"Bag"
"Check"
"Purse"
"Check"
"Mobile"
"Check"
"Think Geet think, am I forgetting anything? Are you sure Babaji?" she said looking at the ceiling.
She then peeked from her window. There were no one around. As it is a shaadi ka ghar, marriage celebrations are going on and most are awake but as her room's window is facing towards the backyard, and as the street light on the road, which is facing this direction was not working since yesterday,(Thanks to electricity department!) there was no chance anyone could find her! She checked twice if there are anyone, and if she couldn't see them due to the darkness?
"Oye teri! Agar darkness ke wajah se mein unhe nahi dekh sakthi, toh who mujhe bhi nahi dekh sakthey. Haina?" she thought as she slapped her forehead.
"Bacha lena Babaji" she said one last time and had put the note on her dressing table.
She knew the contents of the letter by heart. But she checked once more to be sure.
" Aash,
I know you'll be the first one to discover this. I am going away. I don't want to marry. Don't search for me. Once things will be alright, I'll call you up. You know why I am running away. I am really sorry.
Love
Geet."
Aash is her cousin. They are like best friends since childhood. She knew Aash will be the first one to find out. The next morning is her marriage and she is going to run away! Yes, she have to! She knew everyone will be upset. Above all, Aash will panic. But she have to do this. She can't have a marriage without love. She exhaled sharply and with a quick prayer to babaji, she slowly took her bag and dropped it through the window. It dropped with a low "thud".
She then placed her one leg out, and catching the pipe, she slowly climbed down.
Once she was on her feet again, she checked and rechecked if anyone was watching her. After making sure no one did, she slowly went towards the wall, and climbed on it, and jumped on the other side.
Once she was sure, no one saw her, she took her skate board from her bag and placed it down, got on it and slung her bag over her shoulder and had set off.
*************************************
He sat in the auto restlessly. He was darn tired after his long, tiring journey back to India. But now, he has to go! He has to take the next flight as soon as possible. There were so many possibilities of getting caught by his friends or relatives. He was thankful as this is not his native place. Or else, it would have been much difficult.
"Can you please move a bit fast?" he asked the auto driver for the umpteenth time.
" Saab ji aap kya bol rahe ho?"
" Aap zara jaldi challenge?" he asked trying to avoid the British accent.
He was living in London for the past few years and his Hindi is so poor. He was sent to London to complete his higher education. However, after completing his education, he preferred working in his company branch, in London, as he was very much used to the country.
" Bhai saab aaj tak meine bahut pregnant ladies ko delivery ke waqt hospital le gaya tha. Par kisine bhi aap ki tarah itni jaldi mein nahi the. Aap toh aise keh rahe hain jaiseki aaphi ki delivery ho raha ho"
"Kuch kuch aisa hi" he said in a haste without completely processing what the driver said.
The driver had burst into laughter and had turned to look at him.
"Kya ye sach hain? Kaise din aa gaye hain waheguru" he said looking up.
"Can you please put your attention on the road?" he said with impatience etched in his tone.
The driver turned and resumed the journey.
"Par ek baat toh hain " he said starting a conversation " ye sab pardes mein hi ho sakta hain. Haina jee?" he said controlling a chuckle.
He looked out of the auto, trying desperately to calm down. He tried to divert his attention to calm down. "There's no need to worry. Of course he's driving .." he looked at the pace and completed with difficulty "..fast. I'll reach there in time." He thought as he looked away once again. And that is when something zoomed past him.
He closed his eyes for a moment and felt a fabric on his face. By the time, he opened his eyes, the auto stopped and the driver was shivering.
"What happened?" he asked.
"Why did you stop?"
"bb..bb..bhoot!" said the driver still shivering.
"What?"
"Who angrezi mein kya kehtey hain? Haan DEVIL" he said his eyes widening.
He looked at the driver for a short moment. No matter how idiot he was, he was not the one to play a prank. He was genuinely frightened.
