Am not just a joker

“All women like to talk about themselves”, Jack reproached.
Meena looked troubled. “Is that a warning?”
Jack looked up and said “Oh! I keep forgetting you are one of them”
This didn’t cheer Meena up either. “Thanks”
“Are you okay? You sound odd”, Jack noticed for the first time.
“I am not. But I cant tell you about it”
“Why not?”
“Cause you don’t like women talking about themselves”
“yeah! I wasn’t talking about you!”
Meena stared at Jack and looked away.

The 2 of them were lying down on a dark and dry beach. Meena looked at the sky now. Jack was persistent. “Please Meena, you know I always listen to every crap you say”
No response. “I mean it”
Still looking at the sky Meena said, “Have you ever felt I am a joker”
Jack suppressed a laugh before he said “Hehe well to be honest, err”
“Fine, you don’t have to say more”
“Aww come on what is with you! Now you are really acting like a woman! Don’t let me lose you girl!”
“Jack people see me as just a joker, a clown. Someone who acted weird and funny and someone to look up when they wanted to have a laugh”
“Yeah, so what is so bad about that? You make people happy. You should be proud about it”
“Well I am not”
“Why?”
“Cause people expect jokers are made just for that – for being weird and funny. They forget we are people, with all human feelings. They simply forget that. They simply forget our existence”
Jack was genuinely concerned now. “What happened Meena?”
“Nothing… I just wish people gave me more importance sometimes Jack… I never plan to be weird. But it just happens sometimes. And that’s ok with me, if it brings a few laughs. But after that, when people just turn away and leave you alone with your weirdness and jokes, you feel this huge cloud of … loneliness. And you desperately look for attention… for some kind of an acknowledgement they see you as a human… as a friend…”

For a moment they just lied down there. The next moment, Jack rolled over to Meena’a side and was directly above her, facing her, balancing himself with his hands on the ground. “I do”, he said. He didn’t smile, he didn’t laugh. He looked like he made the most serious announcement of his life. Meena taken aback by this movement, did not know if she should laugh or rebuke. She just knew she felt absolutely elated, that he did the right thing. Of course she had to push him off so he wouldn’t lose balance and fall.
And after that they stood up to go back. They walked long, they talked long. And Meena, to Jack’s relief had stopped being “such a woman”. Though surprisingly, he had suddenly become all too aware of her womanhood and something about that made him happy. But he could tell her that later.