AbhiRa Os The First Date

°~Excerpt ~°

One-sided love is like a butterfly in a glass bottle that we call our hearts. Sooner or later, everyone will see through it. Some find it artistic, some find it beautiful and someone finds it a source of inspiration. Visuals differ for each viewer.

Despite all these beautiful comparisons from those who see it, there is also a great deal of claustrophobia associated with it. For these people, carrying the bottle and the butterfly. It is an entirely different experience. It wants to be free, to fly in the sky, and to reach new heights. Will the insecurities, the fear of abandonment, and the holding back in love ever feel liberated? Is there a chance that the butterfly will ever reach its destination? Will it be liberate?

Note: We might be familiar with Wattpad, but this is my first one here.

Hope you all like it

yes please post the os here

When will you update this

One shot

Akshara

I was peeking at him just like every other day, Today he was playing cricket with the ball and my heart. When he appears in front of me, everything fades into the background and he takes the center stage glowing. When he is around me, I automatically hear the sounds of small bells, flower fragrances in the air, and goosebumps. Sometimes I go crazy when I think we breathe the same air.

He is THE Abhimanyu Birla, my senior at this college. My first love. My unrequited love to be precise. According to me, He is the best man on this planet. He is smart, cheerful, very humble, a great cricket player, a college topper, and son also successor of Birla hospitals. He is like that one fetus that god craved with extra care. And Me Akshara Goenka, His unnoticed admirer, because I never wanted to be noticed. Thanks to my embarrassing harkatein around him.

Whenever I sat down to eat anything special or I thought about something good, I would think of him. At first, I assumed it was some kinky fantasy but as time was passing my feelings only grew intense and stronger. Finally, I concluded that this isn't a passing feeling but love.

Amidst all the happenings around me when I see him my surroundings automatically go slow-motion things happening around me, and my heart races like it's taking off to give up at any time. He is the man I wish to share my coffee with, go on dates, and eat at new restaurants.

2nd-year anatomy class was happening in full swing and everyone was very inch close to sleep I saw a group of people enter the Class and started speaking.

"We need some volunteers for the fest to gather information about the contestants. So we expect a positive reaction from juniors," Rajat said as he stood on the Diaz with Abhimanyu beside him speaking about something on his mobile. He had his coat looking like he walked directly from heaven. While I was staring at him openly without any suspicion, He suddenly looked at me as If he heard something I turned away my eyes, He then slowly raised his hand and pointed to me, signalling me to get up.

I stood up begging god to save me from this because What if he declares openly He caught me gazing at him? "Your name?" he said in a plain tone as he looked through some papers. As I didn't answer back for more than a minute, He asked me the same question again a bit louder. "What is your name?" I was so close to tears due to his tone. "Akshara I said with a shivering tone.

"So people, Akshara will be your class in charge of this fest. So whoever is interested to participate hand your details to her. Also you," He turned to me "Take my number and stay in touch." I nodded plainly because I still couldn't process what was happening. He signalled me to follow him and left the classroom. "Akshu go and get his number," she said as she pulled my shirt. With that I was back on planet earth, I ran back to him who just dispersed from the class.

I ran so fast almost collided with him, He held my hands last moment before my head kissed the ground "Careful" he told me in a caring tone, "Thank you" I muttered in a tone only audible to both of us. He nodded and said me to follow him. I walked like a hutch doggy (pug) following him to the storeroom. He instructed me on how to collect the details, I followed every single order and did that thing within a day.

"You did the task so well" he patted my shoulder with a proud smile, it was just a patting but for me, it's like winning 3 Olympic medals in the same tournament. "Wow Akshara, this is soo good." Rajat also was pleased with me, but my heart and thoughts were still struck by the patting. "Why don't you join us as a volunteer?" Abhimanyu invited me and my head nodded in yes automatically as if he cast a spell. "Great then Add her name," He told to Rajat, "Catch up later, I have a lecture to attend," he said and ran away from that place.

