Love all Along.

He smiled. A smile meant only for her. Her heart skipped a million beats. He had the most amazing smile, in the whole entire world. If smiles could kill, she would have died a thousand deaths by now.

“Thank you.” She muttered as she took the paper from his hands. As the hands brushed and the eyes met, she stopped breathing.

She quickly turned.

Breathe. Breathe. Breathe.  She commanded herself and took in a deep breath.

They were in the same class. Since the last two years and for the next three!

“Err… Akrishta?” he called out to her.

The paper almost fell from her hands. He knew her name.

Of Course, he does. Silly. You’re both in the same class.

He had this effect on her. Only he did.

“Yes, Ayan?” she managed.

“Would you mind explaining me these questions? I scored zero. See?” He said, making a face, showing her the paper in his hand.

“Umm… Sure!” She said.

“Okay. Meet me in the Food Court after this class?” he asked, smiling.

Food Court. 3 p.m

“You get the point?” she asked him for the tenth time now.

“Na. Not yet.” He replied.

He didn’t because he was not trying to. He was busy listening to her voice. For the first time in the two years that he knew her, did he hear her say so much.

He didn’t want to let this opportunity go. He wanted to tell her. But he knew she did not feel the same for him. In two years’ time she had hardly ever looked at him. He knew the answer. 
This girl had her heart since the first day he had seen her. Every time he tried talking to her, something or the other stopped him.

He gave the thought, another thought. Should he really tell her and accept the rejection which was going to come his way or let it be and never know what she felt?

What the heck! He thought.

“… so the balance of power…” she was saying.

“I want to ask something really important,” he said, with all seriousness.

“Yes?” she asked.

Every time their eyes met, she felt a rush of emotions. Love.

“I love you. Do you love me?” he asked, looking straight into her eyes.

She blinked. And blinked again.

Did he just say what she just heard?

All the while his hands were clenched tightly, in anticipation. Why do girls take so much time to answer? What if she says no?

She said nothing. Her heart was doing flip-flops. It was beating so fast, she thought it’d jump out.

“Yes,” she said meekly. What if she’d not heard him correctly. What if he’d asked something about the “balance of power”?

For the first time in a few minutes, he breathed. For the first time in two years he sighed in relief. For the first time in two years, he looked into her eyes and realized it was love all along. He just had to see it. Love. The most beautiful feeling, ever. Love for him meant her and for her meant him.

They smiled at each other. They held each others’ hands.

His smile still is the most amazing in the whole, entire world and her heart still skips a beat every time he smiles. Only for her. 

The Parting and The Meeting

She looked at him wondering when she would get to see him again. He looked handsome even in his sleep, the calmness accompanied with a faint smile playing on his lips made her heart ache. She longed to touch him, trace his face with her fingers. But she did not want to wake him, did not want to disturb his sleep. The childlike smile he gave when she gently held his hand, melted her heart and brought tears to her eyes. She realized she loved him, more than she could ever imagine.

Tomorrow he’d be gone. Gone for six months or maybe seven. After just four months of marriage he’ll be gone for six months leaving her all alone. She did not want him to go but she was not given any other option. He was the captain of the ship. A merchant navy officer. This was his job. He had asked her after proposing her for marriage if she would be able to cope with the irregularities of his job and she had replied,”you bet”. After all he had gone before, but that was different, they were not living together.  The marriage had brought a change. Now she was even more in love, cared even more and was going to miss him a billion times more. She now realized how badly she was going to miss him, miss how she was greeted at the front door when she reached home, spontaneous, unexpected sweet gestures which made her incredibly happy, how they would talk for hours before finally drifting off to sleep.

            How was she going to manage coming home to no one? No smiling face for the next six to seven months. She sighed and cried. He turned and opened his eyes to see her sitting there with tear-stained cheeks. It took him one full minute to register what he was seeing. Then he sat up surprised. The surprise in his eyes made her laugh. He continued looking at her. “Stop it.”                    

