Tiny Tales

Termed Forbidden

A soft breeze made its presence known as the silent sun slowly sneaked below the horizon. The lapping of the sea water against the ferry, the subtle sway sang the song of bliss. Taking a sip of the cold beer, I heaved a sigh.

I could pick up the light follow-up of the loud music playing on the other side of the deck. I turned my head, sparing a quick glance in the direction, before making myself comfortable on the beach chair once again. I loved the serenity, nature offered. It was so enticing.

I smiled as a loud cheer reached my ears. Even with the occasional optimism, it was different, a lot different from what you would imagine a bachelorette party to be like. At least for me, it was!

She is one of my closest friend, the one who got hitched. We didn't imagine her to be the one to get married so quick. She was a dire feminist, the kind who didn't want equality but demanded superiority. Her dating life sucked to a high extent. As close to two years back, short cropped hair was her ideal style. Makeup wasn't exactly her thing, and her intense hate for waxing was something to be appreciated.

A sudden thud snapped me out of my thoughts. I turned around to see a very drunk Sakshi stumbling towards me.

"Ritika yaar..." she slurred, sitting down beside me, "what are you doing here? The strippers out there seems to be having more fun than you."

I chuckled at her remark.

"You seem to be having quite a lot of fun of your own."

"Ugh... Sure." She mumbled, taking another swing at the bottle. "This ring is weighing me down. It's too heavy."

I looked down at her hand that adorned the most beautiful, pristine ring you could have imagined. Coated with platinum strips, the diamond screamed of affluence.

"You know what would be awesome? To simply throw this ring in the water." She grumbled, tearing at the stubborn ring that stuck to her finger.

"Wow! Wow! Wow! Calm down, sassy pants. Your drunk self-had reached a whole new dimension of craziness." She grunted pushing herself back on the chair.

I returned my gaze back to the sea. The orange hue of the sun glistening with the salty water looked heavenly.

"I don't want to get married." I heard Sakshi whisper, her eyes glued to the distance. "It's too scary."

"It is!" I whispered back to her. "It's scary but so beautiful. You know, you will make a very beautiful bride."

I turned my attention to her face. Her eyes were glistening with unshed tears, her lips quivering. A strange pain masking her beauty.

"Hey...hey! It will be alright. Nothing to be scared of you. He will love you, and you will have the most amazing married life." I coaxed hugging her body that was shaking with grief.

"You don't understand. It's not that easy. It's so hard. I don't know if I can bear it anymore or not." Her tone muffled as she buried her face in my chest.

"Shh...shh. Calm down. I'm here for you. All of us are. We will be here anytime you need us. Okay?"

She lifted her head, staring intently at my face. Her watery eyes slowly gracing my lips. I held my breath, not able to grasp the situation. Closing the distance between us, she touched her lips to mine. Slowly nibbling at my lower lips. The time came to a halt as I stayed stuck, shocked at her action.

A sudden cheer from the guests had my senses return back. Pushing her away, my hand unknowingly touched her cheek with a smack. I gasped instantly, realizing what I had done.

"I'm so sorry, Sakshi. I'm really sorry...I..." I apologized not finding the courage to touch her.

Her hand rested on the cheek that had suffered the impact, her eyes bringing out a stream of fresh tears. Slipping from her chair, she dropped to her knees, a loud sob breaking the peaceful silence.

"I sho...shouldn't have. I...I... couldn't" her voice not able to form words, "I just couldn't hold it in any longer. I have loved you for so long. It pained to see you happy at the thought of my marriage..."

She took in a deep breath, letting out another loud cry. "...I have loved you for seven years. Didn't you see it even for once... maybe just for a tiny instance?"

Her eyes turned to face me. I stared at her blankly. My mind wandering through the memory lane. That love letter, those joking promises of eloping if the right guy didn't come around, those birthday gifts which were meant for much more than just friendship- all came rushing back to me. How could I have not known? How could I have missed the signs? How could I have been so blind?

"I was so foolish." She continued, shaking her head. "I...I thought you did be bothered to see me leaving. I would have stopped this all if you would have asked me to. All this time, I thought you felt the same way. I made such a fool out of myself. Such... a freaking fool."

"I'm sorry. Bu...but I had no idea. I didn't know how you felt. Maybe, I never tried to realize it. I'm so sorry." I said, finally finding my voice. "I thought we were friends."

She scoffed at my words, "Friends! Of course. It all begins with friendship and then somehow it weaves its way to love. You see, it's not in my hand. I didn't choose to fall for you. It just happened, I couldn't stop it. I tried... Trust me, I tried so hard to push these feelings away. I dated guys, I discarded my preferences. I am so, so stupid. I know how I feel, but I still have to close it up, lock it away. Get married to a guy! I...It's..."

"You can't marry that guy. You shouldn't!" I raised my tone. It would be so wrong if she did that.

"What? How can you say that? I'm getting married in two weeks." She laughed. "In two weeks I will be someone's wife! Wow."

"Sakshi please don't. It's wrong. This is going to destroy a lot of lives." I dropped down beside her, holding her hand. I tried to make her realize the gravity of the situation.

"Destroy lives? Please." She pushed my hand away, taking a big sip from the bottle. "It's already destroyed. My life is destroyed."

Pulling herself up, she struggled to stand straight. "There is nothing left. The one person I loved, rejected me. My parents will disown me if I told them the truth. The society will spit at me if they knew. I will be forced to hide it again. I will be forced to get married. I have to bear that for the rest of my life. I will be left all alone. Then, why should I willing face this trauma when I can walk right into it, maybe it will be a tiny bit easier on me. I might live a lie, but it wouldn't be as ugly as the truth."

She stumbled towards the other end of the deck, the alcohol showing its essence in her body movement.

"I will be there for you. You won't be alone." I called out to her, standing on my feet.

She let out a shrill laughter, the tears not holding back its pace, "Right! Just easier said than done. Don't worry, yaar. I'm fine. Perfectly fine. I have accepted my fate because my love is forbidden by law! Because my love doesn't love me. I'm just fine! Everything is fine. Enjoy the party!"

I watched her retreating figure mixing with the crowd. Her feelings lost in the mumbles of the sea. That day, I witnessed the doom of another love story... another life story, as the sun hid its rays behind the horizon.

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This is my entry for the Short Story competition. I hope you enjoyed reading it

Happy Reads!