The World of 2040

Three Strikes {Chapter 1}

A few hours ago, my life was simple and straightforward. I liked it that way. It meant that there were no grey lines, no nuances. The monotony painted a clear picture of the black and the white - the yin and the yang. To me, the grey lines suggested ambiguity, uncertainty and something beyond my reach of control. They were uncharted territories , one which I would dare not cross.

But, as I stare at the now opened letter, I couldn't help but think that a splash of grey had somehow been spilled onto the pages of my life.

Upon the arrival of the letter to my doorstep, early in the morning, I had hesitated. It wasn't very common to receive a letter now-a-days. However, after taking a quick glance at the writing, I had teared the envelope open. The writing was eerily similar to mine. That was strike one.

As I read the letter, I tried convincing myself that it was all an elaborate prank. I really did. However, few things kept troubling me. For instance, the letter sounded too sincere to be just a joke.

I tried assuring myself that I was probably looking too deep into things. But, the more I tried to suppress those thoughts, the stronger they became. Sighing, I sucked in a deep breath.

This letter spelled 'trouble' to me. Trouble of what kind, I do not know. I was ready to put a stop to this, when something caught my attention. It was- a signature, barely legible. It was scribbled carelessly, almost as if the writer had intended it to be that way. It is then, I realized that it was a name, to be precise- my pen name.

My heart dropped. No, no. I shut my eyes close praying; begging that I'm wrong. In response, a voice gently caresses my ear and whispers, "Who are you fooling? You know that this is no prank." 

I could sense the gray clouds hovering above me, contrary to the sunny morning outside. A paradox, if you will.

Several questions were swirling around my head. Some of them being: "Was someone threatening me?" "What do they want?" But then, who would send a threat like this? A creative serial killer, maybe. Pinching the bridge of my nose, I could feel a headache coming.

So, what did I do next? I pretended. I pretended that my life was as simple and straightforward as I had claimed. I pretended that there were no grey lines, no nuances. And so with a spring on my step, I continued on with my day. I brushed. I showered. I had my cup of coffee. All the while, chanting the words, " I'm fine."

In reality, I was far from fine.

The elevator dinged to announce the 5th floor. Shaking my head, I tried to push the thoughts of this morning aside.

" Morning, Akira." Cindy greeted with a tired smile.

One look at my secretary, and I could tell something was up. Her pale face looked flushed. The pink blouse, she wore was wrinkled, which was unlike her. Her long brown hair which was normally combed neatly, had been thrown into a messy bun. A very peculiar sight.

"Long night, Cindy?" I cocked my eyebrows at her questioningly.

Hearing those words, she let out a quick bark of laughter. "I'm not a night owl like you. You know that."

I looked her in the eye.

Her left finger was twitching. She was obviously lying. Clearing her throat, she looked at me coolly.

"Miss Wilson , the interview with Mr. Johnson has been scheduled for 9 a.m. All the required paperwork is on the table alongside your cup of coffee. Would that be all?"

It is almost impossible to talk to Cindy when she gets like this. Stepping back, I heaved a sigh of defeat.

"We will talk later, Cindy. " I promised and headed to my office.

Pushing open the doors of my office, I was surprised to find a person there. Upon a closer look, I realized it was Noah. We used to be friends in college and last I heard, he had become a TV presenter.

"Akira? Is that you?"

He looked different. No, I'm not saying he looks bad. Noah has always been easy on the eyes. The first time I met him, I had pinned him to be conceited and self righteous. That was my prejudice speaking then. Good looks always came with bad manners, right? However, as days passed by, I found him to be aloof and reserved. I would normally just leave it there. It wasn't my business, really. So, I blame the caffeine and the lack of sleep that day, that had made me walk up to him.

" Hey, I'm Akira." I said holding out my hand.

He peered at me through the book he was reading, with a cute frown. He looked confused. Scratching his head awkwardly, he mumbles, " I know. We have English together."

Half smiling, I gestured to the seat next to him. "You mind?"

"You want to sit here?" He looked at me incredulously.

My smile dropped. "Why, would that be a problem?"

"No, no. It would be a problem for you." He sighs and continues, " Look, I'm not like the other guys. I'm not charming. I'm not cool. I'm a total wimp."

Chuckling, I ruffled his head and reassured him," I'll be called the wimpy kid's friend then. Now, that is- cool. Hey, you have a diary hidden somewhere?"

"... Akira?"

Shaking my head, I stare at him. He was wearing a black suit; his tousled black hair styled back. Calm and collected, he was exuding confidence.

"What are you doing here, Noah?" I inquired.

Ignoring my question, he reached for his bag. He took out a crumpled ball of paper. Without a word, he handed it to me.

Confused, I open the paper to reveal a pendant inside. A small note was attached to it which read, "Little one, trust is a fickle thing. Trust him, you can but remember not to turn a blind eye." That was strike two.

Grabbing the necklace, I took a closer look. It was a tiny globe pendant. The catch?

The tiny globe was covered in flames.

Strike three. I'm out.

A/N:

Just to clarify: there is absolutely nothing wrong in being manly and macho. However, it can be nice to reflect and think if this is who you are or if you have been conditioned to believe that this is how you should act. And, you can be both manly and sensitive too. That is the beauty of life.

I've seen a lot of Wattpad stories where the girl says, "I'm not like other girls. I dislike pink, I hate shopping..." You get the gist, right?

While I do appreciate that we are challenging the female stereotypes, I'm not completely happy with how it's being done. It belittles the girls who do in fact like girly things. It seems like liking pink, shopping now makes you look boring and typical. Honestly, these are just matters of preference. It's completely fine if you like dresses or not. It's completely fine if you like pink or not. At the end of day, we are all different and it's not these things that makes us unique. We all behave, talk and look different. And these preferences of ours aren't really personality traits.

I'm sorry for rambling on for so long. Anyways, thank you so much for reading this chapter.

-Sighed and Signed