Page 31 - You Only Live Once [BooksLD]

That’s all. I wish I could have met her once. She must have been an
amazing personality.

I manage to finish the meeting just in time and reach the railway station.
It’s almost 10:45 p.m. and the train leaves in another 20 minutes. I start
looking for my coach, B3. A distressed girl asks in a slightly broken Hindi,
‘Where do I check-in my baggage?’

Her question confirms my speculation that though she looks Indian she
must definitely be an NRI. What’s more, she is travelling by train for the
first time.

‘We don’t check-in here. You have to carry it with you.’
‘Where is coach B6?’

I point in the opposite direction, as we’re standing somewhere near B4.
‘My name is Aarav,’ I say, only to realize that she has already left hurriedly
in the pointed direction. Unperturbed, I drag on towards my own coach. I
settle my bag on the side upper berth and roll my side of the windows up.

The screen of my smartphone flashes: Dad Dad Dad. Why on earth is he
calling?
‘Hello.’

‘Beta! Why did you not take the video call?’
I know for certain by now what Ricky’s surprise is! I check my phone to

evaluate the time I have before the train leaves. Ten minutes! Shit. I have
exactly ten minutes before the train engine whistles so loud as to make it
evident that I am travelling.
‘Beta ! Think once again,’ my dad says. I hear my mom sobbing as if I
am leaving this world forever. ‘What should I tell my friends when they

come home for the kitty party?’ She continues to sob in the background. I
vividly imagine her in mustard yellow cotton saree that she has been
wearing for the last 5 years, drenched in tears.

‘About what?’ I get inquisitive. ‘What is she supposed to tell people at
the kitty party?’
‘Beta , a guy called Ricky called me up from Goa. He tells me that you’re
going to quit your job and join his club full-time as a comedian. When they
ask me what does your son do for a living, what should we tell them?’

‘He makes people laugh,’ I say almost as a reflex. Suddenly, my feet go
numb. I realize that my sweet little secret isn’t a secret anymore.