What is more important

Poles apart

By the time Vijy comes out of his room, Sameen also comes out of her room. She passes him an awkward smile and goes downstairs. Vijy also comes down after a while. As soon as he sees the three old people ready to live the prime time of their lives, he says: “Someone is looking beautiful today.” At the same time Sameen says: “Someone is looking handsome today.” They both look at each other and giggle. Vijy has the habit of ruffling his hair every time he is nervous. At this very moment he does the same. All of them are feeling as if they are back in the days of college. They are feeling young, enlightened and free. They all are happy and full of energy today.

Mr. Luthra looks at his wife and says: “You better remember you are mine.”

Mrs. Luthra: “You better remember that you are mine.”

She then looks at Mr. Gujrial and says: “And you better remember that you are taken.”

Mr. Gujrial waves his hands in the air as he says: “I never forget that. I think we are getting late now, and we should leave.”

They all move towards the door when both the kids bid them farewell by saying: “Have a blast. Have a great night.” They reply by saying: “You guys have a great night too.” Mr. Gujrial then looks at Vijay and says: “Do not make any trouble, do not disturb uncle and do not go out or remain out till late night. Other rules apply today as well.”

Vijay: “I understand dad. Now, you go and enjoy.”

Mrs. Luthra turns to him before leaving the door: “Keep one thing in mind son, you never know if tomorrow comes or not.” Vijay smiles at her as she kisses goodbye to Sameen. The kids wave at them as they sit in the car and leave. Vijay knew what Mrs. Luthra was talking about. She wants him to tell Sameen everything. She knows that Sameen will definitely give a hard time to Vijay before saying yes; therefore, he should start trying. Sameen has grown up to become a delicate woman, but her fierce side never died. She is as tough as always. She knows that her daughter does not let anyone near her, and it will be really difficult for Vijay to convince her or make her believe in love. As per Sameen there is nothing like love. However, for Vijay things are entirely different. He thinks that love is the driving force which keeps everything moving. Mrs. Luthra knows about these sides of her kids and wants them to start dealing with it. At this very moment Mrs. Luthra is living with a secret and does not want anyone to know that. She knows that she does not have much time and she wish to make things better before she goes. She has not told anyone that she is suffering from cancer and has very little time to get everything on path. She wants to spend her best days as well as wants her daughter to have the best as well. When she talked to Vijay today, she thought to herself that she would tell him everything after tonight and then thought that the night was still young.

After saying goodbye, the kids come back to lounge. The sit on different sofas. Both are sitting very formally and awkwardly. There is complete silence in the house. After a while Vijay stand up and goes towards his dad’s armchair. He puts his hand on its back and says: “This is dad’s favorite chair. He loves sitting here and reading. Most of the time he is looking outside of the window. One day, I asked him why he sits here too much? He replied: “I bought this house because this was the street, we visited a lot during our school days. This street makes me feel alive and reunites me with my past. Since I got married while I was studying, I used to rent this house for your mom whenever she would visit me. It was really hard to convince the owner to do so but every time we three succeeded in manipulating him. this street makes me remember all those efforts, laughter, mischievous deeds and our happy spirits. Therefore, I love this home and I love sitting here.”

Sameen: “They love each other so much and it is so beautiful.”

Vijay: “Sometimes, I think to myself that will ever have Luthra to my Gujrial?”

Sameen: “You do have Kartik. From what I heard today, I can assume that he is a very nice guy and you two are great friends.”

Vijay: “You are right, we have been friends since our first day of school, which means since my second day in London. He is a beautiful soul, but sometimes I am afraid of losing him. I do not know if we will be friends after all the years.”

Sameen: “Makes sense, but I think living in the moment is better than living in constant fear of the future. No one knows what the future holds but we all know what the present has, so enjoy it.”

Vijay: “Do you have friends?”

Sameen: “I do.”

Vijay: “Do you remember your first interaction?”

