Godwin Paul Vincent

Dec 2010, 6.15 PM, Thoraipakkam, Chennai. Gavin alights from the shared auto, thinking to himself, "for god's sake it's my first date ever and can I for once afford to have a non-creased t-shirt travelling in this over-cramped vehicle, great choice." His mind shifts to the attire selection, "well this is my best, I wore this in Helsinki, Blue Levi's Jeans, Black Puma T-Shirt, albeit all purchased on discount from T. Nagar Saravana Stores. Are these fake? I don’t want to know the answer," he thinks to himself. He looks down at his most dear possession, his black Fossil, time is 6.25. We have been meeting regularly in office, however this is the moment of truth. "Time to call Rachel, buddy," he says to himself. As he reaches for his phone and the thought of calling Rachel races through his mind, his heart starts pounding at a speed he had felt only once—as a 6th grade student in military school when he had to jump and climb the 10-foot wall of...