Love At First Sight

Love At First Sight

The bus stop was crowded enough and so was his mind. Crowded with the thoughts of a beautiful face that he had met a month ago. She looked so beautiful that day dressed in elegant pink smiling down upon him. It was love at first sight .It surely was love for it had lasted one long month and still showed no signs of leaving.

The rushing passengers trying to board the arrived bus interrupted his thoughts. Our man too got in. After all this was what he had been waiting for. The earlier overcrowded, old rattling bus had suddenly turned into a heavenly chariot that took him to his beloved. Not only was this the reason for his love for the bus but also this was the very place where he had first met his love. He had been seated next to her and lost in his thoughts of social reform, which young men usually are in, when just occasionally he had turned sideways to look into this epitome of beauty. Instinctively almost instinctively he had asked,” What’s your name”? And it had begun from there. Every day from that day onwards they had met, coincidentally for her but sometimes a coincidence is well arranged. He had found every possible reason to meet her. One rainy day he had stood outside her office building waiting for her to come out just to have a glimpse. Though there had not been any rain that day, but then the effort was more important.

Surely it was love, there had to be no doubt. Today he was going to propose her for marriage. He knew it was a bold step but then he would have her for always. For the past four nights, he had had no sleep although he had travelled a lot. He had travelled with her to the golden deserts of Andaman and Nicobar and the lush green valleys of Africa. Well geography was not a major issue in love. Even the desert sand would feel like snow with her. Oh how much deep can a person fall in love?

He had already thought of where they would marry. Back in his village in Bihar where he knew his friends would envy him so much. They had all been married to village bumpkins whose beauty lasted only a day or two after the marriage. After which they would either turn out to be deaf or handicapped. After all their parents had to dispose them off. In India it is common practice .In fact parents pay money to the bridegroom for taking away their daughters.

But our man was not like all. He was a young enthusiastic Indian youth who believed in bringing revolution into the society. He loved only the girl and not the money. Though he did not earn enough for himself, he was sure she did. As far as love was concerned it didn’t matter much who earned more. He was in love, true love that was more important.

Busy with these thoughts, he just looked sideways to find out the whereabouts of the bus. At that very instant he thought he had seen an angel. Sitting next to him was the most beautiful girl he had seen in his life. Dressed in an elegant pink she looked like a goddess. Instinctively, almost instinctively he asked, “What’s Your Name?”.

-Anupam Tyagi.