Part 1 -
" Oye, I am late, hurry up, I need to catch the train as soon as possible, I cannot miss this train"
"Madam, please relax, you are not gonna miss the train. As long as I am here, you won't miss it?"
"Oye shut up yaar. I cannot miss this train, I need to climb this train like this before my family finds out that I ran away to pursue my profession. In my house, girls and boys are treated so unfairly. They think that as a girl, I should only get married and settle down. Forget that, I got admission to such a good medical school and I am going to be a doctor"
" Of course Madam, but I have a question?"
" Do you have to ask questions now?" " What is it?"
" Do you talk this much always?"
" Oye , I do. I love to talk, do you have a problem?
" No Madam. Here, I have gotten all your luggage in, now give your hand yaar."
Boom Boom..
" Yes, I did not miss the train, phew. I am so scared to climb the train when the train is running. Now let me find my seat.."
As she walked, she stared at all the people that were looking at her. While she did not realize, there was a marble on the floor. As soon as she stepped on it, she fling through and landed into someones's arms. As she opened her eyes, she looked into his big eyes. For a moment, both did not realize what happened. When they realized, they got up.
" Can't you see?"
" Listen, I can see, but it;s not my fault there was a marble on the floor"
" Whatever"
As he walked away from her, she stared at him. " What the heck does he think of himself? He think he is some Brad Pitt, but looks like a monkey. Now let me find my seat, A21.
As she moved, and finally found her seat. All she wanted to was sleep. She put her luggage closely and turned to face the person with the paper in his hand. She decided that if she was gonna have to sit in this seat for a long trip, she might as well communicate..
" Helloji. Excuse me? "
The person grunted twice but she did not understand anything and continued..
" My name is Muskaan Chadda. Muskaan meaning smile. My parents tell me I have a beautiful smile"
" I went to school in all girls school. I have 3 sisters and 4 brothers. I have done my graduation and all. Now I am going to become a doctor."
" I want to prove that girls are equal to boys or even more superior"
" I am tennis champion and I love to eat and talk"
" What about you?"
As the person put down his paper, she stared at him. " Tum?"
" Are you done? I have gotten a headache because of you! Don't you ever shut up?
" Excuse me, please .. No one can get a headache for me, instead I cure them but If I knew I was gonna be sitting with a khadroos, I would talked more just to irrtate you."
" Whatever"
" Hmph..."
She turned and stared out the window. Before she had realized, she had fallen asleep.
He closed his paper and saw her. She looked so innoncent when she sleeps he thought to himself. She was a stranger to him but something about him inclined him towards her. He noticed that she was shivering. He grabbed the blanked next to him and covered her up. He smiled and turned towards the window to sleep. She opened her eyes slowly and thought to herself. " Itne Bhi Bura Nahin Hai"
Few hours later,
She started snoring. Her snoring kept him awake the entire night. It wasn't her snoring but the fact she talked in herself really irrtated him. He had so much to think over. He was going to begin his medical school year. He had always topped but this year, the compettion was tough after all he had gotten to the best medical college in the country and so had many other people. He always believed in topping but nowadays his concentration was on something else. Those dreams that he kept having bothered him downright. Who was that girl in his dreams? Why did it bother him that he could not see who she was? Why did he feel that she was gonna change his life? Even the Gurjuji at home told him that he is going to meet few people who will change his life forever. Who was gonna be those people and who was the girl? He had plently of girlfriends but why was he not interested in any of them? Why did he want to search her.? As the train jolted him out of his thoughts, he turned and decided to wash his hands..
Just then.. Someone came towards the door. He bumped into the person and felt really weird. He stared back at the man and walked away just then he stopped. He realized and ran back. Before the man could approach "her" , he reached there and grabbed him. She woke up and was shocked to see him beating this other guy. She made sure all her stuff was safeguarded when she realized the man had her purse. She screamed loudly but by that time many other people had come towards to help. The man was put away and she had been her purse back but he was not alright. He had been hurt on the hand. She grabbed his hand and made him sit down next to her. She grabbed her medical kit..
" Hero, what the heck do you think you were doing?"
" I am not some hero. I did what I felt was right"
" Yeah, but hurting yourself for whom? I am just a stranger"
" No, you are not a stranger. You have told me everything about yourself therefore you are not a stranger, no longer"
She smiled at his talks. She applied the bandage and kept her hand on his hand. She felt a little spark and so did he. He smiled at her and went back to sit his spot.
Few hours later, the train had arrrived at it's destination.
As they both grabbed their luggage, she couldn't handle the hard hitting things so he grabbed it for her. She smiled. As they reached the platform, he stepped down and approached her with his hand. She smiled and grabbed it. As he gave her stuff back, she felt his touch on her hand. He smiled.. There was just silence between them...
" Thanks. Thanks for everything"
" No problem. Good luck in everything you do"
" You too., Bye"
" Bye"
As he walked away from her, she just stood there. She then realized that she did not even know his name. As she ran behind him, he dissappared into the shadows of people. She then realized something..
" What is happening to you Muskaan?" He is not your destination, your path is different from his" and she turned around and walked in the different direction....
But are their paths really different? Who is the stranger that changed Muskaan?
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To be continued...
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