Crime of Circumstances

This is kind of connected to a previous post I wrote ‘Abusive relationships‘.

It’s the same story from a slightly different perspective. We are slaves of perception and often jump to conclusions. I feel we sometimes get stuck on an opinion, just to prove a conclusion that we have already reached. Sometimes, there may be more to a situation than meets the eye.

It was a usual, dull morning for Karan as he met with his gang, right outside his house. They all lived in the same complex and usually got together every now and then. He looked up at Neha’s balcony, to catch a glimpse of her, but it was a dull morning for his eyes. His friends were aware about his little crush on her and picked a spot right outside her house for their “morning chats”. He had been pursuing her for almost a year now but she made it very clear that she just wanted to be friends with him. But his heart did not understand that.

The gang of boys dispersed for breakfast. Karan went back inside, ate his food and sat across his laptop, trying to plan his day and hoping to get some work done. But his attention diverted to his ringing phone and he was surprised to see Shraddha’s name. He found her a little weird. Her family had moved in last year in the same complex, and she kind of flirted with Karan, atleast in his head. He knew she was younger than him and his interest in her was limited to the casual chit chats they had around the block. But she had never called him.

He answered the call to find shraddha crying hysterically. She said she was being harassed by a neighbor and she was alone and scared. She told Karan that she was too afraid to call anyone else and if he could keep her company for a while. He made an excuse at home and within the next ten minutes, he was with her.

Karan was amazed to see her in this sorry state. Usually he would see her running around crazy, with kids much younger than her age. He always thought she was this weird person, completely unaware of the world with crazy stories to tell. But this was not something he had expected. He tried giving her advice, but she was probably not in the state of mind to understand that. It was more important for her to build the courage to let her family know, so they can be with her and find a resolve. He wanted to help her get over this fear but as he was saying these things, he realised her face had turned pale just by the thought of it.

He hugged her, and apologized for the situation she was in. He saw tears rolling down her eyes. Stay strong, he said. He looked at her face and felt a warmth in his heart. He looked at this girl who was in an unfortunate situation that she did not deserve. She deserved all the love in the world, he thought to himself. She leaned towards him. He took her face in his hands and kissed her.

Karan felt a sudden wave of emotion for Shraddha. It was a moment of passion. She had never kissed anyone, he could tell. He wanted to hold her close and never let go. But he soon realised what he had done. He stepped back and looked at her in horror and regret. He wished he could love her. He wanted to say something but before he could say anything she uttered the three words he most dreaded – “I love you”.

He was taken aback, and for the lack of a better response he said – “I love Neha”. He wondered why he said that. He hadn’t even said it Neha yet. Before he could explain himself, Shraddha asked him to leave. He left her be. He stood outside her door for another five seconds wondering what had just happened. It was not something he had imagined. It was not something he wished for. But in his heart, he felt love for only one woman. But he kept thinking of this another girl who he could not imagine himself with. And yet, he had just kissed her and was not able to get her out of her head. He felt guilty of a crime he didn’t commit.

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Now that you’ve managed to get through that, I would really love to hear what you feel about it. Which perspective did you like? And who is at fault (if at all)??