A Journey To Remember - Episode 6

Here is the next episode of the story. It's a bit lengthy this time, but its worth reading(I hope). To read the previous part Click Here


Things change. Doesn't mean they get Better. 

After a nice movie, we went to a restaurant.

At the Restaurant:

Waiter: Good evening sir,madam! Menu...

Shreya asked my choice and placed a very lengthy order.

Shreya: I'm too hungry, today. (After a pause)By the way,how was the movie?

Me: It was too good. 

Shreya : Here is a small gift from my side. It's a book called 'The Alchemist'. I'm sure you'll like it. 

Me: (I was awestruck) Thank you so much, Shreya. I've heard a lot about this book. I'll surely read this soon. Mmmm...So, just 1 more week and the study holidays will start. What are your plans? Are you going home?

Shreya: Nope. I'll visit my place and come back. I can't study at my home, you know.

My plan of going home was cancelled in a moment.I had a new agenda for the study holidays.

Me: Same here. Shreya........shall we go to WonderLa, Bangalore during the study holidays? It'll be great fun.

Shreya: I guess, i can't make it. Sorry!!

I felt, it was stupid of me to ask her out. But her rejection made me like her more. That may sound a bit crazy, but i loved her for the decisions that she made.

We had a tasty dinner and a great conversation.

Shreya:  We'll take the stairs. Lets burn some calories.

Me: You ate sooo much and now you want to burn calories. Sick! We'll take the lift. Come..

She gave me a look and followed me inside the lift. That strange, funny look made me smile. She was cute!

The day was about to end when the lift stuck in 2nd floor. We both were locked inside the lift pressing the ALARM button abruptly. An elderly voice from outside shouted, "Please don't panic. There is some issue, we'll fix it in 10 minutes. Don't worry"

When you want something, all the universe conspires in helping you to achieve it. A big thanks to the Lift!

I had got 10 minutes. 10 precious minutes to tell her," I LOVE YOU"

Before i could come up with some cheesy lines, she asked me," Lift getting stuck. I thought, it happens only in movies. Rahul,Its really exciting. Isn't it? "

I said,"Yup. Kind of"

After a long silence.

"Sometimes, i feel life is all meaningless,you know. Everything is so fake. Rather than living, we all are acting in this bloody world. Nothing is real in this shitty world. What the hell are we doing here? Even i am corrupt. Uffff!! What am I speaking!! ",She said in a low tone.

For the first time, i heard her speak negatively about life.

There was an awkward silence for a minute. I was running out of time.

I asked her hesitantly, " I am too immature to comment on this. What have you thought about your boyfriend? I mean, your soulmate.."

" You ask such stupid questions...Hmmm....Well, I haven't thought much about it. But, I want him to be good-looking,romantic,affluent,genuine, kind and should have too much of time for me",She smiled.

"I forgot something, he should speak good English and not be possessive about me. He should live his life and let me live mine.", She completed her long list.

"I am good-looking, yup,kind of..... Mmmm... romantic... kind... genuine..my english isn't that bad.... I need to get rich and be more patient..I'm almost there", I was speaking to myself

Shreya almost shouted," Hey Rahul...Hello..You are completely lost,somewhere........ So, tell me about your expectations?"

I was about to begin my wish-list when the lift started working and we were outside the Restaurant in no time. I couldn't express my desires. 

When the Auto-rickshaw stopped in-front of the girls hostel it was 9:00PM. She waved her hands and went inside the hostel in a hurry.

The rickshaw headed towards our hostel.
"Bhaiyya, thoda volume badaona!!" I requested the driver.

" Tum Paas Aaye, Yun Muskuraaye

  Tumne Na Jane Kya Sapne Dikaaye

  Abh To Mera Dil, Jage Na Sota Hai

 Kya Karon Hai, Kuch Kuch Hota Hai

 Kya Karon Hai, Kuch Kuch Hota Hai"

I was Living a Movie - Romantic,Feel-good and Far-from-reality !