 “Why are you crying?” he asked. She did not say anything, just looked at him and blinked. And then he realized, realized that it was him she was crying for. “Shhhhh…. It’s okay, it’s okay”, he said as he hugged her. Listening to his voice, feeling the warmth of his body, calmed her senses to a certain extent. And then she slept soundly in his arms.

The first rays of the morning sun beamed into the room and Aryan opened his eyes to his beautiful wife. The sun highlighted her sharp features and it took him a great amount of will power to look away from her. He didn’t want to think that she would be all alone for the next six months. He hated waking her up but he had planned things for her. His flight took off at seven in the evening and he had exactly twelve hours. “Riya?” he said softly. She gently opened her eyes, looked at him and smiled. The smile that dimpled her cheeks, the dimples which he so madly loved. God! How he wanted to stay. For the first time in his career he hated this job. For the first time he wanted a NORMAL 9-5 job. At least he could be back every evening. He would have had weekends to them. Now he was going to leave her for next six months under the care of no one.

“Good Morning darling” he greeted her. “Good Morning, love,” she smiled and suddenly the smile faded and the face became pale as the realization dawned. He could see that she was putting a lot of effort to look normal. Gently pulling her to him he whispered, “It’s okay. I love you and don’t you worry I’ll be back soon. We’ll get through this, sweets.”  She buried her head in his shirt and wished it was actually as easy as he made it sound. Reluctantly she left him to prepare tea.

                                                                              ******

He stood there, transfixed. He wanted to move and take her in his arms and never let her go. Eight months. The scene of the same airport, eight months ago, flashed before his eyes. The same woman, with tears in her eyes and a pained expression on her face had waved him good-bye. His newly-wedded wife! It was eight months ago.

The same woman stood there, waiting for him with the same smile that gave her dimples, dimples that he so madly loved. The spark in her eyes was back. Her big, beautiful eyes lined with a thick line of kohl. It was the eyes that had attracted him to her, five years ago. The eyes that were the prettiest in the world. The eyes which could look through your soul. The eyes which were so child-like, they could take your heart away. The smile on her face accelerated his heart-beat like it always did.

She was yet to see him. Still, she was smiling. Smiling because, she was happy beyond measures. Her husband, her love was returning. Only she knew what torture it was, living without him for eight long months. He was supposed to be gone for six months but the period extended. Every minute, every second had seemed to be an eternity.

She turned and her heart stopped beating for a second. There he stood, as handsome as ever. She pinched herself, just to make sure that this wasn’t a dream, like all other times. No, it wasn’t. He was there. Her Aryan was there. She stopped the tears with great effort and mentally chided herself. As she took a step forward, he did the same. It was difficult to believe that it was really him.

She felt safe, secure and content as he hugged her. All the fears and insecurities vanished. All the doubts that his love for her may have lessened, diminished. Every thought vanished from her mind and all she could think of was Aryan. This time, she did not stop the tears. She let them flow. She smiled. A happy, content smiled.

He hugged her a little tighter. He didn’t want to let her go. Not yet, not ever. His wife— the love of his life. Every day, every minute he had craved to see her, to touch her. To have her in his arms, like now and now she was here. With him. He couldn’t have asked for more.

Reluctantly, he released her.

They looked into each others’ eyes. They didn’t need words. The eyes, the smile, the expression and the touch did the talking. As they held hands and walked out of the airport, towards their car, he softly whispered, “I Love You, Riya. You’re all I have ever wanted.”

She smiled as fresh tears came out. And she said, “I love you too and you’re all I could ever want.”

“Except of course a baby to complete our family.” He smiled.

                                                               

Kaun Banega Crorepati, Junior!?

With three days to go for the mid-semester exams, I should ideally be studying right now. But then, I remembered an incident from my childhood and I have to, have to, completely have to tell you about it. Okay, well, I never really forgot about it.
 
