A PROMISE LIVED...

The wind that night was neither soothing nor violent. It was just wandering restlessly. The deserted beach was soaked in moonlight and, strangely, nothing that it lit appealed to her. As she sat alone on the white sand, the rolling waves immersed her in a sea of memories. The days of their togetherness kept on flashing before her, some of which choked her while some made her smile. Even after five long years, his touch still lingered on her soul. They had believed that they were inseparable; their vows were true and their love everlasting.

Their relationship had just started to blossom when his dream to pursue a career in the film industry unveiled its fragile core. Everything changed soon after he began his struggle in the industry and all she began encountering was his unpredictable schedules, his on-screen intimacies, his disturbed moods and his obsession for stardom. The changed dynamics of their relationship disturbed her to the core and their conflicts began taking an ugly and sickening shape. Neither of them wanted him to give up on his dreams and to restore peace in life they decided to part. Of all the promises they had made in love, only one stood out through years. At least on her part, she thought.

While parting, a flickering hope lived in both the hearts for which they had promised to meet after five years, on the very day which marked the beginning of their relationship and at the very place which nurtured some of their best moments, if their hearts would still harbor the love which once embraced them closer than life.

Her life had changed and so did his. He was a star and appeared every now and then on theater screens, television and big hoardings. Half of the country was crazy about him and was ready to do anything to get a glimpse or an autograph of the star. Suddenly, she felt stupid to be waiting for him. She thought how silly it was to expect a star to remember someone who was his beloved once but vanished from his life for five long years. The distant lighthouse which once witnessed their togetherness appeared blind to the only promise which brought her there that night. She felt it was loathing her with a notion that his stardom lured her there.

Restless as she got up and turned to leave, his relaxed persona standing right behind startled her. He was there, since when, she did not know. He smiled at her, an indifferent smile which made her rather uncomfortable. He took a few steps and sat beside her with an uncanny ease as if he was there to attend a casual meeting. She followed suit, trying to compose herself.

He began “I was expecting you.”

Once again she felt loathed and replied “I was not. You are a busy man after all.”

He agreed and continued the conversation, adorning it carefully with sarcasms, some of which she returned. Their conversation was interspersed with long awkward silences which both of them were trying hard to fill, in vain.

“I thought you would be married by now,” he guessed.

“I am,” she replied with a smile and quickly took off her ring from her finger to hold it tight in her fist. His eyes followed her action to which she responded “you reminded me that my wedding ring is new and a bit loose and I don’t want to lose it to this night.”

He laughed and said “In ways you are still the same stupid girl whom I loved once.”

His remark somehow eased their awkwardness and words began flowing easily. He told her about his busy life and she shared about her work which kept her engaged through years.

“Are you seeing someone?” she asked.

“Media covered two of my serious affairs and you still ask that!” he responded with a smile.

“I don’t trust them. I want you to tell me,” she replied firmly.

“But once they were more trustworthy to you than me, when you didn't feel the need of asking me without any preconceived notions.” He paused for a moment to spot guilt in her eyes and succeeded. “Yes I am not only seeing someone but also planning to get engaged soon. She is a darling and is waiting for me at my home knowing that I am here to meet my ex-girlfriend. And just like you even I am determined not to lose her to this night.”

She felt a stabbing pain and she knew that her eyes were failing to hide her emotions.

“Only if I had not to wait for days to talk to you or meet you, only if I was not a constant victim of your resentments which arose from your struggles and only if you had stopped me once from leaving, our lives would have been different,” she said while her voice trembled.

“All I needed was support and motivation for venturing into an uncertain world, which unexpectedly you too couldn't provide,” his grudge was prominent in his voice.

“My dreams hazed out before yours. Though it wasn't as big as yours, it still existed. I wish you had a little time to hear me out when I so wanted to discuss my career plans with you,” her eyes welled up while saying.

“Glamour world isn't easy; it devours you before you know,” he declared plainly.

Once again silence deluged them and he lied down over the sand. She kept watching the rolling waves and he, the radiant moon, for long. His phone rang and he told someone over the phone that he would be back in an hour. Her heart sank but he went back to his thoughts. He got up after sometime and looked at her.

“I must go. She is waiting for me” he said in a tone that lacked emotions.

“Sure,” she said with a smile and hugged him for the last time. She felt that his hug on her tightened with each passing second and it stayed much longer than she expected.

When he was gone, she walked a few steps towards the sea. She opened her fist and placed her ring on the shimmering sand. A wave rolled in and took away her most prized possession which he once gifted with all his love and which, for five years, gave her the hope that their love still lives somewhere, beneath the complexities of life. She looked at the lighthouse and wondered if it pitied her loneliness. Stepping out of the car felt like a tough job for him when he returned home. He dragged himself to his bedroom where waiting for him was a bottle of scotch. He looked at it and wondered if it pitied his loneliness.

Both the lighthouse and the scotch bottle perhaps pitied that none of them confessed, even for once, what exactly had brought them there that night!