After observing the driver for a moment, he had put his head out to get a glimpse of what was happening and that's when he saw a white cloth fluttering at a distant.
He remembered the feel of a white fabric on his face moments ago. It means someone passed them with a very high velocity. But how? How can they overtake a moving auto? He had enough brains to recognize that it's a dupatta of a girl. But he could not get a grip of how she was moving. He could not see any scooty. She was at a very long distance but he could still make out her entire figure, which seems standing.
"Is she running?"
"No! that's obviously not possible!"
"What if.. is she.. really a ..ghost?"
"Maan! Now you are behaving like an idiot! How can you believe in all such superstitions?"
He thought and gave himself a mental shake.
"May be she was running. Any sane person can overtake this god damn pace of the auto" he thought and smirked at the face of the auto driver.
"Listen! You are unnecessarily worrying. There aren't any ghosts existing alright? Now please move. I need to go."
Even the driver couldn't make any head or tail of what Maan said (thanks to his accent) he got the gist of it.
"Saab ji. Ye hoshiyarpur hain. Yaha pe bhut hote hain. Aur mujhe darr lag raha hain."
"Alright give me the god darn driver seat. I'll drive and you sit back, shivering" he yelled.
"Ji?" he asked wondering what was he yelling about.
"Mein auto chalaunga. Tum peechey baito" he gestured as he got down and waited for him to get down.
"Saab ji ye aap'"
" Listen! This is really important for me. Please " he said with desperation.
"Theek hain jee. Hey waheguru!" he said folding his hands and sending a quick prayer to heavens before getting down and getting into passenger seat.
************************************
She mentally thanked her dad for million times for getting her this skateboard. Her dad wouldn't have expected her to use this, this way but this was truly a lifesaver for her. She would remember this night forever and she would show this life saving skateboard to her to-be-grandchildren. The hopeless romantic she was, she always thought of telling her to-be-grand children, her adventures.
As soon as she reached the outskirts of the city, she felt lights behind her. She got down from her skateboard and turned back only to find a lorry, approaching her. She went towards it and waved frantically.
The lorry stopped and she went towards the window to talk to the driver.
"Oye kuriye. Itne raat gaye tu kya kar rahi hain yaha?"
"Bhaisaab mujhe jaldi Amristsar jana hain. Kya aap mujhe drop kar denge"
"Oye Happy singh ka yehi funda hain ki sab humesha happy rahe. Aa jao kuriye"
"Mein kaha bhaitu bhai saab?"
"Peeche bhait jaa oye. Waise tu akele jaa kaha rahi hain?"
"Who mere mama ji ka accident ho gaya tha. Aur mujhe jaana hain"
"Koi baat nahi kuriye. Hum pahuncha denge tumhe" he said as he asked her to get in.
She thanked babaji and she went around to get in and her jaw dropped as she saw what the lorry was carrying!
****************************
"Saab ji. Zara dheere chalayiye" he whispered panicking.
Maan was driving like a maniac and the driver was shivering. He was listening none of it. He was driving as if it was his a matter of his life. Well, it is in reality!
After driving for some time, he looked at a lorry stopped at a side and he increased the speed and overtaken it and stopped the auto in front of the lorry, to get noticed by the driver.
"Oye paaji? Kya baat hain?" the lorry driver yelled.
Maan quickly got out from the driver seat, took his bag from passenger seat and stuffed few notes in the auto driver's hand and ran towards the lorry.
"Kamaal hain. Aaj kal log auto chalake paise dete hain?" wondered Happy singh.
Maan ran towards the window, beside the driver seat and started talking, still panting.
"Can you drop me to Amritsar please?"
"Amritsar jana hain aapko? Theek hain bhait jayiye"
"Where?" he asked.
"Peechey" he replied and Maan dashed back.
************************
She got on the top of the lorry, dumping her bag beside her. She was thankful to babaji that she could take a seat on the head of the lorry, as she can surely not sit down. She looked once again what the lorry is carrying and she sighed!