From that day, we started meeting quite a lot of times. Sometimes I voluntarily bunked my classes to be with the group and especially Abhimanyu. As a senior, He was pretty incredible in whatever he does. He tried his best to bring as many cultural activities for our fest and worked hard day and night to make the event successful. Even the management adores him, not because of his last name, everyone adored him for his excellence. The closer I was to him the smaller I appeared to myself but still, my feelings for him proved to be great than my insecurity of being good for nothing.

During this time Abhimanyu got some medals from a medical congress and boy He looked 100x cuter when he is happy. And listening to this I was on cloud 9. This person's happiness makes me happy, I never understood why? I never tried to search for any answers either. For the first time, some unanticipated person smiling made me happy.

I even threw a party in the name of my dog's birthday (which never existed lol) for celebrating his victory and he was even part of his winning treat. Except for me and Reem no one knew. But Reem's poking me and making fun of my imaginary love these days has gone haywire, she looks ever-ready and in no mood to stop since the time I opened up totally about my feelings for him.

"If love is crazy, I want to be. If love hurts me I want to get hurt." I said looking at Reem who is giving me gone case looks. I said as I was in high spirits. "Mad girl" She threw the pillow on my face. "Declare your feelings before things go out of your hand." She said with a concerned tone. After all, she wants the best for me, and her concern isn't anything wrong.

"Well, Since you love him a lot, what would be one thing you always dream about him?" Reem asked with a curious look. I sat down beside her, thought for goof five minutes then suddenly remembered something and frowned. "What?" she nudged my hand with a quizzical look. "I want to have a coffee with him," I said with a frown. "What?" she repeated the same word 2nd time at the last 1 minute, but this time with a hopeless look. "I want to have a good coffee. and a nice talk first, later things I would dream once this one completes." I grabbed my pillow and leaned down to sleep and dream. "You are insane enough to dream instalment-wise," she said threw the comforter on my face, and left.

I completed my classes soon and was having a severe headache. I excused myself from that crowd and walked towards the hostel to get some good sleep. I passed by the basketball court and saw the person there, who took away my sickness just by existing. I stared at him for a good minute and when I was about to leave, He stared at me while playing, hopped in the air throwing the ball in the basket, and then turned to me waving his hand at me with a familiar smile, My legs started to give up I was on the verge to collapse, I slowly held the railing beside to me get hold of my body and brain, and then composed myself and waved him Hii. He was just discharged after playing Basketball.

Since I dropped the plan of going back to my room, I settled there on the grass to take down my notes and saw him marching towards my direction making my heart race. he came with the energy drink in one hand and the towel wiping his sweat in the other hand, Drool-worthy, "God thank you" I sent a silent appreciation to god, then went back to my typical mode because the more he looks into my eyes, the easier he notices my feelings.

"Hey Volunteer," he said as he settled 10 ft away from me, imagine the situation. "Hello" I muttered slowly trying my best to not get nervous but hello how couldn't I? "So, how are things going on in your block?" he asked with a curious tone. "Everything is well and going just according to the plan. I guess we will finish the list by the weekend" I said looking into my notebook and taking down the notes because the man opposite me is soo magnetic, what if he could see through me? No, I can't take that embarrassment. "Did you say something?" he said breaking the silence. I nodded no in a hurry. God is there any Telepathy between us? or does he know mind reading?

"Shall I tell you a joke?" he asked with a please-listen-to-me tone. I nodded to him to continue, "So once there was an ant, and it joined the army. what is it called?" He said everything in a go making me look at him with a weird look. The answer to this is, even pre-kg kids know it. But I can't make him feel like a fool, because I know how bad it feels to be one. "Ant army?" I said with an innocent tone. "No, you are wrong." He giggled and then said the answer with a Look-now-pretend-surprised look "militANT" he announced and started to laugh hysterically at his joke. Am I sure? Is it the same person I loved? I was in my world till he started talking.

