Untitled Document

A blank piece of paper sat in front of her, lying on the desk. She didn’t usually write on paper, but this was an emergency. Her thoughts were racing, and she was desperately trying to find an idea somewhere, anything would work at this point. She began to hyperventilate, taking deep breaths to try and calm herself down. “A manuscript due in four days and all I have in front of me in an untitled document! Blank!” She was breathing hard now, desperately trying to calm herself down. “I’m screwed” she whispered to herself.

 “Sure looks like it”

 That voice… it can’t be.

“Alex?” Priya was beginning to feel her heartbeat rising again, her breathing increasing.  

 “What’s up Priya, long time no see, I know.” 

“Long time? LONG TIME? It’s been 7 years, Alex! 7 Years after you left me and never bothered to contact me again!” Priya was fuming, and the anger inside her body was bubbling up, rising higher and higher. 

“I know, it’s been a while, and yes, I know I left you, and I’m a jerk,yeah, but you need to calm down. I’m just here to talk. Actually to ask you something, but I guess that’s technically talking.” He was teetering back and forth on his feet, and he was clearly nervous. Priya knew that something was definitely up, and she was running through the options in her head. 

I mean he technically broke into my home, I could hit him over the head with a pan Tangled style and call the police, it’d be the perfect revenge. Or, I’ll just hear him out and then hit him over the head with a pan Tangled style. 

“Ok, I’ll hear you out, but this better be good or else I’m calling the police and telling them you broke in.” Priya had this weird feeling of uncertainty in her stomach, a weird feeling of… fear almost. 

“I left after 7 years because I had to. You saw how bad I was getting. You saw the drugs, I know you did, so I left. It was better for you. I never dated anyone else in the past 7 years, just thought I’d let you know that. I also read your book. About us. I know how you feel towards me Priya, the book says it all.”

Priya knew that what he was saying had some truth to it, but she didn’t want to accept it. No matter the reason, he still left her, that too right before he was going to meet her parents. She was going to marry him. “Ok fine whatever, your right, but you never answered my question. What are you doing here?” 

“I’m here for you. Let’s go away together. A road trip, just like the old times.” 

A road trip? For two days? Priya could go and still come back and finish her manuscript in time, no doubt she was a fast writer, but she didn’t know if she wanted to go. She looked at the blank white piece of paper lying on her desk, the untitled document. Maybe she could make a story out of the road trip, but Priya wasn’t going to accept so easily . Love or not, she still didn’t trust Alex. “Why should I go with you? I don’t have to trust no, nor do I have reason to. What if your just taking me on a road trip to kidnap me or to take me to be human trafficked so you can get money for your Cocaine or whatever drug it was you took?” 

“I know it seems hard to trust me right now Priya, but you have to. I love you Priya, I have for the last 13 years. Let me prove that I love you by taking you on this trip.” 

Priya could sense there was more to the story, a reason behind why he turned up at her house out of the blue, but she didn’t push it. He would tell her eventually, she had a way of getting things out of him. “Fine, but if I don’t want to at any time you have to take me home right then, no questions asked.”

He put his hands up in surrender and teetered back and forth on his feet. “So, nice apartment you have here, huh?”

“Get out, I’ll pack some clothes and meet you outside.”

“Sheesh fine, but hurry up. Oh, and pack a nice dress.”

Alex walked out the door, running down the stairs to the lobby. He didn’t think he would have the guts to come back, to face Priya again after all the pain he knew he had caused her, but he had to. It was the right thing to do. Suddenly, his phone lit up with a text message, and his eyes widened. They had to move fast. 

“Why’d you ask me to pack a nice dress?” Priya came downstairs in the same black sweatpants and turquoise shirt that she was wearing before, but she had put her hair down and taken off her glasses. She didn’t really care how she looked around Alex, she never had, but the way he was staring at her now she wondered if she should have changed, or put her hair back up. Did she really look that gross to him?

She was beautiful. He had seriously underestimated how much a person’s looks could change in 7 years. Her black hair was now cut in layers and was wavy and curly, and it looked shiny and soft. Her eyes were a beautiful dark brown, mirroring the Night and the fall leaves in one. She was stunning before, but it was nothing compared to how she looked now. His jaw nearly dropped, but he knew how Priya hated cheesy stuff like that, and so he straightened up and cleared his throat. “You look beautiful” he said to her as she approached him. She showed no sign of caring, and just handed him her bag. 

“So, where’s your car?” she asked. 

