#went into 2018 throwing up after drinking straight whiskey alone in my room but i had a good time

[eggmeralda]

every year I started insanely drunk ended up being a decent year. so. plans tonight

[justanoutlawfic]

The Virgin: An Outlaw Queen Ficlet

Summary: When Robin's sister accidentally inseminates Regina, their worlds are turned upside down. Little do any of them realize, they're not in as control of their lives as they think. The past Regina never knew about, is suddenly coming to haunt her.

Also on AO3

February 1st, 1994

 Cora sat up in bed, looking down at the baby girls in her arms. She had known that they wouldn’t be identical but hadn’t expected them to look that different. Baby A had fair skin and blue eyes, some wisps of blonde hair atop her head. Baby B had darker features, from her deep brown eyes to the dark fuzz that stood out next to her sister’s. The nurse, who had no idea of the situation, said that she had never seen twins come out looking so different. Cora would’ve strangled her if she wasn’t so exhausted from giving birth.

 The door opened and her father entered the room. Cora looked up at him, craning her neck to try to see behind him, but he simply shook his head.

“Henry is still stuck in France, trying like hell to get a flight but the weather is putting it off for a few days, and that loser you call a lover didn’t show his face.”

Cora huffed. “His name is Jonathan, Daddy.”

“I don’t really care what his name is. You had a chance to be better, Cora. Now, look at you. How is Henry ever going to accept having a daughter with such light features? He’ll know instantly that she’s not his.”

“I could simply say she inherited it from my side of the family…”

“And when he sees that she looks exactly like your gardener?” Cora adverted her gaze down to the babies. “That’s what I thought.”

“I didn’t even think this was possible,” she whispered. “How can twins have different fathers?”

“I don’t know, but I do know that you’ve ruined your life.”

 Cora stared down at the squirming babies in her arms. She couldn’t go back to living at her father’s, working as a cocktail waitress. She had pulled herself up from nothing and there was no going back. Henry was a boring man, not very good in bed. Even so, he was giving her a life that she had always dreamed of.

“No, I haven’t,” she said.

“There’s no way you can…”

“They didn’t survive the labor.” Cora looked up, meeting her father’s gaze. “It was terrible, tragic, but they lost oxygen. I gave their organs so they could save other babies.”

“You cannot be serious.”

“I told you when I married him, I was willing to do anything to keep him.”

“That’s all well and good, but there’s the mere factor of the girls. What are you going to do with them?”

“I’ll worry about that.”

 The following evening, Cora was discharged from the hospital. She wrapped the babies in the blankets that she had been knitting throughout the pregnancy. and put on a shawl before having her father drive her to the fire station. It was the dead of night and chilly, for Florida’s standards anyway. Cora walked up the steps and settled the girls’ baskets down on the steps. Each blanket was embroidered with a name. For Baby A, they had gone with Zelena, derived from the goddess of the moon. Baby B was named Regina, which meant queen. Cora wanted powerful names, so one day they would be powerful women. Zelena’s basket had green ribbon on it, while Regina’s was red.

 “Poor babes,” she whispered. “Life is cruel and full of betrayal. That is my only lesson for you. Now, I must give you away, to give you my best chance.” Cora’s breath caught, as the tears pooled her eyes. “As long as I have the two of you, I can never be more than a miller’s daughter.”

 The wind picked up and the rain began to fall, signaling to Cora that it was time to go. As she walked away, she could hear both of her daughters crying for their mother, but she simply ignored it. She was on her way to her better life.

 October 23rd, 2018

Good food, amazing champagne and everyone donating to the local homeless shelter. It was a night that Robin had been looking forward to for a really long time. His family hadn’t always had the money they did and even so, charity had been so important to his mother, especially given her own upbringing. Robin hoped that she would be happy with how they were giving back. The shelter would be able to do the repairs they needed and add more beds.

 The party would be what Robin remembered as the last night normal night of his life. His father had insisted on a party and Robin told him that if that was the case, it needed to be for charity. There was lots of loud music, the servers dressed as aquatic mythical creatures and bubbles for the few kids that were in attendance.

 Despite the presence of his father, Robin would remember it as a good night. He got to talk with Lacey, it was rare that she went anywhere without her husband and Robin was glad that she had left him home for the night. Robin loved his half-sister with everything in him, but when it came to romantic partners, she either picked the absolute worst person or someone that was far too old. It seemed like Adam Gold was a mix of both of those things.

