The early morning lull of Krishna Apartments in Sarovar Colony was broken by Raj’s heavy footsteps coming down the stairs. The dog reclining lazily near the front gate was startled by the noise. Raj was in a hurry. He was getting late. It was 5 in the morning and he was on his way to catch a flight. The road was almost deserted, but for a couple that was taking a walk at some distance. He could hear the morning azaan from a distant mosque. Raj was walking very fast and his eyes were desperate to find a taxi. He could hear the sound of his footsteps very clearly. The dead leaves under his shoes seemed to be crying out to him not to trample them so hard. He felt he left a series of howlings as he took each step. He could feel the chill in the air. His lips had become dry and his fingers were aching under the weight of his suitcase. But still he continued like that for a quarter of a kilometer when a taxi guy could be seen. He got into the taxi and said, “Airport.”

The trees were barely visible and so were the road and other things. The taxi guy whose name was Ranjan was more interested in talking about cricket and the way Indian cricketers were being treated in Australia. Raj felt that either Ranjan was in a bad mood or drunk. He was more satisfied to look outside and feel the cold wave hitting his face, making each cell under his skin ache and become numb. His eyes began to water. The wind was ripping through the pages of the book he had in his hand so he opened the bag and put it inside. He found a packet of mouth fresheners and popped one in his mouth. He enjoyed the experience of the cold wave outside and also of the one inside his mouth.

 He reached the airport much before he expected and he was not really happy that he had arrived so early. Waiting for a long time was not his forte and now he was more concerned about how to spend the remaining time. He started moving towards the departure gate very slowly. It was as though he was racing with a snail that morning without any intention of winning. He heard a loud honking behind himself and he had to come out of his thoughts suddenly to see who it was. A guy was driving a car and it looked like he was in a hurry. The rear window of the car opened and a girl shouted at Raj to walk on the side of the road and before he could react she was gone. For the next few seconds he could not think anything. When he came to his senses all he could remember was the girl and her eyes. He was more than willing to forget the words she had said. It was her eyes more than anything, which caught his attention. He felt she had very beautiful eyes. They were in almost perfect shape with a sort of glow in them. He could not figure out whether she had make up on her eyes or not but it was very difficult for Raj to take away his mind from them

 With the girl in his mind he slowly reached the departure gate. While still in deep thought he took a trolley and put his bags on it. An elderly woman who was finding trouble pulling out a trolley for herself asked him for help and he was happy to oblige her. She thanked him and went away. He took his trolley and went to the gate. When he was about to go inside, he found that the flight had been delayed by an hour. Raj felt a strong urge to hit the guy who had made the announcement. He was not sure what he would be doing the next one hour. He went to the coffee shop and ordered a coffee and while the coffee was being prepared he thought what his schedule for the next one hour would be.

 He took the coffee and gave a hundred rupee note.
“No change, sir”, the coffee guy said. “It is very difficult to get change so early in the morning.”

 While Raj was wondering whom he should ask for change, a boy of almost his age came to have coffee and luckily for Raj he had the correct change and he more than willingly helped him. After thanking him profusely, Raj went ahead to take a look around the airport while having his coffee. He checked everything from the make of the trolley to the patterns on the floor, some of which he admired for their pure subtle beauty and a few he thought could be changed. He wondered why the maintenance was bad outside the airport when it was so good inside. Does an airport become beautiful only because of its interiors?

 The weather had been chilly right from the start of the day and it was not showing any signs of warming up. Raj was wearing his over coat and he felt he was a little overdressed and thought of his mother who had made him cover himself as though he was going to Shimla. The hot coffee was making him feel warmer. He removed his coat and hung it on his trolley. He finished his coffee and went to the gate and on the way he met the girl who had shouted at him. She smiled at him sheepishly and he could understand that she was feeling a little ashamed of her behavior. He smiled at her and she could barely smile properly. He noticed that she was dressed casually in jeans, a pink top and an over coat. She was slim and curvaceous. She had short, black hair. She had a lot of femininity about her and her gait was elegant. Over all, Raj thought, she was a good looker. He wondered whether she was also traveling by the same flight. He did not think about it again and went inside. He checked in and went and sat in the waiting room

 He felt a little sleepy and before he could know he fell asleep. He slowly slipped in to sound sleep. In no time he was dreaming and he saw the girl who had shouted at him, coming towards him.
“I am very sorry for such behaviour. I thought I would get late for my flight and in that hurry I said those things”, she said.
He said, “It is fine and I have no ill feeling towards you.”
“Hi! I am Shweta.”
“Raj.”
They shook hands and he thought her hands were real soft. He looked into her eyes again and thought how beautiful they were. She was confused at first and then felt a bit embarrassed to see him gaze into her eyes.

 Raj woke up suddenly to see the same girl standing beside him. At first he could not make out who she was. He looked at her with his eyes half open and she let out a gentle laugh.

 “Don’t you want to board the flight?” she asked. “Oh! I …I…felt tired and slept”, he stammered.

 ”The flight has already been announced”, she said and left to board it. He followed her involuntarily and he was surprised to see himself doing that. All through the way to the flight, he kept on thinking about her. The steward had to ask him twice before he showed him the ticket.

 ”He is in a delirious state”, he heard the steward saying to another. Once inside the flight he searched for his seat and found that his seat was right beside that girl’s. His heart was racing and even though he could feel immense happiness, he tried to remain nonchalant. He went and sat in his seat. When the flight was almost ready to take off, the air hostess started explaining the important things to be done during emergencies.

 ”I am sorry for my behaviour today. I was worried I might miss my flight and in that anxiety I shouted at you,” she said looking at him. He looked at her in surprise and said, “It’s fine and I have no bad feelings towards you.” The words came out of his mouth without his knowledge. He looked at her eyes again and thought they were really beautiful.

 She smiled at him and said, “Hi! I am Shweta.”
“Hi! I am Raj”, he said smiling at her and thinking this might turn out to be his best journey. He looked outside the window to see the world coming alive to go about its daily work.

Yours Always,