Senior Year IV

I had hit a real low in my life. The loss of Nanu was really hard to compensate. It was a tough time I was going through. He was quite a knowledgeable person for a man of his age. I missed talking to him. The long debates we used to have. "You never know what you have until you lose it, and once you lose it, you can never get it back."

This was the time when she came into my life. I knew her through a common friend, Preya. I added her on my Facebook. She did accept the friend's request instantly. She knew about me. There was a smile on my face. I talked to her a couple of times, but she didn't seem interested. Later I came to know she was already in a relationship. I was upset. I genuinely liked her. I honestly thought that something very serious and long-term could develop with her.

7th semester ended. I talked a couple of times with her. It was fun. I was at my best behaviour whenever I talked to her. Funny, Sensitive, Caring, Honest, I was the best of myself around her. I already got her phone number by this time. Her boyfriend had dumped her. She used to be really upset. I cheered her up with some lame jokes. I liked her a lot. I wanted to be with her. I longed to be with her. But I still had not asked her out. What was I supposed to do ? She had recently broken up. If I asked her out now, she would think that I was just waiting for her to break up. She knew about my flings. Apparently our common friend had told her about me more than necessary.

8th semester was about to start. I had to go to Bangalore again for a month. I had a project there in Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) with Hardik and Uzair. HAL was the most reputed and the biggest Aeronautics company in India. I was ecstatic about it. The first person I broke the news to was her. She had cleared her CAT exams with an impressive 86 percentile. She had got calls from couple of big B-Schools. Christ University - Bangalore was one of them. She told me that she might also come to Bangalore while I was there.

I was to leave on 7th January. I started preparing for that. Her dates weren't conformed yet. I had asked her  to call me up whenever she needed any help or guidance in Bangalore.

5th January 2012 : A couple of days back she asked me to meet up before I leave. I agreed. Who would say no ? The girl I liked her even before seeing her in person had asked me to meet her. I was on cloud nine. I had waited for this day for a good long time now. The clock struck 6 pm. I had a quick shower. Washed my hair. Put on the best Jeans from my wardrobe and a black shirt. Emptied quarter of a bottle of Deodorant.

I reached Cafe Coffee Day. She hadn't showed up. I sat there waiting. Preya showed up half an hour later. I guess she had invited her so that it doesn't become awkward. I didn't mind it. I greeted her. I had my gentleman act back together. I pulled the door and chair for her. Although she was just a friend, I had to build up a reputation. We sat there talking.

After another half an hour she came. She parked her activa at a distance. I could see her through the glass wall. I slowly blinked clearing my eyes. It was hard to believe what I was seeing. An angel walking towards me. Innocent like a child. Long, wavy black hair that rested on either side of her shoulder. I stood up and started walking towards the door. Her eyes, oh god her eyes. They were captivating. It was her warm, beautiful gaze that acted as a mini-shield for the tough hearted. I reached up to the door. She was looking into the glass but trying to use it as a mirror. Her lips, they seemed juicy wet. They were perfect. Her smile was perfect. Whenever she smiled, her lips curled and made dimples on her cheeks. Her cheeks reminded me of Rasgulla. Even her chin was dimpled. God might be literally jobless when he was creating her, because she was PERFECT.

I opened the door for her and she killed me with a sweet smile and an almost inaudible " Hi ". I closed my eyes and had a smile on my face. And my greet to her sounded almost satisfactory. We went to the table. She and Preya greeted each other. My cellphone beeped. Text Message : Aashi. It said "Where are you ?". I told her that I was at CCD - Sayajigunj with two incredibly cute girls. Beep. Coming in 10. I was confused. 15 minutes later my cellphone rang. Aashi Calling. I saw out of the glass wall. She was there with some guy. I excused the girls and stood up. I went outside to meet her. She introduced me to the guy. It was Rohit, Aashi's current boyfriend. If it would have been a year earlier, I would have been crushed, but I was fine. I met him and after 5 mins and some formal talks I was back with the cute company.

Preya soon left after half an hour. She was to accompany her too. But she stayed back. I guess it was to spend some alone time with me. Or I guess, I wanted to interpret it that way. She stayed back. We talked about everything. My family. Her family. My relationships. Her failed relationship. She was sitting in front of me. I had my date, Finally.

Another half an hour went by and she had to leave. We bid each other good bye and she drove away. I reached home and straightaway went to my room. I was literally jumping around with happiness. I was literally on cloud nine. She was in my life. Arpita. This was when I wrote my first few lines "I want to be with you, tonight, tomorrow and today. It can't happen now, It will someday"