"Life Is A..."

 Ahmed didn't need to go anywhere, he was just wandering in the streets of the city without any purpose. He had come here just a few weeks ago so he wanted to know the city broadly. Another reason which urged him to come out and stroll in the streets was his thoughts. He tried to busy his mind in the rush of the city but previous incidents were arriving before his eyes, again and again, he wanted to scratch his memories from the walls of his mind. This was his fortune that he got a job as coming into the new city. He would work in the library until the evening of five and then wandered in the city till night. Near the library, he got a quarter too which was shared with another man who was a school teacher, named Imran. Imran was a young handsome man. When he saw him the first time he was surprised to see his dressing and stylish look. He wore a showy eyeglass and stood his hair with the jell. He was lookng like a fashionable dashing boy. Ahmed didn't believe that he is a teacher. He considered him first like a showy boy but gradually he knew that he is a good guy, helping and supporting. They became friends quickly. Imran had just two interests, he called them hobbies, which were, doing modern fashion and talking with the girls. He always tried to follow modern fashion, always kept looking well and stylish. And after school, he started to talk with the girls on his cell and ended the night before sleeping. A very rare time he got outside to stroll with Ahmed after much forcing by him. Whereas Ahmed would come home after closing the library, used to rest for a while, took a cup of tea with Imran, and left the home. He wandered until he was tired. He used to stroll in the Bazaar, markets, and parks, and when felt hungry entered the restaurant which he liked, enjoyed the meal, and started again his stroll. On Sunday he visited historical places of the city, sometimes alone and sometimes with Imran.

"Dude you should go with me, I'm saying you have to go." He would say to Imran every Sunday and he said, "but how can I go to leave to Saira, she'll miss me, and of course, I promised Sana that I'll call you in one hour. You know I don't break my promise." 

"Yeah, I know how you fulfill your promise, now stop your nonsense and let's go with me otherwise I'll tell Tania that you talk to other girls too," Ahmed said to him mischievously. 

"How can you tell"?

" Like this" he showed him her number in his cell.

"Oh, how you got this number, how you touch my mobile without my permission."? He almost jumped.

" my dear I didn't get it, you used my cell phone to call Tania two days ago when your credit was finished."

"Oh, yes, I used your phone. Okay, I'll go with you."  Similarly every Sunday they talked like that, sometimes Ahmed succeeded and sometimes didn't.

"Well, dude, how can you get these girl's numbers and talk a lot to them?" He asked him.

"My dear it's an art, you wouldn't understand." He replied by waving his shirt collar with pride.

"O, good, I don't want to understand too."

"Then why did you ask?" 

Ahmed didn't answer and just smiled.

"If my decision was true or not? Why I'm thinking like that, I should forget those days." He was strolling and thinking about his previous life which left in his city. 

"So you decided to go from here"? She asked him.

" Yes, I decided."

"Alright, then ... I'm going."

"Listen to me, so…"

"No, If you have decided already then what would be beneficial to talk to you. I wish I could understand you."

He felt tired, there was a tea stall there, he entered. The tea stall was almost empty. There was silence around, just a light sound of the burning fire was existing. He didn't have a mood but he ordered a cup of tea. 

"How would I tell you? I have told you already…

"Sory Ahmed I should leave now. "

The tea man put the tea on the table. He lit up the cigarette, circles of smoke were blending in the air. He dragged for a while and stood up, paid a bill of the tea which he didn't drink, and came out from the tea stall.

When he entered the quarter Imran was still busy with his cell. He didn't say anything and sat. Enough time he had been staring at the roof silently then Imran spoke to him, " where are you lost, bro? What are you thinking?"

Nothing. you tell, hows your girls?"

"All are fine."

"Why have you cheated girls, what do you get from this?"

"Just for fun bro, life is just for enjoyment, we have only one life so we should pass it with full of amusement."

He got lost in his thoughts again, "You want to escape from your responsibilities that's why you want to go from here." She said. " You didn't want to pick my responsibility. You just want to entertain in your life. "

"No, Sara, no, you are not understanding me, I'm not escaping from my duties, I'm just saying, these are not only responsibilities in life. Life purpose is not limited to job, marriage, and similar, the purpose of life is big, something else..."

"You lost again, now you tell me what you are doing in your life, do the fun dude, life is so short, just enjoy it, just entertain," Imran advised him.

"Yeah, you are right, life is short, but how should we pass it? He muttered to himself, "maybe you are right, we should pass it with…"

The next day he strolls at the seashore. Blue sea water was glittering in the sunlight. Footprints of the people were spread on the wet sand. One couple strolling with grasping their hands. Seawater touched their feet and returned. In a little distance cheering, playing and laughing sounds were colliding with the noise of the water. An old woman shouted, " okay, children, now the time has finished, come back now we are leaving the sea point" it seemed that she was a teacher of the kids, she was a little aged and a little fat, wore glasses. " Please mam, just half an hour more" the children requested of her.

"No, my children, it's enough. We should go, now we should go to school and continue our study."

"It's not fair mam, every time we do study I hate it. I don't wanna study more." One child expressed his anger.

"So what do you want Hamza?"

"I just want fun, enjoyment, and entertainment."

"But you can do both together."

"How do I do both together? Both can't live together."

"Both can be?"

"How"? Hamza asked surprisingly.

" Look there," she pointed towards the sea, " like sea and seashore are living together, like water and land are existing together."

Ahmed glanced at seawater which was spreading in a far distance, then he looked at dry sand under his feet, grinned, and moved on.