Sameen: “I was six when I first met that person. I was scared to death of her, since everyone had told me that she was not a good person. She even humiliated people. I was afraid of her. When I met her, she extended her arms to hug me. I still remember that I could taste bile in my mouth. I thought she would despise me or even hit me. To me, she was an evil woman. However, things became totally different. She used to tell me stories and give me candies and toys. She never despised me. Since then, we have been friends. Our friendship is not conventional as she is a lot older than me, but I like sitting with her and I like talking to her. Whenever I visit home, I try to visit her. I write to her frequently and I receive letters from her every day. Then, when I shifted to the USA, I had a friend there. However, I do not know if things will remain the same or not. If I am honest, I do not have a Gujrial to my Luthra. I do not even have a Kartik.”

Vijay: “Do you ever feel bad?”

Sameen: “No. I am happy as who I am and what I have.”

Vijay answers awkwardly: “That is good.”

Silence prevails in the room again and nobody talks for a long time. Sameen remembers that Vijay used to love books and she tries to make small talk.

Sameen: “Do you like literature?”

Vijay: “I love it. I like reading books; I like the comfort the pages give me, and I love the stories they tell.”

Sameen: “What do you read?”

Vijay: “I read a lot of genres. If I am honest, I read every book I think can teach me something valuable. Come with me, I will show you something.”

Vijay leads the walk as Sameen follows him behind. After a few steps, he slows down to match his steps with hers. Sameen notices that too but does not show anything. Vijay then opens a big door. There is a huge library behind that door. Sameen looks at it in awe.

Vijay: “I love this place. The silence it has and the stories it has accommodated.”

Sameen: “Have you read all these books?”

Vijay: “More or less. Yes. However, they are all not mine. Dad also has a very big collection of books, and we have all the books here.”

Sameen: “It is amazing.”

Vijay: “Do you read?”

Sameen: “Yes, but not as much as you guys do. I like living in reality.”

Vijay picks up a book from one of the shelves as he says: “You think books are not real?”

Sameen: “I think they make you learn a lot and they help you travel to faraway lands in your mind. On the other hand, I also believe that books exaggerate.”

Vijay: “They do not exaggerate. They just put feelings into words. They just explain the stuff we never wanted anyone to know. They bring us, our feelings and what we are afraid to see into light.”

Sameen: “They talk about things that are not real.”

Vijay: “Like?”

Sameen: “Like love.”

Vijay’s heart stops for a while and he looks at her face. She has now picked up a book and is looking through its pages. Vijay was not expecting this. After a while, he says: “What do you think love is?”

Sameen: “I do not know. I just think that you can only love people who have blood relationships with you. It is something that has something to do with genes. And what I inferred from the books, it conceals your rationality, it makes you stupid and weak. It makes you lose control of yourself, and I do not think that is possible. Everyone has control over their actions; hence, it is just in the heads of vulnerable people who want to blame others for their stupid decisions.”

Vijay: “Your parents do not share genes and we all know how much they love each other. None of them is weak and none of them has lost rationality. They are the wisest people I know, and they have made wonderful decisions in their life. You probably think like this because you are afraid to love, and you are worried about the heartbreak more than the beautiful moments which two people can have because of love.”

Sameen: “I am not worried about anything, and I am not afraid of anything. Mom is fighting cancer and she did not tell anyone because she thought dad would be hurt. She is not getting a treatment because she wishes to spend time with him rather than in a hospital which can provide her with good treatment and a longer life. I heard her talking to her friend in the US. Isn’t that stupid? Isn’t that the worst decision someone can make?” Sameen’s voice comes out a little louder and in sobs.

Vijay looks at her in disbelief: “This can’t be true.”

Sameen: “It is true. I heard her saying that.” Sameen says as she buries her face in her hands.

Vijay hesitates but comes a little forward. He puts her head on his chest and a hand on her head as he tries to calm her down: “I am sorry. Everything will be fine. I promise.”

Sameen continues to sob.