 Marian stood by his side, smiling from ear to ear. Neither had any way of knowing that this would be the last party they would ever throw together. As far as they knew, the next morning they would be on their way to making Roland a big brother. Roland himself was chasing the other kids around that were his age, tiring himself out. It would be pretty easy to put him to bed that night.

 It was truly the happiest Robin had felt in a really long time. Had he known what would come, he would’ve cancelled Marian’s appointment the next day. Instead, they’d have breakfast at the hotel before taking Roland to school. They’d discuss different, more secure ways of expanding their family. At the very least, he would’ve insisted that his sister stay at the hotel for the night. Roland would love having a sleepover with his favorite (and only) aunt.

 Alas, no one is capable of telling the future. So, he kissed Lacey on the cheek, watching as she headed home to her husband. When Marian suggested they turn in and leave the hosting duties to Richard, he agreed. He picked up a sleeping Roland in his arms and they headed up to their suite together. They lived the last normal night of their lives, when their family could still very much be one.

Sobriety is an uphill battle, ask any addict. There are several triggers that you know to avoid once you start recovery, whether it be people, events or objects. That’s the easy part. One can learn to avoid those.

 What isn’t easy, are the things that come out of nowhere. They pull you down and practically force the bottle to your lips. At least that’s how Lacey Locksley-Gold felt.

 She had cleaned up her act when she married Adam Gold. There was no more hanging out at the Rabbit Hole after her shift, no hustling men as she played pool (even though that had been how they met). She focused on work and being a good wife. With that, she finally did what her family had been begging her to do for years and quit drinking all together. Lacey began attending A.A meetings and left behind the group of friends that pushed scotch into her hands at parties. It wasn’t an easy process, but it was one she was proud of nonetheless.

 After yet another party thrown by her father, Lacey walked into the salmon colored home that she shared with her husband. There was music coming from upstairs, which put a big grin on her face. She walked up, unzipping her black dress as she did. When she reached the door, she took the clip that held her auburn curls up in a bun out and let them tumble down. As she opened the door to her bedroom, she allowed the dress to fall to the floor.

“Waiting for me, baby?” She asked.

 Gold shot up from the bed, but he didn’t do it alone. Beside him was Carlotta De Vil, a fellow lawyer at his practice. Lacey’s jaw practically dropped to the floor, taking in the Dalmatian print lingerie that Carlotta wore, along with the lack of anything on her own husband’s body.

 “Lacey…” he stammered.

 She didn’t say anything in response. Instead, she merely pulled up her dress to cover her naked body before running down the stairs. She got in her cherry red Jaguar, not even sure where she was going until she pulled up at the Hole. Lacey pushed through the doors and marched straight up to the bar.

 “Whiskey, neat,” she demanded.

 Keith simply gave her a smirk and filled her order. Lacey knocked it back in one go, before ordering another one. The thought of her two early morning appointments didn’t even cross her mind, none of that mattered. All that did, was getting the image of Carlotta in her bed out of her head.

Lacey woke up the following morning with a pounding headache and dry mouth. She rolled over in bed, nearly falling over the body that laid beside her. She blinked a few times before realizing it was Ruby Lucas. Wait, why had she gone home with her? Why wasn’t she in her own bed?

 The memory of the night before hit her like a ton of bricks, causing tears to cloud her eyes. She furiously wiped them away as her phone rang, causing her head to throb even more. Lacey followed the sound to her purse, digging it out. The screen informed her that it was her personal assistant. She slid the green button over and held it to her ear.

“Ugh, what?”

“Lacey!” Astrid’s worried voice filled her ear. “You’re late! You’ve got two patients waiting on you!”

“What?” Lacey looked over at the fuzzy red alarm clock that was on Ruby’s nightstand and cursed herself. “Shit! I’ll be right there!”

“Are you alright?”

“I’m fine. Just, distract them.”

 Hanging up the phone, Lacey raced into the adjoining bathroom and splashed water on her face. She borrowed some of Ruby’s makeup to make herself look somewhat presentable, running a brush through her hair. She had a change of clothes at the office along with some gum. Not the most hygienic, but she didn’t have time to go back home and she didn’t necessarily want to, knowing her husband would be there.

 Ruby appeared in the doorway, wearing a t-shirt that rode up over belly button and black underwear. “Hey, I can go pick us up some breakfast.”

