felt the last bits of blood on my head and fell unconscious to the ground

She didn’t say anything. She just slowly started getting up to her feet. I immediately extended my hand to support her although I knew that it wasn’t needed. It may not have been needed but the moment required it. She lanced at my extended hand and without saying a word, put her hand into mine and I helped her get to her feet. Even after she got up, I didn’t let go of her hand. I knew I didn’t need to. I knew I shouldn’t. I slowly guided her through the crowd, holding her hand, making way for her as she followed behind me. I opened the door and then slowly let her out first, her hands still in mine. As she went past me, she gave me a smile and shyly got out of the door. I smiled back at her and followed her out. And despite my not wanting to let go of her hand, wanting to hold it forever, I slowly withdrew my hand from hers. Her little finger briefly touched mine as I left her hand indicating she didn’t want to let go either. We stood side by side outside DT, on the parapet to the entrance, not saying anything.

We continued staring into each other’s eyes for words didn’t seem required for this moment. In almost a response to my heart, her heart responded. “Then why Rahul, why? Why have you waited for so long? We knew it then, when you first took me to KMC Greens that there was something here between us. That day as you had dropped me back to the hostel, I had waited for you to say something as I wait now and as I am ready to wait forever. But you didn’t say anything that day and I have waited every day since then for you to say something, to tell me that yes-indeed there’s something between us that only our hearts can understand and only God can explain. Every time I met you I hoped that you would finally say something for I knew you had realized it just as I had but somehow you never said anything. And I have waited since that day for this moment to come, for you to hold my hands and lead me wherever you go for I want to follow you and go on this journey with you to see where it takes us. If you knew it then Rahul, then why did you wait for so long?”

“I was afraid. Afraid to lose you. For I had you as a friend and even though my wasted heart has always loved you and always will, I was afraid that if I asked for more that what I had, then I might lose you forever. I was afraid that you might not be ready for what I wanted to tell you for you had your heart broken by another man just then. I didn’t want to scare you for I was afraid you might not be able to handle the emotions that I felt for you. And so I kept quite, just happy that you were a part of my life anyhow but always, always praying that there would come a day when I could tell you how much I loved you, where I could tell you what you meant to me, where I could tell you that come what may, that whatever I may have been before meeting you, that how many people I might have met before you, you would always remain the one person that my heart has ever truly loved and ever will. I have always wanted to tell you this yet somehow my heart always feared losing you.”

“Then tell it now Rahul, tell it now.”

I slowly moved a step towards her. The distance between us grew ever so smaller. Our faces were almost touching now. I again slowly touched her cheeks and she closed her eyes, her head moving slightly backwards. There was nothing to hide anymore. Yet, my heart was still throbbing.

“Anjali,” I whispered into her ears, “I don’t know how to say this…”

Her eyes were still closed in anticipation of the 3 words that could change our lives forever. “Rahul,” she slowly whispered back to me, “just say it,” her eyes still closed, her words almost getting lost in the wind.

On the other side of the parapet, loud music continued to play. People continued to shout and dance, but we remained oblivious to them as they did to us for nothing could break the harmony of this moment. Somewhere a koyal cooed sitting on the branches of one of those trees. On the road behind us an auto rickshaw went by unaware that for two souls, life’s most special moment was playing out right now.

I still felt lost. Like I was in a world which I had always dreamt of but now that I had reached there, I felt like a stranger, like I didn’t belong here. This world promised to give me all the happiness that I had ever dreamt of yet I realized that this was a world I was unfamiliar with. But to hesitate now, to stop now, would be preventing myself from ever experiencing this world and knowing what it was all about. This world that everyone dreamt for and I was three words away from entering it.

“Anjali,” my lips whispered, “I…

“You know, it’s amazing how some men have all the luck in the world.”

Those words crashed the world in which I and Anjali seem to have found our very own home for the last few moments.

“I swear. You wonder how they seem to get all the action while perfectly good guys like us just get to watch the show.”

I turned back. Three men, all students of our college, stood outside the parapet of the adjoining pool centre and watching us. They had probably just left the Snooker place. As soon as we looked at them, they all started laughing. Then one of them standing on the left stopped laughing and said, “Stop laughing Akshay. You just disturbed them you know.” He then spoke to us. “Why did you guys stop? Continue, continue. Please continue. Don’t mind us. We promise we won’t be watching or hearing anything.”

Apparently hearing was a very funny word. Because as soon as he said ‘hearing’ all three again burst into laughter.

I knew what kind of hearing they were referring to and that made my insides boil with rage. I had half a mind to break their necks on the spot. I made a step towards them to shut them up but as soon as I did, I felt Anjali’s hands holding me back. I turned towards her to ask why she was stopping me but by just looking into her eyes I knew she was asking me to ignore them. Not for them. But for her. I just blinked my eyes to tell her I understood her completely. I took her hand and slowly led her out of there, ignoring the rogues who on another day perhaps I would have beaten to pulp. But not today. There was too much at stake for me to stoop to their level.

