MIDSUMMER CRUSH

Chapter 7

Ashamed and depressed, Giselle sat idle in her room for days without stepping out or talking to anyone.  Her mother grew concerned and insisted she leave the past behind, but the scars in her heart and face made it hard for her to move on.

Looking into the mirror, she recollected  her days of turmoil with Bruce. Every moment spent with him was a curse.  Every scar on her body reminded her of the manner in which he had treated her. She felt repulsed with the very memory  of his lustful hands  over her. Love…there’s no such thing as love…it’s all about lust, she came to conclude after experiencing her first failed relationship with a man who claimed to love her.

Go for the one who loves you, not whom you love, she read a quote in the magazine and slammed it against the wall. Giselle knew she was missing out on a lot of things, she had to catch up with life and move on, but all she needed was to buy some time before getting on track. Though she had never loved Bruce to begin with, her view towards relationships and men had changed.

“Look, you scored straight A in all your papers! Now you can zero down on the top colleges you’ve  always wanted to go to,” her mother exclaimed in excitement one day and hoped seeing her mark sheet would cheer her up, but in vain.

Tired of seeing her daughter suffering  in silence, she decided to sit down and finally talk to her. “How much longer, Giselle?” she enquired and leaned on the window sill while Giselle kept staring outside.

“Longer, for what?”she replied softly.

“Sigh! Let’s get this straight alright, you my dear need to grow some balls and forget the past,” her mother blurted and startled Giselle.

“Erm..I know it’s not appropriate for a girl, but the point is, you have to move on and come back to being the girl you were. I and your father have given you enough time for self pitying, now quit cribbing and brace yourself to the next phase of your life and to meet some hot guys too,” her mother stated and shocked her yet again.  Giselle merely stared in confusion while her mother tried her best to pep up things a bit.

“What, don’t look at me like I don’t know why half of the females your age get excited to join college. You’re a big girl now, apart from academics, I’m sure you will find some decent guys worth your while,” her mother sounded bold and upfront because that was how she was unlike her daughter who had gone into her shell.

“Nice try, but I’m in no mood for jokes,” Giselle frowned and looked away.

“I wasn’t joking! In fact I met your dad in college, it was love at first sight, though I was the one who proposed first and then there was no looking back,” she winked and began reminiscing the old days.

“You were just lucky…” Giselle replied in the same dry tone.

“It’s not about luck…” her mother corrected.

“I don’t care! I’ve decided I’m not getting into any relationship, mom…nobody really loves you, it’s just all about s*x,” Giselle snapped and got up.

“Okay I wasn’t  prepared for that, cool down. I can understand what you’re going through,” her mother tried calming her.

“No you don’t! “ Giselle yelled and pulled her hair before pausing to draw in a deep breath. “Sorry about that, but what I really need is long vacation. Everything I see here reminds me of him,” she added and  sighed as her mother patted her back.

“Well, then I guess you’ll be glad to know that we’re moving to New Jersey soon. Your father has been transferred there, isn’t that great? A new place a new start?” she revealed and surprised her.

“New Jersey?” Giselle looked at her and paused.

“Yes, I and your dad even planned a road trip, won’t that be fun? Oh and in the meanwhile do select the college you like, I’m sure the best of the best colleges will accept you once they see your grades,” she squealed and expressed how excited she was.

“What? Aren’t you happy about it?” she paused abruptly and enquired since Giselle was merely showing no reaction at all.

“Hmm…sounds good,” was all she said and headed back to her room while her mother sighed.

A month later…

“Can I drive, dad?” she asked as they loaded the car.

“Not until, you graduate from college,” he replied with a smile while she sighed.

“Come on now, don’t spoil her mood,” he mother defended her.

“I don’t think I spoiled anything, look how cool she is, “ he replied as she sat in the back seat with a straight face. “I’m glad she’s back to being normal,” he added and let out a soft laugh while her mother seemed unconvinced.

“I’m not sure about it, she’s improved a lot from last month, but I doubt she’s ….” She  paused when Giselle looked out the window and gestured them to get in.

“Are we leaving or not?” she sighed and looked at them.

“Coming right away,” Her father replied and looked at her mother “Give your doubts some rest, honey. Giselle is fine, stop worrying about her,” he said before they got in and drove off into the sunset.

The road trip seemed like a good idea to Giselle as she and her compact family drove through the landscapes and towns on the way. It was assumed to be a 10 hours long and tiring journey all the way from Detroit to New Jersey , but on the contrary Giselle was seen enjoying it. Letting her hair loose, she leaned out of the window and let the wind caress her hair. Light, free and  alive, that’s  how she felt as she left everything behind.

