a second I doubt whether I am really alive when I feel my heart spasm violently, all over again.

RIP Tara Dobriyal.
Dated : 15/07/2012

All my condolences to the Dobriyal family for the unbearable loss of their daughter, Tara.
Dated : 14/07/2012

May your soul rest in peace, Tara.
Dated : 14/07/2012

And just like that: I shatter.

•••

Fast forward :

"She cannot die, Rohit! Two years back? Is this a fucking joke? I can't believe this." I yell, clenching my fists.

"Calm down, Virat. Calm down." Rohit sighs. "Are you sure you met the same Tara in Dehradun?"

"Yeah Rohit. I saw her. I fucking talked to her, saved her life, fell in love. Do you really think I'm hallucinating?" That's what Jatin told me when I enquired him about Tara. That I was hallucinating, and that I needed a psychiatrist.

Rohit scrolls down her facebook page, and exhales out a relaxed sigh. "Tara's dad stays in Mumbai."

•••

"Hello, Mr. Arnav Dobriyal? -"