STRANGERS
humming to old classics we came under the shade of...
Anjaani Raho Mein, Milke Kho Jaate Hain
Lekin Humesha Woh Yaad Aate Hain ♫♫
The only person present; him and the stranger before him.
"May I?" her voice was soft and polite.
He heard his girlfriend's voice in his mind,
"Manik, however bad they may be but if they have started a conversation with politeness we have to return it."
He was sitting by the same cliff which has listened to each and every talk and witnessed every moment of their 7 years of togetherness so he just nodded at the stranger despite the what-ifs in his mind.
The stranger made herself comfortable in his car's bonnet.
"So? " he started, " You love calmness that comes with this breeze caressing your skin now and then or it's just that you are fond of stargazing? "
He looked at her and she was already staring at him. Her calm stare made him uncomfortable. He averted his eyes quickly. A few seconds passed before she replied,
"What if I say I want to be a storm shaking the foundation from the depth and this breeze is all about the smell of someone close lingering in the air."
It was his kind of answer yet he knew the difference between his and hers. Her smile, his seriousness.
He didn't like the silence that prevailed, so he looked at her again, "Stargazing?"
She understood it was a question.
"I love the chaos surrounding the cosmos rather than the twinkles of these stars."
"Seems like we are sailing on the same boat," he said. His eyes searched for the moon he admired most but it seemed lost in the cluster of clouds and stars.
Maybe the moon too knew he was alone, he thought.
He stopped himself from thinking about her. He rather decided to speak to the stranger.
As if guessing his thoughts,
"So, what do you think about this calmness?" she asked. Her eyes closed. The breeze caressed her skin and her hair flowed covering her face.
The sight made him remember his girl. How the wind will blow her hair and cover her face. He will watch with amusement how she tried to tame it but it was always him who braided it after that. It was like an unspoken rule for them.
Lost in her memory, he spoke what he used to, every time he saw her,
"Beautiful.." The stranger gasped and looked at him wide-eyed.
He blushed and quickly averted his gaze.
He was busy cursing himself for blurting out the praise after zoning out again when he heard her slight chuckle.
"She will be lucky.." he looked at her, confused. " The one in whose photo you were so lost that you didn't even realize anyone's presence around you."
He smiled sadly. He missed her. He just wanted to voice it out.
"I am the lucky one. She is unique, my Nandini. After about..." he looked at his mobile for the time.." 20 minutes it's supposed to be our seventh anniversary."
His voice held no enthusiasm, she noted.
"What went wrong then?" she asked out of the blue.
He looked up startled. "She is not here but you are. And that says a lot." she pointed out.
"It's okay. You need not share. I understand," her hand squeezed his, slightly and let go.
.And again, the voice sounded in his mind,
"Sometimes it's better to let it out in front of someone who does not know you cause they won't judge. It's okay to speak Manik."
"It was okay. We had ups and downs like any other relationship. We thought it will be easy too. But ..." he paused, " long-distance relationships...just..." she understood even if he didn't elaborate.
Meanwhile, he remembered the day she went to London. He had refused to escort her to the airport. She knew why he did so. They would have broken down. So, they said their goodbye early. Maybe if..., he didn't dare think further though.
"Umm..where is she now?" the stranger asked in a calm voice.
" London. She is pursuing her dreams. I am so proud of her," and he meant it, wholeheartedly.
" How long?" she asked.
He replied without pause, " 3 years."
"How long since you guys last talked?" she asked again.
"5 months," he replied with a monotonous voice.
He still clearly remembered the I love you's shared instead of some phrases like it's over.
Their birthdays too came and went. Neither of them was strong enough to wish each other. Her photo and his tears became companions. The dark circles were clear indications of his sleepless nights.
"And I thought it was years," she said with a laugh.
He was offended. " How dare you say that? Do you know what's it like to lose her? It's like I am dying inside bit by bit."
He watched how quickly she blinked back her tears. He felt slightly guilty. Just slightly.
