“ Aakash! Aakash!” I shouted with all my might across the noisy train station. I looked frantically for Aakash’s familiar back. My heart was thumping, sweat dripping from running. I breathed deeply and closed my eyes, trying to focus on the sound of my breath to calm myself down.
“ He’ll be here, he must be here somewhere. Don’t panic.”
My eyelids fluttered open and Aakash was there, standing on the other side of the station. He couldn’t stand still, his eyes were darting; I have never seen that look on his face before. Apprehension washed over me. Was this the right choice for both of us? Or was I being plain selfish?
Aakash; the man of my dreams, my childhood lover and my best friend. Since young, I have admired him for who he was. Confident, suave, charismatic, and friendly, everything I wished I was. He was the symbol of freedom to me, as free as the sky. There was no trace of his usual calm composure as his worries were expressed in a frown.
Finally, our eyes met. I momentarily froze for a moment; I was not sure how to feel at that point of time. My heart skipped a beat, I broke into a smile and let go of a breath I did not know I held. He met my eyes with his usual cheerful grin and rushed to my side of the station. The apprehension I felt vanished when I felt his strong arms, they gave me a sense of security.
“ Aakah, I guess it was time for me to make my own decisions.” I said with determination and confidence. As soon as I said that line, thoughts of my family I left behind for Aakash filled my mind. Was this honestly the only choice? Could there be an alternative? No, I decided, as long as the caste system in India stays, my arranged marriage will stay. Mama, papa, I am sorry. This was for my future and I was going to make sure it will not be decided by India’s heritage.
“ Marya, come on, the train is here, let’s go. Are you ready?” Aakash’s voice snapped me back to reality. I looked up at him, speechless for a moment. It was the time to make the right choice. Around us, commuters filled the train; the hustle and bustle complimented my mixed feelings. “ Are you ready?” A slight frown spread across Aakash’s face.
It was now or never. “ Yes.”
Aakash pulled me onto the train as he boarded it and I asked the question both of us had in our hearts, “ Where can we go?” None of us had an answer but there was one thing I was absolutely certain of. He was the one I loved and this was the great escape; the escape to embrace freedom, to embrace the vast blue sky and to embrace Aakash.
“ I love you.” Those words left my mouth in a whisper.