A Dream Of Words

I was sitting at the bench of our kindergarten wing. Shattered and disappointed, I looked at those papers which I had written with so much passion and love, I felt like a failure. I felt that the bundle of my dreams was coming down with so much pace only to hit the ground, only to shatter all over the space. As I was about to tear those pages apart someone took hold of my hand. I got furious and looked up and shook my hand in an attempt to free it from his hold. But when I saw him I was dumbstruck. He was my English teacher.

He blinked his eyes in a way to'calm me down' and I followed. I stopped my hands and looked down with no facial expression.

He asked me “What happened?” He was someone who inspired me to write and read the language. He taught me to love words. I adored him. His way of explaining the was commendable . It seemed as if he narrated something he himself had experienced. His fluency used to attract me, his eyes used to speak to me; his lips used to sing to me but all was unknown to him.

I looked up at him, with little hesitation I showed him my pages. His expression was more soothing than the view of sunset or the morning dew.

"You wrote it?" he was amused.

"Y...Yes"I mumbled.

He gazed at me the way I had always craved to be . With so much passion, as if I were a poem he wished to read.

"It's so alluring. I never thought that any of my student could write like this.

What's the problem?" He asked.

"I had shown it to my friend, She laughed it off saying it's waste of time and that I should enjoy like they do and not waste my time on paper and ink." I replied.

"Do You like writing?" he asked.

"I love writing. Words feel like love, they are breath to me without them I'll undoubtedly not be able to sustain." My eyes sparkled as I replied.

"You should not worry about what others say or think. Just do what you love. You are really good at writing and I am sure you will make it big one day, just keep working on it." he smiled at me while patting my back. That smile felt like the warmth I was really in need of.

“But!” I said.

“But what?” he asked

“I really need someone to guide me.” I said as I looked into his eyes.

"Oho! For that I am here young lady" he grinned.

"But tomorrow is the last day of school" I said with a frown.

"Don't worry, I will help you even after the school." He assured me.

"Thank you so much sir." I blushed, for he was my hero and now he was to help me with my passion.

Interval was over so we got back to the class. It was my English class after the break and I was able to feel the new connection between him and me. Now we were talking through eyes and singing songs with the perfect rhyme.

From the next day we decided to meet daily in City Park to spend some time together and to work on my skills. That evening I was as excited for my first class as a kid who was about to get his favourite toy. Oh damn! that tickle in my stomach, that sensation over my skin, I knew I was going to experience something new.

"Hi sir!" I said while turning to him.

"Oh don't call me sir. We are no more in school boundaries. You can call me Harry." He winked at me.

"OK!! Sii..." He corrected me as I was about to say sir. "Harry".

"Yes! Harry" I giggled.

"So shall we start our work?" He asked.

"Yes please. I am waiting for this since morning or maybe the last night. Oh I don't remember." I laughed.

"Okay relax baby, relax" he said as he kept his hand on my shoulder.

And we started our lesson for that day. We stayed there for two hours daily or at times three because we used to get so lost in reading and writing that we used to lose the track of time. Words used to fantasize both of us equally. We used to get lost in our own world full of words, phrases and magic. I was slowly stepping into a new world; a world I never thought that could award me with so much love and blessings. I took my first step into the world of writing and he enhanced my capabilities to conquer the world of words. He was polishing my skills together with my future. He was doing it so well that I could see a drastic change in my words together with my attitude for analysing situations and my concept of life, he was enhancing it all.

But, I was completely incognizant of the thunderstorm which was about to blew it all away, my classes, my dreams, everything.

I came running from my home to the park at usual time to take my class.

"HARRY!!!" I called him. "HARRYY!! But there was no trace of him.

I waited for him eagerly as I wanted to tell him something. With the passage of time I was losing my mind. I was feeling uneasy as it was more than an hour now that I had been waiting for him. I could not take it anymore and rushed towards his house. I knew the address because I had stalked him to his house when he started teaching me.

"TRING...TRING"

"Hi baby girl" he greeted me with his red nose and harsh voice.

"I waited for you in the park for an hour" I said in low voice.

"I am sorry. I could not inform you about my cold and fever" he said looking at me innocently.

"It's okay. Please don't be sorry." I said in a childish voice.

"Oh please come in, I don't want you to complain later that I kept you standing at my door" he said in an attempt to make me laugh.

"That Later won't ever come." I muttered as I walked in.

"Why?" He asked turning back.

"I am leaving tomorrow" I almost burst into tears.

"Your father got transferred?" He asked in low voice.

"Yes" I said with a heavy voice.

"Oh don't be sad baby. You will do great in future and make huge in writing. And the day you will be recognised for it I will make a proud guide." He said while wiping my tears with his hands But, I started weeping even louder.

"Don't ever give up on writing. Initially you will have a few readers, at times there would be no readers at all but don't lose hope because that would be a mere beginning. Step by step, hurdle after hurdle you will grow. It will take time, don't expect everything to happen in a blink of an eye. Promise me you will not give up?" He said looking deep into my eyes.

"I promise." I said looking back into his eyes with the same passion.

It's all because of him that I am here with you. His guidance helped me revive and relive my passion which was buried do within me. It is because of him that a few seconds back I was standing on that stage receiving this award. And today I am going back to my hometown to show him this." she said while looking at the award with a spark in her eyes to her friend who was with her through all the way in the world of writing.

