Momentary Presence

(Photo Credit: [ changó ] / Foter / CC BY-NC-ND )

Who are these strangers that cast a shadow on my life? Momentarily present, they changed my life, departed too soon, but left behind an everlasting, indelible mark on the canvas of my fate.

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This post is in response to Trifecta Writing Challenge Week Seventy-Nine. The prompt is the photograph posted above.

Unspoken Notions

"Why don't you discard this plate? I've told you it's inauspicious to keep broken objects in the house."

"Maa it's just a crack in the plate, it's not broken. Besides, I don't want to ruin my entire cutlery set, courtesy of discarded pieces," she frowned, as she struggled to keep her tone low.

Letting go of an audible grunt, her mom stomped out of the kitchen muttering under her breath, utterly displeased at the stubborn genes that had got into her daughter.

As she fondly wiped the plate dry, her eyes moistened with memories of him. He would always insist on eating in this plate ever since he marred its beauty, much to her annoyance.

Suddenly one day, he was gone. No word, no phone call, no letter. She did everything under the sky to locate him, but destiny seemed to have different plans. Hope was lost on everyone else by now, especially since three long years had passed. She, however, could not let go of the last straw of hope, holding on to it, as one does for dear life.

Switching off the lights in the kitchen, she moved towards the pooja room to say her prayers for the day - prayers that often fell on deaf ears according to her. Abruptly, she made a halt in the passageway, as if struck by lightening. Turning back on her feet, she zipped into the kitchen and turned on the lights.

Lifting the plate from the drawer, she held it against her cheek feeling its deathly coldness, even as her tears kept streaming like water from a broken dam.

Crash!!

"What happened my child?" her mom frantically scurried into the kitchen, taking her into arms, as she stared at the shattered remnants of the plate on the floor.

"Nothing maa," she wiped her tears.

Inside of her, a faint voice whispered, "May be this will be auspicious. Just, may be..."

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This post is in response to the Trifecta Writing Challenge - Week Eighty-Six.

On writing

My process of writing, in little 3 words

Churn, erase, refurbish.

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This post is in response to the Trifecta Writing Challenge - Week Seventy-Six. The challenge is to pen down your writing process in just 3 words.

Not Done Yet

Pills deserved to be fired for betrayal.
The tightened noose was powerless too.
The new concoction held the last ounce of promise.
Third time's a charm, he thought, as he dug her grave.

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This post is written in response to the Trifecta Writing Challenge - Week Seventy-Three. The prompt is to write exactly 33 words using the theme 'third time's a charm'.

Tug-of-war

The rising decibels of the outside world were no match for the war raging inside her. Slouched on a sofa in one corner of this club, she wondered... To be or not to be. To stay or to leave. To make friends with the blinding darkness or to move on in search of light. To save her remaining sanity and run for life or to hold fast and let the storm pass. Would the storm ever pass? Or would it take away everything in its wake? Her quest for answers only won more questions.

‘Did I get too close for comfort?’, her words seemed to fade away in the deafening noise surrounding them.

He nailed the coffin with a ‘Yes’.

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This post is in response to the Trifecta Writing Challenge - Week Eighty-Two.

The prompt is to write a 33-333 words piece using the third definition of the following word:

CLUB

1a : a heavy usually tapering staff especially of wood wielded as a weapon
 b : a stick or bat used to hit a ball in any of various games
 c : something resembling a club
2a : a playing card marked with a stylized figure of a black clover
  b : plural but sing or plural in constr : the suit comprising cards marked with clubs
3a : an association of persons for some common object usually jointly supported and meeting periodically; also : a group identified by some common characteristic  
  b : the meeting place of a club  
  c : an association of persons participating in a plan by which they agree to make regular payments or purchases in order to secure some advantage
  d : nightclub
  e : an athletic association or team
4: club sandwich

Sweet Summers

                  Arm-in-arm
                 On the sand
            Guzzling Breezers
             In a faraway land
            Sun-kissed cheeks
                 Warm to kiss
                  Hard to tell
             How much I miss.
     Your memories make my day
    Forever in my heart you'll stay.

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This post is a fiction-piece written for the Trifecta Writing Challenge - Week Seventy-Two.

The challenge is to describe summer in exactly 33 words. 

The Way Back

They knew they were lost. A few stolen kisses, away from the group, didn't seem a bad idea initially. But how far the ripples of our decisions travel is a story for another day.

Endless groping in the darkness of the forest seemed to get them nowhere for hours. She stopped by intermittently to catch her breath and let-off a silent sob. He religiously kept marking trees along the path with a sharp stone even though he could not see those markings anyway. They discussed and debated, argued and fought, cried and patched-up with kisses but remained lost. No food, little water, dead phones and a few ounces of hope was all that they had.

Hand in hand, they moved ahead with cautious steps in the dark until he suddenly slipped. In one swift take, she got tugged along too and a rapid downward fall ended in a thud against a wall.

Bruised arms and grazed knees, they picked up the fearful bits of themselves. Brushing himself, he started walking along the wall, feeling its roughness with both his hands. She dutifully followed. It was pitch dark and his voice seemed to echo. In one flash of a moment, he realized they were inside a tunnel. Either end of it would fling them back into their 'lost world'. Their delight knew no bounds at this discovery.

Tears of happiness streaming down their faces, they started moving in rapid steps along the wall. It was then that he spotted light at the end of the tunnel. What he didn't know was that it was the headlight of an approaching train.

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This post is in response to the Trifecta Writing Challenge week eighty-one. The prompt is to use the following word in its third definition, in a 33-333 word piece.

LIGHT (noun)

1a : something that makes vision possible

  b : the sensation aroused by stimulation of the visual receptors

  c : electromagnetic radiation of any wavelength that travels in a vacuum with a speed of about 186,281 miles (300,000 kilometers) per second; specifically : such radiation that is visible to the human eye

2a : daylight

  b : dawn

3: a source of light: as

   a : a celestial body

   b : candle   

   c : an electric light