soursweet

I was sitting in my class, looking out at the garden. Suddenly, I noticed him. It was Rajveer, the leader of the music club and the man I'd had a crush on since school. I often visited him at the music club, and as always, just seeing him from afar made me happy. Perhaps he loved Key Lime Cake. I remember seeing him eating it in the canteen, and even in college, most of the time. Key Lime Cake became a way for me to feel for Rajveer. The taste reminded me of him. All the girls in college wanted to be friends with him. I would always watch him from afar, telling myself that he was a star in the sky, and I was broken glass scattered on the ground. One day, I was engrossed in books in the library when Rajveer's friend came up to me and said, "My friend wants to talk to you." He was hesitant, so I came over. "If you want, you can give me your number." Hearing him, I fell silent. My legs were trembling. I didn't know what to do. Seeing Rajveer standing in the distance, I mustered some courage and gave him my number. After that, I always waited for his call or message. Almost a week had passed since this incident, but I hadn't received a call, nor had I seen Rajveer at the club. Several months had passed since this incident, and I hadn't received any calls or heard from him. No one in the entire club knew where Rajveer had disappeared. Now, a strange storm had raged within me, and the question of what had happened, why had Rajveer disappeared, was troubling me. After a lot of effort I got the address of his house and I reached there, gathering courage I went inside the house, there I saw that there were a lot of people, seeing me a woman came to me, I asked her does Rajveer live here, her answer was yes he is here, who are you, I had no answer to her question, after thinking a bit I said I am his friend, he has not come to the club for a long time, that is why I am here… I had not completed my sentence, then she said oh yes he has met with a car accident, he has lost his memory....I was stunned to hear his words. My life seemed to stop, my body turning to stone. His brother came to me and told me everything. From his words, I understood that this incident had happened the same day I had given him my number. I was blaming myself for everything. I asked his brother if I could see Rajveer once. He said, "Okay, but don't mind if he doesn't recognize me." Slowly, I moved towards Rajveer. He looked at me with fear and questions. His eyes were trying to recognize me. He didn't say anything, but there was a search in his eyes. Coming out of the room, I cried a lot. The Rajveer I had seen before was a smiling person who was special to everyone, but the Rajveer in front of me today had no smile on his face; his eyes were filled with questions and tears. Seeing him in this state made me very sad. His brother told me that maybe he was trying to recognize me. He asked me if I was really just his friend. I had no answers to his questions. I wasn't ready to go to college the next day, so I baked a cake at home and, without thinking, went to Rajveer's house. There weren't many people there that day, just his brother. He asked me why I was there. I told him I'd made this cake for Rajveer, and he loved it. His brother asked me the same question again: Am I just Rajveer's friend? I stood there silently. His brother took me to another room, where I saw all my photos from school to college. It felt as if my very being had settled in that room. Seeing this, tears welled up in my eyes, and I sat down on the floor. His brother told me that Rajveer had always liked me, but he never told me. Leaving that room, I went to Rajveer's room, where he was eating the cake I'd brought. The smile on his face was heart-warming, but I couldn't help myself. I hugged him. I cried for five minutes while hugging him. Rajveer placed his hand on my head and said, "Don't cry, everything will be fine, why are you crying?" I calmed down and left his room without another word. Even though I wasn't in his thoughts, he couldn't bear to see me crying. Perhaps he could feel the closeness I felt with him... And now, coming home from college, making lime cake, meeting Rajveer, and talking to him for hours became a daily routine. Even knowing he didn't remember me, I kept trying to keep my love alive, hoping that one day he would remember me again. I was sure that no matter what, he would always be with me and we would always be together. Every day I felt Rajveer closer to me, and that was the greatest joy of my life. That lime cake's flavor was now beginning to appear in my life too, sometimes sour and sometimes sweet, but every condition life with him seemed better in every situation.....!!