“Oh come on!” I heard one of the trios of idiots say. “The show’s already over? But the audience just got here. Damn-I haven’t even bought my popcorn yet.” 

More laughter. The rage inside me continued to exuberate. But somehow I held myself back. ‘Now is not the time,’ I kept telling myself. Anjali, walking side by side with me, her hand in mine, kept whispering ‘ignore them Rahul, just ignore them.’

“Honestly dude-how on earth do you manage to keep wooing girls like that? Give us some tips, we really need them.”

I continued walking and counting till 10 in my head. Must have counted it 10 times already.

“And you know, even by your standards, this one is one prize catch.”

The bike was just a few steps away now. In a few seconds I would start the bike and get away from them without causing too much damage. To them.

“Ok fine dude. You don’t want to talk to us-that’s fine. But at least tell us which hotel you are taking her to.”

“And text us the room number,” another one added.

In that moment, I lost my sanity. The rage took over me like a hungry snake waiting to get out of my body and eat anyone and everyone in sight. I didn’t even notice when I had turned back and in the process left Anjali’s hand. That connection that had been stopping me so far was broken in one instant. And without me even realizing it. 

As soon as they had mentioned a hotel and a room number, I turned and stared them down for a few seconds.

“Oops! Looks like the hero just got angry. Now he is going to beat us up and protect his luuuuvvvvvvv.”

They laughed. But they forgot that you should be careful what you wish for. Or else you just might get it. And they were asking for it. I walked over to them and stopped a few feet away. Somewhere behind me now, Anjali looked on helplessly pleading me to stop. “What do you want?” I asked them.

Their leader, the one standing on the left, raised his finger towards Anjali and said, “Well, I wouldn’t mind having that for sure.” They laughed again. I saw his raised finger and in one instant grabbed it with my hand and bended it. He screamed in pain. The other two backed off immediately. “Ahhhhhhhhh,” he screamed. 

“Saying something?” I asked.

“Leave me you faggot,” he said screaming in pain.

The other two guys came and pushed me off. I fell to the ground. Their leader held his broken finger with his other hand and still yelped in pain. Anjali was still asking me to stop. I got up from the ground. “Listen you asshole,” the leader told me indicating at Anjali, “take that fine piece off ass outta here before we beat you to pulp.”

The snake inside me stormed out again. Hear her talk about Anjali like that, my madness knew no bounds anymore. I just ran at them, screaming and grabbing the leader by the collar I kept pushing him till he crashed against the wall.

“What did you say?” I asked in seething rage, his collar still in my hands.

“What the fuck did you say?”

Rahul, stop,” Anjali shouted somewhere behind. “You don’t need to do this.”

But I didn’t care about what she said anymore. All I knew was that I wanted to break the neck of the guy in front of me. “I said,” he answered, “that’s one fine piece of ass you got there.” 

I hit him against the wall again and then grabbing him by the collar, rose him up in air and threw him to the ground. One of the other two now came up but as soon as he raised his hand, I grabbed it and then twisted it. He yelped out in pain. The last of them now tried to come for me but as soon as I saw him coming, I pushed the guy whose hand I had bended to the ground and took on the 3rd. I waited for him to make the first move. He tried to punch me but I immediately my head to the left. He tried punching again and this time I moved my head to the right. Then still shouting as loud as I could, when he tried to punch me the 3rd time, I grabbed his fist, kicked him in the stomach and send him reeling to the ground.

Then I walked over to their leader and grabbing him by the collar again, I pushed him against the wall DT and shouted, “You have anything else to say?”

“No,” he whimpered.

“Well, I have,” I screamed. “Next time you go about eve –teasing a girl, first think about the guy who she is with. Because sometimes it may just turn out to be the hero.”

The slap that fell across my face didn’t even register for a few seconds. I was still seething in anger when that hand tore across my face without any warning. I left the rogue and turned back to see Anjali standing a few feet away from me, her back to me, covering her face and apparently in tears. 

“Anjali,” I said walking up to her. “What happened?”

“Stay away from me,” she replied, still in tears and still her back turned to me.

I knew she was disappointed in me because of the way I had reacted to all this. But didn’t she understand? I did this for her. Because they were playing with her dignity.

“Anjali,” I said slowly. “I am sorry. But the words they said about you, I couldn’t take it.”

“So?” She turned towards me, still in tears but now apparently angry as well. “You would get into a fight with them? Break their bones? Act like you are the hero? Beat every guy who says anything bad about me because I am in your company?”

I started at her for a few seconds wondering how she didn’t understand all of this. Wondering why she was assuming that I was the bad guy here. Didn’t she get it? “Yes, I would,” I reacted angrily. “I would this again if I had to.” 

