Surprise Surprise

We decided to go to the multiplex to watch a movie. It was a love story. The film was based on the life of a man of Indian origin,

living in a foreign country, who comes to India looking for a girl to marry. In India, he meets a girl. He likes the girl and falls in love with her. He is unaware that her wedding has been planned with another man. The plot was good, and the director had done an amazing job. There were few twists and turns in the story and some romantic sequences. In crux, we enjoyed the movie.

After the movie got over, we were hungry and went to the McDonalds outlet close by. We ordered a combo of McChicken burger, French fries and cold coffee. Vineet and I shared the bill. We do not like girls paying the bill at the restaurant. As we brought our food packets, Aditi asked, ‘Hey Yohan, where’s the bill?’

‘Enjoy your meal, Aditi. Do not worry about the bill,’ I replied. ‘That is not fair. We’ll also contribute,’ Aditi said.

‘No problem. Today, it’s a treat from Vineet and me,’ I said.

‘Treat! That’s cool. But I really want to contribute and Ruchi too,’ Aditi insisted.

‘Come on, Aditi. It is not a big deal. Just munch on the snacks and enjoy,’ I said.

‘Ok, Vineet, if you insist,’ Aditi gave in. ‘Thanks, Aditi,’ I smiled.

She looked at me and reciprocated. She has such a sweet smile. It cheers me.

I want to fall in love with her over and over again to that smile.

True love is never lost. It will follow back with same emotions and purity at heart.

I want to be very close to someone I respect and admire. I wish the person to feel the same for me. And it’s you only, I echoed in my heart while looking at Aditi.

I was lost in my very own world. I was biting my fingers instead of the burger. Aditi saw me and exclaimed, ‘Hey! Just look at Yohan! He is biting his fingers.’ Everyone laughed. I quickly came to my senses and realised I was making a fool of myself. ‘Oops, sorry,’ I said, feeling embarrassed.

Ruchi said to Vineet, ‘Vineet, you are going to come with me and stay at my home today.’

Vineet was taken aback from what she had said. He blurted out, ‘Are you serious, Ruchi? Why would I do that?’

‘Of course, I’m serious, Vineet. You are staying tonight at my place. That is final,’ Ruchi repeated herself.

‘But why, Ruchi?’ Vineet still could not understand. He looked puzzled. ‘It is very simple, Vineet. I am telling you what my mother has asked me

to convey to you. My mom has invited you to visit us. Is it clear now?’ Ruchi clarified.

‘Okay! She might have just said that I should come to your house; not to stay for a night,’ Vineet could not believe what Ruchi was asking him to do.

‘No, Vineet. There is no mix up. She specifically told me about the night stay.’

‘No, Ruchi. I am certain there is some misunderstanding.’ Vineet still did not believe the invitation.

‘Okay, let me talk to my mother,’ she said, appreciating the dilemma and hesitation of Vineet.

Ruchi called her mother and asked her to invite Vineet personally and mention to him about the night stay. She then handed over the phone to Vineet. Her mother confirmed what Ruchi had said to him. Vineet could not refuse her invitation.

‘Are you happy now?’ Ruchi asked.

‘Yes, Ruchi, but I still do not understand,’ Vineet said.

‘Okay then. Yohan will be coming with me,’ she replicated her choice. ‘Aditi, I want to go back to the hostel now.’ I said to Aditi. I wanted to sit in my room and study.

‘Let us not make it complicated. Vineet will go with Ruchi and you are coming with me. It’s final’ Aditi clapped her hand with Ruchi.

The girls had taken the lead. We both had to go in opposite directions. I had mixed feelings about the visit. I was excited but apprehensive at the same time. I think Vineet too felt the same.

Aditi’s father came to receive us in his car. Ruchi and Vineet had already left. Aditi’s father expressed his happiness to see me finally. I touched his feet in the traditional style and paid my respect.

‘Namaste, uncle,’ I greeted him respectfully.

‘How are you, young lad? I have heard so many good things about you,’ uncle said cheerfully.

‘Thank you, uncle,’ I said.

On the way to her house, Aditi’s father engaged me in casual and polite conversation.

‘Uncle, Aditi was telling me you were planning to visit some place,’ I said. ‘Wow, that’s good. Which place Aditi?’ he did not seem to remember it and

asked his daughter.

‘No, I never said anything like that,’ Aditi tried to brush off the topic. ‘Hey! Don’t lie. Uncle, I think she wants to visit a place where she could

enjoy some adventurous sports. I think she wants to go to Uttarakhand,’ I added.

‘That’s good. Pretty good,’ uncle nodded.

