Half The Heart That Loves Me

By Shreya Patel

“'Are you blind Gregory? Can't you see that I love you like I love nobody else in the world?' she wailed. My heart skipped a beat. Finally she was saying what I wanted her to. The moment I had been waiting for, yet fearing, had finally come....” The dreamily perfect boy. The dreamily perfect girl. And as the cliché goes, they fall in love. So what stands between them? A DARK HISTORY... How will their tangled history affect them? Will it bring them together or throw them apart? Taylor and Gregory's lives are filled with suspense. And there are still more twists and turns in store for them. How will they cope with it? 'Half The Heart That Loves Me' is a beautiful love story with drama, tragedy and love in full throttle.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Notion Press
• Release date: Aug 20, 2014
• ISBN: 9789384381745

Book preview

Patel

1. Taylor Clifton

I don’t know from where it started from. It usually happens this way. Or so everyone says… Love enters without knocking at your door. You believe in love too, don’t you? Or else you wouldn’t have any reason to read what I’ve written. But the actual problem is that I don’t believe in love but still fell in the trap. I broke my own rules. I wouldn’t have come to know that I have fallen in love unless I wouldn’t have picked up that pesky book from the library. It was titled the MAGIC OF LOVE and everyone around me was reading it. Not that I really cared, but I don’t why the curiosity started building up I me and at last I decided to read it. I had to hide it so that no one could know that I am reading such a book. Just imagine what people would think about me if they came to know that I am reading a love book. I even had to convince the librarian not to tell anyone that the book is in my possession. Luckily she got convinced. It was with the help of that book that I came to knew that I had fallen in love. That very thought itself gives me a shudder. How much I wish right now that I’d never given birth to the curiosity in my heart and never read the book. I would’ve been much better off then.

Actually to be honest, I think I am going insane day by day. I talk to myself as if I am two different personalities. One that hates love and one that is mad in love. I am in such a catch-22 that I myself don’t understand who I really am now. And that is why I am in a hospital right now. The personality of me who is mad in love has brought me here. How strange… my subconscious mind is making me do so many things.

Hey! I never told you the introduction. Isn’t it? I didn’t tell you my name, my lover’s name or why I am at the hospital. So let’s start by names. My name is Taylor. The person I have fallen in love with is named Greg, actually Gregory. Like in all love stories, I too never knew when did I fall in love. Since my teenage years I have seen what destruction love causes. Everyone used to come up to me to solve their teenage problems. Love, breakup, heartbreak, patch up, hate and stuff… I had seen all these and its side-effects since I was 14. Seeing al these things there was on thing that I decided--never ever to fall in love in your life. And this rule is applicable throughout my life. It doesn’t differ or get liberalized whether I am a 20 year old hot butterfly or a 60 year old muddle head. It does not change whatever may come and go. But as all stupid love stories go, I too broke my biggest rule and fell in love.

But the thing is that I can’t change it now. I have to accept the fact. Now that I have told you a part of the love story, let us go into flashback and let me complete the full story. A little knowledge about something is always dangerous. And I don’t want to fall into more danger anyway. You must have understood it already.

2. Taylor Clifton

So let’s start from the very start.

My first day at college.

The day that I was never waiting for.