We were in the fourth standard then, the year was 2002 and that was the year when KBC, Junior had started and all the kids were very, very excited to participate and win huge amount of money which until then was won by those adults.So, now we got a chance to prove ''hum kisi se kam nahi''. 
 
How old was I? Eleven and a half. I really, really, desperately wanted to participate and WIN. Like, this was the dream I was living for. Like, this was the only thing which kept me going. Like, once this goal was achieved, I could die, peacefully. So, the day the phone lines opened and the questions were asked, I started calling. Like, a million times a day. But God didn't listen to me. Naturally.
 
It was raining heavily that day. Cats and dogs. Isn't this what they say? I came back from the school and attacked the phone. I tried and tried and tried and finally the call did connect. As soon as the recorded voice asked me to wait for a real person to take over the phone the phone line went dead. Imagine! I had been trying and trying so hard for this day and just when I was about to reach my destination the phone went dead. I cursed and cursed a little more. Okay. I did not curse. I cried. A lot. Ten days. That's for how long my phone remained *dead*!
 
It was the science class. Science, my favourite subject, back then. Yes, I was smart when I was younger. My teacher asked a question in the class and needless to say, I was the only one who knew the answer. I mentally patted myself and won an appreciative look from my teacher after I gave the correct answer. Well, when the period was about to end, the teacher asked me if I had tried for the KBC, Junior thingy.! Yes, she rubbed salt on my wounds. Something got into me and I said: "Yes ma'am! Just last night I recieved a call from those people and they have called me for the shooting." 
 
Yes, you guessed it right. I became the star of the class. Instantly. Everybody was excited. As it wasn't me but they who had been selected. Well, it wasn't even me but only I knew that. I enjoyed every bit of attention, I got. I was even given gifts. 
 
Co-incidentally, one of my cousins was getting engaged that very month and we had to go to Delhi. That is the time I told my class-mates and my class-teacher that I was going for the shooting.
 
*Guess, who got through the fastest-finger-first! Yes, that was me. And guess, how much I won. Twenty-five lakhs!*
 
So I came back from the shooting (engagement) and informed everyone at school about my *success*! and every single person was oh-so-happy. The news reached the principal and she announced it infront of the entire school. The junior and the senior wing both had one common assembly that day. Courtesy: ME! And, I was given a Dairy Milk. Crackle it was, I guess. 
Everyone was asking me as to when will the episode be aired and I gave them one random date. 16th June, it was. 
 
I was smart, but not that smart. It didn't strike me that: 
1. A cousin was in the senior wing of the school.
2. The show would never be aired.
3. There was no *Amitabh Bachhan* signed certificate with me which everyone wanted to see.
 
As I told you, I was enjoying all the attention and pampering at school. One day I returned home, happy and content. As soon as I entered the house, I heard Ma talking to someone over phone. She was saying, ''Nahi, aisa kuch bhi nahi hai. Arre, mai baat karti hu usse.. aane dijiye usko.''  What happened next is history. Next day, I was accompanied by Ma. The principal had changed and the new one had no idea about my *small* prank. Anyway, Ma had a *small* talk with my class-teacher and I apologised to the entire class and the junior wing. Oh God, the humliation. Even today, I shudder when I think about that day. Today, everybody laughs at this stupidity of mine. Back then I was almost hated. *shudders*
 
P.S.: The principal who gave me that Dairy Milk is the principal of my school again. She still thinks that I am a genius and I had won Twenty-five lakh rupees in 2002. 
P.P.S: See you after my mid-semester exams. Don't know what I'll write when I am clueless about the syllabus of two out of five subjects.
 
The work above is true in all repect. I was one smart and stupid at the same time girl!
Also, I need best wishes. Coz I haven't studied a bit. Hope your wishes help!

