Will she be mine??? - Part 1

The big round black and white clock struck 8.00 in the evening. Two trains to Kolkatta had arrived and departed in the past one hour. The station was filled with crowd from all the parts of the country. Mumbai, the place that plays host to people from all walks of life had been the city where Vivan was born, brought up and felt the most beautiful feeling in the world, "LOVE"

Even though Victoria Terminus was filled with noise, whispers and clatters, Vivan felt he was lonely. He sat at the STD booth which was where she had asked him to wait. So many a times had they passed through that place together. He could hear her silent giggle surrounding him.

"Will she say a "YES"? Will she be mine forever?"

It had been raining since morning that day. The rains had always been lucky for Vivan. Everytime the sky cried it had brought him hope. And he wished the same happened today. She would be there in no time and her answer would change his entire life. For the first time he had become responsible for someone, for the first time Vivan had changed for someone, but would this someone be his? His future and destiny was separated by the wall of an answer from her.

A year had passed since it had all happened. A year since he was trying hard to prove something to someone. What was it that had changed a person so adamant? Who was the real Vivan?

June 30th, the day a bright flash of light had entered his life.

"Vivan, wake up Son. You will get late to office." Neena Sharma, Vivan's mother yelled as she entered his room. "Maa, please 5 minutes, 5 minutes" Vivan murmured in his sleep trying to cover his ears with his pillow. He tried to avoid his mothers comments and went back to sleep.

"A girl in a beautiful blue salwar with long hair and a few flicks falling over her face came close to Vivan. He was amazed at her and opened his mouth to say.... "Tring Tring" Vivan's phone rang and he realized that it was his dream.

"Hello, Vivan!! Today's my turn to drop Dolly to school. My bike it punctured yaar. Can you drop her please???" It was Rohan, Vivan's childhood buddy who stayed in the apartment opposite to this.

He tried to pull his blanket and remember his dream but it was Rohan again. Rohan had spoilt his dream the second time. He gave up his fight with his dream and got ready to drop Dolly to school.

"Rohan Bhaiyya, Vivan Bhaiyya aa gaye", Dolly came screaming out of the house.

Vivan sat at the porch of Rohan's house scanning through some magazines when Dolly came and sat on his lap complaining about the boy in the opposite house. She kept pointing her fingers in that direction and Vivan glanced at the house. He could see the door ajar and also a shadow of a girl near a couch.

 He tried to shift his head to take a slight glance when he saw the door open slightly so that he could see her duppatta and her sandals. She was sitting close to the couch trying to do something. Just when Vivan tried to shift his chair a little to take a closer look, Dolly whispered into his ears which startled the engrossed Vivan, "Bhaiyya, that rude boy stays in that house. I think his Didi is tying his shoe lace"

"Didi????" Vivan gave a inquisitive look.

Vivan looked at the clock and it was time to drop Dolly but his heart was beating fast as he wanted to see the girl. He had never been so desperate in noticing girls. Being a charming person with good looking features it had never been difficult for him to lure girls. But she was special he thought. Dolly held Vivan's hands and walked with him to the lift. "Bhaiyya, Woh ladka, I don't want him to come now", she prayed.

But Vivan prayed the opposite. Just as he opened his eyes, the door opposite to him flung open and a bright light shone towards him. He was confused if the sun was shining brightly than before or had an angel dropped down from heaven before him.

 She was dressed in a blue salwar and her hair was long and fell beautifully over her shoulders. A few locks covered her eyes and she managed to brush them aside. 

Vivan gazed wondering if his early morning dream was actually coming true. She walked fast in the direction towards him, She came and stood exactly next to him and he was speechless. "Vivan don't be stupid, Turn to the other end Vivan", he tried scolding himself feeling embarrassed. But it was his mind that was speaking and Vivan preferred to listen to his heart. Lost in his fantasies he failed to realize that he was actually waiting for the lift.

"Couldn't you hold the lift?" the little boy screamed at Dolly

"Oye, if you were in such a hurry, you should have come first and called it", Dolly retaliated.

"Kukoo, Can't you be quiet", She finally spoke to calm down the boy.

"Dolly never mind, we will call the lift again and all four of us can go it. Okay, Beta?" Vivan comforted Dolly while she gave him a stare.

Dolly kept fighting with the boy and Vivan was still gazing at her till the lift reached the ground floor.

"Bhaiyya, why were you friendly to that boy, He is the same guy whom I hate", Dolly screamed at Vivan.

Vivan tried to make Dolly quiet saying, "Dolly beta, you should forgive people who make mistakes. That boy is so sweet and his Didi she was even more sweet :p"
Vivan was in his own world defiantly realizing what he actually spoke. 

Vivan waited for the evening to enquire about her to Rohan. "Rohan...... Rohan...... Wait up Rohan", Vivan had parked his bike in a hurry to catch up with Rohan on the same evening. 

"Arre Vivan, Hey buddy how was the day?" Rohan kept his office bag near the porch of his apartment entrance and wished his best friend.

"Rohan yaar, what do I tell you? The day was just amazing. I reached office and she was in front of me, I ate lunch and I felt she was feeding me; I came out of office and OH freak!!! She was waiting for me on my bike. Oh my Gosh!!! Rohan yaar what is wrong with me? I can only see her continuously....", Vivan spoke non-stop and Rohan kept on trying to stop him with a 'who's-that-girl kinda look.