"I know I would not look like a person who cracks Ant jokes, so sometimes I change to Elephant jokes," he said with a satisfied look, I burst laughing because the man, The messiah, I love tells ant jokes which, my 3rd class cousin tells better. He looked at me for a good 30 seconds and said "See you are soo lovely when you smile," he said placing his hand on his heart as I looked at him. What is he up to? Giving me a heart attack? "If you keep smiling as this both campus guys could fight over you," he said with a flirtatious tone. I chuckled listening to that.

I received many compliments in my life, but nothing matches this. Because all others just used to give me happiness while these give me butterflies. I want to make my feelings obvious to him without getting caught. The smile I have was for him, I wanted.

"You decided or not?" Reem asked as I sat in the middle of the bed with a knife in her hand. I nodded in yes. Finally, I decided to propose to him at least during one of his last days, and today according to my horoscope I would know something which completely changes my life. Reem thought it would be better because the weather looked romantic and there is an annual dinner going on the campus.

I took my red bouquet which I ordered with my whole week's allowance and dolled myself up in a lilac saree, gathering all the courage I could, for the first time in my life. I wasn't this nervous even when I gave my PMT examination. I tried to calm myself as I got down. "Beautiful" Rajat complimented as I got down the stair. "Where is Abhimanyu?" inquired, he looked around and then at me "wait for 5 minutes, he will be there" because Abhimanyu was busy with some personal meeting. Well, he didn't reveal anything further.

I started roaming around to calm down my heartbeat, because in 20 years of my life this moment I felt like I am the main character with my spotlight, generally I was always good at confining myself to some supporting character. I was moving around with the bouquet but suddenly pointed him in between the bushes. What was he doing there? I was curious, I tried to look around,
I stressed even on my peripheral vision to see what was happening there around.

(contd)

"You said you have something to say" I blinked tears and typed him back "Had some doubts regarding an internship, I talked to Rajat and cleared them. Sorry for bothering you." Within the next 5 minutes, he texted me back "No I should be the one saying sorry. I had some serious emergency." I had no more energy to either type or cry. I just slept I don't know when in between sobs and hiccups.

"The winner of the Best short story goes to Miss Akshara Goenka." The dignitary announced, I was weak but somehow dragged myself to the stage. My eyes looked fluffed due to excessive crying. Abhimanyu was there backstage and Helped me when I was finding it hard to use steps. "Akshara look at yourself so tired, You prepared for the winning speech all night?" he raised his eyebrow and laughed. I smiled at him sadly and moved toward the people on the stage. After going there I was asked to
Read it aloud

.

Once there was a bird who fell in love with a whale. And a whale who fell in love with a bird.
And they both loved to eat lots of tiny fish. All summer, the bird and the whale met in the bay. They talked and talked. They talked about the moon, the tides, and the ships in the ocean. The bird told jokes and made the whale laugh. The whale sang beautiful songs that made the birds cry.

Everything was perfect. But the world does not stop turning just because a bird and a whale fall in love. Summer turned into autumn, and autumn turned into winter. The ocean turned cold, and all the other whales left for warmer waters.

"Come with me to warmer waters," said the whale. "It's a wonderful place. It's always warm, and there are so many fish to eat."

"I love to eat fish," said the bird. "And I love you. I will follow you anywhere. But first, teach me to be a whale?" The bird dived deep into the water. Deeper and deeper he went. "I'm swimming!" he laughed. "I'm a whale!" But soon he couldn't breathe. He returned to the surface, gasping.
He tried and tried and tried again, but he ran out of breath every time.
‍
"I don't think a bird can become a whale," said the bird. "Come with me instead. I live up on the cliffs. It is a wonderful place. It's warm and cosy, "And I love you. I will follow you anywhere. But first, teach me to be a bird?" She squeezed her eyes shut and flapped her fins, just like the bird. She flapped and flapped, up and down. Water splashed everywhere. "I'm flying!" she laughed. "I'm a bird!"

