Eleven Seconds Beyond
The night had begun with laughter. It was supposed to be an ordinary birthday celebration: cheap cake, loud music, old photographs, and the kind of alcohol that made childhood memories seem funnier than they actually were. Arun and Karthik had known each other since they were eight. They had attended the same school, fought over the same cricket bat, shared examination answers, covered for each other's mistakes, and eventually grown into the kind of friends who no longer needed words to understand one another. That night, however, they had drunk far more than either of them should have. A little after midnight, they climbed onto Karthik's motorcycle and headed home. The city had begun to empty, and the bridge ahead was almost deserted. The cold wind struck their faces as Karthik accelerated, while Arun shouted something that was immediately swallowed by the roar of the engine. They were laughing and screaming without any real reason, intoxicated by alcohol, youth...
