The Butterfly Effect - An Allegory

On a rainy afternoon, Geet ran out the door to the courtyard, the single sheet of paper rustling in her hands. the bare feet slapping against the rain-soaked cobblestone path to the house next door. To wait for the rain to stop seemed like an impossibly long span of time. 

Before she could slow down, she saw the door open. Crashing into the arm of the person on the other side, her first thought was about the paper she was carrying. Paridhi under her weight could only see the biggest, brightest smile on her face. 

She knew what it meant. Without speaking a single word she knew they would be spending the next three years of college together. 

This was not the first time their life has led them to the same paths. It all started with both Mrs Tripathi and Mrs Sharma having to be taken in the same ambulance down to the local hospital, just before midnight on 21st June. Born just 3 minutes apart. Mrs Tripathi was fixated on naming her daughter Geet for the last three months, but Mrs Sharma wanted to take the traditional way and let Paridhi’s aunt name her. 

Bonding in the postnatal ward, both the mothers sealed the friendship between the girls. They went to the same play school, same kindergarten, same high school, tuition, coaching, malls, abacus classes, music classes, even going as far as quitting music classes at the same time for their shared interest in literature. 

It didn't shock anyone when they both wanted to pursue the same degree at the same university. They packed their bags, took the same train together, and even stayed in the same dorm rooms. They were teased by the name “Siamese” because down to their dietary habits all things about them were the same. Nobody could tell who was copying who at this point. 

The students would bet that Geet was indeed dominant, controlling one of the duo for her short temper, and how spoiled she was by her family. Paridhi on the other hand was more stubborn. 

—

Three years of college go by faster than they expected them to be. Now the duo was focused on upcoming campus placement interviews, which they were confident would not be the problem for they both had scored honorary scores in all semesters. 

Nothing could separate them except the rain. Geet was not the one to get wet, she hated the water wetting her hair. So when Paridhi invited her to the evening stroll around the campus, Geet said flat out no. Paridhi could not request enough, but Geet was worried. She just had her hair done last weekend. The hour-long hair spa was boring when she could've been preparing for the upcoming interviews.

For someone else, it was a small matter, but Paridhi was not having it that day. It was mere drizzle, and they always go for walks at this time, so she made up her mind, and walked out that door without looking back at anyone. They were not Siamese twins after all. 

— 

Geet waited all evening in her (their) room for pari to come back. The walks shouldn't take this long, it's closer to midnight, and she won't pick up the phone either. 

When the door opened, she sighed in relief, but something was odd about Pari she was not mad. Quite the opposite in fact. She was smiling. Which was not odd for her, Pari had a naturally smiling face but the flush on her skin was rather unconventional. ‘Should I question it, ask where she had been?’ but she didn't want to erk her, so they slept in silence. 

The next day they were back to being normal, with no discussion of the upsets of the day before or the redness of Pari’s cheeks from days onwards. Neither voiced the discomfort of when Geet would constantly bug Pari about being glued to her phone, or why Pari could not pot the phone down, ever. 

—

In the months forward, the “Siamese” were just growing apart, just not in the public eye. But an internal cavity that was eating away their links. They both had impressive results on the final days. They gave away their interviews, now they just wanted to go back home for some time. 

Or at least that's what Geet thought.

It wasn't until their last afternoon at the campus, Geet was introduced to Pratyush. When Paridhi came arm in arm to the cafeteria with Pratyush, Geet could not identify either of them. It was the look on Paridhi's face, the faint blush, that cleared out all the doubts, distance, insecurities and questions in her mind.

The raised eyebrow on Geet's face prompted all that could be asked. 

Paridhi had met Pratyush on the same afternoon walk, that night all went downhill. Pratyush saw Pari walking alone that night, for the first time away from her other half, so he knew this was his chance. “I never thought I'd catch you alone.” was the first sentence he said, which evidently creeped Pari out. They laugh about it now, it's a happy memory, they have a laugh about it every time they tell someone this story now. 

Geet was surprised. She was more than just a surprise, she never expected a third person in their group, and neither she didn't expect Paridhi to hold such a secret from her. 

“Well, it was quite awkward to talk about that night.” Pari said “I thought we were avoiding the topic altogether. We never fought like that, nor did we ever hide anything from either. That night, we slept without talking about it, and if I'd have told you the next morning I was afraid you'd be upset again, so I just didn't tell you anything.

Geet heard it all calmly, not wanting to create a bad impression on the third person on the table, who still felt like an invader, but little did they know these events were about to turn from gusts of wind to a tornado.

— 

8 years later, they met again. Geet still lives in the village with her family, she is a very respected teacher at their school. She has a content life, teaching kids, and she is also a writer of daily articles for the local newspaper, so she is quite a celebrity in their district. 

Paridhi moved to the city when she married Pratyush right out of college. With their joint income they have a small disposable income, sometimes the budget is tight, but they were ready to face all the broken washing machines together. Paridhi works at a publishing house, as a copy editor. 

When Pari comes back, Geet greets her with open arms, more so for not bringing Pratyush on her back this time. She is happy to be away from all things, just sitting in the shared garden of the Tripathi and Sharma family, watching butterflies select flowers for nectar. 

All they could think about is that rainy afternoon.