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Chapter 1 - Life is full of surprises
Dear Diary,
I reached Mumbai safely this morning. The flight was quite tiring thanks to my noisy, chatter box of a neighbor who was seated next to me in the plane.
Why do strangers keep talking to you when you don't react to their preaches? I don't understand it at all. This man went on blabbering the moment I was seated.
Partially I was to be blamed because it was I, who initiated the big dumb conversation by saying 'hi' to him. Not only that, I even smiled with him. Me and my stupid smile. Well to my defense, he was cute and not that bad to look at. But the moment he started unwrapping his whole life in front of me, I realized I made a big mistake by smiling with a stranger. It felt as if I was sitting next to an FM radio channel which has no off button or any commercial breaks.
But I didn't have the guts to stop him. I don't have the courage to speak up anymore. So I kept silent and scolded him in my mind.
I shouldn't have listened to Vishu; she says that we should always smile with people and be nice to them. But Roshi says we should never give a damn to strangers. Oh I miss them!!!! I want to fly back to Colombo to my friends.
'Don't give up; life is full of surprises', dad used to say that.
The worst surprise of my life was this stranger. He said he's from London. He's an Indian and his family had moved to London when he was 10. He has dropped down in Sri Lanka to meet some friends on his way to Mumbai to visit his relatives. That's why he was flying to Mumbai from Colombo. Though I wasn't interested in his story, I had to bear with him since there were no ear plugs.
Then he went on and on how annoyed he was when Germany lost to Spain in Fifa world cup. The guy wanted to sue the German Football Federation and his anger was quite visible and he roared as he spoke. When asked who I supported, my answer got him even more worked up. As a result of my big mouth, he went on blasting people like me for not watching Fifa and supporting the game. I wished I was deaf and dumb.
He said his name was 'James Bond'. Yes!! James Bond. Then he asked mine and since there was no response from my end, very generously he offered to call me 'Colombo girl' since we met in Colombo. It seemed that my silence and ignorance didn't bother him at all as he continued to yap. The moment an airhostess came near to offer a drink, he tried flirting with them.
I somehow managed to survive the torture till we reached Mumbai. I didn't even wait till the airhostess announced to take off our seat belts as the plane landed. James Bond sensed I was in a hurry so he said we should meet up in Mumbai to which I gave him a cold stare. Passengers started moving towards the exit and the moment I got up, so did Mr. Bond. I was eager to get away from him so I said 'bye' and strolled following the others. But a firm wrist grabbed my right hand and as I looked back, James Bond winked at me and said;
'Never say bye Colombo girl, say phir milenge, chalte chalte'.
That was so clich. He has turned into Shah Rukh Khan. Even though I was pissed with him, I couldn't help but smile faintly at hearing these words. I also wanted to use few Hindi words I knew and say 'alvida forever ulluka patta' but didn't want to encourage him to score few more goals. I wanted to give him a red card and send him off the field; my life forever.
After all he did manage to bring a smile to my face, a smile which was missing from my face for the past few days. Honestly, I have forgotten to laugh lately. But his stupid words still echo in my head.
I met Shekhar uncle at the arrival lounge and on our way to his house, we barely exchanged a few words. It was more like a rapid fire round which allowed only short answers; yes/no as I didn't use any other word apart from those. He must've sensed I was tired so he didn't push me too much. But I knew he had a lot to say and I was not in a mood to talk either. It seemed like I didn't have enough energy to talk to anybody at that time.
Shekhar uncle's apartment looked different. A lot different from the last time I was there. He has color washed the place with light shades this time; mustard yellow and green. Much better choice compared to the bright red and dark blue he used last time. The furniture looked quite new yet cozy and he has even removed the ugly red Persian carpet from the living room.
I remember how much mom nagged Shekhar uncle to remove the carpet from the living room and to use light colors for the walls. He was his own ruler, extremely stubborn and didn't listen to anybody, not even to dad or mom. But something has changed his behaviour and frame of mind. I'm still shocked and surprised to see how much he has changed over the past few days.
The walls were accessorized with beautiful photographs taken by none other than the genius himself. Icing of the cake was the gorgeous portrait of the ageless beauty; Rekha which was on the center wall next to the TV lounge.
I got another pleasant surprise when he marched me towards the guest room. He has completely rearranged it with my favourite colors; black and white. He had even shipped in my old toys and books from Colombo, to which I didn't know how to respond. I was really touched by his love and was glad to have him in my life.
I unpacked my baggage and folded clothes neatly in the cupboards and had a hot shower. It blew away the tiredness and soothed me down. Later on Shekhar uncle cooked lunch for both of us plus he's an amazing cook. Throughout the lunch he tried to stuff me up saying that I was too thin. Although I wasn't eager to eat and refused to take another serving, he still managed to make me settle for 2 servings.
I don't know what I'd do without him. Especially now, since I don't have anybody else. In short, he's my only family.
I guess dad was right. Life sure is full of surprises.
That's all for today.
Alvida!!
Taani
Edited by NaDsGirl - 15 years ago
Arjun
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