To Ananya Gaurfarmayish

A friend of ours once told you while we were together, "I think she really likes you because she dresses up every time you are there." Right after hearing it, I have suddenly realised how true it was. There are not many I have dressed up for in my whole life. There are not many who I put on a bindi for. There are days I wear white for peculiar reasons, people, and the way I feel. I do not sent white hearts to everyone. And the peculiarity-list goes on.

But ever since I heard that comment, it has stayed with me mostly because someone noticed a language I try to speak around people in my own ways I have never tried to speak about. And it has made me feel good about you coming a little closer into my life a year back, even when I didn't get a chance to tell you that for a long time.

I cannot believe that it took this long to finally get some moments for us to know each other. I don't know if I'll ever be good at explaining what I feel when someone trusts me with their deepest stories, and the feeling of finding a friend who really understands when I am not looking for one. A friend with whom you can share a secret you don't dare to share at all, to laugh it off.

Thank you for wanting good things for me all the time when I am mostly shy. Thank you for draping a saree on me for the first time in my life by saying, "Then I'll do it for you today." Thank you for wishing me more yellows. For teaching me to cook delicious noodles, for making mocktails, for singing for me, for learning music early in the mornings and making me wake up to the sound of music. For taking me to places I don't know of right where I live. For understanding that I fall short & never judging. For noticing what I was doing when we were not at all having conversations years back while you were around me, and saying it when you got a chance. Above all, thank you for seeing me, so deeply.

I know birthdays put a great pressure on you, but I think saying this on an otherwise normal day will make it weirder. So here are just these words for a day you'll be on my mind a little more than many other days. For you to know that you are rare, and that I heart you very very much.

Happy birthday. ❤️