The sun was setting in the far west… splashing the many different shades of red in the sky… I was sitting on the wall in front of my home… chatting with friends… a car came speeding… she was in the backseat… her face churned up my insides… the memories were in reverse gear…

Many years back… they had shifted to our neighbourhood… she & her family… the first time I saw her… I was sitting on this very same wall… with the same bunch of friends… she came walking… holding her dad’s hand… she was looking pretty in that blue skirt of hers… she walked past us without even sparing a glance… but had surely stole a lot more than a glance from me…

One day we were playing in the road… she was returning from her classes… holding a lot of books… walked past us without even lifting her eyes from the road… I hit the ball hard… the ball followed my heart & hit her… she fell on the road… friends ran away while I ran towards her… she had skinned her elbows & her knees were also bleeding… so was my heart… my words of apology couldn’t hold back her tears of pain… she walked away from me sobbing… I slowly dragged myself home…

The next day… I was sitting on the wall… waiting for her… she walked past me… but did spare me a quick glance… I was floating with happiness… from then, every day I waited for her… & she always spared me a look… sometimes a cute smile too… her smile is the sweetest thing I have ever seen… my heart goes fluttering…

She told me everything she wanted… through unspoken words… our silent friendship grew… so did we… she became the prettiest women in the neighbourhood… & me… I don’t know…

But sometimes you wish you never grew up… today I wish I could live again in the yesteryears… but sitting on the wall & remembering the past is all I could do… a car came speeding… she was in the backseat… beside her husband… the bride & groom were rushing to catch up with their new life… our eyes had locked briefly… there was a speck of gloom in her eyes… all I could do was smile & wave at her…

The car sped away from me… I got down from the wall & slowly dragged myself home… I wish we never grew up… somewhere a tv was blaring a song from Honeybee… “innalakale thirike varumo…” will my yesterdays ever return???