How much I was hoping that this day would go just normal and simple and how rudely and cruelly people spread ice on my hopes. It came out to be as complicated as I wanted it to be simple. If I told someone out of the college, they would never even believe me… you might be getting excited to know what had happened. So let me tell you about it. It brings a smile even on my face. When I came to college my friend Jade and all her friends knew about the college and the students and professors and who was the popular, unpopular, the smartest, the dumbest and what not. And on the other hand, I knew nothing. Not even a spec. But I didn’t care even. I came to college just for a degree. Nothing else. So what happened was, as I didn’t know anything about the infrastructure of the college, I didn’t know where the classes were. I had to attend my chemistry lecture as my first class but I didn’t know where the lecture hall was so my friends decided that they will first drop me at the lecture hall and then go to their classes. We were just walking down the alcove and a strange thing happened. A boy who was standing alone in the alcove, maybe waiting for someone as it looked like, looked at me and smiled, actually started staring at me and smiled. Actually we all were walking in a horizontal line so he looked in our direction. I wasn’t sure that he was looking at me. I just felt he did and he was. Even though I have decided not to find any guy charming, I still found him charming and magnetic. I surely didn’t know him and hadn’t seen him before. As he was literally staring, ethically I was supposed to feel strange and angry but that’s the problem- I wasn’t feeling that way. I actually felt good… even wonderful. And I guess I was replying him with a smile and a stare too. And why the hell was I doing that, heaven knows. I could hear whispers among my friends when he started walking towards us, me actually. Every eye got fixed on us. He came and stood in front of us. I could see my friends snickering. I guess they knew him. He looked at me and a grin spread on his face. Then he winked at me. I must admit that I found him really handsome at that time. Then he mouthed ‘I am sorry’ in such a way that only I was able to see it. Then he took a step near me and cupped my face in his hands. And then he suddenly said,’ Where were you baby? I searched for you hell over. I know what I did was wrong. I shouldn’t have left you that way. I am sorry baby, I really am.’ Saying the last line, he hugged me. I tried to get away but his hold on me was strong. I left struggling after a few seconds. Till then a girl entered who looked like a 19th century Medusa. She looked really really stupid in the polka dot dress that she was wearing. Her hair were tied up in a ponytail which looked like a numerous snakes hanging from a clip (I guess now you know why I called her a 19th century Medusa). Heaven knows what she did with her hair. Whatever… who cares. She came and stood in front of us which made the guy release me like a hot cake. She looked at him first and then glared at me. Then she asked me, ‘Who are you? And what are you doing with my boyfriend?’

I had almost realized what was cooking up. So I replied, ‘Why should I tell you who I am? And tell me one thing, is he seriously your boyfriend? I mean no offence but you guys don’t even look compatible, forget being compatible. Everybody around us laughed at this. She was so astonished that she couldn’t say anything. Her expression told everything. I was kind of proud of myself. This newfound confidence was amazing. I knew it was somewhere in me but it never showed itself. She looked at the boy then and said, ‘You haven’t been loyal to me isn’t it baby? What so good in her that’s not in me?’ Everybody around us laughed even louder than before. Everybody was clearly enjoying the scene. ‘He isn’t your dog for heaven’s sake…’ I said adding fuel to the fire.

Then the bell rung and I suddenly remembered about my chemistry lecture. I moved to my friends. ‘Jade common I am getting late for my chemistry class.’ I said. ‘Alright, alright. Relax. I am coming, I’ll show you. It’s just round the alcove.’ she replied. She showed me the way and I promised to see her later in the canteen and went off to my class.

3. Taylor Clifton

My first class went pretty well. Out of my expectations actually. Next I had a free block of one and a half hours and later had my microbiology class. So I thought of putting this time to some good use. So I called up mom, talked to her for some time and then decided to go to gym and work out for an hour. So I changed into tracks, had a nice workout and came back to the cottage and quickly slipped in for a quick shower. When I returned back, I found Jade comfortably perched on my bed.

‘How did you come in here?’ I asked astonished.

‘By walking through the door… is there any other way in here?’ she asked innocently.

‘But…’ I got confused.

‘You hadn’t locked the door. I was free so I thought I’ll come and meet you.’ She said curing my confusion. ‘We have a microbiology class next. We’ll go together. And tell me one thing girl, how do you know….’ I never let her complete her sentence.

‘I don’t wanna talk about it. I don’t know him, he doesn’t know me. This topic shouldn’t come up again in our talks. You get that? Well what’s the time?’

‘Its 10:50. I guess we should rush or we might get late. And we don’t want to get late on our first day.’

‘Yeah. Sure.’

We started walking to our class and because we were early we got good seats. Soon the hall started getting populated. I suddenly saw the guy I met in the morning enter the hall. He didn’t look like he was in my batch; he certainly looked like a senior. He was looking in our direction and was walking towards us. He had just reached us and was about to say something when professor entered the hall. He swore under his breath and rushed out of the hall. So this made it clear that he certainly wasn’t in my batch.

The class came out to be more boring than I had imagined. I was just waiting for it to finish. And when it finally finished, professor called me to his office to complete some incomplete formality. So cursing my luck, I had to go there and had to bury my curiosity over why that guy was walking towards us. Moreover I wanted to know who this guy was. I was fed up of referring to him as ‘THE GUY’… I wanted to know his name.