"But you need to be on the stage at the end of the show"My friend reminded me.

"I can't wait anymore; the stage had enough of me, now I want what I have been craving for since long."I smiled and walked out of the hall.

"Take me to the airport driver" I directed the driver.

"Yes ma'am" he responded and started the car.

I was too eager to reach to my hometown. It had been 10 years since I left that place but still every single memory was as fresh as if it were an event of the previous day. I was continuously blushing and giggling recollecting those moments when I used to take classes from Harry and all the stuff we did together.

"Ma'am we have reached the airport." Driver said.

"OK! Thank you."I said coming out of the reverie.

"Please take my luggage inside" I requested him

"Sure ma'am" he said and took the luggage to the place from where it was to be carried to the plane.

I went inside and got seated. It was a window seat. After a few minutes the airplane took off. Travelling by plane had always been like a roller coaster ride for me. After a few minutes when we were in clouds I was tirelessly peeping through the window enjoying the scene and the beauty which it provided me within seconds I drifted to the memories when I was in his house for the last time.

"Look, now we both have red nose" he said touching my nose.

"Ha...ha" I giggled wiping the tears.

He was looking into my eyes as if they were an ocean of love and he wanted to swim deep into them. I could hear the sound of the breaths we were taking slowly yet passionately. There was a sort of tension in the atmosphere which was exotic, slow music was adding the essence of love that was getting dissolved in our nerves and we were losing our sense into each other. He lifted himself to reach my forehead to plant a kiss softly then to move down to my nose tip which was red, he gave a sweet kiss there as if kissing the cherry on vanilla cake, then with slow pace he moved to my lips and paused there. Our breaths were intertwining while he kept his hand on my waist pulling me up to clutch me against the wall entangling my fingers by his, he brought his lips near mine which were craving his touch like wine and finally he kept those sweet juicy lips on mine, while mine were shivering and His were tasting together, enjoying the rhyme.

*beep...beep*

I received a message causing us to drift apart.

"It's a text from my home. They are asking me about my whereabouts as it's been late" I told him.

"Yes! It's late, you should be leaving for your home" he smiled.

"Forever?" My voice dropped again.

"No! Come back when you have achieved something. Won't you be giving me a treat?" He winked in an attempt to cheer me up.

"Yes, of course! Okay bye. Muaah" she gave him a quick kiss on his cheeks and left.

"Bye" he was seeing me go.

*Attention passengers we have reached our destination*

The Announcement distracted me from my thoughts. I got up with one go and came out as fast as I could. Outside the airport there was a cab already waiting for me to drive me to the hotel.

"Take my luggage to hotel I will be there afterwards" I told the cab driver.

"Okay ma'am" he said and left.

And I took another cab and told the driver to drive to the address where he used to live. On the way to his place I could notice a lot of changes that had taken place over years. I looked at a building where there used to be a single storied house, parks had turned into malls and there were different shops meant to buy different things now, back then there used to be a single shop for everything.

"Ma'am this is the colony you are looking for" he said.

"Yes, thank you." I said paying him the fare.

I stood at the corner of the row of which his house was fourth in order and it was on first floor, on ground floor lived a granny, an old lady who owned the apartment while he stayed there on rent. I walked towards the fourth one. Other houses had transformed into multi-storey buildings whereas his was still the same. I walked towards the door and knocked it, I was so eager to see him, I felt butterflied in my stomach. No one opened the door and then I noticed that the door was locked.

Oh! How stupid I was to keep knocking the door and failed to noticed that it was locked.

I came down and knocked at Granny's door.

"That guy who used to live on the first floor. Where is he?"I asked curiously the moment she opened the door

"He returns late from work, around 5 in the evening." she informed .

"Does he still work in the same school?" I asked .

"Yes sweety" she replied.

"Thank you." I said and left the place.

It was 3 p.m. and I was in no mood to wait for two more hours to meet him. I was way too much eager to meet him after such a long deferment. I started walking towards the school to look for him. After I reached there I searched all around but there was no sign of any one inside the building. I went towards the bench where we had our first conversation. That bench was empty but there were some kids playing around in the ground. I went to them.

"Hi kids! Have you seen any man at this time of day sitting at that bench?" She asked.

"Yes, there is a man who comes here with a book and sits there on the bench and reads it." One of them said.

“Thank you” I smiled and went back to the bench.

Extremely disappointed I sat down on the bench. I had no idea where he could be.

"Where he must be now?" I spoke to myself

"Oh I know" within seconds I guessed.

I rushed to the place.

A young man with specs on his nose, his hair well groomed, he had well build body. He was engrossed reading his book. He was sitting on the same bench on which we used to spend time learning and teaching in the same park.

I went running towards him from back.I stopped for a moment to have a proper look of that man. He was reading a book and its cover page was well known to me. I took little steps to reach him, kept the trophy from back with no noise beside him, and put my hands on his eyes from behind. He put his hands on mine.

"HARRY" he said and got up. He was surprised, his happiness was clearly noticeable.

I went in front of him and hugged him as tightly as I could.

Finally I reached my destination. Our wait paid off really well. The long distance could not vanish the feelings our hearts carried, rather we were both cherished in a way that with time our feelings turned into songs etched on our souls.