‘Stealing some glances here and there, I found myself staring at this beauty…’

Sweltering heat made me all of sweat and I was dripping, from brow to toe. With a handkerchief, one of my hands was constantly making contact with my face, and the other was just hanging there under the weight of the HP gadget. With all that sweat from the season but it was still the month of November. But then this city knows no season other than summer, we get to feel the sunshine heat all year long. So we are quite used to it, anyways “I was mentioning about this beauty…

There I was standing at the bus stop waiting for the bus. As usual that mode of transport was taking the worthlessly long to arrive, ‘the impatient that I am, started to scan the surrounding for something or someone who can hold my interest. The bus stop was crowded as always, during that time. The time of the day; ‘when offices leave their people to venture home!’

A busy stewardess was having her chat on the phone pretending very hard to look distinct and aloof. The crowd wasn’t really working in her favor. Some bunch of ‘dudes’, standing a little away from her, were laughing like lunatics. I guess they hadn’t had a laugh for ages, so must have chosen this place for fulfilling their lasting desire, to laugh.  A lonesome grey haired lady staring blankly at some imaginary point in that space; “was probably lost in her own thoughts, and others. Well they were just being the part of this growing crowd, same folks waiting for their bus to arrive. Watching all this is was ‘me’…the bored part of the same crowd.

Yeah, that stewardess was ‘interesting’ if it wouldn’t have been that I already shared a smile with her for what a zillion times. I even had her contact number with my phone memory, so she wasn’t cutting into the interesting part I was searching for. Now I was getting pretty restless, within which I blurted some unmentionable swearing for the transport authority, ‘for the weather as well. An old man, donning a nice blazer, agreed in unison. The gaze of the crowd shifted towards us for a split second and went where they belonged.

I think my cursing invited Mr. blazer’s attention towards me and made him start a conversation on topic unknown to normal human kind. As it is; I was utterly anxious so decided to notch up the volume of my Ipod, connected to ear phones resting in my ears. Well that could have had deafened me for both of my hearing…but who cares! As long as I am not getting bothered by anybody’s ‘dumb conversation’. So there I was still looking for that one interesting thing…

“Ohhh!”  What a timing it was for that playlist to follow the song ‘I am walking away’ that very moment. One of my favorite songs! But everything has it’s time, as for that time, it wasn’t right in anyway. One particular moment I just decide to hail a cab and just walk away, but the dreaded traffic had me thinking otherwise. “To stay there and wait for the bus!”  I guess the crowd sensed my thoughts and started drifting towards the cabs waiting in a long queue. As always the cab drivers were reluctant for their passengers. Slowly the bus stop was as empty as the mall which had its ‘sale’ expired, “for that day!

“Excuse me!”   Followed by a tap on my shoulder.

For the music in my ears, I was in my own bubbly world of thoughts. That tap brought me back to the bus stop. Turning towards her and quickly removing my earphones; “…Oh!” With a blank face. Blank than the railway reservation timetable; I faced towards her. Still adjusting myself from the sudden crash landing to the emptying world, I exclaimed;  “Oh. .so sorry, ..what ..whaaat??    Smiling with the broadest smile I ever could remember. Sensing her expression I quickly changed broadway smile into a tiny one.

Yes! I was still providing her with that smile, but now very much of the reduced version. She was just about to say something; “wasn’t able to hear  …the music…” I blurted…

“Did the bus No.43 leave? “  She queried   “has it…left?”

I was waiting for that very bus myself, so knew, it hadn’t. “No!” I replied, as politely as could.

It was still a very bright evening, in that light I somehow got lost in the beauty of her face. So smooth, fair skinned with a nose to match. If that nose wouldn’t have been on her face it surely would have scarred a vision or two on its journey. But on her it was as fabulous as it could have ever been. The eyes were most beautiful thing I have ever seen on anyone, but her. One would have to guess its color, not quite green nor blue but something that stared at you saying;  “I am beautiful but dare you look at me!”  I was quite daring I think, to still be able to describe them to you. With a nice display of her pearls and cute lips  “thanks!” she appreciated my hurled up reply.

She backed off a little from me, looking at her timepiece tied onto her wrist, slowly shifting her gaze towards the oncoming way of that bus.

Of sheer anxiousness, I cursed that damn bus service again. Without realizing her presence; ‘consciously’ it must have been blurted. I quickly ceased my mouth under the force of my jaw. She laughed, a laugh that arises unintentionally, looking at me with the corner of her eyes without fully turning her head.

“I am sorry.  … You know how frustrating these buses can get.”  I said somewhat blushing. “Pathetic!” she exclaimed, narrowing her look towards me. I was unable to get what she meant by that, cause it was either me or the service, but for that moment the chances for ‘me’ was far greater.

“Excuse meee!!”  I questioned back with a very straight face and curious voice. “This bus service is so pathetic” “..they rarely arrive on time here.”

I was somewhat relieved by her reply. One thing I noticed, which was very much obvious that we already had the ice broken and were in a conversation. So I hurriedly replied “Yes! Yes! The frequency of no43 is bad …one every hour.” She nodded in acceptance. For the first time there she displayed her smiling eyes. “Oh god, have mercy!” I screamed inside my head. To conceal that thought from her, I bought my smiling face back, with a reduced version of that earlier one.

