New OS: MAHI SPL ;) naa kuch mere bus mein!

...naa kuch mere bus mein!

Arohi shifted her backpack on her shoulders again, waiting restlessly. The regular 424 should have been here by now! Glancing at her watch she let out a frustrated sigh. The familiar form of a red tin box with the digits "424" written in the front brought a smile to her face. It was early in the morning yet there was a line at the bus stop indicating that Mumbai had woken up and was on its feet to earn for the day. Arohi alighted the bus, and moved to the front to occupy one of the seats marked as "reserved for women".

Balancing herself as the bus started, she slipped inside the seat, next to an elderly lady. Placing the backpack on her thighs, she opened the middle compartment to remove her wallet which had her daily pass.

"Dammit" she struck her palm on her forehead as she realised that she had forgotten her pass at home. She opened her wallet to get the required fare and waited for the conductor.

The crisp morning December air made her smile. She looked out of the window to notice people in sweaters and jackets. Mumbai winters were nothing compared to anywhere around the world. But where people were used to heat and humidity for almost 9 months of the year, the temperature dropping to even 15 degrees, gave them a reason to call it "cold" and pull out their warm clothing. She loved this weather and this season. It made her feel lethargic, but at the same time it felt fresh for once to not sweat by the time she reached college.

"Ticket" the sharp metal clicking brought her out of her thoughts and she turned to look at the punch and then the owner of the hand that held it.

Arohi kept looking at the conductor. He looked not more than probably a year elder to her. He should be in college, studying, not riding on buses handing out ticket!!! What struck her the most about him were his crystal clear hazel eyes. she had never seen eyes so big or clear or so wide. Suddenly she realised she was not the only person who was frozen over here. The bus jerked to a stop and their eye lock was broken.  

Before she could open her mouth to tell him the stop, he handed out a ticket to her. She looked at him in confusion, how did he know where she had to get off?

As if understanding her silent question, he pointed a finger to her backpack, which had her college emblem sticker on it. She looked back at him as he pulled out the note from her fingers and moved ahead to attend to the remaining passengers. The cold was making her mind numb to process something so simple. He knew she was going to college and hence gave her a ticket to the nearest bus stop.

Arohi's stop came and before she started descending the steps, she turned around to look at him once more. She was shocked to notice that he was looking at her too. Something in his eyes made her immobile, she tried to, but could not make out what it was! The "ting ting" of bell made her blink and she hurried down the steps, watching the bus move away.  

She did not know till how long she stood there. "Aroheee..." Someone thumped her hard on the back. She turned around to watch a panting Mahi bend at her waist trying to catch her breath. Her beautiful black waist length hair braided in two pleats were hanging down like thick ropes. She called her "Rapunzel" because of her spectacular crowning glory. 

"Kabse bula rahi hoon... dhyaan kaha hai tera??!! Chal we are getting late for college." Dragging a numb Arohi with her, Mahi set off towards the gate. These two childhood friends always met at the bus stop and headed to class together.

+

Over the next few days, Arohi had kept a watch for her hazel-nut to appear again. But she never saw him after that day. She tried to take different buses but to no luck. His sudden disappearance made her restless. And her not knowing why him disappearing is of any importance to her, made her more anxious. But she could not forget his eyes, or the look in them. She had still not been able to figure out "what" that look was. They were strangers meeting for the first time but yet... She decided to divert her attention to her studies as the scholarship exam was nearing soon.

"Tu ek bus conductor ke baare mein soch rahi hain???" Mahi whispered fiercely as Arohi finally confided in her one day. The teacher stopped writing on the board and turned his head at the sound. Mahi immediately ducked and stuck her face in the textbook. Probably now was not the right time to drill sense in her friends head. She kept looking at her with a 'whats-wrong-with-you' look but kept silent. Mahi had noticed her otherwise bubbly and talkative friend grow quiet over the last few days, and hearing the reason for it had shaken her.

Arohi did not know how to explain it to Mahi as she herself was not clear about it. They had their scholarship exam results today and all she could think about was HIM. But she could not help it, it was almost as if the controls of her mind were not in her hands anymore.

This exam was crucial to her as the topper would get a 100% scholarship in any course in any college all over India for future studies. It was an out-of-curriculum exam which was held by a private company to promote the sharpest young brains, despite of their financial status. Arohis family was well to do but she wanted to prove this for herself and everyone. The second one would receive 50% and the third place 25%. But arohi was a topper in her class and she wanted to crack this one too.

As they entered the hall, she pushed light coloured exquisite eyes out of her mind and started praying. Everyone was seated and the ceremony started.

To her surprise, she had ranked second, not first. A bit disappointed with herself, she went on stage when Mahi nudged her and received her award. As she came back and sat on her seat, nervousness started clawing at her to know who was the topper.

"And the first prize goes to Arjun Punjj." The hall burst into an applause and murmurs. Who was this Arjun Punjj? Arohi and many others wondered. She had not known an Arjun Punjj in her class, but then they had four divisions in one class. Even if he was not in her division, she knew all her intelligent competitors. She started craning her neck to check out this mysterious Einstein.  

A tall lanky guy climbed the steps to the stage, his walk confident but his aura humble. As he turned around taking the award in his hands, Arohi gasped.  She saw familiar hazel eyes but this time he had a smile on his face. Not a full blown grin but a subtle smile.

"Mahi... Bus conductor!!!" Arohi whispered urgently and pushed her elbow in Mahis side to get her attention.

"What!!! Ye Arjun hain... bus conductor nahi. Tu to uss conductor ke peeche paagal ho gayi hai!!!"

Arohi stared at her in shock. "Tu jaanti hai isse???"