“I have to get to work.”

“Need a ride? You left your car at the bar last night.”

“I’ll be fine.”

“I had a lot of fun last night…”

“Does it look like I have time right now, Ruby?”

 Pushing past her one-night stand, Lacey ignored the pulsing headache she had. No one could know how hungover she was, she couldn’t afford for it to get back to her father or God forbid, her brother.

Regina settled onto the bus seat, feeling exhausted. She had been up late the night before grading papers and had considered canceling her visit, but it had taken her months to get an appointment with Dr. Locksley-Gold. She was the only one that accepted her insurance in the city.

 Being 24, it probably shouldn’t have been her first appointment. She had told herself for years that she didn’t need it, it wasn’t as if she were sexually active and up until she started at her new job, she hadn’t had insurance since she aged out of the system. Emma was taken aback when she heard that and insisted she made an appointment right away. Regina had to bite her tongue at how surprised Emma was. Both of them had grown up in the foster system, but after Emma got pregnant at 17 by the son of one of the wealthiest women in the city, her life had gotten a lot better.

 Regina had to fight for any bit of success that she got. She worked her ass off in high school to get a scholarship to a good college, working in any spare moment to make up the rest. On top of a full course load, she had worked as a waitress. Being over the age of 18 meant she could work full time, but that was both a blessing and a curse. She had barely slept during those 5 years, living off of coffee and ramen. It had been worth it, at the very least. She was an English teacher at a Catholic middle school and was slowly chipping away at student loans.

 She pulled out her notebook as the bus drove along to the office. She knew that the idea of a novel was silly, but she couldn’t push the dream out of her head. Books were one of the few things that got her through her crappy childhood. They were an escape to various places, where she could pretend that for a minute, things weren’t so dreary. Maybe she could do that for someone else, no matter how old.

 Eventually, Regina found herself walking inside Dr. Locksley-Gold’s office. It wasn’t long before she was pulled back into a room, where a nurse took her vitals and confirmed the reason for her visit. After the nurse left and she changed into the paper gown provided, she was waiting awhile for the doctor. She couldn’t help but feel her eyes slowly shutting. It was just for a second, the only break she’d get. After her appointment, she had to get to work. She wasn’t going to fall asleep…no…

 The door slammed shut and Regina shot up, the paper beneath her crinkling. She blinked a few times, before realizing the short doctor with auburn hair was talking to her.

“Um, yes, hello. Sorry. I drifted off.”

“It’s fine. I’m Dr. Lacey Locksley-Gold.” she sniffled and Regina noticed that she had red, bloodshot eyes.

“Are you alright?”

“Yes, yes. Please scoot down a bit.” Regina did as told, her feet sliding into the stirrups. “Did you bring anyone with you?”

“Um, here? No…it’s just me.” She was confused. Did adults normally bring someone with them to get a pap smear?

Lacey sniffled yet again. “You’re doing it alone, good for you. It’s…it’s probably easiest that way,” her voice cracked near the end of her sentence and it became clear she was fighting off tears.

Regina suddenly felt very uncomfortable. She wasn’t good when it came to other people’s emotions. “Are you sure you’re okay?”

“I’m sorry…I’m so sorry. This is so unprofessional. I’m just going through some personal problems.”

“Um…do you want me to come back then?”

“No, then we’ll have to wait another month and that’s not fair to you.”

 Regina nodded, though still unsure if she trusted the woman in front of her. She stayed leaning back, feeling a tiny bit of discomfort, but then Lacey was pulling away from her.

 “Alright, you’re all set. Just rest here for 10 minutes and then you’ll get your results in two weeks.”

Regna tilted her head. “That’s it?”

“That’s it. And again, I’m sorry about the…you know.” She gestured to her face.

“No, it’s fine. I hope…I hope you feel better.”

Lacey merely nodded, before walking out of the room. God, that had been so embarrassing. She had never broken down in front of anyone like that before outside her family, much less a patient. She just hoped that it didn’t cause any stress and wouldn’t affect the insemination.

 Heading out of the room, she went down the hall to her next patient. She raised an eyebrow when she saw her sister-in-law, Marian, sitting up one of the cots. Lacey’s brother, Robin, stood beside her, a smile on his face. Lacey’s brows furrowed as she looked from her chart, back up at them.

“I wasn’t expecting you two today.”

