Breathing Blues

We Don't Die Today

43 -

We'd been driving for a long time now and we'd stopped at a nearby food point, like a dhaba but not a dhaba. I don't know how to explain it so we sat on the khat in open as the weather was in our favor and Darshan was finding the least calories available diet in there.

"I don't think one meal will make you fat?", I said, observing other tourists.

"But it's a start, one meal and the other and the other. Not going to afford it", Darshan replied, without looking at me and I rolled my eyes.

So, there was a family, a group of riders, a few friends it looked who were maybe going on the same route or maybe more ahead.

"Okay, I know what am I going to order, you?", Darshan asked me.

"Um, yeah order", I did had the menu in my hand but I didn't even looked at it once. "What are you ordering?", I asked him.

"Salad", he said and I screwed my face up.

"Yeah, salad, okay um...oye", I called out this boy who looked like an adolescent. "Kon kon se parathen hai?", I asked.

"Lacha Paratha, Gobhi Paratha, Aloo Paratha, Mix Paratha, Aloo Pyaaz Paratha", he said one after another.

"1 Aloo Pyaaz Paratha aur 1 coke, inke liye bohot sara salad paise de denge uske", I said and he left.

"By the way, whenever, you see different shades of red/blue together like next to each other in a picture, does the picture look semi-3D to you? Because it does that to me and it's super trippy", Darshan said out of nowhere.

"No, it's just you", I scoffed.

"Let it be, you wouldn't get it", he looked elsewhere.

"If you're under the age of 40 the oldest person on earth has slept longer than you've been alive", I said.

"Uh...that's creepy", Darshan stuttered and I chuckled.

"I'm all about random facts", I winked, as I read my notifications.

"Vaid, you're a physchology students as well, aren't you?", Darshan asked.

"Um Hm", I nodded, as I replied back to papa.

"Why physchology? Like, you wanted to be a therapist or what?", he asked.

"Um, no, yeah! See, I wanted to be close", I looked up at him, "it's a weird logic. I was a judgemental person because I was bought up like that, my dad and grandparents like a typical desi family had an unasked opinion about everyone's life. As I grew older, I realized it's pretty wrong and makes you a dick. So, I gave myself space, I learnt more about things and I wanted to understand the basics of human behaviour", I licked my lips hastily, "but more importantly being a psychologist you're close to stories. Real stories, so all in all I've this peculiar obsession with stories, tales, sagas", I explained.

"Eh", his jaw set. "So, now you're more understanding?", he asked.

"See, being a phsycatrist or psychologist doesn't means you're suddenly the kindest and understanding person in the world. I still judge, but I always try to have an open mindset which is important and like you know, I also get angry and do not reason and overthink so I don't think like that yeah", I kept my phone on the table as our order came in.

I rubbed butter over my paratha, and Darshan removed all the onions from the salad and ate the tomatoes and cucumber. He's so weird.

"Tell me a weird fact", Darshan asked.

"So, cuteness inspires aggression. That's why we wanna squeeze the fuck out of cute things", I put a bite in my mouth and Darshan made this weird face.