“You would?” she said. “Then come on, go ahead. Beat up every one in college. Break their bones. Because you know what, Rahul? The problem isn’t them. It’s you. You are the one with the reputation of a flirt so that every girl who is seen with you is automatically assumed to be sleeping with you. But know what, Rahul? I didn’t care for it. I never did. Let them think what they want to. Let them think I am sleeping with you. If they think I am a slut, that’s fine. I don’t have to defend myself against anyone. I know the nature of the relationship we share and that’s all I care for. It never-never mattered to me what they say or think. All that mattered was that we knew what we shared. But to you I guess these people matter. It matters to you what they say and think and frankly-I am not sure if you are the person I thought you were.”

“Anjali,” I said trying to explain. “I don’t care for me. I don’t give two hoots about my reputation or what these people think about me. I don’t deny what I do and if they think that makes me a lesser person than them, then its fine. What I care about is you. And if they say anything against you, anything even slightly demeaning, then I won’t take it. You mean a lot to me and I am not going to stand and watch if someone starts doubting your character.” 

“You still don’t get it Rahul do you? As much as I appreciate the fact that you care about me so much, the truth is that if you really want people to stop thinking lesser about me then you shouldn’t be hanging out with me. The only way they are not going to think that I am not sleeping with you Rahul is if you stay away from me. And that’s why I said I don’t care for what they think Rahul. Because you mean much more to me than these people ever will. But today-today you showed that maybe it’s best perhaps if we start listening to these people.”

“What do you mean by that?” I asked her, afraid of hearing the answer.

I looked at her wondering where I had gone wrong in all this. Didn’t she understand? If I meant so much to her that she didn’t care about what the world thought, then she just as much meant to me and that’s why I was ready to fight the world for her. Didn’t she understand that I loved her? 

She gave a painful smile. “I am going to give you your wish Rahul. If you want these people to stop doubting my character, then I am going to give you that. I am not going to meet you again Rahul…”

“But,” I interrupter her trying to stop her from speaking anymore.

She raised her hand and asked me to stop, tears welling in her eyes. “No Rahul. Listen to me. This is not a good idea. This never was. I should have realized it long ago. As much as I care for you, I can’t ignore who you are and however good a person you maybe from the inside, the truth is the world sees a different side of you. At the end of the day, you are still an incorrigible flirt and I maybe ready to over look that fact but obviously you aren’t. That reputation of being the play boy of college, being the womanizer means too much to you. It makes you stand out in a crowd, it makes people discuss about you and you are not ready to give up that. And unless you are ready to give up that then we can’t be meeting like this.” 

She was crying as she said this, almost in tears. I tried to get close to her, to hug her, to comfort her and to tell her that I couldn’t live without seeing her anymore. That if she took that away from me then she would take my soul away, crushing my spirit into a 1000 pieces. “Anjali,” I said trying to plead my case.

She again raised her hand and stopped me from saying anything or getting any closer to her. “No Rahul. Don’t get any closer. I am leaving now. I wish you all the best in life. You are one of the most wonderful human beings I have ever met. And I hope you can find all the happiness in this world. Because you deserve it. I hope one day you can find some one with whom you can share that blanker of love with.” But all I ever wanted to do is share it with her. There could be no one else. ‘Please Anjali, forgive me this one time.’ “I guess this is it,” she continued leaving me to just helpless stare at her as she broke my heart, “and Rahul, this is for the best. So please don’t try stopping me now or try talking to me.” She turned back and was almost jogging out of the ground, rubbing the tears from her eyes. I looked on helplessly. I was a moment away from telling her how much I loved her and now I had lost her. Maybe forever. Or so she had implied. 

As I stood there wondering how my life had turned so strangely in just 30 minutes, watching the girl I loved walk away from my life, I felt a bottle crash against my head. My head stung as if it had suddenly been bitten by a thousand bees. I heard 3 voices behind me telling each other to get out of here. I knew to whom those voices belonged to but I could do nothing about it. I caught my head, trying in some way to control the pain but it just wouldn’t stop. Then I felt blood trickling on my skin. The world started revolving around me and I began to lose my balance. I fell to my knees clutching my head, screaming in pain. I knew I would lose consciousness any second now. The last thing I remember is seeing Anjali rushing towards me screaming my name as I tried to hold on to my last bit of consciousness. As I saw her rushing towards me, I couldn’t feel the pain anymore. It was as if the sight of her protected me from any kind of physical pain that my body could give me. I knew I was going to lose consciousness but I could no longer feel the pain. I smiled at her, a small benign smile telling her that I knew she would come back one day or another. How ever long it took, I would be right here waiting for you. The world continued to grow darker. Brightened now and then only by the sight of a beautiful angel named Anjali. She was shouting something, probably crying for help. My eyes closed again for a few seconds. I somehow managed to get them open again and I saw Anjali still crying for help. A few hazy bodies rushed out of DT behind me. I tried to focus on Anjali but even that focus was becoming impossible now. She seemed so worried, so tensed. But didn’t she get it? I already had all the help I wanted. She was there and nothing else mattered. She was all I had ever wanted. All I could ever want. “Anjali,” I managed to mutter before I felt the last bits of blood on my head and fell unconscious to the ground.