Talking Wolverine

He was heading back home after a long, exhausting day at work. The city lights flickered like distant fireflies, but his heart felt heavier than the helmet on his head. He wasn’t just tired, he was angry, shattered, sad, frustrated, and, most unusual of all, silent. The boy who could fill a room with his voice now couldn’t even hear his own thoughts without flinching. His wrist twisted the throttle harder without thinking, the bike surging forward like it wanted to run away from everything with him. The wind tore past, biting his skin, whispering nothing that could calm him. His eyes blurred, not from dust, but from the tears he refused to let fall. His shouts stayed trapped inside his helmet, bouncing back to him like echoes in an empty hall. Maybe the day had been bad. Or maybe this had been building for years. Growing up, he had learned early that life wasn’t going to hand him comfort. His childhood wasn’t painted in warm hugs or gentle bedtime stories. There were no lazy Sunday ...

  Prithvi left the office early. Today was special—he was about to meet a girl, not just any girl, but one from an arranged marriage setup. His heart was beating faster than usual, and a strange mix of excitement and nervousness followed him all the way to the parking lot. He called her. She answered with a warm tone, "I’ll be leaving the office soon. I’ll reach the café on time—the one I decided." As he hung up, light raindrops began tapping on his helmet. He glanced up at the grey clouds— Pune rain, he muttered to himself, please be kind today. He didn’t carry a raincoat, and if it poured heavily, the first meeting would turn into a soggy mess. But the skies had other plans. Within minutes, it started raining heavily. Soaking. Merciless. He was completely drenched. He quickly tucked his phone into his back pocket and kept riding, but with every drop, doubt started creeping in. Should I cancel and reschedule for tomorrow? he thought. But something inside him said ...

 For the past couple of days, he had been a little off. He wasn’t his usual self, and something was clearly bothering him. Sleep had been a struggle, and as his partner, she never failed to notice even the slightest change in him. That morning, he sat at the breakfast table, barely speaking. As usual, she walked up to him, gently held his ear, and kissed his neck. He kissed her forehead in return, but something felt different. She could sense it. They left for work together, and as he drove, he attended calls, immersed in work. She sat beside him, watching him with concern, feeling helpless for not being able to ease his burden. When they reached her office, he pulled over, leaned in, and kissed her forehead. "I love you," he said, promising to call her later. She smiled, replying, "I love you too. Have lunch on time. See you in the evening." He waved goodbye and drove off, answering yet another call. At the office, he was swamped with back-to-back meetings and call...

  It was a holiday, and all my roommates had gone home. All of us are from Kolhapur, so we decided to meet the next day in Kolhapur to have the famous Misal together. We also planned to visit a well-known pilgrimage site before returning home. The plan was set.  The next day, we gathered at one of our roommates' places and headed out for breakfast around 9 a.m. We ordered the Misal and sat at the table. Whenever we’re together, there’s an unspoken rule—no one touches their phones. These guys, these morons, can’t let anyone in the group go without teasing them. Usually, I’m the one who starts the roasting session, but it always ends with me being teased the most. Laughter filled the air as we joked and bantered. Some of us laughed so hard that tears rolled down our cheeks. We’re insane, and our insanity knows no bounds. Even the folks sitting nearby couldn’t help but laugh at our conversations. After finishing breakfast, we headed to the pilgrimage site located on a mountain ...

It was Sunday, and we have a ritual in our room: no matter how busy we are with personal work, we always have breakfast together. After finishing breakfast, we headed to our favorite tea stall. It was drizzling, but we went anyway. My roommate got me a cup of tea and started shouting for me to take it as it was burning his hand. I rushed over, grabbed the cup, and we all found shelter just in time. Before I could take my first sip, my eyes fell on a scooter that had just stopped on the opposite side of the road, barely 10 feet away. A girl was riding it, dressed in a lavender kurti with golden embroidery and baggy pajamas that matched. She wore minimal makeup—just eyeliner—and her jhumkas sparkled in her ears. Her hair was straight, maybe from a smoothening or Keratin treatment. She wore black jootis. A true beauty. She had stopped because it had started raining heavily and was looking for shelter. Another friend was with her, but the kurti girl's beauty made me ignore her complete...

  She had been overworked all day, and a mountain of tasks still awaited her attention. It was 5:45 PM, and she kept glancing at her phone, wishing it would just be 6:30 already. Suddenly, her phone vibrated, and all her stress and fatigue turned into butterflies in her stomach. The familiar voice on the other end said, "Hey, sweetie, just wrap up your work around 6:30. I'll pick you up on my way home." She replied, "Please don’t be late. I’m tired and done for the day." They both smiled and hung up. She rescheduled the pending work for the next day, packed her bag, clocked out, and stepped out of the office, waiting for his call. She stood by the road, and soon, a car stopped near her. Without hesitation, she opened the door, got inside, and tossed her things onto the backseat. Reclining her seat, she tied her hair while he started driving, his eyes following her every movement. He smiled, and after shifting gears, he gently ran his fingers through her hair, ...