Nandini's voice again filled his mind,
"You should learn to apologize Malhotra. It does not reduce your height you know." her teasing tone still ringing in his ears.
"You don't seem the type to apologize?" the stranger said. He just nodded.
"Good. I don't do good with it either." She declared.
He bit his lips to keep from smiling. He still was offended.
"We were together for 5 years." the stranger spoke. There was a longing in her eyes and pain.
He thought if his eyes were the same.
"You know the best part, it was our anniversary. 5th anniversary. And he had said he was planning a surprise for me. I somewhere knew he was going to ask me for marriage and I was on cloud nine. That feeling was out of the world." she had now turned to face him.
"I waited at the venue for like hours and he didn't come. After dozens of calls and messages, my phone rang with his name and that's how our long-distance relationship started." she seemed like she was reliving the whole thing.
She stopped. He wanted to know more. He asked,
"Are...Are you guys together now?" his voice shaky. Dread already setting over him. Did it not work for her too?
"Yeah. We are. Seems like this long distance that you whisper about didn't affect us." she said with a chuckle, "though we were the one with the longest distance one could ever have."
"Wanna meet him?" she asked him with all the more enthusiasm. He looked at her flabbergasted. He just nodded. He wanted to know. He wanted to see if he and Nandini could have been the same.
"There. " she pointed at the sky." The farthest star shining dimly at the corner. That's him. My Abhi," she said.
It took just a second for him to realize what she meant. His voice ditched him and he kept staring at her when a tear left her eye. She didn't bother wiping it.
So alike yet so unlike him, he noted.
"The phone call was about him meeting with an accident and till the time I reached, he was gone. I didn't even get to hear his voice last time or hold his hand to tell him, he will be okay. We will be okay. He just went by giving me the biggest surprise of my life."
He imagined himself in place of her. He couldn't.
Being in a different country gave hope the least. But, the hopelessness would have killed him.
She looked at him, wiping her tears,
"At least you can wish her, it's just one flight to take you to her but I cannot even do that. After a few days, it's our anniversary and after 3 years I still get confused whether to smile remembering the day we met or cry remembering he was lost in the abyss from where there is no return."
He pulled her in a hug. She slowly put her arms around his torso.
He blinked to stop the tears. He didn't mind the small wetness he felt at his shoulder.
They needed it.
"I don't know what he was like but if he loved you like you do, he will have just wanted to say, there is someone almost exactly the same as him but just a little bit funnier, a little bit emotional, and simply a better version of him waiting for his lady love. "
He heard her snort. It brought a smile to his lips too.
"By the way, I didn't catch your name?" he asked breaking the hug.
"Abhi's LOVE," she replied forwarding a hand and he shook it with a grin and replied,
"Nandini's HUMESHA."
"Hmm?" she asked unsure of what he meant? Was he trying to flirt?
"You were so lost in your world like mein Duniya Bhula doongi types.." he chuckled seeing her 'are you serious look'.
"Sorry, that's my habit to crack lame jokes. But hey, it works sometimes," he said in his defense and she smiled at that and gestured for him to have a seat across her.
"So?" she raised an eyebrow at him gesturing to the empty coffee shop.
His eyes held that mischievous glint and she knew what was coming next.
"Except for the fact that I am beautiful and you are here to flirt ." he laughed heartily at that.
"Touche. "
She too gave a tiny smile. She gave him credit though. He knew how to lighten a mood.
"You really know how to read a person or am I someone special? " he asked her while she just shrugged and thanked the waiter who brought her order and he did the same.
"You are too predictable," she replied.
"You are so predictable, Manik. " and that pout he had given her. How much cute did he look? His greek god-like sharp features were no comparison to how cute he looked. And that was reserved just for her.
"Hello"." Stranger..."
"hmm?" she came out of her memory lane to find a curious stranger before her.
"You seem distracted," he said while taking a sip of his espresso. He scrunched his nose in distaste. His every move was observed clearly by her.
