It was a Diwali night.
The moon was out, and the night was bathed in moonlight.
Firecrackers echoed throughout the entire village.
They say, whether it’s Holi or Diwali, everything feels empty without your beloved.
My eyes were searching for her,
when suddenly she stepped out of her house, carrying lamps, heading toward the temple.
A blue dress,
a smile on her lips,
a sparkle in her eyes,
that playful grace…
When our eyes met, it felt as if time itself had paused for a moment.
I wanted to say “Happy Diwali,”
but only “Happy” escaped my lips.
She completed it by saying “Diwali,”
and it felt as if she had promised a lifetime together.
Before I could say anything more, her friend arrived, and she went to place the lamps in the temple.
She was afraid of firecrackers.
Later that night, we met again.
I should have spoken my feelings to her,
but I couldn’t.
I flirted with her instead
“I came only for you, yet you are ignoring me.”
She replied, “Liar, You must have someone in school.
I don’t trust you.”
How could I make her believe
that my heart beat only for her back then,
and still beats only for her today?
That moonlit night…
she and I on the terrace
a peace my heart has been restless for, for years, just to feel.
My heart urged me to hold her hand, kiss it,
and tell her that without her, my life is incomplete.
If only she knew
that she lives in my prayers,
that in my worship and devotions,
it is her name that is written.
That was my sweet childhood memory. I can still feel her
the charm, the love, the smile, the happiness.
I wish I could catch even a single glimpse of her.
She isn’t mine, yet my heart refuses to let her go.
We never promised each other forever, but my heart did, without asking me.
Not all love stories end together,
some live forever in silence.
Written by
Jitendra Verma
An UPSC Aspirant.