Best Buddies - New Era - Part 6

Part - 5
Part - 4
Part - 3
Part - 2
Part - 1

Ranbir was drunk, so all he needed was a bed to lie his body on. He wouldn't have even minded a thorn woven mattress to sleep upon, as if he would even realise it.


I and Ishaan sat on his bed talking about loads of different aspects of life.

We very often had this type of general discussion, very much like that mature people talk. It was as if the burden of taking care of half the world had crest fallen on us.

We were getting bored in the room, so we went to the balcony to enjoy the fresh air breezing through.

"This people in U.S. are so useless. They can't do a single thing by themselves, need our help at every move, and still blame us for all world crisis."
Ishaan started of with his hatred for the States.

Somehow he had this seed of hatred towards all Americans growing within him. There should be some reason behind it, but I still haven't dared to ask him. No idea why.

"Actually you are right. What right do they have to blame us for all this inflation."
Just adding fuel to the fire. I was really bad to start a topic for conversation and way bad at changing an on-going one. People normally got offended when I even attempted doing so. So, I rather prefered playing it safe.

"Those losers, keep attacking other nations for fun, hamper the World peace and then play the blame game."
You can give him a few minutes of preparations and he can speak against US for hours non-stop.

"Because of them the oil prices have shot up and they blame the Middle East for controlling oil supply.", I said, adding to what he just said

"If ever I got access to nuclear power, even by mistake, the first thing I would do is blow up America. If no American will be alive, then what the hell will they be able to do."

I just smiled a bit. It was actually getting way to heavy for me. And I thought I better take the risk of changing the topic.

Silence prevailed for sometime, luck was in my favour I thought so.


"So, what plans after 12th?"

"Nothing decided. Might study here or back to India."

I guess that was quite obvious, as he wouldn't go to US or there allies like UK or Australia for sure.

"What have you thought? Here or back to India."

Mom-Dad were planing to send me abroad like a few of my cousins who had moved out a year or two back. But I better don't say that, else he will think me as an American and kill me on the spot.

"Same case dude. Nothing decided as of yet."


Again after a few minutes of silence.
"I haven't asked this to you ever, I guess. How do you feel here in a new country?"

"New city, new people, new friends, altogether a completely new beginning. Frankly speaking, its very different from India. A complete change of life style and environment. The only thing common is that 24/7 you are surrounded by Indians."

"So where do you find it better?"

"I can't comment on that. I have lived there for like 17years, so I surely find it better there. But Dubai is also good. And surely friends like you and Ranbir will make things better for me."
I am rather a Diplomat you see. I can't hurt anyone's feelings ever, so as usual play it on the safer side.

Ishaan replied with a laugh.
"Any doubt. By the way, I somehow feel that you like someone. Just an intution, not sure if its true. Eyeing someone?"



Now is it some serious talk or casual or has Ranbir opened his mouth. Does he know or he doesn't know. I was hell confused, should I tell him the truth? Is it the right time? I kept thinking, and completely forgot that I had a question to answer to.

"So temme dude.", Ishaan asked again, kicking me.

And spontaneously all my thoughts vanished and the reply to tackle this question at this point of time, also went missing.

"Yeah, I had a crush on a girl, and she is dating someone else."
Wait a minute. Did i actually tell that? Isn't Ranbir supposed to be drunk. Then why am I acting as one.

"So here finally come's the revealation. Whose the lucky girl?"
I wish I had opted to sleep and not chit-chat at this time of the night. Why do such questions come at such odd hours?

"Let's go to sleep Ishaan. I am feeling sleepy.", trying to yawn I said that, although I was completely woken up by the last few minutes of conversation, and I could also see my attempt going down the drain.

"Shut up, sit there, and tell me."

I can't lie and it was my time to die.

"Bhavika.", another quick reply. Am i gone crazy? I replied without even being aware of what am I saying.

