ATN: THE ELEMENTS OF BEAUTY

THE TIME I TURNED SIXTEEN

"So, you are going to US?" Dev asked me.

Dev was my only friend in this school. I have always been a nobody. Dev was also one, but a little less. He was super lanky, and short. He was not in the good looking type, but definitely better looking than me, with his black shoulder length hair always perfectly combed. But, hold on, why am I telling you this? Because my life would have been way easier if I had not gotten to go abroad. Then, again, hold on. Lets back up.

My name is Jay Chatterjee. I am 16, and am a Bengali guy who just passed my tenth grade, and am in eleventh, studying, as all passionate idiots study, science. I live in Gurgaon with my father, Rohit Chatterjee, in our apartment. My dad is a trader, and financially we have a stable life. Our house is a peaceful one. Though we don't have the one to make it a home, we try to do that in our own way. 

Well, we did, until I got to go abroad.

What happened was, my father came home from work one day, and said, "I am going to USA for a week."

I was reading a novel. But, I had to look up, "What?" I asked.

"I am going to US. Minnesota."

"For a week?"

"Yes, for a week."

"Oh!" I let out a disgusting sigh, "I guess another week alone."

This is what happened every time Dad went abroad for work. I was left to either stay with someone, or stay alone. The first time this happened, and he went to Germany, I was sent to Kolkata for ten days, to stay with my relatives. Its not bad, its actually quite fun. I got to hang out with my cousins all day. All my Dad's siblings, both of them were single parents. My Aunt Kia was two daughters, one twelve days older than me, and the other two years younger. My Uncle Sankalp was raising two sons, one a year older, the other a year younger. We five were super fun together.

Dad repeated this again, when he went to US the first time. I wasn't sad at all. I got to spend time with my cousins again. But the third time, he went to Argentina, and I had to stay back. I don't know why, but he didn't book my ticket to Kolkata. I, basically, had no problem. The maid, Soni, cooked the food for me. I could do whatever I want in the house. But, I was left all alone. Alone in the big apartment. I am not gonna lie, I am scared of being alone in a house at night. I would sleep with the lights on, or the TV on. Or else, every single tiny noise would scare the bejesus out of me. But, this time, I didn't want to stay alone. 

"I don't wanna stay alone, Dad. Not this time. Specially what happened the night of my 16th birthday." I told him, clear-cut.

"Yes, I know." he said.

"So?"

"I got your back, son."

Oh, hold on. You guys don't know what happened. So, here goes.

It was the 6th of March. I went to bed early, planning to wake up early and have fun from the morning. I will play a little Tomb Raider, watch a movie, read a novel, eat, play some more Tomb Raider, and then attend the little party in the evening, chilling with my friends. I was well asleep, but a bad dream is enough to destroy even the soundest of sleeps. I had one such dream. I could see a throne in huge chamber, with pink walls. And I could hear a woman cry. Also, I heard another woman's voice. She was speaking to me in my mind, "Your time is coming, my dearest. You shall be what you were born to be." And I woke up.

No, I didn't wake up normally. I woke up, looked at the window, and the window glass shattered right in front of my face, out of nowhere. I was shell shocked. I got up from the bed, and looked out of the window. Clear night sky. No storm or lightning, that could strike the glass. I had no idea what just happened. Just then, Dad entered my room. Perhaps, the window shattering had woken him up. "Jay, son, what happened?" he asked.

"Dad, a weird thing happened."

"Are you alright?"

"Yes. But the window, it broke itself."

"What?"

"Yes. I don't know what happened."

"Alright, calm down."

He silenced me, and then put his hands through my hair, putting me to sleep. For a man, who spends fourteen hours at work, he had super parental skills. I knew that, because ever since my Mom died when I was two, he had done everything that I have seen other mothers do to their infants. I loved him more than anything in this world. He wasn't all I had, but he was like the Kohinoor Diamond, my most precious treasure.

The next morning, Dad seemed completely normal. He had cleaned my room. He wished me, gave me a present: a book, and then asked me to get ready. He dropped me at school, like everyday. But he didn't talk about the other night. I tried to talk to him, but he said, "Jay, its probably nothing." And then, he changed the topic.

It would have been good if this was all. But, two days later, another weird thing happened. I was studying in my house. The day was stormy. Lightning flashed in the sky, followed by a sudden loud thunder. That startled me, and I took a shocked sigh. My eyes fell on the bottle of water on my study table. And the bottle flew from the table, and fell on the floor. Again, I was left shell shocked and confused. I ran to tell Dad, and he ignored it again, and turned his face away from mine.

Okay, once, I could take. But twice? Dad was hiding something from me. From ME! That wasn't cool. I turned him towards me, looked him in the eye, and asked, "Dad, what is going on?"

"Nothing, son."

"Dad, you know you can't lie to me. Tell me what all this is."

"I am not lying. Its definitely is a hallucination. Or else, how would it be possible?"

His answer satisfied me. Maybe, actually, I was hallucinating. Or else, how would a bottle just fly? The thunder must have startled me and I must have moved my hand and struck the bottle. But still, something inside me was not satisfied.

So, I started trying to actually move objects without touching them. I kept trying, but didn't succeed. Until one day, I concentrated on my pen, and started imagining it levitating in the air. I had read enough novels and watched enough movies to understand how telekinesis worked. I closed my eyes, and tried to imagine again. At first, I felt nothing. Then, I felt myself touching the pen, in my mind. I opened my eyes, and saw that the pen was still lying on my table, while I was sitting on the bed. I no more felt the pen in my mind. But, I still tried. I moved my hand, and, believe me, the pen moved. I flicked my fingers, and the pen flew off the table and fell on the ground. I stood up in surprise, my eyes widened. What on earth was with me? I was a freak. I had supernatural stuff in me. I could move objects without touching them. And, I wasn't going crazy.

I ran to tell my Dad, but stopped right outside his room. His door was a little ajar, and through that, I saw him holding a photo, his black eyes containing a drop of tear in each. I looked at the photo, and I knew exactly why he was crying. The photo had him, my Mom, and a one year old me. I opened the door, went in, and hugged him. It was about my Dad now, for he was crying. My superpowers could wait.