His favourite colour

Dear readers,

My sincere apologies for not being able to publish a full length short story this time. Here, is a short short story for you. Hope it touches your heart.

"
Sumit thought for a while, looking straight into her eyes, as his own eyes tried hard to hide the tears of both extreme love and utter hopelessness. And then he uttered, "Black."

His voice stumbled, as if he was lying and indeed he was.

Sumit had met Tamanna in the college camp. Both had been studying in the same college for couple of years but because of different streams of study, they met only in the Kerala camp and that too because of their common friend, Nimit. Tamanna was crazy about natural beauty. Waterfalls caused the jitters of excitement in her belly; mountains fitted her legs with springs; and sea- oh my god- sea was the anesthesia of love for her. If anything surpassed her obsession with natural beauty, it was her obsession with colours.

"That isn't dark pink. That's magenta." She would usually get irritated like this. Beige is not cream; crimson red is different from apple red which is different from scarlet red; olive green is different from moss green and by the way, turquoise is not sky blue.

"Has anyone seen my purse?" She panicked one day at the camp.

"That light yellow one?" Sumit quickly asked.

"That isn't light yellow. That's daffodil yellow." Her hidden irritation could be smelled even though she said it in the humblest tone.

"Oh I am sorry. Actually Nimit told me that you have a light yellow purse, while hiding it in the snack basket today morning." He quickly explained.

"Arghhhh... Let this Nimbu come today. I will teach him a lesson" She ground her teeth.

And thus began a game of pranks and hiding things. Sumit played a very diplomatic game, helping both Tammu (Tamanna) and Nimbu (Nimit) stealthily. It was him who put salt in Nimit's tea and cockroach in Tamanna's purse. These episodes of fun brought Sumit and Tamanna closer and Tamanna began to share all her plans with Sumit. They began to enjoy each other's company. Nimit who got an idea of this was not very happy.

"You think you love her? Do you think you will sustain her? Okay, I agree she is a good girl otherwise but have you ever seen her obsession with colours. I mean, I freak out when she gets irritated at me on merely identifying a colour wrong. How can you bear it all life long. That chromo-nerdy attitude." He tried to convince Sumit one evening in isolation.

Anyone who may have heard the conversation, could have inferred that Nimit was doing this because he wanted Sumit to get out of his way to Tamanna, but that was not the reason and Sumit knew it. Nimit also understood that it was hard to convince Sumit, so he went to convince Tammu.

Tamanna was gathering courage to express her feelings to Sumit because by now she had understood that Sumit was too nervous to say anything. He always had a fear of losing even the friendship in an attempt of gaining love. 

On a warm Saturday evening, when everyone was enjoying tea outside their camps, Tamanna asked Sumit, "Can I talk to you?" The tone was not filled with love, rather grief.

"Yes. Sure." And he went to a side with Tamanna.

"Do you think being a chromo-nerd is ridiculous??" she asked in a complaining tone.

"Whoooo said this?" Sumit understood it was all a plan of Nimbu.

"Just answer yes or no." Tamanna was adamant.

"No I don't think so. Rather I think it is a fortune and a talent to be able to distinguish and remember so many colours." The assurance was heart warming. It, at once, satisfied Tamanna, who said in her mind, "I shall teach this Nimbu a very big lesson. Cunning matchstick. Huh."

And then after a smile filled pause, she asked Sumit, "By the way, what is your favourite colour?"

This question struck Sumit hard. His smile disappeared immediately. He thought for a while, looking straight into her eyes, as his own eyes tried hard to hide the tears of both extreme love and utter hopelessness. And then he uttered, "Black."

His voice stumbled, as if he was lying and indeed he was.

Black was not his favourite colour, it was the one he could see most. He was a complete colour blind. Not even partial. Complete colour blind.

And today, when on her question he couldn't acknowledge his colourblindness before her, he realised, howsoever he may love Tamanna, he will never be a worthy companion for a girl who is so fond of colours. He decided to bury his feelings before they could fly. However, this was not easy.

Each remaining day at the camp was a bout of struggle for both Tamanna and Sumit. She was not sure if it was okay to propose and if she will be able to bear a "no". He was not sure till when he could hide his feelings.

"I can't handle this anymore." Sumit said to Nimit on the last night of the camp.

"I told you. She is a chromo nerd." Nimit taunted.

"Nooo. Not that. The problem is that I love her but I have no idea, if she too loves me and if she will, after knowing that I am a colourblind." He said in grief.

"The answer to the second question, you have to find out. As for the first, I don't understand why a chromo-nerd has been wearing black dresses for the past one week." Nimit said with a mischievous teasing smile.

"What? Really?" Sumit was surprised. For him every dark colour was black, so he never noticed that gesture of affection.

"Yeah. On Sunday morning she panicked saying that she has to buy some dresses to surprise someone. I wasn't willing but she pulled me to the mall and... Listen dude. She does have feelings for you. It was I, who always held you back because I feared she will never tune mild, her chromo-nerdy attitude. But this instance has made me re-think. Why don't you tell her the truth?" Nimit motivated Sumit.

"What? That I love her?" asked Sumit.

"No. The other truth. That you are colourblind." said Nimit and turned on the other side to sleep while Sumit lied down eyes-open.

On the next day, early in the morning, when everyone got on the bus Tamanna gave Sumit a letter and a box.

He held it with an emotional curiosity and turned up to say something to her, but she said, "Read it." And immediately went to get back to her seat, some six seats behind.

He opened the letter. It read,

"I do not know how to say this to you but I think I have some feelings for you that I never had for anyone else. But hey! This is not a proposal. Okay?

Ah Fine. It is. But I don't think it will be easy for me to get through an explicit "No", written or said, or even a head shaken in 'no'. So, can you please do me a favour? If it's a "yes", please hold the "red" hanky from the box out of your window. I am waiting."

He opened the box. It contained four hankies and a note inside envelope. He couldn't figure out which of the four silk hankies was red. He thought in restlessness and came to a conclusion that it was time to tell her the truth. 

He wrote on the back of her letter, "I wish I could choose one but before I somehow do, it is important to give you a chance of second thought. I am colourblind and will never ever be able to complement your fondness of colours. If still your decision remains the same, kindly send me this letter again."

The letter came back with a note, "Open the letter in the envelope please." The letter said, 

"Nimit had told me. However, I was willing to hear it from you. I wanted you to be free to express your weaknesses with me, which is the first step in any long lasting relation. It doesn't matter if you can see colours or not, you can definitely add colours to my life. As for the hankies, they are apple red, wine red, scarlet red and crimson red. So it doesn't seem you have a choice, do you?"

Sumit with smiling glassy eyes held all the four hankies outside the window of the bus, while the cool morning breeze slowly caressed his hairs. Little did he know that the accident next moment will render his Tamanna to be able to see just one colour for the rest of her life, his 'favourite' colour....black.                                                                                                                     "

Sadhna, Nimit's wife closed Nimit's diary still in utter shock, while profusely shedding tears. Now, she knew the story of the guests tonight. Just then the bell rang. She quickly wiped of her tears as Nimit went to open the door and warmly hugged Sumit.

"You won't hug ME na? Sour Nimbu" taunted Tamanna while groping for him.

He quickly held her hand and hugged her and then took both to the dining area, where Sadhna wished them a happy 5th anniversary, trying hard to hide the heaviness in her voice.

"This black velvet gown looks beautiful on you." said Nimit to Tammu.

"That's not velvet, that's velour, you freak!" Tamma remarked laughingly.