Tomorrow finally came. I was at the Café before time, a first for me. She came, looking really nice in blue jeans, a white t-shirt, with a light blue pullover on top. She waved at me from far, and I suddenly felt like the luckiest guy in all Bangalore. We got ourselves a table and started talking. I don’t really remember what we ordered, nor do I care. I just remember that we talked a lot.
She was my age and was starting college too (still the luckiest guy, yes). It was actually her brother who had taken the physics second-hand book three years ago and somehow her number had found its way there. She told me all her likes and dislikes and miraculously, we had a lot in common. See, the thing with me is, compatibility and me have never really had a very easy relation. So whenever someone relates with me, I generally do not believe it myself. This is how it went.
‘So, what kinds of music do you listen to?’ I was pretty sure this is where it’d all break down.
‘Well mostly rock music; there’s this kind of really unknown band called Porcupine Tree. Ever heard of it?’ She looked more than ready to believe that I hadn’t. I, on the other hand could not believe what I’d just heard.
‘Did you say Porcupine Tree? God, I worship them! Wow, there’s actually someone else who’s heard of and loved them! I only have like a handful of such friends.’ And then of course, the next half an hour was spent on the nuances of Porcupine Tree’s discography. Then we talked about sports; here again I was surprised. She had played basketball for state a while ago, while I’d played for college. Her views on most issues matched mine, and on the matters where they didn’t, her fervor in the defense of her opinions was identical to mine. Even her sense of humor was like mine, sarcastic and cynical. Something special was going on here. At the end of two hours we decided to end our meet, thoroughly having enjoyed ourselves and promising to meet after two days, just one day before college started.
And so we met, and kept meeting over the next two months. And one fine day, we were in Fire Station, near the ‘tree-road’. It was basically a boulevard lined on either side with huge, green trees. Even its many by-lanes and surrounding parks had a tranquil, fresh atmosphere. It was a haven for both of us. Digging into our ice-creams, we were busy poking fun at the stupid looking people who were walking outside. I’d ditched my friends and she’d told her parents she was going for extra classes in college. That’s when I got a call from Rishabh, own of my childhood buddies, and a rare good friend.
‘Where are you dude? You coming or not?’ he demanded, with an arrogance that could only have come from years of friendship.
‘I’m sorry to have lied to you man. But I’m with Radhika right now. Haven’t met her in a while.’
‘Well, none of us have ever met her you know. I’m still in shock that a cynic jackass like you is actually with someone.’ He laughed. ‘Sure you’re not imagining it all? Maybe she’s a ghost??’
‘Hey, my friend Rishabh thinks you’re probably a ghost, because he’s never really seen you’ I sniggered as I told Radhika.
‘Well you can tell him to shove off. If that’s the best thing he can say about me, it’s probably for the best that we haven’t met’ she snapped.
‘Dude, I’ll talk to you later…’ I cut off, puzzled by her sudden outburst. ‘What’s wrong? Why are you so angry?’
‘No...It’s just that I don’t like people saying things about me. I don’t know, I just have this insecurity, chuck it, it’s just one of those quirks I have’ she said demurely, in a way that made me ignore the outburst for the time being. After a quiet minute I asked her playfully, ‘Seriously, why would you have cappuccino flavored ice-cream? It’s like insulting coffee and ice-cream at the same time!’
‘Oh come on, it’s really nice! You’ve got to try it. Here’ she passed me her cup and upon my refusal, forced a spoonful into my mouth.
‘It’s not bad, but forgive me for being a loyal member of the ‘Chocolate for life’ community’ I laughed.
She looked at me ruefully. ‘You’re just not adventurous enough. Staid, that’s what you are. If you never try anything different in life, how would you learn anything new?’
‘You’re there for that right? Experience the world on my behalf, and then come home and tell me what you learnt. I’ll see the world through your eyes.’ I said softly, in what I thought was a good impression of sounding romantic. Either my words were not perfect, or she just knew me too well by now, but she didn’t buy it.
‘Go dump your dialogues on someone else. Come on, finish up, and let’s go for a walk.’ We almost always met in the vicinity of the tree-road, as it was a ritual for us to take a walk in the lanes once we were done with whatever it was that we’d meet up to do. We walked, hand in hand, and I was the object of many guys’ envious glances. We were talking about our favorite books, and in one respect she was totally predictable. She was a fan of the Twilight series. I guess all girls are hard-wired to like it. We sat down on one of the park benches, and she started telling me the whole story, despite my vehement protests. Initially I refused to pay attention to what she was saying and did want to know how the vampire dude swept the dumb human girl off her feet. But pretty soon I found myself transfixed at the way Radhika was explaining the story. The way she moved her hands, how she suddenly smiled when she recalled a particularly favorite part, and her innocent and absorbent way of explaining the nuances in the plot. Suddenly I was overwhelmed by this alien feeling and got struck by a thought of crystal clarity. And before I knew it, the words made their way from my brain to my lips.
‘I love you…’ I said, and caught myself before I said anything else. Every guy knows, that there’s a difference between ‘like’ and ‘love’, and the transition takes its time. Once you’ve said the word, you’ve taken the leap; there’s no looking back. Things could get a lot more complicated. Did I do it too soon?
Her eyes widened, and she looked at me, silently for a whole ten seconds. ‘Really?’
‘Yeah well, we’ve been together for a couple of months now and all, and while you were telling me that story, I don’t know something just made me say it...’ I muttered, trying to get over with the moment soon. I wasn’t good with this sort of emotion, and I doubt if most guys are.
She just hugged me tightly and I reciprocated, wondering if there was anything else that I was supposed to do. ‘I love you too’ she whispered, and something told me this wasn’t a customary reply from her side, but genuine emotion. Was she waiting for me to say it? When I saw her face there was upon it a shining happiness, mirrored by myself. We just sat there like that for a few minutes, the only sound being the rustle of the trees, enjoying each other’s silent company.
And so it reinforced my opinion that I was indeed the luckiest guy in all Bangalore!!
Exemplary!
ReplyDelete