"Seems like you don't like the taste of it," she said. Her black coffee tasted bitter too.
"I can say the same looking at your expression," he said while again taking a sip of his espresso.
"Okay..." she pressed," I am using the girl's first card. " He pouted. It was so ridiculous that she could not stop herself from laughing out loud.
"Hey, you are laughing like I seem so bad. My girl loves me for that cuteness only " he said with a pout again.
"Yeah sure." she controlled her laugh but the giggles were still escaping.
"I won't tell anything," he grumbled.
She put her finger on her lips showing she will keep quiet.
"If I explain in my way, it will take more than a day so I will tell in that boring way with no dramatic essence. " she could just roll her eyes. Without a drama he says.
"You know long-distance relationship sucks. " and that made her shiver in her place. Was his condition too like her? Was the person he loved too not with him? The what-ifs brought back the memories of these 5 months where she didn't have one night without nightmares.
There didn't go one day when she didn't write something to her Manik. She just could not press the send button.
"My love, my Navya is a doctor in the Indian Army. And being one of the best at her work and seeing her devotion towards her work, she is mostly sent to the camps with high risks. The risks of her life being in danger are always so much and with no communication, and me being in another country just adds to our misery. "
His every word made her think of Manik. Their togetherness of six years, scratch that seven years of togetherness. Was their separation so complicated like Cabir and Navya?
"Always when I miss her I drink espresso. Her favorite," he concluded with a smile.
She too smiled knowing that longing. Wasn't she doing the same?
"My mind knew you were the one even before I realized I love you. My heart was beating for you even before I realized you are my heartbeat." his eyes were full of love, respect, hope, trust and a myriad of emotions were swimming in it as he uttered those words six years back while confessing his love to her for the first time.
"Now your turn," he said bringing her out of her thoughts.
"It's our 7th Anniversary today and we are not together. Six years of togetherness just came to a halt with just the exchange of I love you's five months back," she stated straight- forward not knowing what more or less to say. "Black coffee was my Manik's favorite."
"Where is he now?" he asked observing her each movement. "India"
"Which place?" he asked again and she frowned yet replied, "Mumbai"
"Great. After a year I am going to meet my love. It's today evening's flight and I will reach till tomorrow night at Mumbai. She has the same timings and her flight from Assam will land at the same time in Mumbai. " he said.
She looked at him confused. She could understand his enthusiasm but why was he giving her so many details.
"Wanna join ? " his question took her by surprise.
He added before she could speak,
"A cup of coffee just stirs the taste bud and memories but his presence will soothe the aching in the heart."
"What if..." he cut off her question.
"What-ifs always are the reasons for separation. I think this six years or more taught you enough of that," he said and she knew he was correct and again her Manik's voice filled her mind...
"The more what-ifs cross your mind, the more fear develops. It's in you to see beyond the what-ifs and believe only then will you reach your goal. And I, Manik believe that this distance will not matter till I love u, and trust me, that won't stop even after I stop breathing."
These were his words when he convinced her to take the offer to work in London, to take a step away from his embrace to fulfill her dream, and now it was her turn to return back to that embrace.
"I think your company will not be that bad for a flight." she finally added.
He breathed a sigh of relief.
"Finally, my dream came true," he said will a full-blown smile.
She looked at him with a raised eyebrow."What dream?"
"To be a cupid to someone. And I guess I did fulfill my dream." she could not stop herself from grinning at this statement.
"Trust me, I wanted to be the same. But you are already together with your love."
"Actually no." she stiffened but relaxed when he continued.." we just get to spend very little time with each other so you can pray. Sometimes the god listens to the ones with pure love towards love. "
"Are you a writer by any chance?" she asked while he shook his head.
" Cabir. Cabir Dhawan,"
"Nandini. Nandini Murthy."
"It was nice meeting you Nandini. "
"Same here Cabir. "
"So I think we should take our leave. You will want to pack too," he said and she grinned at him but again frowned.