Buffaloes! Wow! She have mentally decided to include this too in her adventurous story to be told to her to-be-grandchildren.
"Kahi ye adventure kam aur comedy zyada nahi ban jaye!" she thought and the next minute, she was surrounded by a pungent smell. She pressed her palms tight across her mouth and she saw one of the buffaloes excrete.
"eww" she said and she thought a bit and suddenly removed her dupatta and covered herself so that only her eyes are visible.
She specially covered her nose, by adding two more layers of the dupatta to make sure, she can't smell it anymore.
When she's done, she breathed a sigh of relief as she thought slowly "No more mistakes this night"
She didn't know at that moment that it was just the beginning of the night.. Just the beginning.
**************************
As soon as he had a look of what the lorry was carrying, his jaw dropped. There is no way in hell he's going to travel with two buffaloes. He saw two buffaloes, lying on their stomach, at one corner and as he approached them, he could feel his nose was burning with bad smell. He soon took out his scarf and tied it around his nose and climbed on it as he didn't want to delay his journey. The lorry started moving and he looked closely to avoid sitting here. He raised his head and saw that the top of the lorry had carried grass and he slowly climbed up by putting his foot on the railing and climbed on it safely, and settled his bag to his side. As soon as he settled himself, he looked casually to his side and his heart stopped for a moment at what he saw. There laid a girl in white and white and due to the darkness, he couldn't see much but he could see that it was odd. He took a closer look and found that a cloth was wrapped up around her face. He could see only her eyes, which are closed and he recalled what the auto driver told him.
"Saab ji. Ye hoshiyarpur hain. Yaha pe bhut hote hain."
He mentally chided himself for considering that at first place.
"You are behaving like a stupid Maan" he thought as he shook his head.
But it was odd. Which girl sleeps on a lorry top late at midnight?
He slowly extend a hand to touch her, just to see if she was real. She slowly touched her and took his hand back but nothing happened. He touched her once again and that's when she got up and screamed.
******************************
She fell on her back as she was exhausted. Sleep overcome her as soon as her back had hit the grass. She was in semi-sleep and she felt some disturbance around her, as if some presence. She was too sleepy to open her eyes. So she ignored and continued sleeping. She then felt someone touch her. She didn't react, even a voice inside her was yelling at her. " What if she got caught?"
"What if her relatives found her?"
She was trying hard to come out of sleep and when she felt some one touch her once again, she got up instantly and as soon as she saw the sight before her, she screamed.
***********************************
He closed his ears with his palms and as he was no longer ready to take it, he yelled "Stop it! Don't you think it should be the other way around? I should scream, not you MUMMY!"
She stopped screaming as soon as she heard the last word.
MUMMY! He called her MUMMY!
"Oye Mummy hogi teri maa!" she yelled and the next minute, she chided herself.
"Wow kya bola hain Geet! Mummy hogi teri maa? Obviously uski maa uski mummy hi hoti haina. Aargh! Tujhe gaaliya dena bhi nahi aata kya? Agar brij bhaiya ko pata chala toh kya sochenge? Humara izzat ka kya hoga?! Punjaban ho kar tumhe gaaliya dena nahi aata? Chi!"
He looked at the girl before him, muttering to herself. He was frustrated by her screaming that he actually called her what he was thinking about her all the while. Of course she's not a MUMMY. She's alive and that he knew now. He tried to get her attention so he gently patted on her shoulder.
She turned with a jerk ad yelled "Kya hain?"
"Look I am sorr'
"What? What are you going to call me now? Dadi? Or pardadi? How am I looking to you? You called me MUMMY! I mean am I looking that aged? You know what, for the fact I am not married' Not even once! How can I be your MUMMY?" she said in one breathe.
He looked at her amused. He was going to apologize to her but this lady was blabbering. She thought he called her Mum. He smiled inwardly. "C'mon Maan, you were wondering that you'll feel bored in the entire journey. Aren't you? Now, you won't. Good entertainment!" he thought and played along.
