Forsaken Faith

Saahil loved women. They made him happy in so many ways.

He used them to suit the purpose at hand. He explored them in bed, showed them off at social dos, wooed them when he felt flirtatious, seduced them when he wanted to feel powerful, ignored them when he wanted to hang out with the guys and politely bade goodbye after he was done with all of the above.

And women… They seemed to know it all – his history, reputation and character - and yet got attracted to him. Some because they wanted a wild guy exactly like him who they believed they could tame and keep for life, others because they themselves wanted to enjoy a brief, stormy ride in the woods.

The string of women never ended. One gave way to another, and for Saahil, ever woman was a feather in his overflowing cap; a victory that made him feel like the alpha male he fantasized to be. He guiltlessly hounded them, sometimes one at a time, other times several at once.

Good if they agreed, better if they didn’t. It gave him a challenge to focus his ambition and skills on.

What baffled the other guys was that Saahil wasn’t what you’d call good-looking. He wasn’t young or affluent either. He was just about average in every way. And yet he landed the classiest of girls. How could charm account for everything? The way he talked was anything but genuine, his objectives were anything but genteel, and yet, there he was – making his moves and taking his chances with any and every chic that he came across. Some guys just had all the luck in the world…

People laughed behind his back and bitched all around him. That didn’t unsettle him. He didn’t like anyone anyway; to him, they were all idiots that he had to put up with. Until he won the lottery.

But until that time, Sahil was happy and content in his world of lasses, blether and liquor.

What lay in his past? Did he have a story that could explain the way he was? Had he been ditched by a girl? Was he ever duped and misled so badly that it scarred him for life? What was his reason to go about scarring other women? Was he really superficial and fake? Was he just too lazy to think and care?

His showiness was a mystery to the ladies he interacted with. They couldn’t figure out why he was so artificial and casual. They didn’t understand how he didn’t think or care about who did what and who said what. Nothing perturbed him. It was a blessing when they had other commitments and secrets. Obviously, it backfired when they felt emotionally uncared for by him.

After all, which girl wants a guy that says ok and hangs up when she’s yelling at him to get lost coz she’s upset?

Well, he did call back after sometime. Sometimes.

The other times, he just broke up without a word and went off his gay path.

(Gay, as in merry. But yeah, some people did suspect that he was gay…)

The only thing that interfered with their conclusion was the continuous and endless spate of females that he hung out with openly and in private. He blatantly wheedled one and sneaked out with another. He shamelessly declared, “everyone is my girlfriend” when someone asked about his current flame.

If the unfortunate girl was in love with him, too bad for her. He had no intentions of hanging around for too long. After all, just how long can a dog keep running behind one car?

She just ought to thank her stars that they weren’t engaged or wedded. Saahil wasn’t a guy that would remain loyal or caring forever. And marriage wasn’t a priority for him anyway. Everything that he needed was freely available without connubial hassles. And he knew how to make the most of it.

He WANTED to make the most of it.

Saahil stepped out of the house and kissed his girlfriend as she called for the lift.

It had been a lovely night, she thought.

“I’ve to pick up some booze and munchies on the way. Got friends coming over tonight”, he said.

She held onto him as they rode down the lanes.

As he dropped her, she clung onto him and said, “Please call me when you reach home.”

“Love you baby”, he said.

He reached the mall half an hour later. The streets were filled with traffic.

But there she was, as dainty and gorgeous as ever. Waiting for him.

"It was gonna be a beautiful day", she thought…