Arshi: The beginning of a conspiracy

THE BEGINNING OF A CONSPIRACY

The first time she had laid eyes on him, she'd been entranced by the sheer beauty that stood in front of her. It was a normal day where she was standing at corner of the cafeteria sipping her chai and gazing out of the window when someone from behind had called her. Turning back she had found herself looking at an exquisite face. If men could be called beautiful then he certainly led the category. While she'd been busy trying to come out of the hypnotic trance that the face had put her in he'd asked her to step aside and then bent down to pick up something. He then had stood up with a smile on his face. He had raised his hands to show a set of keys dangling on his finger and had mouthed "bike keys". If she would be truthful to herself ,she couldn't understand what he was saying for her mind was suddenly processing too slow. Within seconds he was near the door, leaving the cafeteria. When his back was no longer visible to her eyes, it was then she had forced herself to look around. The cafeteria was still as empty as it was before. Mahmud uncle, the owner of CKBC (College ka bindass caf) was still busy making new records in Temple run on his mobile. Preeto was chatting with her childhood friend on phone. The breeze unlike her heart had not changed its pace. When she had resumed looking out of the window, even the sun didn't appear brighter as it was supposed to when two special people meet as predestined by nature. The only difference that she felt was that the chai had turned cold and even after drinking a cold tea her cheeks felt like they were on flame, the heat spreading across slowly. Her mind still could not process the burning sensation in her cheeks neither could find out the reason of the acute self consciousness that she'd felt few minutes before. If it was because of that stranger then it was futile for he didn't even seem to spare her a glance. And as if the self consciousness thing was not enough she even had a weird wish fleeting across her mind. She had in those few seconds wished she had been beautiful, beautiful enough to catch that stranger's eye whose face she was not going to forget even in the coming ten years.

He had taken a deep breath as soon as he stepped out of the cafeteria. It seemed he had just stepped out of a dream, an unforgettable dream. Dream it had to be, for the girl he met inside couldn't be for real. The few minutes that he had spent inside the caf, he had experienced so much. He knew then what it was to miss a heart beat for when she had turned , his heart had stopped before starting to run a marathon. The personification of beauty that had stood before him had stared at him with such innocent and magnetic eyes that he had immediately bent down to look for his keys. If his sister were to know that he had finally known the fluttering of heart, she would first have had a hard time believing it and then she would have a lovely time teasing him. When he had stood up after finding his bike keys with such thoughts in his mind and smile on his face, he had again come face to face with her. Seeing her beautiful face marred with confusion, he had immediately informed her about his bike keys. Sadly, she hadn't responded and kept on staring with a cup of beverage in her hand. He wished he could introduce himself and then ask for her name with his usual confidence. He wished he could ask for her number, ask her company for a cup of coffee. Alas, life had chosen that particular moment to teach him what it meant to be tongue tied. So at that moment he did what he knew was best for his survival. He turned around and walked out of the caf.

This mundane day of their life hadn't been marked nor the place or time had been noted down, yet their face had been etched in each other's heart. And the nature's conspiracy had begun. The conspiracy of entangling both of their life webs in such a way that it would be difficult to tell them apart. The first time they had laid eyes on each other weren't supposed to be the last time. They were to meet again and again until they found themselves in each other.