Beneath the Golden Chain (BtGC)

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Mom was in Chennai and we were about to pick her up from the station. She called, telling us that the train will be arriving an hour later. 'Why not take some pictures?' I asked him, and he was all set. We clicked a hundred pictures and none of those made me satisfied. I asked him to pose for more and he was like 'no more, I am tired.'

I scrolled through my gallery to see if I got at least one to change my display picture. I got partially satisfied with a few, after relooking at those I clicked. 'Already late, let's head over,' he said. I was just wasting time for the sake of wasting and it flew!

He had been very excited as he was going to meet his wife after a long week. I never saw him so restless, waiting for someone. We reached there a few minutes early and I got some spare time to look around. Sipping a cup of coffee from a nearby stall, my eyes went through all the corners of the station. I looked away on seeing a guy in front of the last platform. Just a glance and I thought it was someone I knew. I did not want to take a second look. I was scared if he was really the person I assumed. 'Rey...' the guy who was standing close to me screamed. I slowly walked away realising that he was really the person I guessed.

I was away for a second and the next second, I saw my parents hugging and embracing each other, like they have been apart for a decade. They were so clingy and their love made me jealous at times. I was a 'single, ready to mingle' type. But I was not that easy type. I knew that pure love was unconditional, and I wanted to fall in love so naturally. Nobody passed my tests, except one. And this one person I am talking about was once my classmate- high school classmate. He was the first guy I confessed to and he was the first one to reject me. Hangover of that just lasted for a few days and I moved on. Later, he shifted school and I was saved from all the embarrassments.

My parents asked me if I was daydreaming and I suddenly woke up to reality. 'Rad, did you go out last night?' she asked. 'No Mom, I slept so early,' I replied. 'What about the day before that?' she asked. I couldn't hide the fact from her that I went out to party with my friends. 'This is why I am afraid to leave you alone with your father. He doesn't know how to control you,' she started arguing. 'Hey, come on. Give her some space to enjoy,' he replied. 'I wish. But I am scared of society. We can trust our daughter, but we can't trust them,' she said. 'I made sure it was safe and sound. It was her friend's birthday. Nothing was there to worry,' he said. Somehow, she was satisfied. Mom gave me sweets from her hometown and I was slowly grabbing it. Then I heard someone calling out my name. I was shocked that he was the guy I was trying to escape. But thankfully, it was Vihaan– brother of my friend Vaidehi. She has been together with me since pre-school and we enrolled together again, attending a crash course at the nearby entrance coaching centre. We talked for a while and I introduced him to my parents. I have been seeing him so often these days. I told that to my parents and they were like 'beware of his charm, you might fall in love with him.' My parents were so good at making fun of me. We kept no secrets from each other and our bond was something everyone envied.

We walked to our car and suddenly my parents got many acquaintances to chat with. Get on the road and everyone's there! That's how weekends are. They kept on talking... sharing each other's special news and I got bored. I heard someone asking about my future plan and I tried to hide. 'What does a student do after school?' is always a hot topic of discussion. My parents explained that I was lazy and had no particular goals. They also added that I was attending a crash course at the nearest entrance coaching centre. Those people were like 'that's what everyone these days do.' To be honest, I had no idea and plans about the future. All I wanted to do since childhood was to take over my father's Art Museum located at the heart of the city. That was my goal. And when I took admission at the entrance coaching centre, I thought of one thing only- I wanted to help my friend who was an advanced keratoconus patient. Vaidehi got blurry vision every now and then and sometimes it was complicated to the extent of losing complete vision for a while. She wanted someone always and I have been there for her throughout these years. She has been suffering from this disease since 10th age and her version of the disease got extremely complicated. Though she was super talented, she got mentally tired several times. I loved her company throughout these years, not only because she was very kind, but also because she helped me pass all the exams with her brave and smart tips. Also, she was very possessive of me, treating me like her own other self. All I gave her was mental support. Also, I took down the notes for her several times when her eyes got blurry and itchy out of the blue.