Featherlite Stories: abhi naa jao chhod kar...

Fail Not Thy Meet

(with due apologies to Shakespeare)

Then her cell phone rang, in that endearing ring tone she’d set for him ‘Main zindagi ka saath nibhaata chala gaya, har fikr ko dhuen mein udata chala gaya’.

He was like that, contrary to his age and responsibilities he had, full of cheer and élan. She had so many online friends, but none, ever, like him. She remembered why she had got attracted to him, 10 years her senior in age, a profile that itself spoke the man he was. This online friend had become so important to her that she knew she can’t live without him. Now the day was nearing, when she’ll see him, in flesh and blood, her love. She had been expecting this call.

She lifted the cell phone and, with all the love she could muster in her voice, said, ‘Hi’.

He was as chirpy as ever and with that ‘josh’, so typical of him and said ‘howdy silly?

She always went soft and mushy when he called her that, not his regular ‘sweetheart’ or ‘chocolate’ or ‘buttercup’ or ‘butterscotch’ or his own special concoction, ‘Chocolate covered Alpenliebe’. Though a diabetic, he loved sweets and used all his favorite items on her. Didn’t she love him soooooooooooooooo much?

She said ‘Hi dumbo,’ he liked it very much. ‘Tell me’ she said as usual and he said ‘luv ya honey, my silly girl.'

‘I am reaching on Friday afternoon and will be checking in ‘Hotel Grand Cannon’ he said, his joy so contagious that she felt some of it rubbing out on her, too. It was her suggestion, because it was only 5 minutes from her home, and he had booked online. In fact she had drawn the schedule for his three days stay there.

On his arrival, he was to call her and after sprucing up, he was to meet her at Café Coffee Day (funny about that advert, ‘a lot can happen over coffee’) right across his hotel. They had decided to sit across each other holding hands and looking into each others' eyes, not talking, just saying everything they wanted to say through their eyes. Then they were to go around the town, just holding hands and have dinner at a quite place. Not that she’ll need it, or he. Each other’s company, itself, was enough. Then watch a movie and later drop her back. He had always wanted to do that, so he can kiss her goodnight. He lived in a kind of dream world only young boys of 18-19 will think about, right out of those love stories the youngsters read.

Saturday and Sunday were so fixed that Sunday evening was specially kept for a meeting with all her net friends and he was to be the star attraction. He wrote well and always original. Most of her friends online had always liked his writings. He wrote stories and poems, both in Hindi and English. Only thing that prevented him from writing in the other 6 language he knew was the lack of readership. He was a real ‘polyglot’.

He had said that as soon as he arrived, he’ll give her a tinkle, and saying he had lot of things to wind up before starting tomorrow, he hung up with his usual ‘luv ya honey’.

She suddenly remembered that today was Wednesday and he was reaching on the day after tomorrow. Hell!! She had to do so many things during the next two days. Make arrangements for that meeting, get her old pink/brown striped shirt washed and ironed, he loves it, she remembered, and she was going to wear that, for him. And she had to visit her beautician, for having her hair done, it’s been more than two months and she was avoiding it, ‘lazy bum’ that she was.

The next two days were very hectic. She had to call up all her friends and ensure their attendance, fix up the menu, time and what to do afterwards. Surprisingly, he didn’t call the next day, till he was in the train.

She could imagine him jumping around in the train as he spoke in his inimitable effervescent style as he said that his seat was confirmed and that the train was on time. Throughout that evening he kept on calling her and sending her messages, as he usually did.

It was ‘that’ Friday, one she’s been waiting for. Unusually she got up very early. As is her routine, she switched on her favorite FM channel, and listening to the songs, went about preparing to go to office. He was not due till evening, but she had decided to go to office early and finish all her work by four, so that she can come home and change, before meeting him. Her FM channel, for some reason wasn’t playing the usual love songs. She also heard RJ mentioning some railway accident and, as these channels usually do, give out telephone numbers for the relatives to contact the authorities. She thought about switching on the television to know more about it and as she was just searching for the remote, her cell played the message tone. She knew it’s got to be his, his regular good morning sms. She loved them and had told him that his sms always made her day. As usual it was one mentioning how much he loved her and how deep; today it was ‘as deep as the deepest mine man has ever dug’. She loved it, always loved the innovative way he said he loved her. Assured, she had forgotten the train accident completely.

As expected he called dot at 5 pm and said that he’ll meet her at CCD in one hour flat. She told him that she need to go home, wash and change and will meet him at 6.30 sharp and he should go and occupy a table at the farthest corner.

She arrived on time at CCD and, as he had promised, hugged her and remained like that for so long that she knew people might be wondering. She felt her being drained out, out of all her pain, hurt, unhappiness that has been accumulating in her over the years, she felt relaxed and relieved and a lot lighter. He held her at arms length and looked at her and gave that smile he calls his weapon. Actually it was a great feeling, his hug and his smile. Later, after dinner and the movie, he dropped her home, and, as promised, he kissed her, deep and passionate and left her near the lift after giving her a wink, smiling impishly and humming the song 'abhi na jaao chhod kar, yeh dil abhi bhara nahin...'.

Saturday and Sunday went as planned, exhausting but terrific. The meeting with her friends was a great hit. He had that uncanny knack of endearing every one he met, in seconds. A few words and his touching your elbow while shaking hands, was electric. Even men, there were three of them, started liking him once their protective mask got removed by his friendly casual down to earth countenance.

Late, around 1.00 am, he had dropped her near the lift and, again, kissed her passionately, lingering a while longer. He said good night and requested her to come to station to see him off. She agreed, morning train time did not clash with her office hours, and said good night and entered the lift.

As she switched on the light in her room, she saw the day’s Newspaper lying exactly where she had left it in the morning, half hidden under her pillow. As she lifted it, a picture of a mangled train caught her eye. And below that picture was a list of people who were dead or injured. And, staring at her in the list of the dead was the name ‘Ken Featherlite’

She couldn’t believe it. Ken had just now dropped her near the lift. He was with her on Friday, till late in the evening, whole of Saturday and today. She and her friends and Ken had a great time together. Could it just be a mix up in names? But she couldn’t get it out of her mind. Called two of her friends who were in that meeting and they, too, felt it could be a mix up of names.

Then she decided to call the Hotel. They checked their guest register and said, ‘no ma’am, he didn’t check in at all’. There was no one in that name registered in their hotel.

Now she was really shivering. She dialed his cell number. No ‘pal pal pal…’ welcome tune. No ringing. No message from the cell company.

As she disconnected the line, her cell rang, the sms tune.. she looked at the screen, message from Ken Featherlite. Relaxed, she opened the indbox and read the message;

“Hi Honey, how can I miss meeting you? ‘Fail not thy meet…..’ “