Excellence & Entertainment

I was travelling from my college back to my home for my summer vacation. I travelled in a bus- a rickety old bus that was so slow that I could literally watch cycles whiz past us. Bored as I was I looked around to see my neighbor take out his Asus T100.

 

It was so sleek and wonderful in design that it caught my eye. At first I thought it was a tab but then noticed the guy take out a keyboard from his backpack and attach it in. Pretty cool, huh? A 10 inch tab or a frikking laptop.

 

He did some official work – or so I thought, because I saw him working on Microsoft Office 2013 on Windows 8.1. On asking him, he replied that the software was in-built and that he got them when he bought the tab-cum-laptop.

He then proceeded to gaming. Amazed at his audacity, I asked him about the battery backup and the processor speed. “11 hours and Intel quad core” he replied with a smug smile.

 

 

Intrigued, I proceeded to ask him about the device. After learning that it supported USB 3.0 and had IPS screen with 1366 x 768 resolution, and also supported reading mode which helps in creating lesser stress for the eyes, I decided what I want for my birthday… the Asus Transformer Book T100.

This is fiction written for the Indiblogger contest - Time to Transform.

The Game That Changed Her Life

Image source : here

NightQueen wandered through the plains of Sholazar. She and her allies were looking for some Hyldnir to kill.

Night Queen was a level 79 Blood-elf Mage (spell-caster) along with her allies consisting of hunters (ranged weaponry and beast taming), druids (metamorphosis) and rogues (Stealth and melee). She was on the verge of her last quest to level up and become a fully-fledged level 80 Mage which unlocks a plethora of spells and attacks.

The entire faction followed NightQueen because of her decision making and because of the fact that she could easily kick each of their butts in combat with ease.

NightQueen led her faction into the Brunnhildar Village where the Hyldnirs were found in abundance. As they progressed into the village, as surreptitiously as they can, they spotted a Hyldnir oblivious to their arrival. Quick as she was, NightQueen spotted two others, not far away. But sadly, the same could not be said about other members of her clique.

Before she could communicate with the others, one of them, a druid called BlackHand, whose powers include transformation, quickly altered into a bear and launched an all-out attack on the unwary Hyldnir.

The Sniper

 Image Courtesy : here

As the sniper sniped,

Through his scope, he watched

As his victim, the sergeant, gave his orders

In order to conquer borders.

He watched him drink,

He watched him pace.

A smirk on the sniper’s face,

As he watched him, without stealing a blink.

As he prepared to take aim,

On his enemy, his game,

He put his finger on the trigger

His eye only on the sergeant’s figure.

In the act, he took pride

Onto the trigger his finger did slide,

A blinding flash of bright light,

And before he knew it, the sniper had been sniped.

The Better Half

Tonight was the big night. Richard had waited so long for this. Emily had finally said “yes”. He prepared the bed, fluffed the pillows and readied the mattress. He went over to the cupboard and brought the red velvet sheets. He thought about the woman he was going to make love to, as he spread the sheets. He went into the living room, opened the second drawer of his dresser and picked up the bouquet. He plucked every single petal off of every rose and flung them onto the velvet covered mattress.

Then he went over to the mirror on the wall and slid it upwards. It came right out of its frame. He took the small video camera out of the frame on the wall, checked it and placed it back in. This was going to make him rich. These kinds of tapes, if authentic, could cost millions and he knew it. Tonight was special.

Suddenly, the phone rang.

55 Fiction - Over You

This 55 fiction is written from an inspiration from the song Over You by Daughtry. For those who are new to the 55 fiction concept… it’s a fiction written in no more or less than 55 words.

Over You

She started crying again. For the tenth time today.

She could not believe that it was finally over.

She felt weird and good simultaneously.

She felt independent for a change.

Her whole life seemed colourful again.

She reasoned that it was best for her.

She looked at the book that got her through… Alcohol Anonymous.

Hope you liked it. Drop in a word describing how it is…

P.S The picture used by me in this post is a still from the music video of the same song OverYou-Daughtry.

The True Soldier

He lifted his already packed backpack onto his broad shoulders and started off.  He was a military man. He had served his country nobly for the past 25 years. And in this past 25 years he had seen his wife only on three occasions. Twice when the battalion returned from war and every soldier was given a day off to see their families and once when she came over and stayed there. Never after that, did he see her again. That was 15 years ago. Not a call or a message from his beloved, for the past 15 years, for he was on the border protecting his country. He didn’t even know if she was alive. But he had hope and faith, that she was alive and happy.

