And it came to an end...

He smoothly parked his six year old second hand Maruti Alto, the last gift from his grandpa, in the basement of Diamond Horizon; exactly the way he had been doing for the last two years. Parking in this basement because of the seemingly ill planned construction of the building was always a challenge for him. But things are going to change today he thought. He was going to put it all to an end.

He went past the guard at reception and acknowledged his salute with a gentle nod. The guard was perhaps the only person who reminded him of his existence in this building. Wait, his reflection in the mirror did that too. For others, he was akin to a piece of furniture. But things are going to change today he thought. He was going to put it all to an end.

He entered the lift and drew in a deep breath. It felt good to realise he was the only person to enter into the lift. He indeed needed some time alone. Without a second thought, he pressed the button for 20th floor instead of erstwhile 9th floor where his office, VistaVision – Marketing & Brand Consultants was located; 20th floor for its access to the terrace which provided him a breathtaking view of the Mumbai landscape. He took a quick glance at his watch and made a mental calculation that it would take him approximately 5 minutes to reach his destination given the condition of the elevator.

He now acknowledged his reflection in the mirror. His face bore a calm expression today, calmness, an expression which he was bereft of for ages. Perhaps it was because things were going to change today as he was going to put it all to an end.

He stared at his reflection and realised how aged he looked. He was all of 26 years of age but looked nothing younger than 35, thanks to his dull and gloomy face, brooding eyes and a receding hairline. He gave one last stare at his reflection before he stepped out of the lift as it declared the arrival of 20th floor.

Standing at the edge of the terrace, today he did not bother to gaze at the view it had to offer. His mind was clear; his decision final. There was no trepidation whatsoever in his thoughts. He didn’t bother to see around; he couldn’t see the airplanes in the horizon. He failed to see the enigmatic shapes the clouds conjured. He even missed out on the game of cricket, a game he once loved so much, which some kids from the nearby slum were playing. Nothing of this mattered to him. Today, he was a reformed person. There was resolute in his actions and thoughts. Today was the day when he would put things to an end, the day when it would change forever, or rather come to an end for eternity.

And without a second thought, Akshat jumped off the terrace. Gravity was now to serve its duty.

He could feel the wind gushing at his face during his freefall and the wind with it brought along a comfort and excitement which he had led himself to believe had ceased to exist within him. He felt delight in the feeling of the crisp wind rushing over his face. During these moments, he felt the world come to a standstill and time had ceased to exist.

He could see the concrete pavement a few stories below on which he would fall in a few moments and with its impact, things will come to an end. The end was inevitable and this fact was like a balm to his bruised and battered soul. The soothing sensation brought a smile on his face.

He had no regrets, no remorse for taking this extreme step. He felt no guilt. It wasn’t a knee jerk reaction. But all things piling one over the other and a life, living which made no sense to him, living which was residing in a bottomless pit led him to take this decision.

He was sure that his demise was not going to affect too many people, or rather anyone in that case. He spent his childhood in a boarding school away from his abode, his home; the basic reason for disconnect between him and his parents. On top of it, his parents had long since divorced and neither of his parents actually took any responsibility for him.

Friends! This term was as illusory to him as life is to a corpse. Confined to own shell, all his life he had been an introvert and let very few people in his territory. But the ones who he let come close to him; he valued them with his life. He was a person who in spite of being used and trashed by people would still find something good in them. But unfortunately, it was the people whom he valued and called his own would turn their backs at him in the need of the hour. There were many instances when all he needed was a friend besides him but when he looked around, found no one.

His job and his workplace was the last thing he ever looked forward to. He remembered, how with a flair for marketing and a dream to make it big in life he had ventured into VistaVision. Touted as one of the smartest guys in his batch he was destined to grow up the ladder. He was a smart marketer, but not a street-smart person. His generosity would often lead him for a toss. But he wouldn’t budge. As a result he wouldn’t get his due either. In his career of 5 years of which he spent two years at VistaVision, he had created quite successful campaigns for his clients. But a promotion or a substantial hike would often elude him because in spite of being a powerhouse of talent he lacked the talent of sucking up to people.

In his otherwise dark and gloomy life, there was a tiny speck of light; Shruti, a girl in whom he found his love. He had come to terms with life after he found his abode in Shruti. He was smitten with her smile. He would do even the most idiotic things to make her laugh. Having her in an embrace would make him forget the world. The mere sight of she brushing aside her strand of hair would bring a smile on his face and make him go bonkers. She was equally smitten with him. She had fallen for his simplicity and honesty and for the very fact that he loved her more than anyone ever did, more than anyone ever could. They both had decided to marry. But a hurdle in their atonement loomed around; his meager salary.

She had been raised with all the niceties and the luxuries and it was only right for her dad to expect to find a match for her who would his treat daughter nothing less than a princess. He wanted a groom for her daughter who could literally bring the world to her feet. Akshat would consider it a great achievement if he could even get a fake Gucci to her feet with his pay! In this pursuit to find a decent guy with a high paying job, he found Shruti a match. Shivank Agarwal, 28 years of age, Project Manager at Microsoft, USA, and a seven figured salary.

With fire in his belly and desire to somehow manage to stand against competition for Shruti from a seven figured salary holder, Akshat had been working his asses off for a product launch for the last six months and the market study showed his efforts had not gone in vain. The product was selling like a hot cake and he thought his promotion was due. He was long since anticipating this because with promotion the hike that would follow would bring some amount of respect to his salary slip and would infuse a certain level of confidence post which he would talk to Shruti’s dad and convince him for their marriage.

But then as fate would have it, Akshat’s boss lapped on to all the credit and Akshat was yet again sidelined for a promotion and denied a hike. All he got was a pat on the back and ‘good job’ from his boss.

With this all his hopes of wooing her dad were lost. Broken and shattered, he was no match for Mr. Agarwal. He didn’t even stand a chance against him, let alone compete and win over. Needless to say, he could never talk to her dad, and she eventually had to succumb to her dad’s request of getting married to ‘highly qualified well earning guy. As heartbreaking as it may sound, but Shruti and Akshat had to part their ways.

Something snapped within. He had been a loner all his life and had come to terms with it. He had tried to be strong all his life but with Shruti, all his strength was gone. He never complained for not having a father to teach him how to ride a cycle. He never complained for not having a mother to cook delicacies for him. He never complained for having a job that sucked the life out of him for a Rs. 37,500 monthly salary. He had learnt to accept this as a harsh reality of his life, something from which he couldn’t turn away. But somehow the fact that Shruti was no longer a part of his life was indigestible. Moments spent with her were now plain memories. Plans for the future were reduced to jaded dreams. Loneliness and darkness surrounded him, and a deep sorrow engulfed him.

He tried to battle it, he tried to combat it. For six straight months! But then waking up every day on a wet pillow is not the ideal way to start a day. A hollow that resided within was encroaching and eating him bit by bit. His life was nothing but a process of inhalation and exhalation. He had a life, but there wasn’t any one to live with.

And then one day he finally decided to end it all. He was tired. He needed relief.

Every single thing flashed before his eyes as he inched close the ground. He was moments away from the impact. But in those moments, there was happiness. He felt exhilarated. He breathed freedom. He sensed hope. Hope that this will end soon and perhaps sometime someday somewhere he will get another life which would be better than this one.

A second before the impact, he embraced death and breathed his last.

The impact happened. He died an instant death.

There was blood around his head like a halo, and his legs buckled underneath, his arms snapped like a twig. But his face was serene, at peace. Because when he died, he could feel the wind against his face.