Recently, I watched the movie “With Love”
Since then, the film has refused to leave my mind. Perhaps it stays longer with those who once carried a first love quietly in their hearts and never found the courage to express it.
On the internet, I have seen “only fools love this movie”. And I’ll say, ‘you can say that I am a fool’.
Some stories do not simply entertain. They reopen small, forgotten rooms inside us.
The film made me realise something gentle yet unsettling: the innocent lover that once lived within me has not disappeared. He is still there. Quiet. Waiting. Almost hidden beneath years of growing up.
Once, love felt different.
Back then, love was not careful.
It was fearless.
A single glance could brighten an entire day.
A simple smile could stay in memory for weeks.
A few shared moments in a corridor or classroom could feel larger than the world itself.
There were no strategies.
No calculations.
No conditions.
We simply loved.
We loved without knowing the rules.
We loved without knowing the risks.
We did not even speak. Yet silence carried meaning.
A look held a conversation.
A shy smile felt like a confession.
Trying to impress them felt like the most important mission in life.
Even standing a little closer felt like victory.
Even hearing their name felt like music.
Nothing else mattered.
We were ready to do anything for them, even though they might never know.
That was the strange beauty of teenage love.
It was pure because it expected nothing.
But somewhere along the journey of adulthood, something changes.
Life teaches caution.
Experience teaches restraint.
Maturity slowly builds walls around the heart.
We still know how to love.
But we also know how easily love can break.
So the lover inside us becomes quieter.
He watches.
He understands.
But he rarely steps forward.
Even when butterflies return, they feel different now.
Once they rushed wildly through the heart.
Now they arrive gently.
They land softly, like a quiet memory rather than a storm.
The feeling is calmer.
Kinder.
More thoughtful.
Perhaps that is what growing up does to love.
It does not destroy it.
It only makes it quieter.
Yet somewhere deep inside, a small wish still remains.
Just once more, I want to be that child again.
The one who loved without fear.
Without hesitation.
Without thinking about tomorrow.
The one who loved simply because his heart wanted to.
Childishly.
Innocently.
Completely. 💛
– – Ramanjaneyulu S
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