His bus came to a halt in the dusty village centre. His house was a couple of kilometres from there and he had no other option but walk. But this wasn’t difficult as he already had walked kilometres with the body of his best friend on his back. He started his homeward journey with full zeal and memories of his beautiful wife.

He thought about the love they shared and the caring they had for each other. He thought about the strength and will power she had, when he told her that he will be joining the army. He admired her determination to go on with life after all that had happened to her. It was cruel, really spiteful what they did to her. But still she had the courage to go on. He wondered whether she was still the same after the mishap.

The Scientist (I)

Ria Sharma had a hard day at work. She worked in a software company that manufactured or developed new anti-viruses. She had a deadline for today which she didn’t meet. She had to pick her daughter up from school before she returned to her office to try and meet that deadline.

She walked towards her white corolla. She got in and started it. Just as she was about to pull out, a hand banged against her window. She was startled. A young man with two carry bags was standing beside her car. She pulled down her window.

“Hi, I’m Ryan. I work in this building. 12^th floor, Rudolph Pharmaceuticals.” He said.

“Hi, Ryan. What can I do for you?” She asked, still startled by the sudden intrusion.

“I’d like to ask you for a favour. Can you please drop me at Thakur Village.” He said.

“Sure, actually I’m headed the same direction. Hop in.” She said, good-naturedly.

He climbed into the sedan’s back seat. He sat directly behind her and kept the carry bags aside him.

“Thank you.” He said.

“It’s alright…” she said.

They were about to reach Thakur Village, and her phone rang. She took the call and told her sister that she was driving and would call her back.

He took out an inhaler and used it. Ria looked through the rear-view mirror.

“It’s for my asthma. I had it as a child.” He answered her silent question.

A few minutes later.

“It’s right here. I’ll get down here.” He pointed to a nearby CCD.

“Ok, I’ll pull right over.” She said.

“Once again, Thanks a lot.” He said.

“Oh, it’s not a big deal. I live around the corner. You should come-by some day.” She said cordially.

“Maybe I will!” he said, smiling.

She was found dead in her apartment, the very next day.

The Road Trip

A normal Saturday afternoon. Vinodbhai was here. Even though he was a “senior” in college he was one of our best friends. I and Vyshakh were browsing music videos.

“Dude, I wonder why Sid doesn’t come over often. He’s here only when there’s some occasion or so. He seldom hangs around with us, why so?” Vinod asked.

“Yeah, come to think of it, you’re right.” I said.

“Let’s call him and ask him to come over.” Vyshakh piped in.

We were super bored because our usual entertainer Thunder Ponnan aka Rahul had gone home. We stayed in a rented room in Coimbatore.

“Nope, he won’t come if we called without reason. We’ll say that I’m keeping a party at KFC. He’ll surely show up then.” Vinod said.

“Ha! You got that right. But why would you keep a party?” asked Vyshakh.

“Because I bought a flat in Trissur.” Vinod said casually and flashed a smug smile.

We carried out our sinister plan and made poor Sid to drive 10 kilometres just so we could say Hi.

Half an hour later…

The Sad Clown

“Extra!! Extra!! Read all about it!! Royal Circus is in town today!” cried the newspaper-boy from across the street.

He closed the drapes of his curtain from his hotel room. He went across the room and opened the fridge for a sip of his favourite whiskey. He took the bottle and sat on the edge of his bed. He slowly re-winded his life backwards.

Backwards, to the time when he had the most beautiful girl as his wife and a job that he loved. Life was so perfect back then. He loved what he did and did what he loved. He was his own master. He went back into the time when he could live life the way he wanted to, laugh to his heart’s content and do whatever came to his mind.

Then one day, he learnt about his wife’s sickness. He loved her more than anything in the world and would give anything and everything just to have her back. That’s just what he did. He gave up his entire life savings in pursuit of his beloved’s well-being. But nothing he did could revive her from fate’s clutches. Everything went downhill from that point. Subsequently he lost his job. He had to mortgage his house and property in need of money. Finally being unable to repay his debtors, he took up a job he hated. He had to do it to stay alive.

He was so depressed that he taken up drinking and smoking as an escape route. The only time he was sober was when he was working, that too just because he’d lose his job and end up in jail if he showed up drunk. He loathed himself so much that at times, he felt like killing himself.

Dear 2010

Dear 2010,

I’m writing this to you to let you know how much I’m going to miss you. You’ve been a great friend and always stood by my side whenever I needed you the most.

               

Remember during the first month of our relationship, when we used to attend all the symposiums and seminars one could possibly attend just to get On-Duty leave from college. The days were spent cursing our own college and praising even the slightest of the curiosities of the other colleges we visited. Oh and how can I forget my birthday? Yeah I know… three parties in a row on the same day is pretty awesome. The amount of fun we had was limitless. Awesome times, huh?

