Freedom - Do we deserve it?

It was a bright sunny day, a perfect one for journey by train. I left from Noida in hurry to catch a train to my hometown, Amritsar. I barely managed to reach station at time of departure but I was aboard.

Journey started, I was alone among the unknown faces. I always like to have a travel partner, especially for a long journey like this. It's a great time to discuss things. But as I was not accompanied by anyone, my music was there, offering me a hand. I plugged in my earphones and I was not alone anymore.

After 2 hours, an aged Sikh man, came and sat at the seat adjacent to me. He had a good built, nearly 185 cm, broad shoulders, elegantly dressed, wore a maroon turban, beige shirt and contrast trousers. I passed a smile as a formal greeting and he smiled back.

After passing some stations, the train stopped for next signal, and he asked what was the next station. That was the ice breaker. I gestures him to wait and put down my earphones and asked him again what he had said with a pardon. He repeated his question, I replied.

He asked me what's my destination and I replied him again. In return, I also asked him his destination. So we started conversing about the things we do for living. He was impressed by my job and work. For him, he was the export merchant of hand made wooden chess boards and pieces. Before that he had served in Punjab Police also.

Then our conversation started in a full swing. We started sharing experiences. But mostly I let him speak because he he has seen this world more than me. Turned out, he was May 6, 1946 born and knew my mother tongue Punjabi also. Our conversation shifted to more casual mode in Punabi language.

Our talk moved to the freedom and independence of India. He stated a small tale which was very interesting. It went like this.

"My grandfather lived in Amritsar before the independence of India and partition in 1947. He told me this incident. He had a servant who was older than the age of grandfather. But he was very honest an innocent from heart.

One day, in 1945, he came to my grandfather, sat on ground near his chair and started crying his heart out. His sounds were very moving. Grandfather asked him what happened, is everything fine with him or his family, does he need money; but it seemed that any of these were not his problem. Grandfather offered him water. After crying for some time he drank water and wiped his eyes. Grandfather asked him the reason.

He said his reason was that he heard that India is going to get freedom. Soon everyone will be free and they will do and act as their own will. That is bothering him.

Grandfather replied that freedom fighters are giving so many sacrifices to get this freedom from the British Rule and you say that it's bothering you.

When asked the reason of what is troubling him, he said that his daughter is married to a man who lives in Lahore. To meet her every month, he takes a train from Amritsar Railway Station to Lahore. On his way to Lahore in train, the tracks go in two directions and the line guard has to pull the lever to turn the train in right instead of left. From there, he rides a bullock-cart or walks down to his daughter's house.

"And what's with that?" Asked grandfather. 

He replied gently,"If we get freedom, people will work according to their own wish. So, the line guard, who changes the train direction to Lahore, will not pull the lever and I won't be able to meet with my daughter again."

Grandfather held him from his shoulders with both hands and embraced him and said nothing."

This story came to his mind as the train stopped to wait for the further signal to clear. Soon the train stated moving toward the destination. We had a lot of taking. I shared the things I've read and he shared what he had experienced.

But this story left me thinking, "Do we really have deserved and valued our freedom after independence?"

The Lonely Bus Stand

The Lonely Bus Stand 

                  

1

The sun was blazing away in all its fury. The wind was trying to compete with the sun, blowing its top swirling dust all over. The rocks however just held their ground completely oblivious of the efforts of the sun and the wind. And like the rocks, was the lone man waiting at the bus stand – calm and unperturbed. His long matted hair and beard made it difficult to guess his age. The lack of grey hairs indicated he was probably less than 50 years of age. The dirt and grime made any attempt to deduce the color of his shirt abortive. His Dhoti had however somehow managed to withstand the grime better. A cloth bag hung from his shoulders. No bus seemed to be in sight. But he seemed in no hurry.

2

Artik had always been a quite boy always engrossed in his own thoughts. His blank face had baffled most of his teachers. After trying to bring him out of his shell, the teachers had given up on him. He hardly ever spoke to the other boys in the class. If they asked him something, he always had a short to the point answer ready.  It was in fact a school joke that it was impossible to get more than two words out of him. One of the girls in class had taken a dare to get him to speak more than 2 words to her. She had explained the bet to him and asked him to help her win the bet. He had listened to her calmly and walked off with the words, “You lose”. His behavior could have easily given people reasons to doubt the state of his mental development if not for the fact that he was the one who topped the class consistently, all the time, in all the subjects.