In no time we found ourselves in a conversation, sharing things about each other.  Discussing the bad weather to cursing the pathetic traffic condition, we somehow got clicked with one another. “Haven’t seen you before, here?”  ‘Yeah! like I was some regular there myself!!’ “….sheesh!!!” a thought kicked me from the back. She eyed me so as to confirm that kicking thought and said “No! …I usually have my car. ..Today it just refused to start.”

“You could have taken the taxi…”  I was quick at suggesting.

“The traffic you know! The bus is much quicker than the taxi.” She exclaimed turning her head to look at the watch again.

A couple of buses passed us, full of people hanging on their toes to the very brink. That sight somehow must have made her reluctant, to board any. “Is this always that bad?” she asked referring to the overfilled crowded bus. “Yup!”

I was slow in grasping the intensity of that “yup!” which brought a very serious look on her face. Worst than the one she had after seeing my pathetic smile earlier. “Where do you stay?” hoping for her sincere reply. “In Dadar …Kalpataru…” “Where do you stay?”

She questioned back. “There in Dadar  …Near Kalpataru.”

“Let’s hail a cab; I think bus is not going to make its way till here  …at least for another decade, I think.”

At this she again had that same laugh, this time it was meant to be more loud and friendly. To accompany her I too made a laughing sound, not realizing that I unknowingly had said something that was funny, …at least to her.  “Sure!” still laughing.

Like always “nahi jayega ..saab” {won’t go there, sir} notion followed by the ageing cabbie. I knew how to deal with this, so straight away we got ourselves a taxi. Being a sophisticated a person “I am”, held the door open for the lady to get in. She made her way inside of the cab and quickly shifted to the other side as immediately on entering. Providing quite a space for one more, on that seat. I was just about to close the door and head for the front seat, but her eyes warned me not to. Canceling that approach, I took the backseat, a seat beside her, this beautiful girl.

“Dadar!!”  We both hurled at the driver, that too in sweet accord. Oh how I treasure that moment.

We were on our way to our destination, somehow the driver was brilliant (“..stupid”) with his driving, cutting lanes and avoiding traffic like he had a date or something. I could have said “slow down.” I didn’t!

We were like strangers once again inside that cab, both were looking out of the tinted window as though we were just that, forced to sit together.

“Were do you work?” those words cared to bring me back, beside to this pretty girl.  “No I don’t work, I am a student.” We had begun conversing again. “You so don’t look like you study..” by now I got her way of saying things, so knew what she meant.

I wasn’t in my usual casual attire then, a formal shirt with formal trousers, carrying my bag encrusted with ‘HP’ logo on the front. That was for the lecture I had given at ‘TFIR’ that day. My appearance made me look like some office executive, so I think the doubt erupted from my wardrobe. “I had a lecture today, so..”  I began.

“What is that you study?”

“I am doing my bachelors  …in physics.” I said keeping my tone very serious.

“Cool …I too have a degree, in physics.” She said with a touch of over excitement, but somehow concealing it. “Really!”  not heeding much concern to her statement. “Which year are you now studying in?” asking her somehow forgetting that she said ‘..I too have a degree.’   Looking at her I instantly realized my mistake and queried, “What kind of degree you posses?”

After a certain pause “PhD”  “..I have a PhD in nuclear physics.”

‘“What!!!”’   Thank god that was not audible, just a thought that screamed in my mind.

“You have a PhD … nice…”  I meant it with some vagueness of a compliment for her, wiping the sweat from my forehead. It wasn’t there for the cold incoming breeze from the taxi window.

I was dumb found, not knowing what to say.  Surely cannot ask her, ‘“her age?”’ Sophisticated men don’t do that. Women are best at sensing uneasiness, she might have guessed mine. “I received my degree five years back.. Dear!”  “Hmm!” but how “how did she know what I was thinking?”  Those phrases certainly had me knocked up in no time. “Dear!”

“Soooo…where…”   Before I could complete that

“Rukoo!” (stop) she ordered the cab driver to halt with a slight nudge on to his back. The Taxi came to a screeching halt, as though he had no option but to stop and that too with a fit of urgency. She reached for the purse and took a rupee 100 note and rested it into driver’s hand, “choota rakho!” (keep the change) simultaneously opening her side of the door. “Aren’t you coming..?” she turned in her stride to get out and asked.

“No! My destination is little further…” I said.

She hurriedly closed the door behind her and waved a quick goodbye. Then; she suddenly disappeared in that crowd. I tried to look for her but this damn taxi driver. He was already in motion, towards my destination. The rear view mirror was now staring me down, from the front seat, ‘if it wasn’t for her  …I would kicked you out of my taxi’

I was too occupied with her thoughts to pay any heed to the drivers, innocuous breathing. “Who.. who was she?”

“Damn! I haven’t even bothered to ask for her name!” “..Shit!!!”

I cursed to myself on that stupidity.

‘Stealing some glances here and there….

*Concluded in a short story composed as wait part 2.

The Wait – Part 1 – Not a short story, 6.9 out of 10 based on 11 ratings