‘Yes, dad. I would love to visit such a place,’ Aditi finally admitted. We had reached her home. As we entered, I asked uncle for a favour.

It was a beautiful two-storey building. The upper floor had an open gallery on the facet while the ground floor had a covered lawn extending until the main gate. It looked like a small garden, lush and green with seasonal flowers and herbs.

Aditi’s mother and her younger brother, Abhi, were standing at the gate to welcome us. I touched her feet and she gave me her blessings. Then, I shook hands with Abhi.

‘Hello, Abhi. How are you?’ I greeted. ‘I’m fine, Yohan,’ he said cheerfully.

We all sat in the living room. Uncle inquired about my parents. I assured that they were in good health.

Abhi ran to his room. He came back holding a canvas and displayed it before me.

It was a beautiful painting. I would rather say that it was a masterpiece. For a moment I couldn’t believe it was created by Abhi. It was incredible.

It was a portrait of Aditi and that made it all the way more amazing. I had never seen a portrait of such a fine quality before. Abhi’s artistic skill in sketching at such a young age was unbelievable. The young artist was a genius.

The painting had dazzled me. ‘It’s perfect, Abhi,’ I said with admiration. ‘Yup, Yohan. Abhi wants to become a painter. I love all his work. Do you

know there is a story behind each of his paintings?’ Aditi said.

‘Oh, that is very interesting. I would like to know these stories,’ I said. I was now keen to learn the history behind Abhi’s works of art.

‘You have to come upstairs to my room. Come, I’ll show them to you,’ Abhi said

‘Sure,’ I smiled and followed him as he led the way to his room.

Imagination can do wonders. A talented artist has the capability to create works which have an irresistible appeal for others. A painter brings out on canvas what he holds in his imagination. He has the eyes to see beauty and then brings it out on his canvas and a masterpiece is born.

As I walked into a room so scattered, And stared at his paintings,

Feeling so flattered.

A chap in his teens,

Paints such miraculous themes. Of beautiful couples,

And romantic scenes.

I was awestruck with his works. I got no explanation in words.

He touched a deep emotion in me. That’s known as love in the world.

Love so deep, love so bold.

I think of my love and sigh so cold. His paintings were like a perfect piece, Crafted from a beautiful mould.

And as I walked out of the room so scattered, I had his paintings in my heart,

And my mind for them felt so flattered.

‘Abhi is a genius!’ I expressed to Aditi as I came out of Abhi’s room.

‘Yes, you are right, Yohan. He is too good. We are proud of him.’ She hugged Abhi; a true expression of the affectionate love of a sister for her kid brother. We reassembled in the living room for dinner. Aunty had cooked my favourite dishes. I had a feeling that Aditi must have suggested the menu. I love shahi paneer and rajma and gulab jamun as a dessert. The aroma of the food was appetising, and I found it hard to control my hunger pangs.

The food in the hostel is such a staple diet that we long for home-cooked food. And if the dish is your favourite then it is even more enjoyable. So many favourites at one time…Wow…. I love that…Thank you, aunty, for the feast.

Time passed quickly during the dinner and the conversations we were having. Before I could realise the time the clock on the wall showed, it was past eleven. It was getting late. My bed had been made in the same room which Abhi and Aditi shares.

Before going to sleep, I called my mother and shared about my plans for the next day.

‘Good night, Aditi and good night, Abhi,’ I wished the siblings, pulled the blanket over me and went off to sleep.

I was not aware of the exact time, but it must have been well past midnight. Someone was pinching me on my elbow. It happened three times. It pulled me out of my sleep. Someone placed a hand on my mouth, suggesting that I should not say anything.

‘Sssssshhh…. Just come along,’ Aditi whispered. She gripped my hand and we headed to the rooftop.

‘What’s the matter with you, Aditi?’ I said to her. I felt it was not the right way to meet her at this wee hour in her house, where I was an invited guest.

She did not reply. When we reached the terrace, she pointed to the sky and said, ‘Look at the beautiful stars. Isn’t it a beautiful and lovely night!

‘Yes,’ I said, following her finger, ‘The Virgo Constellation.’ ‘Yes, that is it,’ Aditi said in confirmation.

Among the students at the college, we often talked about the Virgo Constellation of stars in the night sky. We regarded it as the symbol of love. It portrays love between the stars. It inspires and emphasises true love. That’s what we believe.

I felt fortunate to be with Aditi. She looked lovely and beautiful under the star lit sky. My heart was pounding away. This is the moment, I said to myself.

‘You love these stars, Aditi?’ I asked her politely. ‘Yes, Yohan, I love them,’ her eyes sparkled. ‘Can I say something?’ I said.

