The Exilir And The Poison

Chapter 9: The Lost Spring

One day you're going to remember me and how much I loved you...then you're gonna hate yourself for letting me go."

~ Aubrey Drake Graham

______

Ranveer takes one final step upon the ridge before he's met with the most breath-taking sight in his life. His eyes gauge the wide, endless ocean of green sprawling thousands of acres below his feet, bathed in the foam of clouds. Occasional chirps of the birds disturb his meditation, breaking his trance, while he takes a look around him. The wind chills his spine and shivers run through his skin. Small raindrops descend downwards, wetting the green, dew-drenched leaves, cleaning off the dust settled upon them. The world - past, present, and future suddenly appear too insignificant, meaningless almost, when Ranveer watches the small glimmer of sunlight valiantly breaking through the cluster of clouds in a narrow slit as the mountains whipped white with snow appear far off in the distance. The mountains before him gradually change their colour. At one glance, they're the blue of the skies, and then, they're turning green, the outlines of the trees and shrubs too clear, feeble sunlight sparkling on them. The magnificent clash of nature's wildest forces commences and he stands there as a sole witness to the glory which only few have known. Wind picks up and the clouds are moving faster than before, equal participants in the battle of dominion. The sun plays hide and seek, concealing itself and showing up in a swift glance. Thunder rolls high above, a declaration of the battle as the lightning welcomes the change. Slowly, the sun obeys the winds, hides herself behind the ridge of clouds stretching across the horizon, and triumphant fleecy objects march into the skies fearlessly, covering the entirety of the remaining space. The trees, standing tall and proud hitherto, bow down in respect to the victorious. The limbs of the weak trees crack open, leaves fly off to a new destination, and the damp smell of the land becomes sharper. The cold hard wind replaces the sweetness of the moments he had first set foot in the nature's most revered place. The majestic mountains are invisible now, existence of the fiery sun a history now.

His eyes water, a lump rises in his throat, his fingers moving up to wipe the sweat off his forehead. Unseasonal rain, his mind tells him. It's almost spring and the rain is not entirely untimely. It's the rain before the flowers bloom, and the trees become green again, heralding a new life to the nature. There are chances it will snow and the decay of the nature will continue.

"Enjoying the rain without me, eh?"

He can't see her face in the rain. Is she too far away?

"You know I always loved rain." Her voice is cheerful, ghostly too. "I came here to tell you that I am leaving you."

Her words make him sick. Ranveer turns away from the direction he hears her voice coming and he finds his world cracking again - just like the rain, the bubble he had locked himself into is falling apart, wetting him to his bones. There's no strength in him to answer her words, tell her off, tell her she left him a long time ago, and that it doesn't make any difference today. He's an invisible man in the world that refused to see him while he was not. He's a ghost again, haunting his old memories. The rain! It's either harder this time or he's in the middle of the storm that is sweeping him along with the world it has sworn to destroy. It was a bad idea to come here when rain was predicted but the weather was good until an hour ago.

Slowly, he tumbles into the real world as the surroundings fall back into place. The rain is heavy, rendering everything before him indistinguishable, the shapes forming and fading like ghosts in the mists. He wants to scream and let the pain flow in the puddles right at this place, so he can live, or die, if this pain kills him. Nothing happens. His world spirals again as the rain beats harder, harsh cruel lashes at the insignificant beings on the earth. Eventually, a scream with the plea leaves his mouth, a hope that he would be heard, that she will hear him and come back. He's exhausted, tears blend in rain, meet in the rivers at his feet, but nothing around him changes.