“Roses are red, lilies are blue;
You are my lover, …so is Seau!”
“Err! Abhi who is this Seau huh?” Anu almost lashed out on him. Making poetic rhymes was Abhi’s passion. His conversations never finished without something or the other rhyming, rather out of sync. Maybe it was more or less instinctive to his vocabulary, cuss he never tried intending. It was funny how he used up words to construct even the normal of spoken phrases. Utterly grammarless is what it should be ‘to the point of being almost influent in …

It’s been raining all night and I have been sitting by the window waiting for dawn, waiting for the skies to clear up, waiting to see the first rays of the morning sun beaming through the clouds.
I lay on my bed and see the shadow of a raindrop on my cheek as it glides on my window pane. Is it me crying? Am I hurting? Suddenly it seems like the skies reflect the canvas of my life. I am forced into a recluse I want to be in my happy …

Sheila sat with a crumpled white saree on the floor. With her kohl lined eyes and supple skin, she seemed beautiful as ever. Her mind was filled with a volcano of thoughts. She looked around at her room. The ebony wardrobe they had bought on their first anniversary, the digital photo album that her daughter had gifted on their 16th anniversary earlier this month. The pillow whose covers smelled of the jasmine oil her husband applied everyday. The curtains that she had purchased from the last sale at Marks & …

Rita and Patrick had known each other ever since they were in school. It was not something that their parents liked. Rita’s parents said his family background was not that great and she would have to suffer if she married him. His parents said the girl’s family thought too much of themselves, having come into money recently.
This often spoiled things between the couple and made them quarrel. Rita knew how much Patrick loved her, but even then she always asked him, “Pats how much do you love me?”
Since Patrick was …

Six-year-old Shane was very excited. What he always wanted was finally going to happen. His grandpa would move in with them into their apartment. He would no longer have to spend time on his own when his parents were out at work.
Shane’s grandpa was so frail that his hands trembled, his eyesight was blurred, and he often faltered while walking.
“Welcome home, grandpa! We will be staying in the same room,” jumped about an excited Shane. He was so anxious to share his toys with grandpa. The old man was …