But when she opened her eyes, she wasn't soaring in the sky. She was still in the water.
‍She tried and tried and tried again, but she could not fly. "I don't think a whale can become a bird," said the whale.

"But if you can't fly, and I can't swim, where can we live together?" said the bird." We will stay here in the waves!" said the whale. But the bird shook his head sadly."You love to swim deep in the ocean," he said. "That is your favourite thing to do. You would never be happy here." The whale sighed. "And you love to fly and soar into the sky," she said. "That is your favourite thing to do. You would never be happy here either."

Because the bird and whale loved each other so much, they said goodbye but they never forgot each other. Every time the whale saw a bird flying high in the sky, she thought of her bird. every time the bird saw a whale diving deep in the ocean, he thought of his whale.

.

I stopped reading my short story, there was pin-drop silence for 30 seconds and everyone erupted. I was happy, I looked around for my bird who was ready to fly to his mountains, and he looked at me with an impressive smile.

"Looks like writing is your first love," he said with a trace of a smile on his face, I smiled back and said, "Writing started due to my first love" and just like every second day, the surroundings turned eerily silent. Slowly I forwarded my hand to him "Hope you achieve everything whatever you wish for" He smiled with glee, grabbed my hand pulled me into a hug. "Come on, I'm your senior doesn't mean things to be this formal?" The hug I needed at that moment, but since I noticed tears voluntarily coming out, I just excused myself from that place saying I was having bad health, and went back to my room. That's how I parted with My first love without a proper goodbye.

A few days later I came to know, she wasn't his girlfriend. She was his childhood friend, who later got married to Rajat. But I gave up on telling him my feelings because I wasn't confident enough to look like a loser in front of my first love. The courage to declare my feelings flew through the window.

I tried my best to not think of any more, I strictly prepared rules for myself to miss him six days a week. Three days, then two days, and then one day. Because I thought one day I will forget him. I wish things were easy and my feelings were not this complicated. Love is like catching a cold, there is no particular method or period to cure it. It just happens naturally.

After we got separated for two to three months we were in good touch, talking once in a while. Having small talks if we meet somewhere off the campus. But slowly the distance was visible and we were now in two different worlds which would only accidentally collide with each other.

Three years passed by:

We were like little protons and electrons in the atom which went on sailing along their orbits, after a short meeting with each other. I realized that whoever would come back, would be back. I have grown practical enough to understand the complexity of the situation but still not mature enough to go and initiate a talk.

"You should save your heart if you give it too much to someone who doesn't accept you. You will have no love left for the one who comes into your life." My friend Reem warned me before when I informed her about Abhimanyu and my devotion and to be honest she's not wrong.

For the past three years, He traveled to the USA, Canada, and Italy for soul-searching voyages and might have met girls. But this Akshara in Jaipur thought it was better to search The Abhimanyu Traits in every guy she met. I met some great gentlemen, some very cool, some sassy, and some hot. But this heart craved a man, who might have forgotten my entire existence by now.

I was heading back to the dorm which is just a half kilometre away from the Hospital where I am now doing my home surgency. I started walking back and felt someone following me, I looked around but found none. Slowly I started walking briskly and the footsteps behind me also started following me at the same speed. I started to run and then almost fell under a car and was dead. But I was breathing which means I am alive. To make sure I slowly opened my eyes and to my surprise, It was - Mr . Abhimanyu Birla, Now a doctor is standing in front of me and looking at me with an 'I-know-her" kind of look. "Hey hii," he said in a surprised tone, I was too shocked to remember anything, I mean he appeared like a genie how should I react now? He forwarded the hand, and though I thought of resisting the car man was bonking the horn. So I held his hand, his cold hand which made my whole body warm.