I entered my room and my cellphone received an sms, 
"Had d best tym wit u. Nxt tym i wont force u to hav pop-corn. Sorry if i irritated U by saying nonsense things about lyf n all. And U didn't tell me abt ur future galfren..c u tomo at d coll..GN..TC"

I replied, " Pleasure was all mine. cya..tc"

As Shreya was going to her hometown for 2 days , me and my hostel friends planned for a trip to Lonavla. Vehicle was booked, songs were copied to the pendrives, the luggage was packed and we were all set for the enjoyment.

We boarded the bus at 9AM and were in the outskirts of the city when Shreya called me, "Hey Rahul, I'm not going home. It's boring here at the hostel. We'll study in the Library. Will you join me?"

I said,"Yes,why not? I'll join you in few moments."
What did i say? Why do i want to skip this trip? Who is she, by the way?

"There is an emergency. I need to go to my hometown. I can't come with you guys",I lied to my friends.

"Seriously?" "I heard a girl's voice. He's fooling us" "Dude,let him go. It must be serious" "Do you really want to miss out on this?", My friends had a lot of questions and comments.

Somehow, I managed to join Shreya in the library within an hour.

Study holidays were a pleasure, as always (but,slightly different this time). We used to study, chit-chat, take coffee-breaks, long evening walks and discuss serious issues on life. The time I spent with her made me realize the fact that we both were made for each other. We shared a unique chemistry. I knew, I would be very happy with her. I was convinced that she was the 'Lady of my Life'.

I was happy. I was having the best time of my life. But deep down inside,the fear of losing her was always there.

Exams started and I couldn't talk to her for many days. It was a long season of exams. We all had to undergo a series of 2 lab exams and back-to-back 6 theory papers.

After the completion of final exam, I was celebrating with my friends. I tried calling Shreya but she wasn't picking my call. I knew she would be somewhere in the campus and went on to search her. Finally, I found Shreya in the parking lot. After walking closer to her, I realized that she was talking to Siddharth.I was shocked.

I don't know what was happening, but my heart started pounding at an enormous speed and I had a lump in my throat. I was clueless and had hundreds of 'it's-all-done', 'shit' , 'it's-over' , 'the-end' , 'it's -a-casual-talk' thoughts running through my mind.

Was I being possessive about Shreya? Was I doubting her? I was not sure!!

Thanks for your time.Drop a comment and let me know how you felt.

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A Journey To Remember - Episode 5

Hi folks, thanks for all the appreciation. Thanks a lot for all the "Nice story,man", "So far too good" ,"When will you publish your next episode?" comments(online + offline). It really feels awesome.

Here is the next episode of the story. To read the previous part Click Here.

I guess, I had fallen in love !

After a romantic midnight walk, I couldn't sleep properly. I was eagerly waiting for the next day to begin. It was 6.30 in the morning and i was awake. I could see the huge buildings of my college being kissed by the sunlight. All the uncles,aunts,senior citizens,sportsmen and fitness-freaks were sweating it out to burn their calories. For me, it was a refreshing sight. I was feeling good on a monday morning, like never before. My laptop was switched on and the melodies were being played.

"  Chaahe tum kuchh na kaho maine sun liya
   Ki saathi pyaar ka mujhe chun liya
   Chun liya
   Maine Sun liya
   
   Pehla nasha
   Pehla khumaar....."

Shreya greeted me with a grin on her face as i entered the class.
I acknowledged her, "Hi Shreya. Good morning" and I was about to start a conversation when our Field-Theory Lecturer entered the class. I was forced to take my seat and listen to his lecture.

It was a busy day in the college with too many theory classes. All my attempts to talk to her failed. But we had a lab session in the afternoon. Finally, I got a chance to speak to her.

