He woke up and looked at the alarm clock. It was six in the evening. Ever since he came to college, it felt like he had a black hole on his right shoulder-heavy, dark-and he felt a clamp inside his head. He had been talking to himself ever since he came to the college hostel. He first met Golu when he was ten days into college. He found him sitting on his head, trying to comb his hair, and he was only visible in the mirror and only to him. Golu told him that he would remain until the black hole on his right shoulder dissolved, but he also told him that the possibility of that happening was, if not impossible, very low.
Golu made his home on his left shoulder and permanently stayed there. No one could see Golu except him. Golu was small, the size of a rabbit, and looked like a cross between a rabbit and a cat. Golu remained on his left shoulder when he went to the bathroom, when he went to college, when he went to play football, and when he went shopping, and so did the black hole on his right shoulder.
Golu was a good companion. He attended his dentistry classes with him, and he had helped him immensely during the tenure of his studies. He was approaching the end of the third year of dentistry, but Golu had been there with him, helping him learn the intricacies of Anatomy and Physiology, and then later Pathology and his dentistry subjects.
The black hole on his right shoulder had grown immensely since the first year, but Golu was still as little as he was when he first appeared on his shoulder. His main job, due to the weight of the black hole on his shoulder, had become a side hustle, which Golu helped with. The black hole was a whole other beast, and unlike the black holes in space, it emitted things and people that only he could see, though it also pulled things in, just like the black holes in space. It pulled in his energy, leaving him drained.
He had Medicine and Surgery to deal with, and then he had his postings, but the black hole sucked his energy, leaving him with nothing except Golu. He had friends, but then he came back to his apartment and there was no one but the black hole on his shoulder and Golu. He called home and talked to his Mom, Dad, and three brothers, and then he ordered a pizza delivery and sat eating the pizza while watching a television series as Golu talked to him about it.
He looked at the clock again. It was 7:35. Time for studying. He opened the book of Surgery and made some notes. He studied for about two hours, and at 9:30 he closed the book, opened the pizza box, and ate one more slice as he got up and walked towards the refrigerator in his 1BHK apartment to get a glass of Campa.
Golu was sitting on his shoulder, whispering in his ear that Campa was bad for his health. He didn't talk to Golu loudly because people would think he was crazy. The way the conversation worked was that Golu whispered in his ear, and he thought loudly in his head. This had been their method of conversation since the first year. He assured Golu that he wouldn't drink too much Campa and that he too was a man of medicine and knew that moderation was the key to health.
He grabbed a glass, opened the fridge, and poured himself a glass of Campa. He took a sip and came back to his study table, where the pizza box lay open with two slices of pizza still remaining. He grabbed the pizza slice and took a bite and then he offered it to Golu, knowing that Golu never ate. Golu bit lightly on his shoulder to express his displeasure. He finished the two pizzas and drank the Campa and then lay down on his bed. His stomach was full and and Golu was now sitting on the left side of his pillow, it was 10:05. The blackhole was again a thing of its own, it emitted things and a lot of times it emitted demons. Strange demons who then sat on his right shoulder beside the blackhole and whispered things in his ear like how well they knew him and it is then Golu whispered good things in his left ear to balance things out. He closed his eyes and imagined himself getting married to Tanya, and her wearing a lehanga playing dandiya with him and soon drifted to sleep.
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