“We’ve finally decided to try for another baby,” Marian explained. “So, we had the nurse unfreeze Robin’s sperm.”

 Lacey stood frozen in spot, her mind replaying Astrid’s words as she walked down the hall.

 “You’ve got a pap smear in 3 and an insemination in 1.”

 The number on the door read 1…but she had put the sample inside the patient in 3.

 She had put her brother’s sample inside the patient in 3.

 Robin’s only sample. He and Marian had their son four years ago. Shortly after that, he had been diagnosed with testicular cancer. Before entering chemo, Robin had decided to freeze his sperm so that way he and Marian could still live out their dream of having two children in the future. He had beat the cancer and all of his checkups still showed that he was as healthy as a horse. Of course they’d want to try again.

 Lacey suddenly felt as though she was going to pass out. What the hell had she just done?

“Lacey?” Robin asked. “Are you alright?”

 Lacey blinked a few times. She couldn’t let them know. No, that’d be a terrible, terrible idea. Robin would never trust her again. IUI only had a 10 to 20 percent success rate the first go around, Marian and Robin knew that. The odds of it even working on the other patient were slim to none. No one had to know. Especially not Robin.

“Yes, I’m fine. I just…I forgot your sample. I’ll be right back.”

 When Lacey returned, she inseminated Marian with some saline before stressing the statistics once more to them. The hopeful look in their eyes drilled a hole in Lacey’s soul. There would be other options for them, wouldn’t they? Plus, they already had Roland.

 No matter how she justified it, Lacey knew she was wrong. After all Robin had ever done for her, she had just screwed him over in the worst way possible.

[lets-be-real-biscuits-blog]

February 8th, 2018

Story time

Hermione’s P.O.V

Ron was out again, probably snogging another one of his many whores. He’s been sleeping with other women for who knows how long, I found out not too long ago. It was September and I’ve been sitting and wasting away, thinking about him cheating on me for the last four months. Still I said nothing, I did nothing. Ron was my everything, my world. We’ve been together for so long I guess I’ve never really though about anyone else, while him on the other hand was what all he could think about.

And out of all days, he leaves me alone on Christmas.

It made me sick to think that the man I loved always had someone else in mind. Was I not enough?I’ve had my cries and then some, but now it’s like I don’t know how to. Like they’ve dried up and no longer exist. I went through a depressive state, where some days I wouldn’t want to get up out of bed. Where all I wanted to do is sleep, because of stress of thinking about him cheat. I was hiding, trying not to face the truth. How could the man I adore treat me this way? I gave him everything and what? I wasn’t enough? Was I just a waste? A piece of trash he tolerated?

I’m sure he knows I know, he has to. Other whys he would have made more excuses like he usually does. He knows and that’s what’s tearing me apart on the inside. The bloody fucking bastard knows. That’s what made me get up, to shower, to throw on the most revealing clothes I had and go out. I did my hair and makeup the best I could, and left the apartment. I needed to be far away away from the apartment so that way I don’t run into Ron, or any of our memories together. So ai drove somewhere far, a club near Hogsmeade. The dark side of Hogsmeade.

It was the last place Ron would look for me. Oh, who am I kidding? Once he saw I wasn’t home he would gladly call up one of his skanks, and get her into our bed. It made frown once again, pulling one of the most ugliest faces. I made it past the bouncer after he undoubtedly checked me out, and I walked in. Like any club, it was hectic as hell. Acid Pops, was what the club was called. It was a bit crowded and there was people dancing nearly everywhere. I was given many glances, some looking twice, but I ignored it no matter how much it made me feel uncomfortable. I felt a pit in my stomach; how could I even think about doing this to Ron?

He was the love of my life after all and this is how I treat him. Even though this is the exact way he treats me, I still felt guilty. I’m still a complete mess, Merlin, I need to get my head on straight. I came here to have fun, not wallow in my feelings. I make my way towards the bar where I find place to sit, and sigh. It was remarkably quieter at the bar, even though there was the occasional push and shove from others. “What can I get you, darlin’?” The bartender speaks and I look up to find an older witch. She was like any other person in here, dark attire and a bit of eyeliner.