I completed the incomplete formality and went to see Jade in the canteen for lunch.

When I saw her in the canteen sitting on a corner table, she was smiling uncontrollably. It looked as if she had been excited about something over a long time lag. I thought about the possibilities but came over none. Curiosity started building up in me. I started walking a pace faster and reached her.

‘Come on now, sit down. I am waiting to speak to you since heaven came down to Earth.’ She said.

‘What’s so exciting?’ I asked.

She replied with a sigh seeing that I wasn’t even a bit excited. I will never understand how we became friends in the first place. We are complete opposites. If she is north, I am south. If she is ice, I am fire. If she says black, I’ll say white and so on…

‘Out with it Jade. You know my personality. I do not like wasting time neither do I like talking crap. Out with now or bury it forever.’ I replied getting angry.

‘Okay. Okay. Relax. Cool down…. Anger must be some of your relative. But anyways, I must say hats off Taylor….first day and you got yourself a date. Amazing…’

‘Why do you have to talk in spirals? Have you any day in your life talked straight?’ I asked getting irritated.

‘ Gregory. Gregory Dawson, Taylor. How can you forget the hottest, cutest, most handsome guy in town?’

‘Why don’t you go and propose to him? Why sit here and waste my time and eat my head?’

‘How can you be so rude Taylor? And moreover, how can I do such a thing when the most popular guy in college likes my best friend? How can I betray her? It’s against my ethics and morals…’

‘What the hell are you saying? You have another best friend? And who is this guy Dawson?’

‘Oh my god, stop bombarding me with questions… patience girl… Number one. I have only you as my best friend. Number two. Gregory Dawson is the guy that you encountered in the morning. The guy who hugged you tight and displayed how romantic he could be. Isn’t it amazing? Why didn’t you tell me you guys knew each other? Moreover ‘like’ each other?’ she said with her hands displaying special quotes.

‘I don’t know him Jade; I played the drama because I felt that I should. It was some kind of internal voice asking me to do so. And I don’t like him. Not a tiny winy bit. And how are you saying that he likes me? How can someone like me, Taylor Clifton? Of all the girls in the world, how did he even notice me? I prefer to live in my world and better not become a part of someone else’s.’

‘Then you yourself tell me why did he call you for a date? I am pretty sure that strangers don’t call each other up for a date. And I am pretty sure that he does not go on a blind date.’

‘For heavens’ sake, when did he call me for a date? You’ve started day dreaming Jade, common Jade good morning. Come back to planet earth.’

‘I am not daydreaming. He came to me after our microbiology class and asked for you. When I said that you had gone to meet professor and if he had any message for you that I can pass, he gave me this letter and asked me to tell you that he wants to meet you tonight. Don’t worry, I haven’t read the letter. I do have manners now, common…’ she replied grinning hard and I gave her a Jade-you-shut-up-or-I-will-give-you-a-punch look.

She stopped grinning at least. I was glad about that.

Then she gave me that letter. I caught a whiff of his scent in the letter even before I opened it. I felt good about it. Then the question arose, why? Why did I feel so good? Alas! I had no answer to my question. I looked at the letter, it said FOR TAYLOR. I opened the letter; it was just a very short piece of writing.

‘Taylor, I need to meet you. I need to mend

Your thoughts about me. Please, it’s important.

Meet me today at ‘Champagnes And Wines’

The small restaurant near our college. 7pm.

I’ll be waiting’

Yours,?Gregory

Reading that ‘yours’ which was cut off later gave me a flutter in my stomach. Not the flutter of shock but the flutter of happiness. Again I asked myself why and still I had no answer.

Note to myself: Don’t ask yourself questions you don’t want to know answers to.

But did I really have no answers???

It was quite a while later that I realized that I was simply staring at the note given by him. Actually I was debating over what to do. I was so lost that I had even forgotten that Jade was sitting across me and we were supposedly having lunch even though I hadn’t even touched my plate. And Jade was staring at me as if I was an alien from a horror movie.

‘What?’ I asked

She simply replied with a shrug.

‘Oh come on now, out with it Jade, you look like you are going to burst if I didn’t let you speak up