Today I received the undergarments you'd ordered for me. Jockey, the next best thing to naked. Two of them, so that if I were too lazy to wash the used one, I'd have a spare one for the day. They are supposedly my birthday gift. The best gift, for it is the only thing I needed. I had specifically asked for them when you called me two weeks ago. 'Tell me, seriously, no,' you crooned, 'Harsh, not everything is a joke.' I stood my ground. Other than underwears, I didn't need anything. I have no material desires. No gadgets, no instruments, no books right now, as I'm surviving on bare essentials. Not even ... love, I added and immediately regretted. I was joking, I said. You silently left the conversation.

Holding the pack in my hand right now, I look at it in amusement. You not only ordered it but ordered it early. A week before my birthday, a week after our break-up. You hated how I was always joking when we were together. Did you crack a joke this time?

- हर्ष स्नेहांशु