“Whiskey, on the rocks.” I say, regretting it as it slipped off my tongue. I would usually get my regular red wine, but unfortunately I was looking for something far more stronger than my bitter sweet poison. “Coming right up.” She says, grabbing a glass. I sit there and wait for my drink, disregarding the stares of most of the men in the club. Soon enough a glass is day in front of me, I call out a “thank you” as she walks away to tend to a different customer. I take a quick sip, hating the burning sensation of it going down. Not long after I’m interrupted.

“What brings you here on such a Holiday?” I hear a voice from my right. The figure I see from the corner of my eye sit on the chair next to me, before I finally take a glance to the strangers way. “Did the Weasel find a different woman to score this Christmas?” Draco asks and I unconsciously chuckle. He instantly looks taken aback as he takes a sip of his drink. “Spot on.” I say and he chokes on his drink, removing his lips from the glass, he covers his mouth. I turn myself to face him in my seat, and watch as he composes himself.

“Your kidding?” he speaks, raising his brows before setting his drink down. I shake my head and sits there looking a bit shocked. “What do you want, Malfoy?” I ask, resting my elbow in the bar to study him. His grey silvery eyes dart to mine, he shrugs. “Just to see what everyone’s attention was on.” It was my turn to choke in my drink. “Is that so?” I question, trying to ignore the embarrassing moment I had to experience with Draco. “Yeah, it’s quite rare that everyone’s attention is on one woman, rather than the Wizarding world’s most eligible bachelor.”

I laugh, “I wounded your ego, did I?” He rolls his eyes and loosens his tie a bit before leaning in closer, whispering “you wish.” A silence was brewed between us as we shared a moment of staring. I really couldn’t believe it, I was having a civil conversation with the boy I had punched in fourth year. It was truly remarkable, I would’ve thought it was a tall tale if I hadn’t been apart of it myself. “Is that all you came for?” I ask and he gives me a heart stopping, stomach turning, pulse racing, smile. The one that would make any girl swoon. “Course not. I wanted to meet the lovely lady.”

We laugh, and that’s what the night was; a laugh. We just talked, told each other stories of ourselves, we even had things in common. He took me to the a V.I.P section so wouldn’t have to keep on yelling over the loud music and soon enough we were on a new topic. As the night drew to its end, he walked me out and into the starry night sky. I wasn’t drunk, but I wasn’t sober either. “Driving wouldn’t be the best idea, now would it?” he asks and I chuckle, shaking my head. “Defiantly not.”

“You could stay at my place?” Draco offers, putting his thumb over his shoulder and pointing to the building a block over. “I’ve been living in the pent house, so there’s more than enough room.” I thought about it for a moment, I wouldn’t have to face Ron and I defiantly don’t want to go back there to find him and some chic getting it on. There so many bad things I could avoid going with Draco, but I could start so many bad things to. I’ve never considered being friends with him, hell I don’t even think I thought about befriending him. Now he’s letting me stay at his place for the night? What if he thinks-

“To be safe, Granger, really. That’s all I have in mind.” he raises his hands in defense and I’m instantly thrown into a fit of giggles. “Why not?” I say and he nods, putting out his arm for me to grab. “This way, m'lady.” he guess me to his personal limo and we’re driven away.

[soponhara]

What was it Like?

“Are you sure you want to do it?”

“Absolutely!”

“What if anything happens on the way?”

“I’ll see when it happens…”

“It’s going to be really difficult you know… also dangerous maybe.”

“I know… but I also think that’s kind of the point, you know…”

It was 11 in the night I was with a friend, meeting her for the last time before I would leave for Hyderabad. I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t scared. I was terrified. But, I guess that was the entire point - To get rid of that scared part of me. And it wouldn’t have been possible if I hadn’t taken this 1700 km long road trip. The idea was incepted in February 2018 during this other trip I had taken with a couple of other riders to the North-East Belt of India. It was during this trip where I re-discovered myself as a motorcyclist. I had almost forgotten what a back-breaking-all-day-long journey felt like. But once my memory was re-kindled, there was no turning back from it this time.

I left home early in the morning, sometime around 4 or 5. Dad helped me tying up my bags on the back of the bike. His old wrinkly face carried the joy and worry of having an independent son. I hugged my mom and dad, kick-started my bike and hit the asphalt. I can’t even start to explain the paranoia I was experiencing.

