Thuriha Writes

One morning, Thuriha lay in bed, and her overthinking mind took its usual turn. She found herself reflecting on how much her life had changed recently. The storm in her personal life, the one she had once feared so deeply, had actually made her stronger, more independent, and taught her to appreciate the little things she had. But today was not one of those good days. She began drifting into the bigger questions — where her life was heading, what her purpose was, all the things a mind reaches for when it has too much silence to fill. And then, right in the middle of it, she remembered — she hadn't had breakfast. Her brain, it seemed, was simply trying to trick her.

She got up, made her way to her favourite hot pooris with aloo masal, and settled it all with a cup of hot chocolate. The food warmed her a little, softened the edges of her overthinking, but the quiet, lonely feeling stayed on regardless. So, half out of boredom and half out of curiosity, she signed up on Bumble — mostly to test the waters, mostly to shake off the stillness of the evening. She filled in the basic details, uploaded two casual pictures, and let it be, going on with her weekend the way she always did — a movie, and the comfort of doing nothing at all.

It was only later, up on the terrace, that she remembered the profile she had created and grew curious to see if anything had come of it. Among the fifteen or twenty matches, one caught her eye — not just the picture, but something in the way he'd written his bio, the interests he'd listed. She swiped right, along with a simple "Hi."

She expected a reply soon after, but life, as always, moved at its own pace. It came a few hours later, and the conversation began the way most do — questions about work, likes, dislikes, the familiar rhythm of getting to know someone. Over the following week, the messages continued, unhurried, until it naturally led to the exchange of Instagram profiles, which somehow always feels like a small but significant step. Another week passed in much the same way.

Then, one night, while scrolling through his messages, she accidentally called him. Panicked, she cut the call immediately. On the other end, Mani took it lightly, teasing her about whether she was simply confirming he was, indeed, the person she'd been speaking to all along. It ended up being the perfect icebreaker, and from there, their conversations slowly deepened — talk of travel, of views on relationships, of things that mattered more than small talk. Still, they spoke only through chats, since Mani worked on Canadian time while Thuriha kept to IST. Until one day, they found a common hour and made their first call.

Thuriha had, until then, carried a slightly formal image of him in her mind, and she wasn't sure how the conversation would unfold. But Mani opened with his own funny stories from his Bumble misadventures, and within minutes, the unease dissolved. What was meant to be a short call stretched on for hours, well past midnight, until sleep finally became unavoidable. In the weeks that followed, they grew closer still, and when Thuriha lost her grandmother, it was Mani's voice she found herself turning to. A month of phone calls later, they decided it was time to meet.

The day finally arrived. Thuriha travelled from her native place, tired from the journey but too curious to let the tiredness win. Mani had plans with friends earlier that evening and was to meet her right after, for dinner. Both of them carried the same quiet nervousness — the kind that comes when two people already share an easy rapport and both, secretly, hope the meeting won't disturb it.

She reached Kathipara food court, looking around for him, while Mani spotted her first and walked up quietly to blindfold her from behind. It was a small, playful gesture, but it dissolved whatever awkwardness might have lingered about how to even greet each other. From there, they spoke like old friends, about everything and nothing. Mani had a way of making her feel unjudged, comfortable enough that she asked him, quite simply, for Poricha Parotta as their first meal together — which he happily got her. It wasn't a grand date by any means, but the company made the evening feel far brighter than it was.

After dinner, they took a walk through the nearby park, talking, learning small things about each other's worlds. Somewhere along the way, Mani pulled her a little closer, and an unexpected peck on the cheek made the distance between them feel smaller too. A phone call reminded them of the time — it was nearing 2 AM. They booked a cab, and Mani offered to drop her home given the hour. She agreed easily; it only meant a little more time together. Even after reaching her apartment, neither of them was ready to say goodnight, so they walked a little more near her building until his cab arrived, and they parted, somewhat reluctantly.

That night, Thuriha went to sleep happy — cheerful, and for the first time in a while, aware of what it felt like to be liked and cared for by someone she liked in return. Above her, the moon watched this quiet little story unfold and smiled to itself, as if it already knew —

"Idhu verum trailer dhan — Main picture inimey dhan iruku!"

To be continued...