The cupid's mistake

Chapter 2

Living life.
Present day

Cigarette vs Alcohol:

• Alcohol causes dilusions. Cigarette doesn't.
•Alcohol makes you vomit your guts out. Cigarette doesn't.
•Alcohol gives you ugly hangovers. Cigarette doesn't.
•Alcohol makes you emotionally vulnerable. Cigeratte doesn't.

Net result: Cigarette-4, Alcohol-0

Ehan always had this analogy at the back of his mind whenever he was stressed and needed to calm himself down with something really strong and addictive.

Irony was that he was always stressed and thus, ended up smoking cigarettes like water.

He was always guilty about it though. For once upon a time he had promised his Nivedita that he won't touch shits like cigarettes and alcohol, ever again in his life. Little did he know that time that Nivedita wasn't going to stay in his life forever... nor did he know that stress and depression were going to take away Nivedita's place instead. They were a hard thing to manage, both of them, equally. And being the confused soul Ehan was, he knew no better way to handle them other than puffing those sleek, white rolls whom the world addressed to as 'death'.

It was some 3:30 p.m in the afternoon.

Sitting by the slope of a hillock in the Chakrata region of Uttarakhand, Ehan was smoking his fourth cigarette in the chain, thinking about his analogy of cigarettes and alcohols and that of all his broken promises, when he heard a strong grumble inside his tummy.

The grumble meant hunger, Ehan knew that well. But what he didn't understand was that why was he hungry. Hunger, thirst, sleep, sex, emotion- these basic human things had left him long ago. He was much a like a robot now, a lifeless being, precisedly a money making machine, who ate when he felt like and slept when his body could bear no more stress. There was no normalcy in his system and it went on years after years, until one fine day a woman named Nivedita Bhattacharya walked into his life and turned his entire system upside down!

Crazy girl, always creating havocs in my life! Ehan muttered to himself as he took the last draw from his cigeratte and crushed its burnt end upon the grasses beside him. He then exhaled a deep, long breath, got up on his feet and headed straight towards his car parked at some distance off.

Once he was inside his car and was done fastening the seat belt around him, he gulped some water from a tetra bottle carelessly lying inside the dashboard. The car engine was ignited next and the radio was tuned on to a station which played only retro songs. Those beautiful old melodies coupled with the freezing temperature and the gaining speed of the car, flew Ehan over the mountaneous roads of Uttarakhand back to his hotel, just in the blink of an eye.

                                 •

About thirty five minutes later, Ehan was finally done muching over his most awaited lunch. The typical garwal food that consisted of smoked chapaties and mundali ka daal, had fulfilled his appetite for good and now he felt like looking at his surroundings for once, just to see how the world looks from the perspective of a thoroughly satiated man!

It looked great, and happy, and perfect and Ehan had absolutely no doubts about it.

But then as it is said that every good thing comes with a baggage, Ehan's happy site seeing was also interrupted by someone whom he was least expecting to... at this place... at this hour.