Early mornings and late nights are when you can hear the city breathing. It’s when you can feel the city to its soul. And I’m so glad I planned my way out of the city at such time when I could hear it breathing one last time. Once I had reached the highway out of the city, it was only after that my paranoia started to settle down. The rumbling of the engine had started to feel more like music now. The rhythmic transmission of gears and curves, it felt like home. Like it was where I was supposed to be. Like it was what I was supposed to do. My plan was very simple and had no complications. Drive as long as you can, as far as you can, stop wherever you felt like stopping, smoke a cigarette, hydrate yourself, feed yourself, and repeat.

Travelling alone especially on a motorcycle may sound a little overwhelming but it has its own perks. Sure you don’t get anyone to help you if any trouble was to break loose on you. But you also don’t have to deal with drama and liabilities. When I started the trip, I focussed more on the latter part but the former part didn’t quite leave me alone as well, but we’ll get there when we get there. 

My first stop wasn’t much far away from home. Mandarmani, not very far from Odisha-Bengal border as well. Very quiet, about 10 people on a 3 km long beach and it was clean. There wasn’t much to that place but to my favour, the weather that evening was simply amazing. It was cloudy to the point of a storm but no storm. The wind sounded as if it carried the ghosts of all the men who once lost themselves in the deep ocean. It was hauntingly beautiful. And so more it was after a few joints. It was a high tide that night. I spent some good 3 hours sitting alone on a broken pillar on the beach doing nothing; absolutely nothing. It was the most beautiful feeling I had experienced in a very long time. As if time had stopped, and it stopped for me. The howling winds put on the most enchanting score and the setting sun made the sky bleed.

I tried to leave the place next day as early as possible which I’ll figure out later wasn’t early enough. It was all good and merry and as any normal journey should be when I left from that place in the morning. The first few miles were through broken stretches within local villages which fell on the border of Odisha and Bengal but then after that, I found the highway everything and everything went back to normal; at least it seemed like it did. I was doing absolutely fine, rocking over 100kmph easily and then suddenly the bike halted. It coughed a little and then finally the engine shut itself. I got down the bike and fidgeted with carb and spark plug socket to check if everything was fine, which was. I tried to figure out what exactly had happened but nothing I was doing making the bike start. I dragged the bike for a few 100 metres and found a local bike workshop. I asked the mechanic to take a look at which even after my repeated requests, he refused upfront on the face saying we don’t service Enfields. So I turned to uncle Google for help and located the nearest Royal Enfield Service centre. I called them up for an on-site breakdown servicing. The technician came after some 40 minutes. Took almost 3 hours to figure out the problem and fix the bike. 

I knew I was already late and running behind time. I should have reached my next stop for the day. I decided to not stop for the meal and would have food straight at the resort I had booked in Gopalpur, Odisha. I reached Gopalpur sometime around 9 in the evening which I should have by 5. Anyway, shit happens. Right? You can either let it drag you down with you or dust it off. I drove at un-natural speeds for an Enfiled bike. Which did cause the bike a few damages, not engine wise but other mechanics. Nothing major, just a few loose bolts here and there. I had already decided to stay in Gopalpur for another day and fix the bike.

The resort I had booked was some 20 km away from the highway and that 20 km stretch was pitch black dark. No Street lights, almost non-existent population. Only the silhouettes of small mountains which I could see under the clear moonlit sky. It was scary but amazing. The resort was located on a slope from where the road would directly lead you to the beach. As the keys to my rooms were handed over I asked the attendant if there was a place somewhere near where I can get a few beers. The owner of the resort was himself sitting in a room in front of the reception with his father with glasses filled with whiskey came out and asked me to freshen up and come down there. “We ourselves are always on a lookout for people to have drinks with.” I nodded and went up to my room. I settled in my room and cleaned up. took a short nap and then came downstairs to look for dinner. To my surprise, the father-son duo was still going on with their booze.

"Hi..." "Join us", the old guy said. "So you're coming from Punjab?" He asked. "I'd like to think so but no, I'm riding from Kolkata." "We thought you're coming from Punjab. I saw the number plate on your bike," said the son. "I used to live in Punjab at one time." "Where are you going?" "Hyderabad." "Waise hi ghumne or something else?" "...something else," I said. "I once used to do a lot of bike trips," said the old guy pouring some whiskey in his glass. "I owned a 76 model Jawa CL-II" He continued, "My friends and I would go to all the worst roads ever to drive a bike on." "Why the worst?" I asked. "They change you for the better. Paved roads are fun to ride. But putty roads, boulders, fields, mountains... they teach you how to ride."This discussion ran for something over 3 hours before I finally bid my farewell to them for the night and went back to my room to sleep. Although I was dead tired- But sitting with them and talking... For a brief moment, I had forgotten my body needed rest as well. Long story short - It was a day well ended.

