New York has its unique ways of bringing people together. Five years ago Maya and Tara came together in their little New York apartment at 110th and Riverside Drive, Apartment 5C. Those days, Tara - six feet tall, blonde actress and fashion photographer, was struggling to find a paid gig of any kind. Maya on the other hand was a fresh arrival from India to pursue her Ph.D in Literature and Creative writing from Columbia University.
These days, Tara (29) is assisting James Black, Vogue's favourite fashion photographer. Maya (26) however, is still struggling to finish her Ph.D.
17th May 2012
Maya and Tara are chilling in Maya's room. Maya is sitting on the rug, painting her toe nails in a bright shade of "cherry tomato" while Tara is lying on her stomach, on the bed, is reading the latest issue of cosmopolitan.
"Do you think reading cosmopolitan is unintellectual?" Tara asks Maya.
"Ummm...I think you're good as long as you're reading something."
Tara clumsily turns the page.
"All right, let's do this quiz. 'Are you over your breakup', twenty glorious questions to freedom. Let's go with you since I have literally forgotten how to have a romantic relationship with the other homosapien sex."
Maya shoots her a "weird" look.
"So Maya, what's the most difficult part about life after breakup? Is it A) No one to take care of you. B) No one to make love with. C) No one to give you sweet presents or D) No one to fight with. Huh?"
Tara wriggles her eyebrows curiously.
Maya finishes painting her toenails with a master-stroke of her cherry tomato over her little toe.
"What do I say, these are ridiculous options. None of them make sense and I AM over this break up."
Tara bursts out laughing. Maya looks at her angrily.
"Oh, so you don't think I am over him?"
"Ah, yes. You are over him. But are you over this break up? Uh-ah. NOWAY."
"What's the difference? And what is, 'are you over this break-up' anyway."
"Come on Maya, what's your answer, A,B,C or D?"
"None. I mean the only thing that I find difficult about this break up is that I still find his golden hair camouflaged in my bed and that makes me sad. It makes me sad to remember that he once used to sleep in my bed. That I had someone next to me. And it keeps reminding me that it was not a bad dream, it was all real. And now he's sleeping in someone else's bed. Asshole!"
"Ok Maya, next question. Are you ready to sleep with someone else?"
"Sure. If my new thesis advisor Mr. Andrew Keller agrees to it."
Tara closes the magazine with an excited slap.
"Shut up, seriously? I thought you were kidding when you were yapping about his gorgeous brown hair that night at the bar."
"No way, I was perfectly serious. I have a major major crush on him and I have a strong feeling, now that he's my thesis advisor, I might just graduate next spring. And now I don't want to."
"You have this crazy thing for older men Maya."
"I don't know if I'd classify my "attraction tendencies" as that, but I do feel Andrew Keller and I connect in a strange, ethereal-romantic way but do I want to do anything about it - N.O. I don't think he's even thinking about it. I don't need another painful phase in my life by pushing this any further than where we are."
Tara listens carefully and then nods.
"Tara, tell me, do you like kids?"
"I would say mostly my relationship with kids of this world can be defined as peaceful." Tara smiles.
"Peaceful? Seriously? Haven't you ever had a bawling baby next to you on an eight hour flight?"
" Eight hour flight? Come on, I am from New Jersey and that aside, no, kids are cool with me. I don't mess with them, they don't mess with me."
"Then why do they mess with me? Today, the entire time on the subway this kid just screamed his lungs out and his mother was pretending like she's deaf. And strangely most people even found the kid cute. I just wanted to punch him. And then I saw this ugly fourteen or something boy with like a twenty something woman kissing in the subway car. It was disturbing. Then I realized that the girl is not twenty, she's just dressed to look older. And then that was even more disturbing. I don't know, why do I have this strange relationship with kids?"
"It's all bad karma my friend." Tara speaks in a dramatic voice.
"Do you think even the break up was because of bad karma?"
Maya looks up at Tara's face. Tara is silent.