3

Divya Murthy was very excited. The emotions of joy and pride emanating from her face served to accentuate the delicate lines of her pretty face. Her husband was going to receive one of the country’s highest civilian awards – the Padma Bhushan. She imagined herself in Delhi with him at the award function sitting among some of the most distinguished people in the country.  More than the award function, she looked forward to the party later on that was being thrown to honor her husband. She wondered who all she would meet there. She imagined herself dressed in her new evening gown and diamond necklace basking in her husband’s glory. She was so proud to be married to the man who had discovered the cure for cancer. He had told her that not only had he discovered the most effective cure but manufacturing cost was so low that even the janitor would be able to afford it. Like small pox and polio, cancer was soon going to be eradicated, he had told her.

4

The sun had done its work for the day and was on the wane. The wind had also blown itself out and the dust was settling. But the rocks still stood on. So did the lone man in the bus stand. Neither of them seemed to have even noticed the change in behavior of the sun and the wind. However while the rocks were still standing, the man had made himself comfortable on the bus stand floor. He was pulling out a few moldy bread slices from his bag and consuming it with the relish of a king sampling royal delicacies. Having taken a good 1 hour to finish the 4 slices he serenely walked up to the hand pump near the bus stand. Time had come for the next item to emerge out of the magic bag. This time it was a battered bowl. Having filled the bowl with water, it was as if his majesty was now savoring the choicest wines after his repast. Probably the bus had left early morning itself and would come again the next morning only.

5

The only class where Artik showed any signs of interest was the scriptures class taken by Brother Selvaraj the school principal. He would pour in on every detail about the life of Jesus. He would not say much in class but he would follow his principal to his room after the class on Friday evening and have lengthy discussion with him. Brother Selvaraj was very pleased with this boy. He could see another Brother in the making. So he devoted extra attention to the boy and tried to guide him along the path of God. This was Artik’s last year of school. After finishing schooling any boy who was interested could apply to join the monastic order. He was looking forward to the day he would take Artik to the head of the local diocese to be formally inducted as an apprentice. Artik’s thoughts were not too different either . He had already begun to develop distaste for worldly pleasures and was looking forward to walk the way of God.

6

Divya was fuming with rage. The pout on her lips and her fiery eyes were bringing out a different aspect of her beauty . Her mother-in-law would be accompanying them to the award ceremony. How could her husband do this to her? Life was so unfair. This was like clipping her wings off. She would have to drape herself in a Sari and stay close to her mother-in-law all the time. She would not be able to try out any poultry or wine at the party. Nor would she be allowed to dance.  She no longer desired to attend the function any more. Suddenly the door  bell rang. It was Dr.Murthy her husband, the wet blanket, the spoil sport, the insensitive clod.  “So all set to attend the function? Ready with all your new clothes and jewels, darling?” he called out merrily as he entered. The sadist was sprinkling salt on her wounds. “Yes. I have got the black dress for mourning ready. And I don’t need any jewels for mourning. The function is only going to be like a morgue for me if I have to attend with your mom ”

7

The sun had completely gone out. The wind had completely died down. It was calm and one could faintly hear the singing of crickets. Still nothing had affected the rocks nor had anything the man at the bus stand. He had stretched himself on the floor and lost in deep slumber without a care in life. It was now the feasting time for mosquitoes that seemed to be enjoying his blood. But what were mosquitoes to a man for who even the sun and wind were non entities? The bag was lying nearby unattended.  If there were any humans in the nearby area, it was very unlikely anyone would be interested in stealing a mangy old bag with some tattered clothes and a battered bowl inside. So he could probably sleep on peacefully like a baby till he was woken up by the bus.

8

Divya and her mother-in-law were no longer on opposite sides. They were now both united by a common cause and were looking ferocious like wild cats. Dr. Murty had been offered a deal for his cancer drug by one of the world’s largest pharmaceutical corporations. They had offered him an astronomical figure that would have ensured he would have counted among the richest in the country and have enough money for seven generations to sit and eat. But this brainless man had gone and given away the patents to World health organization free of charge to manufacture the drug cheap and supply free to all the vermin on the street.  How could he be so selfish? Just because he wanted to be famous as a benefactor of mankind, he was denying his family the comfortable life they deserved. These two women had no use of a husband or a son like that. He had deeply disappointed them and hurt them.

