This would drastically change my entire life.

It was one of the most wildest dreams come true. I was diagnosed with a skin condition - vitiligo.

White patches were first visible on my face and then it started to spread rapidly on my neck, arms, legs and throughout my entire body.

Hate comments became a new phenomenon in school. My relatives started avoiding me and suggested their kids to do the same, as if...as if I would infect them all with this disease.

I would be stared at...in the shopping malls or on the streets as if I were... an alien. This made me wear clothes that would cover me up completely even when it was extremely hot and sweaty in the mid summers.

And as if all of this was still not enough, to add to my miseries, certain relatives and neighbours suggested my family that we pray and visit temples, as this condition was all the effect of the sins that I had committed in my past life.

My parents kept looking for new medications to treat me. Papaya juice was the first thing I'd have to consume every morning, instead of a cup of tea or coffee.

Drinking water from a copper vessel was compulsory. Mixing basil leaves paste with lime juice, Maa (Mother) would apply it on my face every single day. I had too many restrictions imposed on my diet because of the medications I took.

When my parents had all of their attention focussed on me, I still felt like there was nothing wrong with me. Yes, I had some patches on my skin but that was it. I was healthy in both mind and spirit.I wasn't suffering from any grave or life threatening condition.

Six years of this torment came to an end one day, when I finally decided not to take any more medications. I told my father that I was willing to accept myself just the way I am. I had had enough of medicines and papaya juice and all of that stuff.

"Where did this confidence come from all of a sudden?" He had asked genuinely interested.

Yes, he was right. I had gained this confidence because of someone special.

This someone special was a new student in my school, a boy named Devansh. He deliberately chose to sit beside me on his first day of joining the school, which gave me a very joyous feeling.

Laughing he narrated various stories from his earlier school, about his teachers and classmates. He didn't stare at me as if there was something wrong with me.

Slowly, we became good friends. Though he made many friends in the class, I had only one and that was him. I liked to tease him a lot about everything - from his handwriting which was more of a child scribbling on paper, to his shirt buttoned in a wrong way.

I took a strive to change my lifestyle.

"I've tried all I could Baba( Father), but nothing works for me. I now want to focus on my studies and future...on my career," I had said after a bit of struggle, smiling shyly after having composed my thoughts, thinking about Devansh and his mischievous comments.

I was shattered to pieces, and felt the ground had slipped beneath my feet today in the morning when I heard Devansh speaking to Kavya," Ah! Simmy! (Simran) She's nothing but a spotted dalmatian."

On hearing this, I lost my balance unable to believe if I had heard right. Was it really Devansh speaking? We had been friends for three months now, at least that's what I thought. Trying to calm down, I tried to act normal as if I hadn't heard a thing, though I wanted to confront him. Would he lie to my face? Or would he be brutally honest and say that like everyone else he too feels that I should get treated and remove the ugly dark patches from my skin?

"Ah! Simmy! You okay?" Devansh called me suddenly noticing me clutching onto the door frame.

Releasing the door frame I managed to walk normally and entered the classroom. "Hey! You okay?" He asked again smiling, wiping a tear drop rolling down my left cheek.

Amazed at how he could display so much affection and care for me while disliking me to such an extent, I stared at him for a couple of minutes. I knew all of this was fake but my heart was banging loudly in my chest. Why? Why was he doing this to me? I had no friends and I was okay. Why then did he have to... pretend to be my friend?

I could hear the words "Simmy! She's nothing but a spotted dalmatian" again and again echoing in my head and the pain and the torment was too much to bear.

A warm gush of tears started to roll down my face. In an instant, he held me firmly in his arms. "Simmy! It's okay! I'm here for you okay!" He said softly which confused me and unable to hold it back anymore," But I'm just a spotted dalmatian?" I burst out looking up at him.

There was a sad frown on his face. I wanted to ask him more questions but couldn't. We had to gather for the morning assembly. During the assembly, he stood right behind me in the line and offered me his kerchief when he heard my low sobs. I refused to take his kerchief, more mad and angry at myself than I was at him. Even now I wanted to trust him.

Closing my eyes, I stood silent feeling hollow from within as everyone repeated the prayers. To my astonishment, Devansh grabbed me at my waist from the back and kissed on my left cheek.

"What are you doing?" I hissed back instantly. "In my absence you say such pleasant things about me. Please..."

"I am sorry!" He apologized sincerely,after removing his hands from my waist."If you're a dalmation, then I am a Doberman. I'm sorry simmy."

A teacher passing by heard him say this and pulled him by his ear.

Pain started bubbling inside me, once he left my side. I felt like I was being mocked. It was hard to believe that he was a different person in my absence, or was that the real him, I began to question myself. Was he only pretending to be kind to me?

Pain is often like a trampoline, I realized as it launched me to the next stage of my life. I had decided not to trust Devansh's sweet talk anymore. I had started to ignore him but along with it, I had started to write a journal. Penning down my thoughts, helped me feel relieved. Earlier, it was Devansh's beautiful and warm smile that lit up my day but now he seemed to be growing gloomier with every passing day.

But his words that day had made me feel a multitude of things all at once. Firstly, my trust was broken and secondly, I wasn't able to forgive him at least till now.

Yes! Right now, I'm being stared down by my father as Devansh has visited my house. Though he told him that he needed some notes, my father could look through his intentions. "Ah! Simmy can you please lend him your English notes,"my father said in a loud booming voice. All I could notice was Devansh's face turning even more sad and painful. It seemed as if he wanted to protest...to say something but his voice died quick as he only opened his mouth and closed it again.

"Come in. I'll show you my room," I said a bit hesitantly, and dragged him by his hand to my room without looking at my father once before we left the living room.

My room was not in a position where I could put it on display. No one entered my room except Maa( mother), so I rushed in and hurriedly, tried to hide stuff that wasn't supposed to be there on bed.

Devansh wasn't looking at anything I was doing, I found stealing glances at him. His gaze was fixed on the floor as if he were carefully selecting the right words to express what he was feeling inside. "Are you okay?" I asked worried.

Mutely, nodding a no in reply, he held me in his arms as if he would never let me go. Feeling both shy and scared, I pushed him away. "What if my parents come in?" I hissed at him. He instantly knelt down on the floor, and tears gushed down his cheeks.

"My...my Di ( elder sister) is no more Simmy," He whimpered.

"What happened?" I asked shell shocked.

"She had a miscarriage and lost a lot of blood and...and," He broke down. His sobs brought my parents to my room.

Having no clues to how I could console him, I looked up at my parents for help.

When my parents tried to console him, I felt ashamed of myself and guilt set in crushing my heart. Yes, he was wrong. He shouldn't have compared me to a dog but...I neglected him when he needed me the most.

After Devansh left, my parents informed me that his mother too had gone insane unable to bear the shock. His life had been turned upside down all of a sudden. While he needed time to mourn and grieve the death of his sister, he had to look after his ill mother as she was the only family he had now. Bearing the loss of her husband and then having to bring up two kinds as a sole mother was tough enough of a job. My father promised to support Devansh financially and demanded that I do my best to bring him back to a normal life and help him with his studies.

This was the first time in life when I am feeling that life really is precious and it is extremely important that sometimes let go some trivial matters. The diagnosis of a skin condition isn't a curse. There are way more damaged and broken people, dealing with a lot more than I do...who need care and support.

Author's note:

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