THE REUNION

As she surfed through her wardrobe, all she could see were dresses which she had worn like a thousand times. She realised that she needed something different, which would make her look dazzling in front of her friends. After all, it was her reunion party. A bunch of her college friends, were returning to India from America after 20 years. She had organised a splendid celebration to welcome them.

After minutes of searching, she found an impeccable dress. It was a blue gown, smeared with a silvery design over it."Oh! how could I forget about this dress. It was a gift from David”, she said. She was close to David, during the college days and after that too. They shared a great relationship, but things changed between them, after David left for America. They had to break up. She was going to see David after 20 years that day. She kept the dress back inside. Her friend Maria had contacted her a day before, informing her that they were all at the airport, waiting for their flight and that, they would land at around evening and meet her at the party at night. She was excited to meet them all.

Looking at their group photos, she reminisced her college days. “How beautiful were those days. Spending quality time with friends, having fun during classes and the most important thing was that everyone was together”. She thought of how amazing it could be if she could relive those days.

It was only sometime left until evening and her preparations were yet to be done. After an hour, her house was a different place altogether. Disco lights coruscated through the walls, making it look like a club. It wasn’t much time until her friends would arrive. She got dressed. A white coloured dress, with floral design all over it. She switched off the lights and walked through the hallway. Her dress sparkled, as the disco lights fell on it and she could see a reflection of it on her walls. After a while, her door bell rang. As she opened the door, she screamed, “welcome everyone”, with joy. Her eyes were full of tears. “Don’t cry Melissa, we all are here now”, said her friend Maria.

Wiping her tears, they shared a group hug."Oh! David when did you colour your hair? It looks so great on you”, she said.” “You all must be hungry. It must have been an exhausting trip, let’s have dinner”, she said. She had cooked various dishes, all her friend’s favourite's. “You all remember how Maria used to love pancakes made by Harsh’s mom so much, that she would eat them all and leave none for harsh?”. She said, while having dinner. “How could I forget that. Due to that, I had to stay hungry the whole day at college, whenever mom used to make pancakes”, said Harsh. “Did you cook this all yourself”? asked David. “Yes, I did. How does it taste?” she asked. “It’s luscious. I didn’t know you would turn out as a great cook”, David said, with a smile on his face.

After having dinner, she turned on her speakers and played calm and soothing music. They then spoke a lot about their days in America, and that how much they would miss her whenever they would meet. “Remember our forever spot?” she asked. “How could we forget it. We would spend the entire day there after college, until evening, talking endlessly”, said Maria. They had so many memories associated with it. Talking to them, she didn’t realise when she fell asleep. The next morning, as she opened her eyes, she found herself sleeping on the couch. She looked for her friends, but couldn’t find them anywhere. She thought that they might have left while she was asleep. After a while, she got a call from Maria’s brother, saying that Maria and her friends died in an accident yesterday evening while coming to the city from the airport. She was terrified!

by KAHYL SOAZ