9

Brother Selvaraj was very disappointed with Artik. The boy had chickened out at the last moment. Instead of opting for the diocese, he had opted for the entrance exams to country’s top biosciences college. How come he had not seen this coming? He could have sensed something was amiss the moment he had come to known the boy had been reading some works by Hindu mystics and saints. Instead taking this as a positive sign, Brother Selvaraj had encouraged him.He had especially got carried away by one poem called ‘Song of the Sanyasin’ by Swami Vivekananda and began to show more inclination towards the life of a wandering mendicant rather than the orderly life of a Catholic monk.  It did not stop here but had taken a different turn and for the worse.  He had developed cold feet at the last minute and had decided he would neither be ordained catholic monk nor a wandering monk but lead a worldly life. His mother’s happiness was of  at most importance to him and he wanted to do something for mankind at large he had said . So he would earn wealth, marry and lead a normal life to make his mother happy and work towards scientific breakthroughs that could lead to betterment of mankind.

10

The sun was gently sprinkling its warmth on and the wind was gently caressing the rocks, the road and the bus stand.. The rocks however seemed to pay no heed to the sun or the wind. Nor did the man sleeping on the bus stand floor seem to. The man who had formerly been Dr. Artik Murthy had at last found his true vocation in life. He had tried his best to make his mother happy and make the world a better place. But he had now realized the futility of his efforts. But he had not left without a final gesture towards mankind and his family. He had given humanity a great gift – the gift of life to thousands. And to his mom and his wife, he had left a reasonable fortune. After all wasn’t money all they wanted? Let them have it. Now he wanted to live for himself. He was now experiencing an unearthly peace and calm  he had never experienced as Artik the student or Dr. Murthy the bio-scientist.  His life was now on song – the song of the Sanyasin. The sleeping man gently got up as the long awaited bus finally arrived.

KINDNESS - The Rular Dethroned

             The Modern world is a concrete landscape of fading moral hues with individualism seething in the overflowing cauldron of desires. We grumble that it is a place where culture piercing is a fashion; ready to be consumed and disposed off instant relationships flourish; conversation is arrogantly punctuated with abuses and behavior is tattooed with garish crudities and rash deeds. We seem to be living in a messy museum.

             Grumbling would only pollute the already suffocating scenario. The need is to reconnect with the values, to be inner-directed, sensitive and STARK KIND! In other words, to rediscover the purity of a child’s heart within us. Let’s take inspiration from the following story featured in the CHICKEN SOUP FOR THE SOUL:

             “His mother told us the story day after.

             Kenneth was in junior high school and was excited and eager about participating in a day of Special Olympics Events. While his parents watched expectantly from the stands, he ran, and won, the first race. He was proud of his ribbon and the cheers from the crowd.

            He ran in the second race. Just at the finish line, when he again would have won, he stopped, then stepped off the track. His parents gently questioned him. ‘Why did you do that Kenneth? If you had continued running, you would have won another race.’

            Kenneth innocently replied, “But, Mom, I already have a ribbon. Billy didn’t have a ribbon yet.”

            May kindness rule our world!

A Beach Story

She wasn't the princess out of fairy tale, but God she was pretty. She had something about her, like a magnetic pull, and I was being a perfect nut, staring at her like that.

I always loved my morning run at the beach, and today i fell in love head over heels. She had been taking her laps as well, that loose tee did nothing to hide her glam figure. her hair pulled back in a high pony and a band at forehead. NO, she was way better than just pretty.

And then she stopped dead in her tracks, staring intently at something in the sand. A smile crept up to her beautiful lips. Bent down, picked it up- A Conch. She examined it, turned it each ways and then she put it on her ears. Then the magic happened- she smiled that huge electrifying smile of hers and man , I was dead.
'Ajaansh'- somebody called my name. That was someone I used to see every morning here. We had a little chit chat. By the time I turned my attention back to her she was gone, just like that.

I was disappointed. But there was nothing I could have done then, so, I jogged back home.
Throughout the day her smiled kept flashing in my memories and I ended up smiling at myself for no reason, feeling like a fool. Somehow, with a lot of effort the day ended. The night felt longer than usual. I slept fitfully, waking up at every half hour to check my bedside clock. Still two hours to go, and right at its time my clocked chimed.

I got up at an instant and realized how simply the two more minutes of sleep today seemed long and useless. Like a lightning I changed to my tracksuit and ran, YES RAN, not jogged, to the beach. She was already doing her laps there. "Oops I need to get up earlier I guess".

I tried matching my laps to her, so as she is in my vision constantly. After a few run she stopped, staring at a distance where few kids where playing, jumping and splashing water at each other. Again her THAT SMILE, and she walked with deliberate steps to them. She jumped and splashed and played like a kid. And she looked like a kid- sweet, innocent, fragile. Little did I knew then.