Ishaan stared at me for a minute as if getting ready to spring upon me. And then he started laughing. I also tried to smile, though I was getting to feel uncormfortable. It felt like the silence before the storm.
But he continued to laugh and fell of his chair.

Did I crack a joke or I said something that he didn't understand.

I also continued to smile, though in a very awkward position.

"So why did you not tell me this before."

"I..I..."I was looking for words. All the words from my brains dictionary seemed to have vanished.

"Don't hesitate dude, say it. I am your friend after all. You won't share with me, then with whom will you share it."

He was right. Very few people understood me so well. And he was one of them, atleast that's what I think as of now. And gradually I started feeling better.

"Frankly speaking, I wasn't sure of your reaction. Coz initially I didn't know you so well, and then lately I didn't want a girl to cause problem's in our friendship. And I am very bad at making people understand the reality. They usually tend to not to believe me and then the friendship eventually breaks."

He started laughing again. What the hell wrong did I say now?

"I never knew that my Mumbaiwala friend took friendship so seriously."

"Well, I am that way only.", trying to act as if it was something to be taken lightly and was rather some sort of an achievment.



So finally I guess there is someone I can confide in. I am normally scared to tell things to people, thinking that as if they are already in excess of problems and why to add mine to there ever growing list. And some people take in the wrong way, assuming that I don't trust them. What they fail to understand that I am that way only and nothing on earth can change me.

"Nikhil, what if I tell you, I already knew this?"
And again he started to laugh on my shocking expression.

"I just wanted to hear it from your mouth, just to make you feel comfortable. Ranbir told me this sometime back."

"I am gonna shoot Ranbir dead."

"Why don't you trust me."

"Its not the matter of trust. But then still...", I paused, I had no arguments to defend myself.

"Still, what? Dude, there should be nothing hidden between the three of us."

"I will try me best."

It's great to have people like Ishaan around. So cool, simple yet they are special, unique. And they put you at such an ease that you just keep spilling everything out of your brain to them.

I have hardly had any friends to talk to me in this manner. I guess it was the beginning of a new era of friendship.

"Nikhil, I guess we better sleep now, else we might not wake up tomorrow for the big day."

Both of us started laughing and went off to bed.



I and Ishaan woke up early the next morning, well afternoon.
We woke up Ranbir who was still fast asleep.

Ishaan started off,
"Ranbir your Mom is in the next room. Your, mine and Nikhil's mom are discussing something. Have you any clue?"

Ranbir sprang up as if it was an electric shock.
"What's Mom doing here?"


And then I added.
"Ishaan, remember his mom saw him drunk last night."

Whatever left sleep he had also vanished.

"Maybe his Mom wants to stop all his outings from now on."

"That's not fair. I don't drink everyday. Its just occasionally."

"Improve your english. It's not drink, its Drunk."

And I and Ishaan started laughing.

"Nikhil, when was the last time you saw someone being beaten by a broomstick."

"Its been ages."

"Then see it live in a few minutes from now, directly from Ishaan's residence that is my residence."

Ranbir was going red already.

"What useless friends you both are. Instead of thinking of helping me, you are laughing that in some time I will be royally screwed."

I felt like telling him, that I would have been royally screwed last night, if Ishaan had a different outlook to the Bhavika case.

"Let's just go and meet your mom, right Ranbir?"


"Nowayz. Are you gone crazy? Even if mom asks what am I doing, tell her I am asleep."



"We can't lie to your Mom, right Ishaan?"



Ishaan was playing around with his cell, I guess calling someone. As soon as he left the cellphone, came a cracking of a voice,


"Ranbiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiirrrrrrrrr."


"Screwed." Thats all Ranbir said before going below his blanket, trying to act to sleep.


"Ranbir, your mom is calling. Lets go."


Ishaan started pulling him off his bed.



Ranbir came with us to the other room, actually hiding behind us. I guess the only person of whom he has always been scared of is his Mom.

But I found his Mom really sweet, nice and caring. I mean which Mom was going to allow her son to drink often, keep shifting girlfriends and yet hardly say anything.



