The Butterfly effect

What if I told you that every single thing that you do has an impact on the world as we know it? I don’t mean the Newtonian third law type of impact, neither am I talking about you getting whacked for pulling your sisters pigtail. I’m talking much more than a few Newtons of force. What if I told you that every single action you take, every single step that you take can lead to planetary disturbances? Sounds stupid right? Well I thought so too.

Four years ago
It all started with the audition for the Wei-Lin cosmetic’s latest ad shoot. There I was, a new wannabe model looking for one break into the world of entertainment. This was a brand that was aggressive, full of passion and stubborn in its goal to succeed. Which was the same direction my moral compass was pointing towards.

I didn’t want to lead the same mediocre life that my parents lived, bound by hundreds of traditions and logic defying superstitions. I took my chance and left that life as early as I could, and here I was. Right outside the company which seemed like it was made just to put me on the world’s billboards. There was a huge line right there as is expected in every go-see. But I knew that there was something undeniably magical about this place. Something in me told me that this was were my journey towards stardom, fame and fulfilling my dreams would start from. As I waited in line there stepped out this lady who seemed to have a very arrogant and haughty behavior about her. She walked by in a huff, and almost crashed into our queue of aspiring models. The very next thing we heard was a tantrum being thrown and she threatened to leave the auditions. Well, some people certainly do have a golden spoon and simply can’t be bothered to eat with it. I stopped bothering about any of this and proceeded with the remaining formalities.

I was called in to submit my book and as is common with us newbies I was given the regular cold shoulder. I waited patiently for my turn to step in but the previous incidents slightly dampened my confidence. Just when I was about to give in to my insecurities the organizers asked us to go and pick what made us feel the most comfortable from the selection. While the rest chose some sort of comfy dress I went in for the most flamboyant Flamingo pink faux fur top. The strangest thing happened thereafter, wherein the people who were snobbish through the selection started to be a little too courteous and polite. With that my confidence shot through the roof, Needless to say what followed after was nothing but a dream come true.

Three years ago.

A year down the line and many more shoots later I was not only the face of Wei-Lin cosmetics but also adorned the covers of the latest magazines and had quite a few reputed brands running to get me to sign on the dotted line. It was then that I decided to make my move into stardom. I was literally on cloud 9. I barely made my intentions known to the press and I was flooded with offers for my debut. I finally picked one with a new co-star Paras as I wasn’t really interested in getting serenaded or being promised the world by oldies who were thrice my age.

With the story, director and actor finalized we breezed through the production for the movie. However we ran into a slight hitch the night before the movie’s release. Paras and I had gotten quite close through the shoot and as a token of our friendship he gifted me a lucky bamboo plant in a beautiful earthen vase. As I ended up getting quite a lot of attention from negative elements I placed the vase in front of the door in such a way that anyone trying to break-in and enter would find a vase landing on their feet. It turns out that Paras tried to surprise me with his ninja skills and ended up getting his gift smashed on his feet. I insisted on taking him to the hospital but he decided against it to avoid a scandal.

Two years ago.

Time passed by and the movie was a blockbuster, however Paras slowly vanished out of the limelight and out of my life. It turns out that even after having loads of money and a considerable amount of pull you still can’t find someone who doesn’t want to be found. I slowly started seeking other forms of support to help me deal with my stardom. It all started with one celebratory drink after another. Turns out success and money wasn’t everything after all. I realized that I had developed feelings for Paras but after his vanishing, I focused more on women-centric movies which ensured that I didn’t get my heart run over by some random dude.

One year ago.

I screwed up. BIG TIME. I was returning home from a party in the mainland and it so happened that having too many shots of vodka wasn’t that great of an idea as it seemed at the time. And so was sending the driver back home. I crashed my customized Volvo gifted by a prince, I can’t for the life of me remember his name. Well, turns out that wasn’t such a memorable night as well. The safety features in the Volvo ensured that I survived unhurt, but I blacked out soon after. I woke up chained to a hospital bed. The crash claimed the life of a grandmother and her granddaughter. I broke into tears, I remembered my own mother whose existence I had forgotten all this while and was filled with sadness. It felt that all I had achieved was for nothing. I checked myself into rehab and decided to get my life into order. I had earned enough to make a difference in many lives.

Present

My past finally seems to have caught up with me, and it definitely was not a happy reunion. More like a bunch of mixed emotions. I finally met my parents after a long time. They were happy that I had succeeded and finally people knew my native place existed because of what I had achieved. I hugged them both and bawled myself enough to give the press a field day! A happy reunion was what they said in the papers. My siblings weren’t happy to see that I had thrown all my childhood conditioning to the wind, but were happy to see me.

After a week filled with happiness and joy was when I saw her. You probably might have guessed it right. The miserable woman from the photo-shoot. She seemed to have fallen into poverty, as she looked disheveled and miserable with her hair out of place and dressed in rags. I went and put a significant amount of money into her hand and had hardly turned back that she started mumbling random nonsense. I walked away without paying her any attention and joined my family.

I planned to leave the mainland and return back to the place of my birth and enjoy a peaceful life with my family. We started off together in our family’s SUV and were having a gala time playing our favorite childhood games. That’s when my life took a literal U-turn. My brother was driving the vehicle and he seemed to have lost focus for a minute and all I could realize is we’re overturned with none of the others wearing seat belts. I went blank for a moment and then realized that due to where I was seated I had just received a minor concussion. However everyone else was not that lucky. I could see blood dripping everywhere and even worse was that the cheerfulness was now replaced by deathly silence. I screamed for someone to help me and to help my family but it seemed that there was no one else around. I tried searching for a mobile but it was futile. After what seemed to be an eternity, the door on my end was forced open with a jarring noise.

Before I could rejoice and ask them to help my family, I realized that death itself had come to greet me in the form of the haughty lady. She cackled in joy looking at our fate. I felt bad for a moment looking at her in that state. She then said, “Hope you’re enjoying your just dessert, Butterfly.” “I’ve been waiting long for you to get happy and then execute my revenge on you.” I was definitely either having a stroke or the blood just drained out of my heart upon hearing her say that. “Remember when you stole my modeling contract from me?” She asked. I told her that I had no reason to steal anything from anyone, and pleaded with her to let my family go.

“Well, did you remember that when you stole my top on the day of the auditions? I had ensured that the right people were all informed and their pockets were filled with my life’s savings and all you did was waltz away with the top that the officials told me to wear.” I could certainly understand what might have happened there. It all made sense now, the respect that wearing the top gave me. The priority contract. It all fell into place. I replied saying, “Well, it’s me you have a problem with, please let them go.” The sneer on her face changed to glee. “Let them go? Well, that’s not the only thing you did to me did you?” I was getting tired of focusing on pleading with her and answering her stupid questions. “You remember Paras? Well, guess what? You took him away from me twice!”. The very mention of Paras ran a shiver down my spine. “We were happy in love together, and you had to pick him to be your lover boy on screen. Once he got close to you, he started ignoring me and focusing on his work.” “Do you also remember the earthen vase? Well, he ended up having a tetanus infection and he didn’t make it.” I sobbed with grief, I couldn’t make up my mind If I was crying for myself, my family or for Paras. “But well, The icing on the cake still remains. Do you remember the accident you caused last year?” “The grandmother was my mother and the girl was Paras’s and my daughter.” She then picked up the spade she was carrying and aimed it at my head. I closed my eyes just before the spade connected to my head.