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“Excuse me madam.”
“Do you want to deposit or withdraw money?” Anubha asked as she raised her head. Today he had duty at the cash counter. Duties keep changing in the bank.
“Come.” He extended his hand.
“There is no need to deposit money.”
“Then? If you want to ask something, go to the inquiry counter.” This time Anubha raised her head and looked.There was a tall young man on his face, which was probably a natural part of his personality.
“Actually, I want to open a bank account. It is very urgent and I need a guarantor.”
“Okay, you go to counter number 3. New accounts will be opened there, not here. This is the cash counter.”
“That’s where I went. They ask for a guarantor.
“You also do wonders. I don’t even know you! How can I take your guarantee this way? I don’t know who you are, where you came from, why you want to open an account,” Anubha said miserably.
“My name is Shashank. I live in Chandigarh. I am s. I am on training here for a month as part of For some personal reasons it is very important for me to open my bank account today. I have forgotten my I card in the hotel room itself, trained by IAS. If I go to get my I card, it will be 12 o’clock by the time I return and as today is Saturday, the bank’s public trading will also be closed. Please…”
Anubha looked at him carefully. The young man looked very upset. There didn’t even seem to be any deception. There was something on his face that told her to trust him. Thinking someone would get help, he said, “Show me your I card on Monday.” And then he signed the warrant papers.
On Monday night, when she came down the bank steps, a motorbike stopped in front of her.
“Hi, I am Shashank. I have come to show you my I card.
“Now? Did you notice very quickly?” He said a little angrily.
“I was in training in the morning, so I couldn’t come. Thank you very much. If you don’t mind, can I get you a cup of coffee?”
“No. I don’t like going anywhere with strangers.”
“But I’m no longer a stranger to you. After all, you have me covered,” she smiled and her face lit up even more. Anubha noticed dimples on his cheeks. There is a small mole near the ears and the hair is completely silky. Innocence and truth in the eyes shone on the dark face.
“You don’t look good at all when you’re angry, madam Anubha.”
With some hesitation he sat on the motorbike behind him. The motorcycle stopped near a restaurant in Connaught Place.
“Hot or cold coffee?”
“Cold coffee.” He said.
“I didn’t expect you to like cold coffee?”
“Why?” he asked with surprise.
“You’re angry all the time or there’s resentment on your face. So I thought you would always like to drink hot, boiling coffee. Well, anger doesn’t look good on a beautiful face.” Shashank said holding his ears.
She was about to laugh but stopped herself and tried to appear serious. ‘After all, who is going to form any opinion about this? One helped and now one is making fun of him! But she is like that. Before she could say anything, she said,
“Miss Anubha, do you think I have angered you too much? What to do, I like to be happy and always smile. In this busy and stressful life, we may not be able to give anything to anyone, but we can at least share a few moments filled with laughter. Did I say something wrong?”
Just then the waiter brought the coffee tray.
“I like to make friends … good friends. Would you, Anubha, want to be my friend?”
“No, no! I like to be alone. She said angrily.
But he kept smiling mischievously and looked into her eyes.
“I’m leaving,” he stood up.
“Should I leave the house?”
“I can go myself.” Anubha went out of the restaurant and if she had stopped, it would have been difficult to control her heart that yearned for someone for the first time.
That day was Friday. After dinner, when she was taking a break with her head resting on the chair with her eyes closed, Shashank’s mind suddenly started like a bird on the courtyard wall of her mind. It’s very different…the things are interesting too. There was even someone like her, who spoke less and didn’t socialize with anyone easily, with a smile on her face when talking to him, even though he had seen it even though she hid it very carefully.
A thought came again. Will he come to the bank again one day? Why is she waiting for him? Anubha concentrated on work. On Monday, she was engrossed in her usual work when a noise startled her. “I think sometimes a person should take a break from work.”
Anubha raised her head and looked. Shashank was standing in front of her counter with his familiar, mischievous smile. He looked at the clock. It was half past five. Half the bank was empty, and the rest were getting ready to leave.
“Meet me down by the parking lot.” After he left he began to think ‘Oh! He must have thought I was waiting for him.
“Should we go for a cold coffee?” He asked.
He sat on the back seat of the motorbike without saying a single word. Sipping coffee he asked, “Would you like to tell me something about yourself?”
“I am your guarantor. What else is there to know?”
Anubha didn’t say anything, but Shashank kept telling stories one after another, about himself, his parents, his job and everything he liked or disliked.
“I am going to Mussoorie this Saturday. Part of my training will take place there for three months. He will come here for 15 days at the end of the year. Then I go back home.”
She didn’t say anything, but it felt as if something clicked inside. He looked into Shashank’s eyes… there was no emotion that would compel him to think anything, but in just one or two meetings he came in contact with him, his friendship, his joy and his mischievous smile… water on the burning desert. Looks pleasant and calms like a small drop of water.
Shashank went to Mussoorie and she was once again immersed in her work. She lived alone in this city. December had begun. One day he suddenly appeared again…
That day she was not sitting at the counter, but in the open cabin.
“Hello!”
“When did you come?” Anubha asked, her cheeks reddened, “Actually, I was waiting,” she said.
“Really?” He had the same special smile on his lips. “I’ve just arrived. Coming straight from the train station. Tomorrow is a holiday. Will you go somewhere?”
Anubha nodded in agreement.
“Why aren’t you married yet?” Shashank asked him while wandering in the mall.
“Do not know.”
“Have you ever loved anyone?” Shashank was scratching it.
“No.
“Didn’t you get a chance, or didn’t you give anyone a chance?”
“Whatever you want to think.”
“Okay, if you don’t want to say then let it be.
“Can we go to boats?” Shashank asked.
They arrived near the lake. The reflection of the full moon in the calm waters of the lake looked like a shining coin. They both sat on the stones lying there. All the stones glistened as if they had recently taken a dip in the light of the milky moon.
“Have you ever looked closely at the moon?”
“No.” He looked up towards the moon. “I never had time for these things.”
“Then take Anubha’s time. These things are necessary for happiness in life. Let yourself go in your imagination sometimes. You will feel good. Well, look carefully and tell me how is the moon?
Looking at the moon very carefully he said, “It looks as if someone has made a circle in the sky!”
“To be honest, you’re really bored. How many poems, verses and songs have been written about the moon, and you call it a sphere. I’m not talking about his size.” Suddenly Shashank took her hand in his. “You look like the moon to me.”
He began to tremble. It was the first time a man had touched her. Before she could protest, Shashank looked into her eyes… soft feelings began to stir within her. Shashank’s eyes were again fixed on the moon.
“You know Anubha why I like the moon, because it feels like a sedative to me. Seeing him fills life with peace and it feels like we are not alone.”
-Suman B.