Gazals and Jagjit Singh

::Hothon se choo lo tum, mera geet amar kar do:: ::Chithhi na koi sandes, jaane woh kon sa des jahan tum chale gaye:: many more. Gazals which once heard, are hummed for a long, long time. Ever since, I started understanding songs, ever since, I started listening to the lyrics of the songs and ever since I came out of the obsession for songs which were nothing but meaningless shouting, I have been a huge fan of these meaningful, heart-touching gazals. The man himself, Jagjit Singh.
I was still a kid when I had first heard one of the gazals by Jagjit Singh. At that time, I had labelled it as one of those songs which could be used as a lullaby. Now, if you ask me, I'd prefer one of the gazals to those stupid, bollywood songs.
Every gazal that he has sung. Every sentence, every word of those gazals strike a chord. Soothing and meaningful. Words you can connect to.
Jagjit Singh was a gem. His absence, I am sure, will be greatly felt. He sure will live through his gazals. 

Love You-- till Eternity!

I am basically a romantic at heart. Crazy about love. Love in any form is the most beautiful thing in the whole, entire world for me. Love is the solution to all the problems that ever existed in the world. If you love someone you can bring him back from dead. Yes, That is how much of belief I have in Love. Ain't love the most beautiful feeling ever? Love of a man and a woman, is not the only kind of love I am talking about here. Love in every form of existence. It is how you love your mom, your dad, your family, you dog, your pets, your friends or for that matter anyone.
I'll tell you a story. It's a story of a boy and a girl. A real story. There is nothing extraordinary about it but everything about it is special. It is NOT my story but it is the story of two people I love and well, who love each other. Truly, madly, deeply, Totally!
You must have heard people fall in love. When they haven't met each other. Haven't even seen each other.. It's the voice, most of the times. But what happens when you hear something About Him/Her and fall in love. These people fell in love in the exact same way and well, that love is for, forever!
He loved her ever since he heard about her. Something told him that she was the person. That no one, absolutely no one can ever affect him the way she had. She knew there was something different about him. Only she did not know, What! And then after three years of little somthings, small talks, friendship, fights and meeting each other for quite a few times, they realised that it was LOVE. Pure, unadulterated Love.
You know what happened when he first saw her? After months of loving her without even a glimpse of her, he was mesmerized. Mesmerized by her eyes, her face, her smile and her nose. He knew at the moment that she was everything he could have ever wanted, ever wished for. More than that!
She fell in love with his simplicity, the way he took care of her every wish. Everything.
She falls ill. He falls ill. She is sad. He gets sad. If she doesn't wake him up, he gets sad! If she doesn't eat, he skips his meal.
Everytime they meet, their faces glow with happiness. People say long-distance relationships don't work. They do. I have the proof. They are so happy together that it makes people want to fall in love.
They are so, so, so much in love, it makes me want to fall in love. Sometimes it makes me feel jealous. Sometimes I wonder how can two people love each other so much.
*Awe*
God Bless them! :) :)

Mirror

I saw her sitting on the stairs of the hostel. I wondered what she was doing there, in the middle of the night. From where I was standing, I could see her face. She smiled to herself. It was not a happy one. It was a smile of sheer frustration and sorrow. If you thought only tears could move you, you were wrong. Sometimes a smile reflects the sorrow better than a hundred tears. I wondered if I should go and ask her what bothered her, but would she tell her problem to a complete stranger? I took another step towards her. Oblivious of someone watching her, she moved further towards the wall and just when I was about to call out to her, a tear trickled down her cheeks. I decided to ask her what her what the problem was. 

I went and sat next to her. 

"Are you all right?" I asked.

She looked at me for the first time, smiled and nodded. It was the same smile. One of pure sorrow, and this time there was something else. Regret. The face had a pained expression. She seemed lost and confused. Her eyes took my heart away. They were so melancholic that it brought tears to my eyes. I felt lost and helpless and I still had no clue what was going on.

"What's wrong?" I asked softly.

She looked at me while tears filled her eyes once again. She started softly. I had to strain my ears to hear what she was saying.It was, as if, she was talking to herself.