'Ajaansh'- I was distracted again. How I have come to hate my name in these two days. And I caught her jogging back, at a distance. She flies, yes, a second and she vanishes. Two days and I know nothing of her, absolutely nothing, apart from the fact that she is amazingly beautiful and that she has a part of my heart and a whole lot of my mind.

I was disappointed YET AGAIN...

Its been so long now..over a month...I have not seen her..is she ill?...or may be she went off to some other place..or may be she was just visiting here...it was driving me insane..i was angry and agitated.

"sa'ab, bade sahab ne bulaya hai".

"hmmm", I get up half  heartedly.

"Ajaansh, there is some miss Ishika batra from Eye India limited. She will be briefing on what kind of advertising and publicity she needs from us. I want you to handle her account."

Now I wasn't really looking to deal with some arrogant cribbing female colleague right at this point of time.
"sure sir", I smiled.Turned back and made a face as i walked out and to the briefing room.

I could make out some pretty lady already briefing in there...She turned and I stopped dead on my track...IT WAS HER...I always fainted...no wait..I was glued at the door and dumbstruck...She stopped and stared at me...her expression amused...she waited for me to react..to join in...but i was just paralyzed.

"Excuse me, are you interested in joining in or you are better off staying at the door", said she.

I gave her a sheepish grin, "sorry, I am Ajaansh. I will be handling your account".

She smiled and I went nuts again.

I felt alive after 48 days to be exact and I was happy....very happy.

In the evening i went to the beach...and there she was...with a cute summer frock and a long straw hat...watching the sun go down.

"Hi"
"Oh hii Ajaansh"

damn she remembers my name

"if you are done with watching sunset may I take you out for a coffee".

I was ready to die if she said no.

"yes, sure", she smiled and saved me.

we walked to the beach cafe..this was a start...of what I wasnt sure...but it felt right...it felt like a start.

"so tell me about you, have you got someone waiting for you?", damn this was the wrong question. "No, i mean....sorry it isn't what it sounds like..I mean this was not what i wanted to ask".


shit i was stammering


her that smile yet again

"Its okay..I have a fiancé, Roy, he works in the Australia."

"You're engaged?" He tried to hide the crushing disappointment in his voice. He looked at her ring for the first time and cursed himself for not seeing it sooner.

"Yeah, but it's been two years and we haven't set a date so I don't know what that means."

"Well if he's got any sense he'll marry you tomorrow."

"Thanks." She blushed.

Damn isn't she gorgeous. 

Few days later

"I have no real reason to know this but I feel I should tell you that the yoghurt you're about to eat is out of date." I said

She looked at the lid. It expired over the weekend.

"I think you just saved my life." She teased with fake wonder.

"Any time lady." He smiled
"You haven't told me about you yet. Being secretive haan", she teased.
"He laughed, nah, I have nothing much apart from work and this one girl I am head over heels in love with", I almost blurted out nervously...with a smile.
"ohh a girl haan" she smiled..conspicuously...like she knew what I meant

Weeks passed...and nothing was helping me..I was in love..all the more..and she was still engaged to some Roy guy.

We kept meeting in the pretext of work... and I kept falling in love.

Three weeks later.

""Hey, how's the new apartment?"

"Great, I love it there. Gets a little lonely at night though. And I am throwing a little housewarming party, why don't you join in."

"How can I say no to you"...and her smile.

At the party

it was a gorgeous party...in a gorgeous house of the gorgeous lady.

And God she looked like the angel she was...It all was going good..but I was feeling a bit out of place among her friends so i looked around.

There were her pictures and her family's and friends... I was astonished...I couldn't figure out Roy...No picture to indicate she has someone in her life.
I wanted to ask her..She was busy...She looked at me and smiled.


"Are you getting bored", she pouted her lips and mouthed...and i felt like kissing her right then.


I shook my head in disagreement...waved my hands to indicate not to worry and carry on.
I wandered into a room..it wasn't arranged yet..there were few albums...I took one and flipped...my breath got stuck....my eyes popped out...how could this be...this cant be...My head swarmed…

"How long have you been stalking me?", I wasn't sure how I was feeling, "and why"

she opened her mouth to say something..but restrained.

"Why?"

"I wasn't stalking you" her voice was calm...and hurt...but she said no more.
I had no idea what to say...I walked out...She sat there..her head down..probably crying...And at that point of time I was more angry than I cared.