"Hey Rohan!! Do you mind if I start lining with you in your room? :P" Vivan didn't realize that his statement projected a different meaning. Rohan was totally confused by now. 

"Vivan, Relax . Calm down and tell me who is she. And what the hell are you blurting out?" Rohan finally got a chance to speak.

"Arre the girl opposite to your house. Who is she yaar? I mean she is just mind blowing, her hair that falls over her face, her simplicity, her uniqueness......", He started describing her by moving his hands and Rohan knew his friend had totally lost it !! 

"You mean NIDHI, Dolly's enemy's cousin. She is Raj Uncle's niece. She just landed two days back from Delhi. Raj Uncle's wife had all praises for her. She was telling Mom about her and that was when I overheard it." Vivan thanked his friend for so much information. At least he knew how to call her now. He had been trying different names to call her but nothing suited her. "Nidhi", was special. She was special just like her name. 

"I think I am going to fall for her Rohan." Vivan screamed in excitement. 

"Hey Vivan, she is not of your types. She is very simple and she is here to look out for a job. She is not like one of your so called ex-girlfriends" Rohan gave him a sarcastic glance.

"Rohan, mere brother.... I know she is not like my ex-girlfriends, which is exactly the reason why I want to make her mine. Why not we keep a bet? Just give me 6 months time and she will be mine.." Vivan sounded very sure.

"Vivan, Don't play with her feelings Vivan" Rohan warned him.

An hour later Vivan was lying on his bed. It was a full moon day and its brightness fell across his face. Nidhi's thoughts were still in his mind. He hadn't thought of anything else since he had seen her in the morning. He looked at the moon and wondered why she was so beautiful. Closing his eyes he wondered if he would dream about her but only one voice flashed his ears, "Don't play with her feelings Vivan!!!"

Nidhi was busy drying clothes in her balcony. She looked lovely to him. Vivan had got up today without any fuss and had been eagerly waiting at his balcony for over an hour to just have a glance of her. 

Nidhi had noticed him right from the time he had seen her with a wide-open-mouth expression. And now he was at the balcony noticing her. She hated boys who flirted out in the open without even bothering that it portrayed girls with a wrong image. 

Vivan was busy gazing away at Nidhi while she was busy scolding him in her heart. Would six months be enough for Vivan?

A week passed and there was one thing Vivan didn't miss to do, "Wait for Nidhi at the balcony". He tried a million ways to talk to her, through Dolly, her enemy, through Rohan, but alas nothing worked. Nidhi was one strong girl who didn't budge.

"Rohan, I finally found another person more adamant than me" As usual Rohan was the guinea pig whom Vivan had lately caught to hear his complains.

"This Nidhi, She does not pay any heed to me. She looks at me so dangerously as though I tried to kill her. I only look at her and have tried to talk to her yaar", Vivan kept blabbering.

"Vivan I think this time you are going to loose your bet!!!" Rohan teased him.

Nidhi on the other hand had attended a dozen interviews and to her bad luck, nothing had clicked. "It's going to be fine Nidhi!! Something big is waiting for you.", She consoled herself.

Her nights were spent in the job portal websites to check if any new jobs were posted that day and her mornings were spent in either rushing for an interview or glancing through the "Ascent" column in The Times of India. She had come to a position where she was ready to compromise anything for a job in the IT industry.

"Nidhi, did you go through the morning newspaper? There seems to be a walk-in at Inautix systems. Why don't you give it a try?" Raj Uncle was updating Nidhi.

"Okay, Mamaji. I will give it a try." Nidhi got ready and headed for the walk-in.

"Vivan, you left you office tag", His mother came running with it to the door.

"Thanks Maa", Vivan wore the tag and left in a hurry. He was late as usual.

"Don't the people in your office know that you work for Inautix, Vivan. Why do you have to wear this tag everyday?" His mother kissed him on his forehead and bid him goodbye.

Vivan parked his bike at his office parking and took the stairs to rush up. It was just another normal day for him until he saw someone. Who else could it have been? Nidhi was filling a form at her counter. Vivan hurried to his cabin and found out from his colleagues that a walk-in was going on at his office.

“This is the right time Vivan, Chal go and help her and start talking to her”, He told himself.

His not so brilliant mind however charged him with another thought, “No Vivan, ask Sushant to help you out. What if she does not talk to you?”

Sushant was the HR who generally interviewed at Walk-ins and incidentally he happened to be Vivan’s close friend.

It had been a long day for Nidhi. She walked out of “Inautix Systems” with a file in one hand and her handbag and Umbrella in the other. Her mobile rang and she struggled to hold her stuff together and answer the call. “Haan Raj Uncle”, she tried to converse loudly. “I cleared the interview, Uncle. I have to join next week. Bahut baarish ho raha hai. I will talk to you after I reach”. It was raining out and Vivan was standing at a distance watching her open her umbrella and enjoy the rain.

He walked out of his office and felt the rain drops touch him softly. At a distance he saw Nidhi playing with the drops of water. He walked close to her without her noticing it. Standing at a sufficient distance so he could watch her closely, he gazed at her. There was a spark in her face as the sky roared but there was something that made him wonder. She was smiling and she was happy but her eyes, they told a different story. There was a silent sadness hidden in them,

The clouds had opened hard to shower the earth with water and he felt as though his first step to talk to her was going to be successful soon. It was going to be a week long wait for this to happen.

                

Will Nidhi speak to Vivan? Will Vivan win his bet or would he loose his heart?