Teaser 2..

She was taking a leisurely stroll down the sandy sea shore, as the waves caressed her sand infested feet. The  wintry breeze pierced her like ice cold daggers, and she rubbed her hands once and while, while chattering amidst the biting cold. It was almost twilight and the sun was slowly making its way down the horizon, leaving a trail of blazing vermillion in the sky. The cumulus clouds made way for the last few rays of sunlight for the day, bathing the sea shore in a golden orange light. it wasn’t anything like she had ever seen before. waking up  at dawn with sleep ridden eyes  not something she really enjoyed, but her parents insisted on watching the sun rise every morning, so it was mandatory to accompany  them while they reveled in natures bountiful splendors. Sunset was far more appealing to her, as she could savor the unearthly beauty when her body wouldn’t crave for a few more hours of sleep.

She could faintly discern the miniscule lights that glowed far away from the sea shore, from where she could the larger waves undulating, not that far away from the sinking sun itself. They were hundreds of nautical miles away, looking like tiny fire flies from she stood. The source of the lights as she had learned from her father, were the  cluster of marine ships that were anchored in that particular zone.

She sometimes thought of the sailors, in the ship, and what they might be doing, cast far away from dry land. Whether they felt lonely and sea sick, or whether they missed their families and loved ones. She wondered if she could survive in a place like that, isolated and alone, in the middle of nowhere, and  wherever her eyes went, all she would see was the dark blue-black waters. 

She could  almost smell the salinity  that lingered in the air. A group of people were probably doing  a barbeque somewhere nearby, and she caught the faint scent scent of sauteed meat.  She suddenly felt hunger pangs kick in, and ruminated on not having a proper lunch. They had eaten at a local restaurant, and  the meal consisted of seafood. Fish never evoked her appetite. 

It was the 3^rd day of their trip and she was already yearning to leave. She loved the beach, loitering around the shores, watching mom and dad banter sitting on their favorite plimsolls, waking up to the  icy wind lapping at her face, sightseeing the tourist destinations  where mom could haggle to her heart’s content over a  pair of sandals.

She loved the place, its aura and idyllic scenes. And yet…

Leaving behind the bustling metropolitan was easy. Actually, she had wanted to get away from the city, the moment she heard her parents were planning a holiday. The dreadful exams were finally over, assignments and projects wrapped up and submitted and she could finally breathe. At least for the next 3 weeks till 5^th semester commenced. Immense relief was what she felt, after writing the very last word in her exam script.  no more stressing over deadlines,  fussing over nitty gritty details and rushing to library and photocopy machines. At least for the time being. 

But then again the city had its own magnetism.  Polluted, overcrowded, fast paced , yes.

But it was also home. Her only  abode.  A safe haven  to return to after a long tiring day.

She missed him a lot. The men’s hair salon in front of their  resort had a poster of  a model on its entrance, and his hairstyle reminded of him. Slightly tousled, and unkempt, but stylish at the same time.  She saw an exact same  hoodie she had seen him wearing at a shop mom had dragged her to,  navy blue with ‘’why so serious?’’ written in white on the front.

Almost everything she saw, inexplicably  reminded her of bits and pieces of him.

She remembered reading somewhere, love and lust were two disparate feelings. Lust was something instantaneous, a temporary attraction to the opposite sex, solely based on their appearance.

Whereas love was something deep, profound and subtle.

Yes, she liked men who knew how to be subtle. But he was nowhere near that.

Sometimes she was perplexed by his actions, his words. He could sound so nonchalant, like a flippant.

But even she couldn’t deny the fact that at times he stared at her like he could see everything inside her heart. Like she could keep no secrets from her.  and she was fully aware that her best friend didn’t lie either.

He was so hard to read. Like some arcane Gallic scripture, she scoffed.

‘’ Laila, its getting dark, come inside’’, mom called out from the balcony.

Inhaling the salty air last time for the evening , she traipsed along the sandy pathway, back to the hotel.