‘Of course,’ she replied

‘I love you…Aditi,’ I expressed my feelings for her. I was a little apprehensive as I waited for her reply. She did not say anything. She just smiled and that was enough for me. She had accepted my love for her.

‘I love you, Aditi’, I whispered, repeating what I had just said to her moments earlier.

She came forward and hugged me. I kissed her. Aditi quickly recollected herself. She gently pushed me away and disengaged herself. ‘I think we should go downstairs,’ Aditi said.

‘Yes, you are right,’ I answered. We came downstairs. I kissed her on her forehead, patted her hair gently and then we went to our respective beds. It took some time for me to fall asleep again.

Thank You, God. Today you gave me the true reason of my life. Thank you so much. I was having a great feeling within. I had expressed my love for her, and she has accepted it. What else do I want? It felt like all my dreams were fulfilled in one go. It was the best thing that has happened to me. Love possess true integrity of life. It defines your existence. Who really you are, and for whom you exist on this planet. Love brings joy and happiness.

I woke up early the next morning. I had planned to give Aditi a surprise. I booked an Innova for a trip to Jim Corbett National Park and Nainital. I informed Vineet and Ruchi about the trip and they too agreed. Now, I needed to seek permission from Aditi’s parents. I got that too. I requested Aditi’s family to accompany us. They thanked me for making the offer but declined.

‘Yohan, I am happy you have organized this trip. Aditi had a wish to visit Jim Corbett and I am glad she is now going with her friends. I’m under medical advice to cut down on travelling but I am glad you all are going. Have a good trip and enjoy yourselves,’ he said graciously.

‘Thank you for your best wishes, uncle, and for giving us the permission,’ I said. I felt grateful towards Aditi’s parents. Aditi was happy too. I could read her eyes.

You gave me thousand reasons to smile. You have filled my life with joy and happiness. Your smile inspires me, and your love sets my heart racing for you.

Life is full of surprises, but it will be meaningless without you. Whenever I see you, I want to fall in love with you all over again.

Aditi and Abhi packed their bags. The rented car arrived. We had our breakfast and went to pick Ruchi and Vineet. Uncle wished us safe journey and gave some travelling advice, ‘Yohan, take care of my daughter and my son. God bless you.’

‘Thank you, uncle. Please trust me, everything will be good. We’ll enjoy, and we will take care,’ I replied.

We picked up Ruchi and Vineet on the way. We went to the boys’ hostel to collect our backpack and then we set out on our journey. It was a straight six hours drive to Jim Corbett National Park. It was a very pleasant ride and we were well on time as expected.

‘Yohan, how did you manage funds for this trip? Did you cancel your visit to Mumbai?’ Ruchi interrogated.

‘Ruchi, I have saved some money. The one that I was honoured with when our team won the cricket championship, though that was the one-time small earning. I’ll go to Mumbai as soon as an opportunity offers itself. And that opportunity is certainly not today. I arranged this trip for us, for my best friends. I thought it would be fun,’ I explained.

‘Three cheers,’ said Vineet. He wanted to put an end to serious conversation. ‘It’s for us or you are trying to fulfil Aditi’s wish?’ Ruchi teased, trying to pull my leg.

I thought for a while and replied, ‘For both, Ruchi,’ and everyone had a laugh. Aditi blushed, and I could see dimples on her cheeks. She looks so cute like this. I just wished to admire her without even blinking my eyes.

We were at Jim Corbett to enjoy our moment. We went for the tiger safari in open jeep. It is only by chance that tigers show up during a safari. We were fortunate. We saw a family of tigers moving around in their natural habitat. They were difficult to spot as they stood behind tall shrubs which provided them perfect camouflage as their body colour and the colour of the grass were the same. It was the tourist season at Jim Corbett, but we enjoyed the milieu. We were now on our way to Nainital.

The road to Nainital passed through hills and we enjoyed the mesmerizing view. We saw waterfalls on the way. They looked spectacular.

We tried our hands at everything; from parasailing to boat rides, from all- terrain-vehicles to skydiving, horse riding and river rafting. We enjoyed every kind of adventure and Aditi was thrilled to see her wish come true so soon.

Aditi and Abhi spoke to their mother over phone every day. They shared their experiences and told her about the day’s activities, places they had visited and what they had seen.

We were having so much fun that we decided to extend our trip by a day. My mother was sad when she heard that I had cancelled going to Mumbai and instead decided to go on a trip with friends.

‘Sorry, mom, I’m really very sorry. I’ll it make it up next time for sure,’ I promised over the phone.