"Thanks a lot again, Rahul." She said.
"Hey Shreya, how many times will you thank me? Its OK. So tell me about your cousin's wedding celebrations." I asked her.
From the spa she visited to the dress she wore, she explained every single bit. She told me about the costume, ear-rings, elaborated the jewelry, and even the sandals she wore on the wedding day. I was amazed at the way she described each and every little thing that had happened.
"I had the best time with my family. It was great fun. But while coming back I had to suffer a lot, you know." She finished.

Me and Shreya got along each other very well in the days that followed. Though I couldn't talk to her on daily basis, i used to compensate (or maybe, overcompensate) it during the labs. Exchanging lab records, internals-time silly doubts, recommending songs,movies & novels and many more things got us closer.

After few days, we used to have long sms chats. Gtalk was the savior when we exceeded the sms limit for the day.We used to talk about all the things that existed on this globe - songs,movies, novels, families, aspirations, frustrations, philosophy and all the nonsense.

"You always make me feel good." "You are the nicest guy i have ever met."    " Don't be sad. It doesn't suit you" "Confront the odds and don't try to escape. You have no idea how good you are" are the few remarks she made, that i still remember. 

In the coming days, we used to catch up during weekends for lunch and parties. We both started working for the same NGO called Maitree in the city. It was a great experience to both of us. The amount of care and enthusiasm she showed during the events was truly incredible. I started admiring her for every single thing she did.

My fascination for Shreya and the desire to spend time with her increased a lot as days passed.

I used to share all my worries with her. She was a great motivator and a gem of a person.

"I feel like giving up.Why is it all unfair in this world?" I asked her after a very bad experience.
"Hey Rahul. You can't expect everything to be perfect. Sometimes it happens. Never bother about others. You just be the same - kiddish, fair and super-awesome." She consoled me.
I had no reply. I looked at her and controlled my tears. I couldn't have asked for a better companion.
She held my hands and whispered,"Everything will be fine."

I guess, I had fallen in love.

It was a long saturday night. Manchester United thrashed some opponent very badly that we guys couldn't switch off the Hostel TV till 3AM. I woke up a bit late, my cellphone showed 2 missed calls from Shreya's number. My inbox had received 2 sms from the same which read,
 "Shall v catch up for a movie? If U r free.. "

"U might be still sleepin. Reply me wen u c tis sms."

I re-read the sms properly to confirm that i wasn't dreaming. It was damn real and a dream come true.

I didn't even waste a single microsecond to call her, 
"Hey Shreya, sorry yaar. I woke up now. Movie...??"

She replied,"Its OK. They are showing Swades at MAGNUM theatre. None of my friends like Shahrukh Khan. I badly want to watch it.You free?"

I was thrilled and dying for this invite," Yup. I'm free. Even I wanted to watch a movie. By the way, I am not a fan of SRK"
"Shit man!!Why not a romantic movie? Hum Tum is being screened at FALCON Theatre. Whatever!! Any movie with you is fine" I said to myself.

She confirmed,"2:30 show. MAGNUM theatre. Swades. Don't be late"

I couldn't control my emotions and started dancing. My room-mates had no clue, but they all managed to shake their legs with me. I was Happy.

I don't remember who bought the movie tickets, popcorn(which I don't like) and soft drinks, but without any doubt, Swades was a great movie (Gayatri Joshi was fabulous). We both smiled, cried and exchanged few looks throughout the movie. 

I was having the best time of my life.

We were leaving the theater carrying loads of emotions when someone shouted," Rahul....RAHUL..."
It was Siddharth.
We both shook hands and hugged each other.

I greeted him,"Hey Sid. This is Shreya."
I was about to introduce Sid to Shreya,"Shreya, this is...."
Shreya interrupted me, " Who doesn't know Siddharth? Hi.."
"Hi.... You guys carry on. I'm leaving",Sid winked at me and went off in a hurry.

Well I don't why, but i was feeling scared,insecure and uncomfortable.

Thanks for your time.Drop a comment and let me know how you felt. See you in the next post.

To get the update of my posts and to follow me, click on "Join this site" button on the top left corner of the page.