               

Tension

Who isn’t bothered by tension these days? For every little work you do, you are surrounded by hundreds of questions, which lead to a hell lot of tension. Here’s a 55-Fiction, and an effort to relieve you of your tension. After each sentence there is a possibility of different kinds of tension. Read on...

A girl asking for a lift falls sick and you rush her to the hospital. Turns out she’s pregnant and she blames you. You deny and agree to have tests done. Turns out you can never have children. Just as you're relieved of your tension you wonder whose are the 2 children your wife had.

(55 Fiction is a form of fiction that consists of only 55 words. This is my first feeble attempt at a 55-Fiction. Please do comment and let me know it is.)

The Mystery

This post has been published by me as a part of the Blog-a-Ton 17; the seventeenth edition of the online marathon of Bloggers; where we decide and we write. To be part of the next edition, visit and start following Blog-a-Ton.

“Dude you need to get over her!”

He was talking about my year-long affair with Anita.  Yes, affair! It was not a ‘relationship’ because neither of us knew we were in one! We didn’t even break up. It was Farhan a.k.a fatty a.k.a. my-best-friend-who-is-a-mutual-friend who told me that she was seeing other people.

“You really should get out more. The whole world is out there just for you. I’ve been in my share of relationships and I can tell you that a break-up is hard.”

Yeah right! The longest relationship you’ve ever had was for three days and it was with your toilet seat when you had diarrhoea. Big talk from nappy boy!

“Whew! Finally I got you to smile! You see, my man, this is exactly what friends are for.”

Yeah I’m so lucky to have you as my friend. Life would never have been the same if I didn’t have you coming to my place daily at three in the morning eating my food.

“Now go to sleep. You’ve got a big day ahead. I’ll lock the door on my way out, right after I finish this episode.” He said, digging into the Pringles can.

You’ve watched this episode a hundred times, you fat b*****d. If you want the chips, say that you want the chips. Stop beating around the bush.

“Okay, Okay, Fine! I’m going. By the way, why do I have a big day ahead of me tomorrow? I haven’t planned anything.”

“Oh my friend! That is the mystery of Farhan-The great! You’ll see.”

Oh great another day with you – just what I need. On any other normal day, I could’ve put up with all the crap he comes up with but I wasn’t in the perfect state of mind. But still for some unknown, unfathomable reason, I agreed.

“Okay Fine, but nothing stupid. Please. ”

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Next Morning

I woke up to the resonating sound of my alarm-clock. I searched around my pillow and my bed-side table where it usually is. Waking up pissed off was pretty common in the past few days. But for very different reasons.

“I’m gonna kill that… Oh! Wait here it is.” 

I Am Whatever You Say I Am

Cause we all just wanna be big rock-stars, and live in hilltop houses driving fifteen cars…

It was a Sunday. He didn’t have to go to work today. Not because it was a holiday for the whole working community, but because he was not called by his boss. And it was a welcoming change from the daily schedule. He had just gotten up and was still groggy.

His little daughter dashed into his room and jumped on the bed.

“Good Morning, Daddy!”

“Good Morning to you too, sweetheart. So what plans today?”

“Can I ask you something, Daddy?”

“Sure honey, what is it?”

“Can you take me shopping today?”

“You know I can’t do that, dear”

He really wanted to but given yesterday’s circumstances it was too risky.

The Mess In The Kitchen

You know the times when everything seems to be going wrong and in the end with just a turn of events or twist in the line, everything just falls into place. Life just doesn’t seem worth the effort until that point in time when life vicissitudes and everything feels like bliss.

She looked at the broken sink. It was broken since this morning. She was looking forward to a day with herself when she was greeted in the morning with this predicament. She was all alone in her house. Her parents had been out since a week and won’t be back before another.

It was not only about the sink. Everything in her life was topsy-turvy. She had just broken up from a year-old relationship and was in need of a shoulder to cry on. She had friends. Her BFFs. But none of them could ever understand what she was going through. She was on an all-time low and now this. She was on the verge of breaking. She needed to vent her feelings.

She thought of all the good times and the bad times as she picked up the mop and began to clean the mess in the kitchen. She then went over to the phone and called the plumber. She heard his reply and felt even more dejected. He couldn’t come until tomorrow. So she had to bear with this mess for the whole day and night.