The next day I woke up early despite sleeping late. I smoked a cigarette and pulled my tools out of the bag and went down to the parking area. I spent the morning fixing up the bike. By the time I was done it was already lunchtime. I freshened up and went out to explore the town a little. I found this really small shack on the beach. The weather was humid but it wasn't hot. I spent around 2 hours roaming the town before coming back to resort. The attendant called me up and gave me some weed wrapped up in a newspaper with a chillum and said, "Sir bol ke gaye hai apko dene ke liye"(Sir asked me to give it to you) I was nothing but all smiles. I smoked up and the rest was just a trance. 

I left Gopalpur at around 5:30 in the morning. The morning sea breeze begged me to stay for a few more days but the calling was greater for me. I drove for about 3 hours before reaching Vizag. I didn't get to take a trip around the city but I did stop there for breakfast. The day was beautiful and the roads were more so, the weather was favourable and everything else was just falling together to make a great day ahead, till someone crashed their van behind my bike. The rear fender was all damaged. I couldn't really argue with the guy because, language. I somehow drove to the nearest bike repair shop and asked them to take the rear fender off the bike. I knew I wouldn't be able to carry it along so I left it with them. Spent another hour at the bike shop and then I was on my way again. 

Luckily I wasn't too late to see the sunset this time. Name of the place? Odalarevu. It's almost a virgin beach with just one resort in the radius of about 50 km. Which I thought would be a great idea to stay there. You know fewer people; more peace. Which it was. The place echoed with the sounds of sea waves. The only problem was the resort itself. The room which was given to me looked like it had been kept shut and untouched since the resort opened. If you have arachnophobia, you don't want to be here then. The room was full of cobwebs and mosquitoes. The food, OMG the food... The food tasted like it was lying in the fridge for about 10 days before they heated it up and served me. I did not eat that night. Couldn't risk the ride the next day. 

I started my last day of the ride as early as 4 in the morning. One, I didn't want the evening office traffic to be the first thing to hit me in Hyderabad, and two, I couldn't sleep properly well because of mosquitoes. And with something or the other happening with me or my bike on every ride-day, I was mentally prepared that day for anything the world had to throw at me. For me, it was like - What's the worst that could happen? I started off the morning with the first bracket of my ride being 120 km. I stopped at a roadside stall for some tea and something to eat. It was about the time when the sun was rising, I finished my breakfast and tea. Ok, let me tell you something. You are on a highway stretch and both sides of the roads are covered with a tree belt and beyond the belt is barren land for as far as your eyes can see. And from that horizon you see the morning sun gliding up the sky slowly like your lover who woke up after a good night's sleep, playing hide and seek with the clouds as if she asks to sleep a little more and then finally rises up, spreading and gleaming all her warmth and when that warmth falls on your face - At that moment, you are in euphoria.

The weather was beautiful and so were the roads. I was doing really 120-130kmph easily and the ride couldn't go any smoother. As I was nearing Hyderabad - As much joy I felt, It was almost equally saddening. The ride was almost over. The joy of having it done, having ridden so far for so long and all on my own, and the sorrow of it all being over. It's like one of those things with which you have that love-hate kind of relationship. You hate going through it while you don't want it to get over as well. It was Eid that day and the city greeted me with herds of people dressed in whites moving in unison on the roads either or bikes or walking. It looked like nothing I've ever seen before. This never came to my mind that It was essentially an off day for people and instead of office traffic I was witnessing the festive hurdles. I had already arranged for my accommodation and everything else needed, even before I started the trip. I reached there sometime around 2 in the noon. I rode about 600 km that day - Ideally I should've been tired but that didn't happen. I threw my bags in my room, checked my phone, countless notifications, I called up my friend and said, "Oi... Pohuche gechi!"(I reached) with a grin almost as wide as my face. We talked for another few minutes and then I informed my parents about my arrival.

A couple of people have asked me since then, "what was it like?" and all I could tell them was it was one of the most painful yet most beautiful things I've done. I guess that's why Ibn Battuta said, "Travelling leaves you speechless and then turns you into a storyteller."