Girl By My Side

By Hritik Kumar

It was noon of early February when I was travelling back home in an auto rickshaw from Dhanbad-the main city, with some household necessities. I was way exhausted and hung down in mood. The auto in which I was traveling had no other passengers other than the two of us hiring the opposite back seats. The driver was in the urge of having no seats off but unfortunately, he drove with just two of us. To a good length he drove with no other passengers and what really stirs my mood is when I notice a girl for at hand probably waiting for an auto to come. Now when the vehicle did reach quiet near her, I managed to notice her sincerely in between the metal handles. She had a quite healed sandal with white-jeans tucked to her belly covering her bossy hip and a cropped top with a jacket and there lies in between a perfect waistline, which were quiet soothing to look at and her well adorned body suggested that she might have hit the gym on the right time. Besides, I saw that she had tied her medium-sized hair with a black rubber band.

Now when the auto did really stop to pick her up, I adjusted more toward the back seat quiet touching the middle seat. As she was stepping in, we had a microsecond eye-contact, and to my reflex my eyes turned away unwillingly. I noticed she wore a light makeup with a faded-red matte lipstick on her lips, and I was thinking if only I could draw my fingers on her lips slowly and along her face lines, that would have been great but in reality, I had my eyes turned away. She sat on the extreme end of the middle seat meant for four in a position, in which my side-ways were facing her back. And we drove on, meanwhile my mind was boomeranged with her thoughts while my eyes listening to my heart was fighting with my brain, to look upon her. But the fear held me up. And this continues for minutes of my journey. Then there came a surprising point.

The girl raised her hands up to her nape and raises her hair with her fingers to a good length and throws it backward and then she was still as usual meanwhile I was taking every care to be very cautious about being still too. I had a luck, her hairs were now resting on my lap and I was filled with her majestic girlish perfume. Braving my mind, I ran my fingers down her silky hair which were smooth, and all this I did without even looking towards her hair and you know it takes a lot of gut. I was looking out in order to show I’m least bothered about all these stuff but by this time you might have known what I felt.

Then came the time when she collected all her hair on one side of her shoulder and the remaining she tucked on the back of her ears and stepped out to go and pay the fair but all these while I was unable to look back at her at least during her farewell, all these because I had to show that I didn’t bother but even though through the corner of my eyes I watched her raise her head twice towards me and I wanted to look back at her in response but I didn’t or rather I couldn’t . Ahh remember! I was talking that the two of us were the only passengers in that auto from the very beginning, well that was my aunt sitting right in front of me on the back seat. I wanted to look at the girl as she goes off and cross the road but, yeah! ‘But’

But before this could happen a question protruded my mind. My aunt-as if she was questioning me-commented in her critical hindi tone- You watching girls!,and I was like …. a lightning struck me hard and harder still. But you see out of innocence, actually my reflexes I replied what?, what did you just say? ,and before we could get to any further talks while my heart and mind were crazily racing, she changed the topic that to in a flip of seconds. Get ready with this heavy bag, we are about to reach our stoppage, and we got to go and I was relieved.

By Hritik Kumar