"Have you ever lost a friend who was so much more than a friend?" she asked me and without waiting for a reply, continued.

"I have. Not one. But two. And the sad part is, I cannot blame anyone for it." she laughed and it sent shivers down my spine.

"And the sad part is, I don't have clue as to what exactly they think about me. Hate me? What? I hope things get back to normal.I swear to God that this time nothing will go wrong. I will not let anything go wrong this time." 

I smiled and moved away from the mirror. 

umm..err...something..

Caution: A lot of blabbering in this post. Read at your own risk.

I am so sleepy, you'd think I haven't slept for days. The truth is I slept for eighteen hours straight. Probably, that's the reason I am feeling so sleepy right now. Excess of anything is bad, eh? I have college in the morning and I cannot afford to miss it... (I already missed it yesterday).
I am feeling very, very, extremely sleepy right now. Never mind, I'll sleep in the class.
What do you call a person, who hates spending money without any genuine reason but still does? Is there even a word for such a person? I guess not. Or probably is. Anyway, the point of asking this question is to let you know in a very subtle way, that I belong to that category. It wasn't subtle, huh? Damn.
Two birthdays coming this weekend. What do I do? I am broke. Like, completely. Plus, my ATM card is not working. I mean, seriously. Why does God have to play such funny games with me, which by the way are NOT funny to me.
I got really senti this evening, no? Don't worry, that was right after I got up after my eighteen hours of sleep. Happens.
Anyway, Ideas needed. No. Not the SIM cards. Real Ideas. Okay, don't kill me for my Poor Pathetic Jokes and my senceofhumour sense of humour but I warned you in the very beginning that this post can be dangerous to health. And, I didn't know someone actually reads my posts. You do? Well, let me know. Post a comment. Two minutes. That's the maximum it'll take.
I really do get diverted, don't I? Sorry. Now, Ideas. Please. No Money. Two Birthdays. Unavoidable. What do I do? And, I have been invited to both the parties. I can't go without any gifts, can I? Well, actually I can. But I shouldn't.
Arrey, I feel sad! I can't write about serious issues. I don't know what's going on in the world. Well, maybe some vague idea but nothing concrete. People keep asking me why I am so Self-Obsessed. I can't discuss Nuclear Science or for that matter Rocket Science here. And, I don't want to discuss Sonia Gandhi or Rahul Gandhi or Manmohan Singh for that matter. So, it is just me.
I am very insecure. Please, tell me that I write awesome. I feel good when I hear good things about myself which is so rare, I don't remember the last time I felt good.
The exams are approaching. The bad news no.1 is I may get debarred since my attendance is low. The bad news number two is I haven't started studying yet. The good news is, well, there's no good news actually.
The drama club that I am in, is going to perform at two places, IIT-Roorkee and BITS Pilani-Goa Campus. Now someone needs to tell me what role I am playing in it. There has to be something. Maybe.
I have started sleeping more in the classes. 1. I don't attend enough classes. 2. The teacher only sees my face when he is taking the attendance. Otherwise I am always sleeping. I will probably flunk this time.
People in my batch think that I am dating my friend. A guy, of course. Wow. I am finally the hot topic of discussion. Well, it probably is him. Anyway, bad publicity. Me not liking it.
My crush still doesn't know my name, yet! I know, bad. But three months and then I'll be HIS crush! Hah! I know, I said the same thing last month too, but this time you'll see! ;)
It is five in the morning. I don't how, but I will have to get up by eight. Three hours. After eighteen, three seems to be a blink!
Good Night. Good Morning, whatever.
Bye.
P.S.: Don't forget about the ideas. Do something. Before Saturday. Thank you. Love you. :*
Comment!
P.P.S: Ignore my pathetic sense of humour, bad grammar, wrong spellings,etc.
P.P.P.S: My room-mate just shouted at me. She is asking me to 'shut the god-damn laptop', so off I go.