A sad past

All he could think about was dying. He was trying to find a way on how to kill himself without any pain. His favorite hobby was observing and understand when and what people felt in different situations. He was imperturbable, then why was he trying to kill himself? For that, we have to go back in time.

Ruby loved his parents and had a little sister named Lara, who was very dear to him, he also had a friend named Sophia he liked, but she died of cancer two years ago. He was a well-educated 27-year-old man, living his life like an ordinary 27 years old man would, but he wasn't happy with his life.

He enjoyed simple things. Why does he desire such simple things? Well, he is known to bring misfortune wherever he goes. To make matters worse, he doesn't try to look good. His unattractive appearance attracts unwanted attention from people with no good intentions.

As a result, his life, in general, wasn't easy. He had a decent-paying job which helped his family maintain their pricey lifestyle while paying for his little sister's college fees. He never wanted this thousand dollar bed, a hundred thousand dollar sports car, a 100 dollar gourmet dinner, expensive designer clothes, or this self-charging robot vacuum.

He wanted real friends who loved him, not the ones who only tried to talk to him because associating with him would bring them more benefits. When he thought about who would love him if he was a poor homeless guy, the only answer he could think of was NO ONE, not even her own baby sister likes the real him. She is only fond of the things he gifts her.

He knew that no one loves him, but this wasn't a good enough reason to abandon everything and everyone. What Klara did on 13 august 2021 was the final push he needed to make a decision. A decision which he was not sure was a good or bad idea.

He decided to live his life on the road, traveling from place to place, eating local food, experience their culture. Hopefully, meeting people who would love him for who he was, not what he owned. Abandoning his family was not an easy decision as they were the people with whom he grew up. He decided he wouldn't sacrifice his own happiness for others. Not anymore.

After a year or so of living on the road, he felt this was the best decision he ever made. He earned food by asking everyone if they need help with something. Most of the time people would give him food, the rest of the time they would just kick him after he was done with his work.

Life is just the ups and downs of sadness. When you are less heavyhearted, you feel happy. He accepted all the downs with an open heart which soared his ups to even greater heights.

After traveling for some time he started wondering about different things, and all of them were not someone with any political power or influence would care about. He knew all of those questions were stupid, and solving them is easier said than done, but they were interesting nonetheless.

"Why was murder immoral, but eating animals was normal? Why talk about freedom and force everyone to wear clothes? What was the point of paying for land to build a house on top of it? Isn't land supposed to be free, who decided that government owns the land? They never asked me. Is that too much to ask?"

"It is all weird. Everyone is a hypocrite. I don't mind them, but why force me to follow your rules when I don't have anything to do with them, I wouldn't cause harm to anyone."

All of this exhilarated Ruby. All these questions never crossed his mind while living in luxury. After a long time passed, he started noticing some of his hairs turning white. He loved living on the road, not all of it was flowers and petals. Sometimes people would start a fight with him for no apparent reason. Theft and extortion were ever so common but all the good things were worth it.

(.)The seat on either side of him is pretty much always empty on the subway.

(.)He was bearding before bearding was cool.

(.)Covering up with newspaper provides warmth AND keeps him up-to-date on current events.

(.)Him and President Obama have something in common.

One day a random police officer came out of nowhere and told Ruby

"Go lodge somewhere else. This is a footpath, not a hotel room. "

This was a first for him as he usually didn't stay at a single place for a long time, but he wasn't feeling well these days, so he decided to rest here for a week.

He asked very politely

"Where should I go if I don't have any money? Give me some time, and I would leave in a week or so."

Silence prevailed. The police officer was looking frustrated.

Ruby didn't know what he was expecting from him. After a moment of silence, Ruby asked.

"Why would you bother kicking a harmless old man? Did I offend someone by mistake?"

The police officer told Ruby that an old lady living across the street asked the police to kick him away. Ruby was confused, but since he promised he would leave on his own after he will start to feel better, they went away. Generally, police officers don't bother with poor people like them, but he wondered why was that old lady making a fuss.

"Did she fell for my unrefined charm? If being beautiful is a sin, then you are a deep-fried potato, and I don't like potatoes."

He kept sleeping there. Three days later, a jeep trailing a cloud of dust was speeding in his direction. The police officer came again. This time he didn't ask any questions. He threw him in the jeep and locked him in jail for a week.

It was enjoyable for him, to say the least. They gave him three meals a day, a bed to sleep on, and fresh clothes. He didn't need the clothes, but he accepted their kindness.

After a week, they asked Ruby to go away and not sleep in that place. Ruby questioned if he can sleep in the jail then, but they refused that. He didn't listen to them and went back to the footpath.

"I guess that was my punishment, but I don't think sleeping on the footpath is breaking the law."