After cleaning the whole place thrice she was completely spent. All she wanted to do was drop on the bed and fall asleep. But she went and made some instant coffee. She heard the spluttering of the sink before she saw a whole new pile of crap blubbering out of the outlet. She sighed. She’d leave it like that and wait till tomorrow.

She took her cup of hot coffee and headed towards the balcony. She looked into the mirror as she passed by it. On a normal day she would have looked stunning. But today, she looked hideous from all the cleaning. But she didn’t care anymore. She went and sat on the balcony edge.

She loved sitting there and enjoying the view. The cup of coffee was just an icing on the cake. She knew she deserved it. She sipped her coffee and forgot about the world around her. She wondered how lonely she was and how almost all her friends were in pretty serious relationships. She wondered whether there was just one man for every woman and if she had already lost her man. She dreamt of a prince in shining armour who comes to rescue her from these trying times.

She was brought back to reality by the flailing arms of a guy.

Asterix and Call of Duty (p3)

This is the third and final part of the story “Asterix and Call of Duty”. I hope you really enjoyed the first two parts. This part is the sequel to “Asterix and Call of Duty (p2)”

Read on…

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She walked out wearing a salwar-kameez. She looked so beautiful and elegant, she sure could’ve easily given the Fashion week models a run for their money. Her silky, lush hair placed carefully behind her ears, showcasing her ever-so-lovely face. Even the handbag that she carried around looked prettier when she …well carried it around. She was perfect in all aspects.

“Dude, before you go, I need to tell you something. She’s my sister. Don’t do anything that’ll make me wanna kill you.” Vikram said, pausing the game.

I guess he saw me staring …and my jaw drop.

“You know me, man. I won’t do anything stupid.”

“Yeah, I do know you. And that’s exactly why I’m telling you this.”

You sure do know me very well.

Asterix and Call of Duty (p2)

This is the second part to the story “Asterix and Call of Duty”. Hope you guys really enjoyed the first part. Without much ado, let me start the second part.

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I was dumbstruck. And I am not only talking about Call of Duty. I was flabbergasted at Mr. Fate’s ways. Out of all the people in the entire five kilometer long complex, he chose my best friend’s sister for me to fall for. What should I do? Tell him? Yes, I should tell him. He’s been my best friend for about four years now. It would be selfish on my part if I didn’t tell him.

“Dude, what’s the matter? You look like you’ve been struck by lightning.”

I wish I were struck by lightning. It would have been so much easier and painless.

“I’ve got to tell you something, buddy.”

Oh My God! This is harder than I thought it would be

“Yeah, shoot.”

I hope you won’t after I tell you

“Okay, the thing is…”

Asterix and Call of Duty

Sometimes when things go wrong we decide that it is the work of one Mr. Fate. Well Mr. Fate is just as cruel as you think. I’ve been screwed over by fate many times but this story is about how when Mr. Fate decides to play with his prey before devouring it

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“This is awesome man! You’ve got to come and check this out!” screamed Vikram through the phone.

He was talking about the new “Call of Duty 2” game that he got recently.

“Dude stop SHOUTING!” I yelled back.

“But you’ve got to see this one man! Come over right now!” he hollered.

“Dude you live miles away and I’m not in a mood to jog. I’ll come over some other time.”

We lived in a complex that was spread out for almost five kilometres and we lived at two ends of the complex. The only method of commute other than jogging was if you had a personal vehicle.

“Shut up and get here fast. Man this is AWESOME! I don’t want to hear anything from you now.” He shouted.

“If you don’t stop howling I won’t be able to hear anything EVER!” I said and hung up.

The problem with being best friends for years is that you can’t say no to anything. But this time I decided that I won’t go for sure.

You Can Join Class From Monday

It was a new place. A new city. Everything had changed so quickly. I didn’t even know the language. Life was so much better when you have all your friends around, sharing and caring for each other.  

I had heard only stories about the magnificence that is Mumbai City. It was a welcoming change from the peaceful and quiet of Pune.

My first day in Mumbai city

I was eight years old and had just moved into Kandivali (E), Mumbai.

I got out of the rickshaw and ran towards the lift, fascinated by it and wondering how just at the press of a button a whole room comes down just for transportation to the upper floor. I had my colouring book, my G.I Joe, my HotWheels cars, and my crayons in my small Mickey Mouse backpack.

The lift attender smiled at me flashing his broken tooth (or at least what was left of his tooth) and asked me “kaunse maale pe jaana hai bhaiyya?”(“Which floor do you want to go to?”).

Partly scared and partly overwhelmed at such a grown man calling me bhaiyya, I answered “Seventh floor…” (I didn’t know what to call him, now that he called me “bhaiyya”) “... Uncleji ” I completed.