"Tickets?" she asked while he assured her.
"Leave it to me. I will get it covered. I will see you at the airport."
"Phone number?" she added seeing his expression, "No, don't say that line."
He shook his head with a youthful grin but gave her a piece of paper from his pocket.
"I am not even going to ask why you carry it around."
He grinned, "It's a long story. And our flight is long too."
"See you Cabir." and she hugged him which he reciprocated back.
"I will pray to Aaiyapaa that this time when you meet, it will be forever." and he could just smile in the hug.
Dhadkan Bhi Saath Hoti Hain
Koi Na Samjhe Ye Ishq Ki Zubaan ♫♫
"Final call for all the passengers of Indian Airline flight 111"
She just stood looking at the eyes which held so many emotions; love, trust, complaints, accusations, anger, but the most noticeable, the twinkle that one has when they are home and his eyes were depicting the same.
Who said they broke up? These five months were just a pause in their life where everything kept moving but they were stuck. Now though, they were moving towards each other and those five months seemed like nothing.
Their eyes were doing all the talking for them and their heartbeat had accelerated but they both knew, it's till they both are in each other's embrace.
And finally, he held her in his embrace, the embrace which was the only home for her, and finally, he felt like he was in peace as she wrapped her arms around his torso.
The hug was the filling of their months of separation but was it? No, it was a celebration of marking their seven years of togetherness.
"Happy Anniversary Nandini."
"Happy Anniversary Manik."
"I like you more when you are drunk," he said while coming behind her once again.
She turned to glare at him at that comment.
He had lost the count of her glares from this morning only.
"When you are drunk, you behave so sweetly. No sarcasm, no glares. Just that beautiful smile of yours that can light my world and that cuteness...my heart always skips a beat when you talk with that sweet voice. " he said all dreamily.
He turned to look at her to see her piercing him with her eyes, again.
" And when you are sober, you are like this. You just know to get angry, shoot daggers through your eyes, and after a few more seconds, punch," he complained, an accusing finger pointed at her.
He expected the same punch but not her laugh. Her melodious laugh.
"You look so cute when you sober. I will surely like to see the drunk you," she winked at him. The redness was fast to spread in his face.
"I guess my heart just skipped a beat seeing you blushing." and he was flushed at her this comment. Who told only girls can blush? Boys do too and that's the cutest sight.
"So, can I take that as a yes?" he asked while controlling himself.
" For what? " she pretended to be confused and he frowned.
" For the date Mukti. " she raised an eyebrow at that. He sighed.
"Okay fine..." he took a long breath and finally spoke the words,
"Abhimanyu's Mukti, Will you go on a date with me?"
"Sure Zubi boy." his eyes narrowed but gave in when she hugged him.
"I love u so much Abhi for sending a cupid as the STRANGER to get my life on track. Thank u so much stranger." she thought and wished for the stranger's happiness.
Breaking News
Indian Airlines Flight 111, an international flight from London collided with Indian Airlines Flight 222, a flight from Assam to Mumbai during landing at Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport due to bad weather leading to lack of communication with an air-traffic tower which resulted in a mid-air collision while trying to land on the same runway causing the explosion taking the life of every passenger and crew members present in both the aircraft.
"I will pray to Aaiyapaa that this time when you meet, it will be forever." and her wish was granted.
"You made me love those dimly lit stars at dusk, the glowing fireflies in the moonlight, and the chaos of that dark night. And I do not know when I fell in love with you, except them. And just like they are for eternity, we are for eternity too." He whispered as if she could hear for one last time before the darkness engulfed him.
"You are my warmth of wildfire in lonely nights, galaxies lighting the lifeless road on sight, and my guardian when I cry at night. Your embrace is the only home I need. I am yours for eternity, Cabir. Not even the death could do us apart. " her final words before she opened her eyes in his embrace after falling into the abyss of darkness.
Jaane Mohabbat Mile Kise Kahan ♫♫