"But'
He said pausing for a while to make her look at him. Once she turned towards him, he said
"But, you need not get married to become a MUMMY"
"WHAT!!" she snapped.
"How dare you!" she said her eyes widening like saucers.
He looked amazed at her doe like eyes.
"What's wrong in that, you would have died before marrying, in an early age. Aren't you?" He said suppressing a chuckle.
She was about to yell again, but as he processed his words, she stopped and as realization dawned on her, her expressions changed (though Maan couldn't see, he knew as her eyes which were widened previously are now narrowed to slits.)
"I am very much alive and I am not any EGYPTIAN MUMMY!" she yelled.
"Really? I can see that!" he said looking at her head to toe.
She followed his gaze and she understood. She quickly removed her dupatta around her and the next minute, Maan's breath got caught in his throat as he saw an angel in front of him.
She removed the dupatta in a haste, causing her silky hair to fall on her face and the hair was messed up. She was busy fixing her hair, while Maan was lost in her. Her eyebrows were furrowed in a frown, her nose scrunched up ad her rosy lips are pouting. She looked angelic! A small smile formed on his lips as he saw her frowning at her state and fixing her hair. He looked at the other side and controlled his smile.
"What are you doing Maan? You are ogling at her! Control yourself before she notices you!" he mentally chided himself and slowly turned towards her side.
He slowly turned towards her, only to find her looking at him, frowning.
He controlled his chuckle and managed to maintain a straight face.
"Now do you believe I am very much alive Mr. DAAKU?"
He nodded and he stopped once he registered her last word. He racked his brains to remember the meaning of the word ad as soon as he remembered, now it was his turn to frown.
"I am not a bandit"
"So you are a robber?"
"I am NOT"
"Ha I can see that!" she said eyeing his scarf, which was tried around his face revealing his eyes and forehead.
He pulled the scarf in a jerk and Geet looked at the handsome robber in front of her.
"Now do you believe me?"
"How come taking off your scarf prove that you aren't a Daaku?"
He grinded his teeth. "What's your problem?"
"YOU" she bit out.
"Listen I am not a daaku!"
"Then why were you wearing your scarf?"
"I can ask you the same thing"
"It's smelly here"
"Same reason"
"Oh please! Don't try to copy me! You copy cat! Try to find your own reason"
"Copy cat?"
"Haan. Copy cat aur Cheater cock!"
"CHEATER COCK?"
"Haan Haan Haan!"
Both eyed each other with utmost disgust and snapped their heads to the other side saying "hun".
*****************************
Aash paced her room. She was debating from the past half-n-hour with herself. She remembered, what shreya said.
12 hours ago'
"What?" aash choked the juice she was sipping.
"How's my idea?" asked shreya.
"This is not happening shreya. Geet will kill me if she finds out."
"C'mon Aash. What's a marriage without teasing? And by the way, you are not the only one taking the risk. Bro will kill me when he finds out too" She said coolly.
Shreya and Aash are friends and, by the twist of fate, Shreya turned out to be the Groom's cousin.
Aash was very happy in the beginning as they were going to be relatives now, but her happiness didn't last long as Shreya came up with a master plan to tease the bride and the groom.
"This is not a lite teasing Shreya. We are going to play a practical joke on them"
"Looks who says" Shreya chirped "The EVIL aash"
"uggh!"
"Aash we both love our cousins and we are don't want them to get hurt. Do we? I am just trying to make the marriage all the more enjoyable by adding a little bit of fun" she said placing her hands on Aash's shoulders.
Aash sighed and said "Okay. Par ek sharat. I am going to tell Geet the very next morning."
"Sure" said shreya grinning.
Present..
And so, she was here now, in her room, waiting for the clock to tick 12:00 so that it'll be the next day and she would run to Geet's room and tell her all that was a lie.
"5 minutes more. Raksha kara babaji" said aash joining her hands.
********************************
The smell was unbearable and Maan could not take it anymore so he took out his spray and sprayed it on his scarf and covered his nose.
