Abhay

She had known Abhay since childhood. He was four years older than her. They were family friends. The families were close, they were not. But things changed after she overheard her mother. Her mother was talking to her dad about her future. Amidst the discussion of career and studies, marriage was mentioned with a hint towards Abhay. It made little sense for a twelve-year-old girl. She decided to ignore it. But.

The next day, she noticed him at school, in a different light. He had brown eyes, teenage stubble, tall and thin frame. It was as if she had never seen him before. He looked pleasant to her eyes.

She began noticing herself too. Her height was comparable to him. Her physique was developing at a normal pace. Her mirror had moments of confidence where it said that she would look nice with him. There were many such moments of doubt as well. Teenage is vulnerable.

She was not shallow. She wanted them to match intellectually as well. She knew they did. She made sure of it. He was not a topper but was also not far behind. She was a hard worker. And when you have goals, it becomes easier to work hard.

By the time she was twenty-two, she achieved what she dreamt of, professionally. Abhay was working in a different city, yet he was not a distant dream. They were not in touch but at home, conversations drifted towards him every now and then. He was sure to happen. But as they say, “Life is full of surprises.”

She was lying in her bed one Sunday morning, unwilling to get up when her mobile phone beeped. She had received an email from Abhay. All her drowsiness vanished. She sat up on the bed. Her hand was unsteady around the phone. She had a million questions in her mind. None of them made her excited. She closed her eyes and took a couple of deep breaths. When she felt calmer, she clicked on the notification. In the email he said,

“Hello, 

Hope you are doing well, Amita.

I will not beat around the bush because this situation is already very weird.

My mother told me about the marriage proposal. I was shocked. This is so surreal. She tried to blackmail me but I cannot do this to you, and to us. I know your mother would also have done the same with you. Please do not agree under pressure. I have already said ‘no’.

If you feel otherwise, then I am really sorry. I wish I were there to talk to you in person. But that is not possible until I come back home next month and I do not want our families to feel that there is any future for us.

Please don’t get me wrong. I like you but as a friend.

Let us forget all about this and remain friends as usual.

Regards,

Abhay”

She moved her hands to her forehead and rubbed her face. She read the email again. She stared at the screen in disbelief. She should have guessed that an email meant rejection. Otherwise, he would have called or sent a message. It was shocking that she did not feel devastated. She did not feel even a bit sad. Instead, she felt relieved.

She stood up from her bed and went to the window. She thought about her dreams. Were they shattered? No! She was doing the job that she wanted to do. But Abhay? Was he a part of her dream ever? Did she ever feel butterflies in her stomach when he was around? Yeah! sometimes. He looked attractive. But was she ever looking forward to meeting him? Not really! Not even when she was a teenager.

There was spring in her step when she walked out to the balcony. She had seen her future through a veiled window since she was twelve. She did not know what existed beyond Abhay. Now, the veil was lifted. She looked out at the world with open eyes for the first time in her life. It is, indeed, beautiful.