My Rail Journey and Her Phone no...!!!

It was during one of my frequent journeys between Delhi and my home town, Chandigarh that this interesting incident occurred. I had boarded the train to return back home that day in the scorching summer afternoon in Delhi. I noticed my seat in the middle of the row with two elderly people on both sides. As I exchanged smiles, I could hear my inner voice reminding me that like all my previous trips on not only this route, for that matter, but on all the routes been without any exchanges with girls. This is just a fact I’m stating, friends. Never have I even seen a decently good looking girl on my numerous train journeys. This was just expected to be similar.

But destiny had its way. Soon due to the arrival of new passengers, the girl sitting in the row ahead of me with her mother, stood up and took the seat on the opposite side of the table in front of them. I had not noticed them sitting ahead of me as I was sitting behind them. But now they were seated facing me and I could not take my eyes of the girl. She had a mystic aura around her. She was so beautiful that I could safely assume every gentleman sitting in front of them could not have afford to take their eyes of her even for a moment, throughout the journey. She was decently dressed in a white Punjabi Salwar kameez and yet looking so elegant that I could not think of Bollywood hottie comparable to her. 

My eyes were stuck at her when the old uncle sitting beside me on the window seat enquired about the time the train will take to reach Chandigarh. Without shifting my eyes, I answered four and half hours. My non-interest didn’t deter him from enquiring more and kept asking questions relating to the journey. And I kept answering with my eyes now shifting frequently between the pretty face of that beautiful girl sitting in front of me and the uncle. It might sound an over-statement but I was in awe, looking at her. Her face had literally imprisoned me. Many a times, I had to ask the uncle to repeat the question.

After almost half an hour, when uncle finished my one-time interview, I finally asked him about his profession and reason for going to Chandigarh. He is an ex-army man, going to visit his son currently posted in Chandimandir, an army cantonment on the outskirts of Chandigarh. Then he started telling me about the problems of army, then problems of India, then China and USA fighting for supremacy with India not even in the global picture and also Corruption. How could he miss out on the hottest topic of today’s times – Anna Hazare and Baba Ramdev. Luckily he was sitting beside me and not in front of me so that I could lend him my ears and my eyes towards the mystic beauty sitting in front, who had by now smiled a number of times. I had started feeling uncomfortable now, not because uncle was busy telling me the problems that our mother India faces but because the girl and her mother had been joined by the company of three seemingly abled young guys of around my age, totally entertaining them. And one glance at the guys was enough to reveal their feelings. All were really enjoying, I guess, including the uncle on my side, except for me.

Suddenly the uncle said you are even worse than all your earlier generations. I was shocked to hear that. I was confused. I had not been giving much ear to his speech but now I could not take my eyes and ears of him. Had he seen me staring at the girl? All sorts of questions flew in my mind. I asked him in some strong and firm voice what had he meant by that statement of his? He was taken aback at my question in a little harsh voice. I thought he certainly would have felt me too friendly with him. He clarified that he was talking about my generation as a whole. With ever increasing rates of crime everywhere, especially crimes related to Rape and Robbery, our generation was largely responsible. And it was only our generation which holds the key to all the solutions of all these problems. I felt somewhat relieved to understand his position but tried to argue that out generation is not as bad as he is telling. And after a few arguments, the topic was laid down and I did not initiate any further topic. I had almost forgotten the beauty in front and now decided to focus on her now. It was the first time I had such an opportunity where a pretty girl was travelling along and I could not have let this opportunity go, without even trying. The three guys by now certainly had the upper hand but the only thing in my favour was that they were three and thus, might end up losing as depicted in Golmaal-1.

Almost half the journey had completed and all I had was just a firm decision to do something, but no idea as to what to do. There was a continuous struggle between my eyes and all the heads in between preventing her view. And my eyes were determined to see her only as there was nothing else to see, neither outside the window, nor inside the coach. Another hour passed and we reached Ambala. Nothing much had culminated from all my efforts as I felt she had not noticed me even once. I was losing out on my patience and desperation seemed to be overtaking me. The train had a stoppage of around 15 minutes at the station. The three guys had got down on the platform. I was starting to feel comfortable.  The uncle beside me also hadn’t said anything for quite some time now. Now, I could concentrate on her totally and it paid off.

She looked at me in a passing glance and I was able to hold her glance at me and convert it into a stair. My hands had signaled her to look at me for a moment and so her eyes were struck at me for around 15-20 seconds. I tried to tell her with my hand gestures and a large smile that her smile was very cute and she should keep smiling. She didn’t respond except for a smile, enough to make me think for the next step. She now turned her face towards the window. The train started moving slowly, leaving the station. I thought I should ask her to meet me. The three guys had by now returned and started talking to the girl and her mother. She was smiling at the conversation. I have to admit with the thinking of those three guys “THE WAY TO A GIRL’S HEART GOES THROUGH HER SMILE.” And they were certainly trying their best.

I finally decided to do something. I tried to contact her a couple of times but she seemed to ignore. But I still kept trying. She finally gave me her eyes. I immediately gestured to her that I am going to the entrance of the coach and would be waiting for her for 5 minutes. In a few minutes, I was out of my seat and on the way to the door. I felt she would come as she had not left her seat even once in the whole journey and now I was giving her a reason to do that. I returned after 10 minutes back to my seat (extra 5 is because of my desperation). She, of course, had not come. Now seated on my seat, I tried not to make an eye contact with her. Anyways, she was not looking at me but only me who constantly looking at her. I could always give an excuse to me that she might have not understood me correctly but I knew I had done too much too early.

The three guys certainly had an upper edge now, as they had all throughout the journey. But I somehow doubted all three to be able to do anything more than just chatting. And my turn was certainly more than over. I felt like having lost a won battle. We were approaching Chandigarh station now and people had started taking out their luggage. They were standing in the line to get down. I was seated deep into my seat, disgusted and frustrated. I didn’t want to see her go in front of me and was therefore seated head down on my seat, my head resting on the food tray. The train halted. People started rushing out. I suddenly saw a piece of paper fallen on my lap. I immediately looked up to see who could have thrown that at me and hoping her, I looked towards her side but she was moving the opposite direction. I understood it could not be her and the paper must have fallen by chance when someone was taking his luggage from over my head. I still decided to look at the paper. I opened that deeply rolled paper and found on it written:

“NEHA” and a 10-digit number, followed by a smile.

Regards,

Raj – Naam to suna hoga :P