Geet, who was facing the other side all the while, inhaled deeply and tuned to his side.
He casually looked at her and he found her looking at him dreamily.
"What was that?" she asked softly.
"What was what?" he asked suspiciously.
She inhaled deeply again and said "Perfume"
Maan looked at her and the spray in his hand and the advertisement of the spray flashed in front of his eyes.
In that ad, a guy will be using the spray and all girls will be pouncing on him.
Maan knew it was utter crap but now he wondered "Was that really true?"
He looked at her and she was still looking dreamily, and he thought " Now this is called THE AXE EFFECT"
"It's AXE" he said, trying to show as unaffected as possible.
She leaned in closer and purred "Can I have it once?"
His insides were jumping and his heart started racing. "Sure" he said, maintaining composure.
He handed it to her and she took it, and then she extended her hand and said "Can I have your scarf please?" all the while batting her eye lashes.
Maan swallowed hard and gave the scarf.
The next move she did was unexpected for Maan. She jumped down and walked towards the buffaloes and opening his scarf, she caught the buffaloes' tail, lifted it and sprayed HIS PERFUME on its' ass!!
His eyes popped out as he saw her doing the same with the other buffalo and when she's finally done, she came back and climbed again, to get on her seat and sat beside him, throwing the scarf and the now empty tin towards him.
He caught the tin and checked it only to find it empty. He eyed his scarf, not even daring to touch it.
"WHAT WAS THAT?" he yelled.
She snatched the empty tin from his hands, and threw it from the moving truck, and said "NOW THAT'S THE AXE EFFECT" and chuckled at his flustered face.
***********************
"5 minutes up! Babaji madat karna!" prayed Aash and dashed towards Geet room.
She knocked on the door slowly but upon finding no response, she slowly pushed it only to find it dark!
"Geet! Geet!" she slowly called but there was no response. She switched on the lights and went towards the bed, and spoke slowly "Geet, I lied to you. It was a part of our plan. Shreya told me to do that actually. I know you are sensitive in this matter. But' I am really sorry Geet. It was really not meant to hurt you. It was just for fun. Geet tum sun rahi ho ha? Geet'"
She said lifting the quilt and she stopped breathing as she saw the sight in front of her.
Geet wasn't there! Instead there were two pillows arranged under the quilt, which she mistook to be the sleeping form of Geet all the while.
She closed the door and switched on the lights the very next minute. She checked I the wash room and in the balcony. Her worst night mare is turning into reality in front of her eyes. She called up Geet's mobile but she wasn't picking the call. Sweat beads formed on her forehead and rolled down from her cheeks as she thought of the consequences. "Please Geet! Don't do this! Pick up the call once!" she thought desperately.
**************************
She sat there, with her knees folded, and she was hugging her knees.
"So, what are you doing?" he asked.
"Looking at random directions" she answered.
"I mean what are you doing at this time, that too alone?" He asked her.
"None of your business"
"I know, just being curious"
"You need not, because, I can ask you the same question"
"There's no secret in that. I ran off from my marriage"
She was so surprised that she blurted out the next words, without noticing "You too?" she asked.
"Yep. Wait a minute. You said you too? That means.." he grinned "you too?"
She gulped as she said "That's none of your business"
He chuckled as he said "What's the reason anyway?"
"What was your reason?"
His smile faded and the very next minute, he recovered as he said "The bride is not my type"
"Matlab?"
"Matlab.. who bahut moti hain" he struggled to speak those hindi words.
She looked and gave a wry smile and he asked her instantly "What happened?"
"Nothing" she said.
"So what's your reason? Your groom too was ugly?"
"I am not that shallow" she snapped.
"Then?" he pressed.
She closed her eyes, took a deep breath and said "I've a boy friend"
His smile vanished instantly.
"What's his name?" he asked. He didn't know why he asked, he didn't know what he would do with that name, but he simply asked. Part of him was telling that she was lying. She was cooking up some story.
She looked at him and answered "Dev".
*************************
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