In the evening, they stopped at a small town to break for some refreshments, that’s when Giselle took out her camera  and decided to explore her surroundings. “Don’t wander off too far, dear!” Her father cautioned her as she left the diner.

It was the Swedish Midsummer, locals whose ancestors were immigrants from Europe were seen celebrating the festival with full zeal. There were maypole-raising , stalls selling oven baked pancakes and tarts, a bonfire around which a group of locals danced till their hearts content. Giselle sauntered around, relishing every moment with her camera. She clicked a picture of few homeless kids playing around when her eyes fell on a young man playing the guitar.

His hair was as black as the night and his eyes were as deep as the lake below the bridge he leaned on. He was impressively tall, and had features that clearly indicated he didn’t belong here.  The kids gathered before him and so did Giselle, while he played a song she had never heard of before. It had a distinct tune that she associated with magic, sand and  desert warriors.

Lost in his own thoughts, the young man failed to notice their presence until she dropped a dollar before him. Strumming the guitar, he glanced at the dollar and then at her before breaking into a smile.  Giselle noticed his dimples cutting across his face and had to admit, that it made him look charming. Yet his rich attire made her wonder how a homeless could afford to look so good.

It wasn’t long before more people passing by dropped changes and dollars for him as she and the kids stood there listening to his tunes.  When he finished, Giselle applauded, “You play well,” she said and raised her camera. “Mind if I click a picture?” she enquired and smiled.

“Too well to be mistaken for a homeless guy, eh?” he winked and startled her when one of his friend approached him. “Aariz, where have you been, the train will leave any minute now…” his friend alerted him and paused abruptly after seeing all the money.

“Oh my God, you mean you’re not…oh I’m so sorry!” She gasped in embarrassment and dropped her camera after realising that he was just a traveller like her and not a homeless guy.

“What’s going on will someone tell me?” his friend enquired curiously and chuckled at seeing the money Aariz had collected. “Oh freak, was this your plan on gathering funds for our trip?” he added and burst out laughing.

“Not really, I was just mistaken to be homeless by that…hey where did she go?” Aariz suddenly realised that Giselle had disappeared leaving her camera behind. He looked around and spotted her walking away briskly. “Excuse me! Hey miss, you forgot your camera, hello?” he called out to her but in vain.

Cringing at her own stupidity, she merged with the crowd and ran to the spot where her parents had been waiting for her. “There you are, I was getting worried for you. What took you so long, Giselle?” her mother heaved a sigh of relief on seeing her.

“I was just..Erm I got lost and…” Giselle stuttered as she thought about the young man

“I guess you lost count of time midst all this celebration, it’s the Midsummer festival after all,” her father interrupted and gestured everyone to get inside the car.

“I wish we could stay back and watch the bonfire, but I’m all too excited to shift into our new house, aren’t you excited too?” her mother exclaimed and looked at Giselle from the rear view mirror.

“Giselle, I’m talking to you, what are you searching behind?” she added as Giselle kept shifting from one corner to the other.

“I lost my camera, I can’t seem to find it,” Giselle answered and got paranoid.

“Now you get it why I don’t let her drive the car?” her father commented and frowned while her mother sighed.

“Don’t worry dear, we’ll buy you a new one,” her mother said, but that didn’t cheer Giselle. Upset that she had lost all the memories she had captured along the way, she put on her headphone and sat with a sullen face while wondering where the camera had gone.

Little did she know that her camera was in Aariz’s hands, a stranger she had briefly met on a Midsummer night.  “Hey, let me look at it too?” Aariz’s friend insisted and tried snatching the camera from him.

“Going through other’s pictures is bad manners,” Aariz stated and jerked him away as they travelled in the train.

“Whoa, doesn’t that apply to you too? The camera doesn’t belong to you, Aariz,” his friend raised his brows and commented.

“Where can you currently see the camera?” Aariz asked sarcastically.

“In your hands of course,” his friend answered in confusion.

“Which implies that it now belongs to me,” he winked and noticed the frown on his friend’s face. “Fine you win, I’ve better things than arguing with you,” his friend sighed and looked out the window while Aariz glanced through all the pictures, Giselle had taken.

Impressed by her photography, he tried recollecting how she looked until he came across a picture of her taken by her mother.  Struck by her beauty, he noticed her gorgeous smile and wondered if he would ever get to meet her again.

“New Jersey! Zero kilo meter, wake up ladies! Were here,” her father woke them up as they entered.  “Finally…” Giselle yawned and looked out the window. Too tired to show any excitement she merely sighed and wondered what surprises awaited her in New jersey.