Between The Pages

Chapter 23

While the world outside the window glowed in the morning light, Natasha stared at her basket of fruits with an expression close to awe. When you stay in a room with no colours other than some shades of white, even the faintest of colour attracts you to it. And that basket of fruits was shouting for Natasha's attention.

She saw how some strokes of white had infiltrated the light-red of her apple. She noticed how those oranges stared at her with a look of revenge. She had always hated them. But now, she was forced to eat them. She was about to turn her gaze away from the basket when her eyes hit a white wall. It was sitting there proudly, blocking the view of her favorite grapes. Extending her hand towards it, she opened the piece of paper.

Hey Nat!

Natasha recognized the handwriting instantly. There was just one person who stroked her exclamation mark like a nose. Riya!

Though, why her friend was writing a letter was still beyond her imagination.

I know it's pretty weird to get a hand-written letter in today's world. Trust me, it's weird for me, too.  The last time I had written a letter was during school and exams.

Natasha's face glowed with a smile as the childhood memories resurfaced. She and Riya would study in her room and then in that hour before the exam, she would transform into Riya's teacher. Those really were the days. Sometimes, she missed that innocence which they had as kids. But then, the determination to grow up made her forget it all.

This is, probably, my hundredth attempt at writing this and my room is full of paper. Yes, I know what you'd say right now. That it would've been better if I had just said it face to face. At least, that would have saved some paper. I agree Nat. In normal circumstances, even I would have done that. But, what I want to say today needs a lot of courage. And I don't know if I can do that while staring in your trusted eyes. Your love for our friendship would steal all my courage. And so, I've chosen this coward option. Forgive me for that.

That smile on Natasha's face vanished as fast as it had appeared. Initially, she had thought Riya was trying to cheer her up by reconciling those childhood memories, but she was wrong. She could sense a fear in those words. Scratching her head, she wondered if this was something about what happened last night. Was her stupid friend trying to apologize for that little thing? She even thought of teleporting Riya to some other planet for thinking of such a foolish thing. And for that tiny little moment, she argued whether to just keep the letter aside and go back to eating her fruits. But the next line forbade her from that.

Promise me Nat, you'll read the entire letter before letting any sort of thoughts cloud your mind.

I still remember that dreadful day a couple of months ago. You just wished to finish your favorite task and I dragged you to a class which could have waited. I still don't know how it happened, I really don't. We were making our way through the other students and the next thing I know is you were down the stairs, your head banging hard on the wall.

Natasha's hand reflexively went on to that spot on her hand. It still pained a bit when she touched it. But the important thing was that even she didn't know how she fell down the stairs. It was exactly as Riya said, they were running and then suddenly, black was the only colour in her world.

I can't remember how and when I happened to pick up your phone, but I had it when you were hospitalized. You might think why I'm talking about your phone all of a sudden, but believe me Nat, that little box of magic is at the root of this all. The treasure it held brought out the pirate in me.

You've always loved reading Nat. You've always been drenched in that rain. Books have always been the drops to nurture your plant. But then, one day, summer threatened to steal the clouds away from you. And that's when I showered the world of wattpad on you.