Night was hard to spend..I walked..I drank...I smoked...I even considered walking back to her..but i have this thing for my anger and ego.

Next morning I went running...for two reasons...to pass my time and....in a hope to see her...she was there...running...sad...and lost.

Weeks passed..I did not see her

"Ajaansh, you need to brief the whole Eye project to someone who is replacing miss Ishika in the project"

I stared at my boss blankly...replacing Ishika...why?

I briefed the one who have been working alongside me throughout the project...and I ran...for Ishika...for my life.

"sa'ab madam to jaa rahi hain ghar chhod kar. samaan saara pack kar k rakhwa diya hai aur kahin gayi hain. aur aapke liye ye chhod gayi hain", he extracted a neat envelope and handed it to me.


Ajaansh,

            It has always been easy for you to neglect and forget me, but never for me. Those albums, am not sure if you dint recognize or just ignored, had my childhood pictures as well. yes I am the one you always made fun of..from high school  to grad school and I never stopped loving you. Never in my life I expected to see you again, especially not like this. Trust me, this was all as unexpected for me as it was for you. Still forgive me.
Love 'Harriet'

I was dumbstruck...felt like a fool....Harriet as we called her in school for the 'craters' all over her face..It was impossible to make a connection...But I had to run...To stop her..To tell her I love her...for real.
I ran to her office...An hour of hard work and I was rewarded "Ishika flew to some other branch...Where...no one knows..Only the boss and he is tight mouthed when it comes to privacy of Ishika. hard luck buddy".

I walked out..head bowed...sat on the stairs Aghast..I had lost her.

wait no..the story doesn't end here...Who are meant to be together...finds a way together...and there is one thing called destiny.
2 years later I saw her again...on my official trip to south of France...in a coffee shop...lost in her lappie with a coffee...and man she was still as beautiful..may be even more now

"this doesn't come with an expiry date..does it?"..she looked up in a shock and went pale...she stood up still looking shocked...and hurt..I pulled her to a hug...she reluctantly gave in...and cried.

"Is that Roy guy still around...are you still engaged?" I asked her as we sat and called for a coffee.

"I never was" she looked down
"that ring..."
"my mom's.."

"marry me"
she looked shocked...and slowly her lips twitched...and then SHE SMILED...

Stupendous Gems of Typical Indian School

Once upon a time, there were five brilliant students in a class of a boys' school. 

1. An absolute genius, who topped every course by the sheer force of his talent, hard work and commitment. He also took part in dramas, debates etc. and earned a lot of fame. He was an all round student.

2. The class bully, or 'dada'. In the inter-school fights, he would rally his troops and exhort them to fight till they won. He transformed his school, which till then was full of docile students, into one of outspoken fighters who could do a bit more than just study and get marks for themselves.

3. The most studious, most good boy in the class, who ate on time, slept on time and woke up on time every morning. He was the darling of every teacher as they could get anything done from him as long as it was in the interest of the school.

4. The loner, who would sit in a corner, bored with all that was happening around him, occasionally writing a poem or two, and humming a beautiful tune to himself. Only when the toughest of courses came would he wake up, and lo and behold, would top them by his sheer artistry.

5. The mast-maula bully who was a very strong fighter. He would beat up any boy, however well trained in foreign martial arts, by the dint of his desi methods. He would also apply the same methods to courses and would at times crack the most difficult of courses by the most desi of methods. Not very studious, but brilliant nevertheless.

A group of students so brilliant never had been in a school before them, and never came after them.

New Schemes by Government

Due to the current financial situation caused by the slowdown of the economy, our government has decided to implement a scheme to put workers 50 years of age and older on early retirement. This scheme will be known as RAPE (Retire Aged People Early).

Persons selected to be raped can apply to the government to be eligible for the SHAFT scheme (Special Help After Forced Termination).

Persons who have been raped and shafted will be reviewed under the SCREW Programme (Scheme Covering Retired Early Workers).

A person may be raped once, shafted twice and screwed as many times as the government deems appropriate.

Only persons who have been raped can get AIDS (Additional Income for Dependents and Spouse) or HERPES (Half Earning for Retired Personnel Early Severance).

Persons who are not raped and are staying on will receive as much SHIT (Special High Intensity Training) as possible.

The government has always prided itself in the amount of shit it gives out. Should you feel that you do not receive enough shit, please bring this to the attention of your local MP. They have been trained to give you all the shit you can handle.

