Bell-curve

"These things do happen. Life is not fair. You did not fit the bell curve. I did the best that I could", said his boss with the fake compassion and concern that all bosses in the world master by default.

He did not utter a single word and walked back to his desk. A couple of his colleagues came to his desk with consolation and mockery of him wasting his time and effort by giving 100% to the job role when the company does not care.

One of them said, "If only you had spent time in office politics and boss management instead of slogging off, you would have got that rating as well as the promotion that you deserve."

He just ignored them and opened an excel sheet on his workstation. He put in the names and ran the bell curve.

His supervisor did not fit the bell curve of people he wanted to live.

Heartbreak

He stole a glance at the re-adjusted centre mirror of the car and back to the road. The drive from Mumbai to Pune was never this long and definitely not this tiring.
His friend on the front passenger seat shuffled the song on the music player. "My love is all I have to give", sang the famous Backstreet Boys lead singer.
He tried his best to keep his eyes on the road; but they seemed to go back to the centre mirror.
There she was, her head on his shoulder. The mirror further broke his heart by saying "Objects are closer than they appear"
Brakes are better than heartbreaks, he thought.
Next day's newspaper headlines read - Reckless truck driver hits car from behind: Passengers in rear seat dead

It's over!!!

"It's over", said the girl on the phone walking ahead of me. I could spot her struggle to stop tears from finding its way out of her eyes.
I thought about how brutal today's relationships were. How fast paced today's lifestyle and generation was. We had extremes of all emotions. Break-ups were happening on phone, maybe even over messages. Was it genuinely love if it was over so easily? Was the relationship not even worth the effort to be given an honorable death by meeting in person?
"It's over sweetheart, it hurt a bit but the dentist said I should be fine in a couple of hours", said she again breaking my chain of thoughts.

उम्मीद

एक उम्मीद नयी नयी मरीज़ है
समझ नहीं आ रहा क्या मर्ज़ है
चाह मर चुकी है उसकी जीने की
उसकी नब्ज़ में सुई चुभो के
वक़्त का कतरा कतरा चढ़ाकर
उसको जिंदा रखा है

शायद उसको बचा सके कुछ करके
बस कोई थोड़े सहारे की गोलियां
चंद मीठी बातों की बूटी
कूट पीस के घोल मिला कर
बहला फुसला कर उसे पीला दे
तो शायद उम्मीद कायम रहे

और ना भी बची तो क्या?
आये दिन ऐसी कितनी उम्मीद
दुनिया की भीड़ में कुचल पीस के,
लहुलुहान सी तड़प तड़प के
यूँही दम तोड़ देती है

तेज़ ज़िन्दगी में कहा किसीको
मातम मनाने का वक़्त मिले
उम्मीद की लाश को पीछे छोड़
लोग बढ़ जाते है हताश से आगे
पर अब जब इतने वक़्त के कतरे
इस उम्मीद पे जाया किये है
तो इस उम्मीद को मरने मत देना
जिंदा रखना इस उम्मीद को

Lover's point

"Smile please", she said cheerfully.
It was an ideal vacation spot at this time of the year. The cool wind blowing on the mountain top; the tender sunrays reflecting in the clear sky; the lush green in backdrop of valley at the edge of the cliff and no one in sight except for the two of them. No wonder this was called 'Lover's Point'.
He stood at the edge of the cliff in a pose as if he had conquered the world. The wind ruffled his hair and made him look like an 80's bollywood star. He gave the broadest possible smile like one of those actors in toothpaste commercials.
*Click* The photo was excellent, better than she had expected.
She went near him, smiled, and said, "Goodbye". Before he could even react, he tripped over the edge by the sudden push.
She could frame the picture on her wall permanently now.

Epidemic

It was not as if she was not aware of it. She always knew she was going to start the chain reaction. Afterall, it does spread with contact.
And yet she carelessly roamed around the office from desk to desk greeting every person.
Most people got affected immediately. Some resisted for a couple of minutes but could not resist any more.
It was visible on people's faces. Their facial expressions changed; their lips started curving almost instanteneously.
The epidemic had spread. Her smile truly was contagious.