"Haan... I mean I know hes in another division. Bohat smart aur intelligent hain but hes not one of the toppers or so famous. Bohat shaant aur introvert types hain. I think he likes to keep to himself." Arohi tried to digest this information and turned her attention to the stage.

The awardee shook hands with him. "Arjun... Our heartiest congratulations. So now you can study anywhere, anything you want, without worrying about the finances. So tell me, now that the whole world has opened up to you, what you would like to become?" Shifting the mic to Arjun,everyone waited to hear his answer.

Arjun scanned the crowd. Arohi felt his gaze sweep over her and his eyes lit up.

"Mein bus conductor banna chahunga." Everyone gasped at his answer and a few girls giggled. The guest of honour was flabbergasted.

"Bus conductor??? Lekin Arjun, itna achha education lene ke baad tum itna chota sa kaam karna chahte ho?"

"Sir, with due respect, mere bauji kehte hain koi kaam chota ya bada nahi hota. Kaam kaam hota hain. Aur jab woh puri mehnat aur lagan se kiya jaaye tab hamara jeevan safal hota hai." Everyone clapped at his answer as Arjun descended the stage.

+

"Hi..." Arjun heard a sweet melodious voice stopping him on his way out of the hall. Everyone was moving past him, as he stopped and turned around to face Arohi, who was behin him.

"Hi" He responded. They both kept looking at each other in the sea of students that were rushing past them to their respective classes. Arjun moved to the side, in a corner and Arohi followed him.

She did not know how to start, but looking at his expectant eyes she gathered courage to make the first move. "Woh... sorry main... uss din... bus mein..."

Arjun smiled. "Actually mere bauji bus conductor hain, lekin uss din woh duty pe jaa nahi paaye. Issliye mein unka replacement tha."

Arohi studied this simple honest boy in front of her. He did not have any shame, any regret, or any inferiority complex in accepting that his father was a bus conductor. Infact he spoke very normally about it. He truly believed what he said on stage.

"You're not one of the top 5 students in your division? If you were, I would've noticed you. But you've topped this exam. So congratulations."

"Thank you. Actually mein part time job karta hoon to support my family. Issliye padhai karne ka jyada time nahi milta, naahi social activities mein part lene ke liye. But ye exam mere liye important thi, issliye I had to top in it. This scholarship means a lot to me. Bauji ke kandhe se mera thoda bojh halka hojaayega."

Arjuns words pinched Arohis heart. Here she wanted to top this exam to prove a point, whereas this boy wanted to do the same to make ends meet for his family, to fulfil his craving of studying ahead and yet not be a financial nuisance for his parents. Her eyes stinged with unshed tears as she suddenly realised how fortunate she was. She had a loving supportive family, who gave her everything she needed or wanted, without expecting anything in return. She mentally made a note to thank her parents today after going home for giving her such a secure environment and upbringing.

"Tumhare bauji kyu nahi jaa paaye uss din?"

Pain flashed across Arjuns eyes briefly. "He had a asthma attack. Hes asthamatic so we have to make sure he gets proper treatment and he takes his medication on time. However, even change in weather can imbalance his health. Luckily im above 18 years so the management allowed me to take his place, otherwise they would've deducted it from his salary."

"Im sorry... Ab kaise hain tumhare bauji?"

Arjun smiled and his cheeks dimpled. Arohis heart lurched. "Ab thik hain."

"Maine usske baad kabhi tumhe dekha nahi... I mean bus mein so I was wondering... "

"Lekin main tumhe roj dekhta hoon."

Arohis eyes flew to his. There it was, the same thing in his eyes, that she had noticed it that day. Was it familiarity?

Arjuns gaze dropped. He lifted his eyes back to hers and continued. "I mean college mein. Basketball khelte huey, ya library mein... Dance practise karte huey. Tum toh college ki shaan ho... " His voice trailed away as he noticed the shock in her eyes. Her face slowly reddened hearing Arjun praise her. She had been praised before, by her colleagues, teachers, principal, even her family, but never before had she felt so flushed.

This guy knew her. He had been watching her. But not even once had he approached her, to talk to her or befriend her. He had not even made her feel his presence. How does it feel to know a person and not have her even acknowlegdge you?

Suddenly she felt like a fool. Here she was hunting for this guy all over, in buses, dreaming about his eyes, whereas he was right in front of her. And she had not even noticed. Arohi just stood there looking at him, unable to say anything. She could imagine Mahis reaction on this. She would stare at her with accusing eyes, hands on her hips, and say "Bagal mein chhora air sheher mein dhindora!"

"Toh mein chalu? Class ke liye late horaha hain." Arjun pointed at his watch reminding her that the entire corridor was empty.

"Ek last question. Tumne stage pe aisa kyu kaha ki tum bus conductor banna chahte ho. I mean you're very intelligent. And even I agree with your bauji ki koi kaam chota nahi hota, lekin bus conductor hi kyu??? Kuch aur bhi toh keh sakte they."

Arohi looked in his eyes. This question had knawed at her ever since he had said it. She had an inkling that it was something to do with what had happened that day. It suddenly became very important for her to know the answer.

Arjun smiled. Her innocent child like expressions made it difficult for him to say anything but the truth.

"Kyuki itne saalon mein, jab mein ek din ke liye conductor bana tha, sirf uss din tumne mujhe notice kiya. Shayad mein firse conductor banunga, tab tum mujhe firse notice karogi."  

"Lekin mein kyu..." Arohi was stunned. Her voice was not more than a whisper.

"Pata nahi... Mein sirf itna jaanta hoon ki tumhe naa dekhna mere bas mein nahi tha."

Still smiling, Arjun walked away and all Arohi could do was stare at his back. Before turning the corridor, Arjun turned around and looked at her.

Arohi recognised that look now.

It was of admiration...

respect...

adoration...

longing...

but above all it was of unconditional love...