"You have duty on Sunday?" He asked me with a pitiful tone, I don't like that tone, not just from him but from anyone, "In life, we still have to do some things we don't want to," I said looking at him with a small frown on my face. "Yeah" He nodded understandingly "Like falling under someone's car." Ahh how much I missed listening to this man's voice live. I chuckled at that statement. "I'm not taking this insult," said with an equally sarcastic tone. We slowly walked back to my dorm because it was in a narrow lane where Bikes aren't cool to take.

{Contd}

"Doctor Abhimanyu, I have read your articles on almost every weekly," Neetu screamed as she saw him. "Thank you," he said with a small smile, I was already feeling sick inside my stomach and this man is making my heart go crazy. "Can I have your phone number please?" She asked him in a requesting tone, "Yeah sure." he said and started to recite his number but boom, before he did someone else, told him that number. who is that lady? That's me. Involuntarily.

"Well Akshara, Wow" my friend shouted at me at top of her voice, "You never remember your mobile number perfectly," she said in an amused tone. Embarrassment is a small word to describe my current situation. I looked at him and he did look like he was waiting for me to answer something, I just looked at her smiling "Sometimes I remember stuff like this, I guess you never noticed" I said with an overconfident tone, Lame I know but couldn't think of anything better."You knew my number this well and never wished on any of my birthdays?" he asked me with a stern tone. "I think I was busy around that time I guess." I tried to show him how poor and embarrassing my lying skills are.

He got up and looked at me, sighed me to get up "Can you walk me back to the exit" he asked in a bit lower tone, My heart sank at the thought of him going again. I wanted to at least confess now, That timid Akshara was long gone but the fear of rejection didn't leave my heart. We started to walk with tiny steps, competing with toddlers, well they would beat us I swear. He looked around and when he made sure no one was there around he cleared his throat to ask something.

"You like me?" he asked in a slow tone, I was in red embarrassment. My worst fears from the last 5 years came true, I wished I could run away from the place. I knew I have to face this some time or other but when the moment came to me I couldn't take it. "Past is the one time, This currently is the life we are living in," I said with a cracked voice. "I ran into Reem three days before in Mumbai, I talked to her and then decided I have things to settle here so I came back." I started to process what he means. Before I arranged my thoughts and reached a conclusion, he held my hand gently and then cupped my face "You're not that sad whale, you are a butterfly who has much more to explore. Come with Me I'll show you how beautiful mountains are" he said with a chuckle. What does that mean? My mind gaveup thinking, my heart was soo weak and I was feeling sick in my stomach.

"Stop keeping things to yourself, good or bad just tell people things how you feel," he said in a stern but soft tone. "I prefer to not dig deep into my past anyway," I said with a small smile because I dreamt of my love being reciprocated not some sympathy after listening about my crush.

"Without asking the question, How did you assure yourself with an answer? What if I accepted your proposal? I was fond of you or else why would I let you roam back and forth with me always, maybe just I was busy with my ant elephant jokes to realize its love." He said with a chuckle but a sincere tone, saying this He hugged me, a small but warm and tight hug one tried my best to not cry my eyes out. More than anything I felt free, The time around me was still but I could feel the claustrophobic butterfly inside me was liberated, leaving its cage and flying away. By the time he withdrew, I held him tight and cried my eyes out for the next few minutes.

"Coffee?" he asked gently as I nodded in yes. I held his elbow and turned to my roommate and signalled "See I got, the First date" with a proud face.

I don't know if things are going to last the same forever, we may end up together or not. But this moment, I wanted to cherish it. Things might work or not but I need this conversation, to stay by him or move on" I thought to myself happily, He looked at me and signalled his bike, diving into an optimistic future.

***

Dedicated to all The one side lovers, unnoticed admirers, and the ones who carry unrequited love in their hearts forever. We romanticize pain from love easily but bearing and coping with it is something so unimaginable. Hope your love gets reciprocated, acknowledged, or at least Liberated.

Love

Originally posted by: chremma

yes please post the os here

Yeah did it !!!

Hope you like it

Originally posted by: dafodilsduke

When will you update this

Gotcha, posted it

Have a read