The Dirty Feeling

The Dirty Picture Feeling

He laughs loud. Yatin really laughs loud. Loud, not by sound; but by his body. When he giggles, his body dances with the rhythm of his laughter and his shoulders jump. Not only Yatin, but all of us were laughing. That day in winters was really going playful. Me, Yatin, Suber and Shirish were coming home some earlier from the college, as there was the farewell party that our class was giving to the passing out seniors. Due to this there were almost no lectures. We were coming home by an auto-rickshaw.

Suber, who is always in funny mood, was cracking jokes (more or less situational) nonstop and we were doing nothing but laughing in the auto.

After travelling for about 10 minutes, the auto stopped in front of a man and he stepped into the auto. He took a seat exactly in front of me. He was a generous looking man, all bald-head.

Suber took a short pause and again started to amuse us. But that man, what I thought firstly, was not really comfortable. Within 2 minutes, he started adjusting his legs. As a result of which I also had to move my legs.

But now he had started moving constantly and initiated his activities.

To my surprise, he put his hands on my legs and started moving it. Now to object him by my gestures, I also moved abruptly. To this, Suber, who was sitting next to me asked me, “Nitin, Are you ok? Have you got enough seat to sit?” I gave him a positive response. Then again Suber resumed.

But that man also resumed his activities. He again started moving his hand on my legs and this time, he even reached groin. Instantly, I pushed his hand away and gave him a rude look. I made a gesture to tell him not to do that again. In the mean time, we reached our destination, Bus Terminal of the city. I quickly jumped out of the auto. We paid the fare and discussed about our meeting time in the party for that evening. Then we left for our homes.

 

In the evening, we met at the party. The party was terrific. Everybody danced and enjoyed a lot. We enjoyed the dinner and left the college at about 11:30pm. The college buses were there to drop us at the Bus Terminal. We were in the bus and Suber again started with his humour. I wonder from where on this earth, he can get such a tremendous energy even after dancing for approximately 2 hours. At 12 midnight, we reached Bus Terminal. We bid goodnight waves and started off to our homes. I was alone, walking down a lonely road. Due to winters, roads went lonely as it grew dark. I was looking for a passerby to take a lift from.

After two minutes, I saw a scooter’s headlight. I waved my hand, but it quickly passed away. Two more motorbikes passed but no one stopped. After sometime, I saw a man coming on motorbike. He was wearing a helmet. I waved my hand and he stopped. I asked him to drop me near the turn after next crossing. He just replied, “Get on.”

I was feeling lucky, that I got a ride at this time of night.

Very next moment, I noticed some movement. I saw that the man was driving the bike with his right hand and his left hand was on my left knee. I moved my knee to take his hand off but he was holding it firmly. I asked him, “What are you doi...?!!”

Before I could utter the last words, he turned back and slid up the visor of his helmet. To my horror, he was the same man, whom I met in the auto today, who was sitting in front of me.

I was astonished and could not speak anything. He turned to front but now he leaned back on me. His hand was now on my thigh and gradually was reaching to groin. I was terrorised and my body was still.

Then he spoke, “I met you in the auto today. Remember me? From that time I had developed a feeling for you. Now the feeling has grown strong. I really want you. Be my man, Nitin. Would you please let me su...? I really wanna do it. Please. Oh! It will remain secret. I’ll also pay you for this. Let’s go to my place.”

I turned pale. My heart was sinking. I was even hearing my own heartbeat. He even remembered my name. My mind stopped working. I didn’t know what to do. Then the only thing that came to my mind was...

“Help! Help! Somebody please help me.” I shouted. But no one could hear me. The roads were lonely. No one was there to help me as it was a cold winter night.

He spoke again, “There is nobody to help you my man. So please cooperate with me tonight. I am not lying; I really have a strong feeling for you. Please.”

My legs were going numb. I couldn’t even jump off the bike. I folded my hands asked him to spare me. He didn’t even respond. I was shivering with the fear of his feeling. He even crossed the turn I asked him to drop me at. All I could do was shouting at the loudest pitch of my voice. I closed my eyes and yelled for help.

Then suddenly, the bike stopped. I don’t know how and why. I don’t know what he thought or saw, but the bike stopped. Within a blink of an eye, I was off his bike and running to my house as if the wild dogs were chasing me. After running far from that point, I looked back. The bike was nowhere. He was gone. Even then I reached home running and only caught my breath when I was inside my room. I was thanking almighty that I have reached home safe and sane.

Next day, I told the whole incidence to Yatin, Suber and Shirish. Everybody laughed. Again Yatin’s body danced; Suber cracked jokes on the incident. But I was silent and still felt the fear.