She stood there, can in hand, head reeling as though she were drunk.
Am I drunk?
She tried counting the shots she had downed since she entered the pub. 11, 12… 15? She wasn’t sure. But she wasn’t drunk, she was sure. Excited, maybe. Yeah… excited. That’s more like it! She knew she couldn’t get drunk, even if she drowned herself in a vat of liquor. Of course she’d never tested that belief. She was too good to ever do something as crazy as that. At best, drinking would just make her sleepy. She had always been proud of how she, a brahmin born, pure vegetarian, teetotaler, had held her drink well when she was introduced to it by friends. But now, her tolerance to it had become an irritating matter. Because sometimes she wanted desperately to get drunk, and couldn’t. Like at flashy parties, or after fierce bedroom fights, or family blame games, or when she felt lonely. Drinking could never give her that false sense of peace that others craved.
Then what was the point? Why did you drink?
She knew why. It was her Anniversary today.
That’s why she was dressed in black, teetering on stilettos too high for her to handle, pouting with scarlet lips at the first group of twenty somethings she had found in the pub and recklessly befriended, as if they were her homies. She wanted a date to remember. It had to start with drinking because she wanted to test her limits. But damn these tiny pubs and their closing time. So the twenty-somethings suggested that they should do something stupid and crazy. And they dared her. Which is why she was staring at the stark white boundary-wall of the Courthouse. And because this night was all about testing her limits.
They were jeering her behind her back, “Oh, I know she can’t do it…. She’s too tame. Too old for fun!” said the twenty something in the crew cut and slashed-at-the-thighs jeans.
The girl in the red slacks hissed, “C’mon… Before someone sees us!”
But that’s the point… To get noticed being bad, or else what fun is there in doing bad?
Let’s start with it.
She shook the can in her hand, and approached the wall. With one firm hand she pressed a hand on her nose, and with the other, shaky hand, she pressed the nozzle on the spray paint can.
Pzzzzzzt!
A red mist began to form patterns on the wall. She let her imagination guide her hand as she painted the one word that came to her mind – Erupt!
She painted that one word over and over again, at several places on the wall. She wanted to remember this sensation, that word and what it meant to her tonight.
At last she stood back to look at her handiwork. She was still shaking, but now with excitement and pride. For the first time in years she felt alive. The loud hooting from the over-excited jackasses behind her was nothing compared to the gush of blood she could hear coursing in the veins of her ears, throbbing with an intensity that made her head ache.
“Oh my gawwwd, Auntyji, you’ve done it! Ha, you’re something!” That came from the guy in the bomber jacket, the one who had been eyeing her all night long. He was now right behind her, she could sense his warmth right through the gauze of her dress. She looked back at him, he looked down at her with a lewd smirk, and she said, ‘back off‘, in a tone so sour it could curdle milk in an instant. That wiped off his grin and he took a few steps back. Thank god he wasn’t that stupid.
Just then, the shrill sound of a whistle pierced their bubble of excitement. The twenty somethings started running, but she stayed glued to the spot. The guy in the bomber jacket made a last ditch effort at earning brownie points with her, “What are you waiting for? That’s a thulla (police constable). C’mon!” He stretched out a hand towards her.
She turned the other way and started walking towards the thulla…
To be continued.
This is the first part of a new series. Please read, comment and share, if you like. I’ll try being regular with this one.
Thank you 🙂
Copyright ©2017 Pradita Kapahi.
All rights reserved.
Image Credits: Cosas Cool
Oh my godddd!! This is so exciting!!
And you write so, so well…
And by the way…. ‘thulla’, which language??
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Thank you so much Sumedha. I’m glad to see someone thinks it’s exciting enough to comment upon 😀 Thank you for lifting my spirits 🤗 Thulla is in Delhi slang. Me being a former Delhiite, love to use the native tongue of the Dilliwasi 😀
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Hey, even I have lived in Delhi my entire life…. Never even once have I come across ‘thulla’.
Nevertheless, your initiative is amazing… And you are amazing! 😺
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Lol! Well maybe I’ve just picked it up by chance 😁😁😁 and thank you girl for being amazing enough to make people happy 😊 😊
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Pradita,
This girl Sumedha who thinks she knows only little things can do big things for Candles Online… Isn’t it? What do you say Sis? I just went through her articles… Wow… Loved her mind.
Sorry for intruding and talking in between while two elders were conversing… 😉
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Yes, Sumedha is a very intelligent girl. I think you should contact her about writing for Candles. I hope she reciprocates positively 🙂
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wow! this is something different and interesting! would like to know what happened further 😃and your writing is very point to point, there’s no point in getting bored in between 😅
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Wow! Thank you for that praise. I hope I won’t disappoint in the end. Stay tuned 😉
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Man what the heck is going on…waiting for the next part…your writing is so tensed and urgent that I want to read the next part right now…
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Thank you so much Sangbad. Hopefully I’ll be more regular with this series 🙂
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👍
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I am happy to be a follower of talent like yours Pradita 🌹
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Likewise Sir. Thank you 🙂
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Sir, I’ve nominated you for an award. Please visit my website to see. Thank you
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Oh wonderful. Thank you so much
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You’re most welcome 😊
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Thank you so much Pradita. I saw the nomination on your site.
I am obliged
I am not familiar if I have to do anything on it. Please guide me if I need to do anything
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You’re most welcome Sir. All you need to do, is post an acceptance post on your own site, much like the one I have posted. Link back to my site saying that I’m the one who nominated you. You may also click on Shweta’s name, so you are directed to her award post which will have the questions every nominee must answer. If you wish to, that is. Or you could just do it the way I have done. I hope that helped 🙂
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Very interesting start Pradita, Looking forward.. Keep it going.. btw how do you manage to keep yourself so active? wish i have half the energy and motivation as you!
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Thanks a lot Dilip. All my writing happens on the go, believe me. Some tid bits scribbled on a piece of paper, or typed on the phone, or saved on WP/laptop. It’s only my love of writing and blogging why I write 😀
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Amazing! Even i do have a lot of rough notes, but to construct it and publish, needs some serious will power and self motivation… you are inspiring!
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Thank you so much Dilip. You have a far more busy life than me. office and then being a husband and dad takes a lot of time and work too. Plus your content is A class all the time, even if you don’t post that often. That shows quality and consistency. It’s the reason why I follow and look forward to your blog posts 😀
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Oh! thank you so much Pradita… Very heartening to hear such words… Will take some inspirations from you and try being more consistent..
You made my day 🙂
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As did you, dear friend 😀 😀
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🙂 🙂
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Badiya.. chalo naya series shuru kiya.. count me in..aur haan jaisa kahaan hai please be regular.. 🙂
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As you can see I’m already faltering on my promise 😂
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Pingback: Erupt – Part 2 | The Pradita Chronicles
Oh my God! There’s a series going on and I didn’t even know!
I am hooked already babe! Loved it!
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Ohhhh thanks a lot babe. Good to have you back 🙂
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You’re welcome darling 💕
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💞🤗
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Yo, that’s kinda interesting Sis!
I was not feeling well so thought of hanging around on WordPress today. And I stumbled upon my sis’s blog first.
Quite an interesting start this is. I can see a second part to it. Will going to read and comment as well soon. A woman with frustration and upsurge of emotions can be very lethal. Though I could put my feet on her shoes and see how difficult it is for a person who has been neglected by people around all the time. And there will be definitely a time when this ERUPTION will take place.
This is my thought till now before further unveiling… Going to read the next part… DO NOT DISTURB 😉
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