“You look beautiful” he said again. Alex didn’t think she heard him the first time, and if he was being honest it bothered him that she didn’t even smile after he said that.

“I heard you the first time.” she said, and walked out of the lobby. Alex couldn’t tell if he was pissed or just dissapointed, but that didn’t matter, not now. 

Priya was happy and concerned at the same time. She was happy that he'd called her pretty, but concerned about him. Was he on drugs again? He couldn't be, she knew how he was when he was high, but he was constantly teetering on his feet and checking his phone, and Priya knew that something was going on. She hoped that it was a home thing , probably with his family. She didn’t want to push it, because she knew that Alex had a complicated family, but she also wanted to know why he turned up randomly, and why he was acting so strange around her. 

“Alright, you ready to get started?” Alex tried to muster as much happiness as he could into his voice. 

“Uh, yeah I guess. So, where are we going?”

“Umm, not far, you know just a couple hour or so from here in New Jersey.” He knew right after he said New Jersey that Priya knew what he was talking about. 

“We’re going to your home? But, why?”

“Please, Priya just trust me, I’ll tell you I promise.”

“Ok, fine.”

They began to drive, and it was silent for at least 15 minutes. 

“Gosh, there’s a lot of traffic in New York. It’s 2 in the morning, do people not sleep here or what?” Alex was desperately trying to make small talk, even though he knew that there were bigger things that he should be telling Priya, and his breath became faster at the thought of telling Priya the truth. 

“It’s New York City, Alex, of course people don’t sleep.” Priya kept looking over at Alex, who’s face was filled with tension. Her curiosity only grew by the minute, but if it was about his family she wouldn’t pry. He would tell her himself. 

“Is it always like this, I mean -” 

Priya interrupted him mid-sentence as he was hyperventilating. 

“Alex take some deep breaths, it’s going to be okay. What’s happening? You’ve been acting strange since you turned up.” Priya put her hand on Alex’s and he began to calm down, and Priya gripped it hard. 

“It’s nothing, Priya, I promise you.” Alex knew he was lying and he felt bad, but he had to. For Priya's sake. If she knew how messed up his life had gotten, then she would end up jumping out of the car, end up marrying someone else, end up having someone else’s kids. She was 28 after all, maybe she had moved on. 

“Alex, your doing it again. What’s wrong? Talk to me.” Priya was gripping his hand again, and Alex knew this had to stop. 

“Priya, stop! I’ll tell you once we’re out of New York, I swear!” Priya withdrew her hand quickly and she straightened up, all forms of concern for him being wiped off her face. Alex felt a pang in his stomach, and he wanted to apologize but he knew that he couldn’t, not now. 

I was so stupid for thinking that he’d changed. That he’d open up. Why’d I show any concern in the first place? 

An hour later, they were out of New York and entering New Jersey. Priya could see Alex’s palms sweating, and he was tapping his fingers hard against the steering wheel. 

“Look Priya, I’m really sorr-”  

Alex’s phone started ringing, and he immediately pulled over into a nearby gas station. The only words Priya heard were hello, before he slammed the car door. Ten minutes later, he still hadn’t come back, and so Priya got out of the car and went to the trees nearby where Alex had went. When she entered the “forest”, Priya swore she heard weeping, and she ran to the trees, where Alex was. The closer she got, the louder the weeping did too. She saw Alex sitting on the ground with his head in his hand sobbing, and she ran to hug him. 

“Are you okay? Alex, talk to me. Are you okay? What’s wrong?” He said nothing in response but he wrapped his hands around her and held her tightly to him.

Once he finished crying, he let go of Priya, and she felt cold. “Alex?” 

“My mom. She’s really sick. Priya, she’s dying.” Priya gasped, and she could feel tears coming to her eyes too.

“Oh, Alex, I’m so sorry.” Priya rushed to hug him, but Alex tilted her head upwards, pulling her hands to his sides . His hands were on both sides of her face, and their lips were close together. 

“Can I kiss you?” Alex asked Priya. He was fully expecting a no, but when she nodded it felt like a million fireworks were going off inside him. One of his hands snaked down to her wrist, pulling her closer to him, and he put his lips on hers, firmly pressing them together, entwining her heart with his. If he thought he felt a million fireworks when she said she could kiss him, then this was the end of the universe. It felt like stars were exploding inside of him, shooting every which way, and with every kiss he could feel their hearts become one. 

