Three magical words

Avni was busy looking out of the window, slowly humming the song playing on her phone. She was on the window seat, her favourite seat which she always preferred since childhood.  A big heap on her lap- her final year accountancy book, her personal diary, her handbag, her ticket, and on top of the pile was her phone attached to clean white earphones which were making Neeti Mohan’s voice reach her ears.

“Chali re , Chali re.. Junoon ko Liye..”

The afternoon sun was beating down on the seat next to her. A hefty man was sitting next to her, while a person using three phones at the same time was sitting in front of him. The compartment was not very crowded, Avni was the only lady; but she was least bothered. Her love for cushion seats made her a first class favourite.

Her blue eyes gazed at the adjacent tracks that passed away just like sudden old memories.  A few curly locks of her hair were constantly disturbing her view, but they were too insignificant to disturb her sightseeing. Suddenly the song stopped and her phone vibrated-

“Yes Payal, What happened? “

“You stupid girl, where are you? It’s been 15 minutes I am waiting at Andheri station. Why are you not replying on Whatsapp?

Avni bit her tongue, realizing that she had turned off her data pack just before getting in at Bandra.

“I am sorry yaar. I guess there are some network issues, I actually caught a slow train. I will be there in 5 minutes pakka!”

“You not with someone na? Some male company?” asked Payal sheepishly.

“Yes!” chuckled Avni, “There are only men around me, but none of them like my prince charming you know!” she said with a sly blush.

As she hung up the phone, the announcement came- Next station- Vile Parle.

“As if I don’t know"

She put her data pack on. The first thing she saw was her daily horoscope notification. “Today could be the day when someone would say the three magical words to you! And the world around you would freeze!”

Avni chuckled initially but then said in a childish tone “I wish someone would actually tell me those three magical words… Lord, please!”

She closed her eyes to have a brief chat with God. As she opened her eyes, she saw a man enter the compartment. He was slow to enter, almost royal. His eyes were protruding all over the compartment. His white checks shirt was without any crease and his pant seemed the longest ever in length.  At 6 feet, he looked like a tower entering the local train. But in Avni’s world, her prince charming had arrived.

He stood there just for a slight moment before venturing towards the other end of the compartment, but the few seconds of view were enough to fasten Avni’s heart beat. The train left Vile Parle with a loud roar, but her heart was threatening to beat the sound of the local. She had never seen such a handsome man on this planet.

 “Wow! That’s really quick! "she couldn't stop smiling. I never thought horoscopes were so accurate. I read it one second and the next moment, my man is in front of me! exclaimed Avni as she started looking for her prince charming. She could not move as Mr. Hefty sitting next to her had dozed off to sleep, while the UP wala bhaiya sitting in front of her had spread his legs wide open. A young boy was further obstructing her view. Adding to the obstructions, her conscious made her hesitate.

“No Avni, why are you going after him? A prince always finds his princess. God has sent him to the compartment, he will also make him come to you !" her inner voice kept confusing her actions.

Her flight of imaginations was running faster than the train itself. Avni was lost in wonderland, where she could tell her prince how much she loved him. She could witness it all- A huge chariot, white horses, green lawns on the sidelines.  Heading towards their palace, hundreds of small children with pink cheeks were showering rose petals on the couple madly in love with each other.  She was looking in his eyes which constantly were staring at her blue eyes, slightly moist. She could hear the wedding bells, the applause of the people who had come to witness the marriage. She could feel the sounds running through her ears. The sounds got just a bit louder as she heard-

Pudhil sthanak Andheri, Agla station Andheri, Next station Andheri.

She opened her eyes and looked at the display screen.

“My tutions! My friends are waiting! But my prince?

She still found it difficult to head towards the door. She jumped over Mr. Hefty’s broad legs while the UP wala bhaiya was gracious enough to move his legs aside.

As she approached the vacant door, she still wanted to have a look inside the compartment to catch one last glimpse of her prince charming.  But much to her disappointment, she couldn't find him. 

As she just took one step closer towards the door, she felt a strong touch on her shoulder. The hands were strong, the sensation was hard to miss out. She slowly turned around as the train slowly entered the platform.

Her prince had a shiny object  held in his hand. She anticipated a gold ring! “Great! Proposal with gold! Diamond on the engagement!" thought Avni as she almost going to fall down nervously!

The man was looking at her with keen eyes. As he slowly moved his hand towards her, Avni held the nearby pole with a tight grip. The platform was behind, but her world in front! Her heartbeat had long surpassed the normal rate. She could see the world about to freeze as soon as she would hear those three magical words.

She slowly looked up as her prince spoke the words Avni was waiting for-

“Your Ticket Please? “