By Prapti Walia
Trust, hope and love walked into a bar…Faith chuckled sarcastically at herself and these cruel thoughts in her head guised as humour. It was another one of those many nights that seem to have become her new normal these days. The screen of her phone illuminated by itself to tell her that it was 3am and even this inanimate object was ready to call it a night, barely being able to sustain on a 5% charge. But who would explain this to her brain?! She though, irritated. “My brain has a mind of its own! I don’t know how, but somehow that makes sense!” Faith said aloud as she rolled her eyes at the empty room. “Fine! You go ahead and die on me too!” She yelled at her phone; and just as she was about to throw it across the bed in irritation, a notification popped up. It was one of those lame dating apps she had decided to download out of nothing but spite! “Ugh! I thought I had uninstalled you!” She picked her phone up and just as the last percentage of battery drained out and the screen went blank, almost mocking her, she caught a glimpse of the notification. Curiosity took over the anger within her like a kid cutting ahead in a cafeteria line.
The angel on her right shoulder scolded her, “you know this is trouble. Come on Faith! You know better than to listen to your 3am brain!”. She knew the right was right. But the devil on the left said she had a choice. “Oh, come on! You’re a grown woman! Act like one!” She gritted her teeth, “damn it!” and reached across the bed for her phone charger. As it switched on, she impatiently logged on to the app. “This better be worth it!” she thought, mentally preparing for disappointment and another long-drawn session of self-criticism. “Hmm…cute! I’ll give him that!” thought Faith as she disconnected her phone charger and plonked onto her back. “Come on Mr., disappoint me already so I can go to bed.” Another eye roll. “What does his bio say? Healthy eater, animal lover, Friends fanatic and grammar Nazi. Ya right! And I’m the Queen of England!” Annoyed at having wasted her time, she was about to log off when suddenly there came a “hi” from the other side. “Oh crap!” she thought and nearly dropped her phone. Suddenly very self-aware and conscious as if he could somehow see her. “Pull yourself together woman!” she said to herself. After careful consideration, she formed a reply- “Hi”. “Argh! Lame!” “Your name on here is interesting. Is that an Acronym?” he asked. Faith was surprised. The few times she had used that app had proved to her that she mustn’t set her expectations very high. “Wow! I’m surprised that you even know the term Acronym.” He laughed. “Something tells me you haven’t had the best luck on this app.” “Oh you have no idea!” she replied. “If only I had a penny for every time someone called themselves a Grammar Nazi, I’d be rich! I ain’t no damsel in distress but I sure could use some rescuing on here”. said Faith dismissively. “Well then, I’ll just have to be your knight in shining grammar, now, wouldn’t I?!” he wrote, as her exasperated phone gave way once again and turned off.
It was now a little after 4am. After weeks of the same dreary sleepless routine, Faith finally felt her eyelids get heavy. She felt a smile creep up her usually pursed lips but she was too cautious to let it fully form. Why did a conversation that had abruptly ended feel like a beginning of sorts?! The angel on the right shoulder was back, “careful Faith…. careful.” But as Faith finally drifted off with her phone still in her hand, cocooned in the warmth of her blanket and the softness that can only come from a still mind, Faith finally gave in and allowed herself to smile. “Knight in shining grammar. Jeeze! Cheesy much?!” she thought to herself, half asleep, in the company of her smile and the first rays of the sun at the start of a new day.
By Prapti Walia
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