That was the best kiss that she’d ever had. It felt like she’d swallowed a million stars which were exploding and shooting everywhere. She could feel his heart, but it wasn’t his heart anymore. It was their heart. Priya fully expected to not like the kiss, but the taste of cotton candy and mint on his lips, mixed with the scent of fall perfume was heaven to her, and she felt herself craving more, even after the kiss had been broken. But she knew that right now, Alex needed her, and she leaned into his chest, feeling his arms wrapping around her tightly.

“My mom said that she wanted to meet you before she died, she wanted to see us get married. I told her you were the girl I’d been in love with since I was 15, and she said that she wouldn’t die without meeting you. The Universe commanded it, she said. I was going to bring you there, introduce you to my mom. I was going to propose to you.” 

“Who said you can’t? I’ll marry you Alex, and not just because your mom is dying, but because I love you. We’ve been in love for 13 years, I think we can get married.”

Alex felt so happy, the stars seemed to come back and shoot everywhere, but this time it wasn’t just the stars it felt like he swallowed the universe, the Moon, the Sun, the Earth, everything. 

“Priya, at least let me propose to you properly.” Priya laughed and it felt like tinkles of happiness entered his ears. It was good to know that after 7 years, Priya still had the same laughter as always. 

“Fine, I’m sorry for being so impatient, but I do have to tell my parents. Their going to be so mad Alex, but it’s okay. I’ll tell my mom to bring the wedding dress she bought for me this year, and we can have an Indian wedding and a normal wedding. “

“Wait, wait , hold up, why’d your mom buy you a wedding dress?”

“Oh, she said that I was 28 and I was getting really old, and I was going to be too old to marry soon. So she bought me the dress and she told me to find someone to marry in the next two months or I’d end up getting too fat for the dress. She basically tried to guilt-trip me into marriage, but it’s okay, because it all worked out in the end. “

Alex laughed, and he knew that this was the Universe at work. Maybe fate was real after all. 

An hour and a half later, they were at Alex’s house, and Priya was starting to get nervous. What if his mom ended up not liking her? She didn’t exactly have the best personality, but Priya would have to try. 

“Hey, she’s going to love you, don’t worry about it.” 

They walked inside the house, and Alex walked inside his mom’s room, gesturing for Priya to follow. 

“Mom? Priya’s here.”

“Priya? You mean THE Priya? Wow, she’s so pretty, prettier than you described her.” Alex’s mom had piercing blue eyes, just like Alex, and they both had the same dirty blonde hair, the same pale/tan skin tone. 

Priya blushed and smiled at Alex’s mom. “Hi Mrs. Lewis, it’s so nice to finally meet you! I’m Priya Akkiraja, and I’m your son’s girlfriend.” 

“For starters, call me May, and secondly come here.” Priya walked over to his mom, and sat down next to her. 

“Your so stunning Priya, you and my son will look beautiful together, and as far as I’m concerned he loves and you love him, right?” 

“Yes Mrs.- I mean May.” 

“Do me a favor and don’t break his heart, he’s been through a lot.”

“I swear on my mother’s life that I will never break his heart, and I will take care of him for the rest of his life.”

Alex stood up, smiling widely, “Well, speaking of spending the rest of our lives together,” and he got down on one knee, and pulled out a ring, “I've been meaning to ask if you’ll marry me, Priya. Will you marry me?” 

“Yes! Yes!” Priya jumped up and down, excited. “Wait. Is that my grandma’s old wedding ring?”

“Yeah, I may or may not have convinced your parents to let me marry you, and they may or may not be here.”

“I love you so much right now you have no idea.”

“I think I might have a faint idea of how much you love me , just a little bit.” 

Priya laughed, her dimple on the left side of her cheek showing, and Alex laughed with her, picking her up and spinning her around. 

Two weeks later

Priya was dressed in a Saree* and she was wearing a Dupatta* over her head, jasmine flowers interwoven into her hair, a tikka* wrapped around her head, a nath* stuck in her jhumkas*.  Alex was weaning a Lungi and a Silk cotton shirt over it. They were both sitting across from each other, smiling, while the priest said the rites, in a boring monotone voice, but it didn't matter how small or how boring their wedding was. It didn't matter that Priya never got her manuscript done. None of it mattered, because the Universe willed it so. Their hearts beat as one, all because of one blank piece of paper. The Untitled Document.

 *Tikkas, Jhumkas, Naths, Duppatas, and Sarees are all Traditional clothes and jewerly an Indian bride would wear

                                      Fin

*Inspired by all the Untitled Documents