"What do you think Ranbir you are doing hiding behind there backs?", shouted out Ranbir's Mom. She seemed in a ferocious mood.



I and Ishaan split open and Ranbir stood straight facing his Mom.



"Let Dad come back from China. I will tell him what his son has been upto."

Ranbir stayed there quiet.

Normally he blabbered that much nonsense that he could easily beat girls in the non-stop speaking competetion. And now this wild horse was quiet.



'Craaaaccckkkk...', suddenly a cracker burst right below Ranbir's leg and he immediatelly jumped up shouting out loud.



And almost a dozen people came pushing themselves into the room from wide angles and different corners and a few of them picked him up from his hands and few caught his leg.



And began the ever so musical,



"Happy Birthday to you....Happy Birthday dear Ranbir....Happy Birthday to you."

And the birthday song continued.

Ranbir swang from east to west and soon up and down.

As soon as the song got over, began the 18kicks on his back, that also halfway in the air.





And if that was less, he was thrown up in the air and left to fall flat on the floor. That would have been the worst fall ever.



And that was just the start of the roller coaster ride for a b'day filled with surprise. This was just the start. I guess the brromstick would have been less painful.



His mom then gifted him a new laptop, that he wanted to buy for more then a year.

And all his friends, including me and Ishaan gifted him a Cell phone. He was even wanting a new handset for sometime.



Soon we had the cake cutting ceremony. And instead of us eating it, as it happens in every other party, it was more used for make-up purposes.

Ranbir actually looked a perfect clown in the make-up, specially with the red nose. We all did our best as make-up artists, hopefully it was appreciated.



That was indeed an eventful afternoon. Even post the surprise party, he still was half-unconscious all the while, as if he was in some other world surrounded by dragons and dracula's.

He was still trying to recover from the days shock, totally caught unaware with the irregularity of the days happenings.



Well, the entire credit goes to his Mom and Ishaan for the awesome idea. I mean it was something different, rather unexpected. A lot went behind keeping it hidden from him. Ishaan seriously did an awesome job with it. He was a true buddy. Ever ready to do anything for friends.



Ranbir didn't even realise that it was all cooked up, still the last minute.



His expressions were the catch of the day. From the news of his mom seeing him last night, to the the cracker burst, it was a motion of unmissable and unique chain of emotions and expressions.



Well so it was eventually declared a HIT surprise party.



Well, later in the day we went out for a game of pool and obvously I and Ishaan didn't carry any cash, as we had the ATM on foot for the day with us.

Anything was just a call away. And he got everthing we asked for in the very first shot.



But then things had an unusual turn there.

We were having our game there, when some roadside gangsters came in and began to act oversmart.



And Ishaan was pissed. I found out later that earlier also he had a fight with them and a heated argument kick started.

If that was less, then I guess Ranbir also thought it was the right time to clear off old debts.





I was the only one left to enter the league, but it made more sense to not to enter into action.

After all I trusted Ishaan and Ranbir with there potential.

...to be continued...

Best Buddies - How they met - Part 5

Part - 4
Part - 3
Part - 2
Part - 1

It was around 1:30 in the night.


Mom-dad had gone to sleep and Di had left for her friends place.


So the room was all mine, but wait, ofcourse I had Ranbir and Ishaan for torture.





Even before I could lay my back on the bed, came the first arrow out of Ranbir's bow,


"Dude, who was she?"


And me like an innocent guy, as if not knowing anything,


"She...Who?"


And then came in the chorus, like the final warning,


"Ishita."




Flashback: Around two years back, when I met Ishita for the first time.





I and few of my friends were sitting in the college canteen.


A girl had just given two tight slaps to one of my friends.


I jumped in, to his rescue, or else maybe he would have had a couple of them more.





"What do you think you are doing?", I asked the girl.





And some guy from the back shouted,


"That's her style of breaking up."

Wow, what a style to say the final good-bye.

Before I could even react, she just walked off.


I started wondering how did my friend spend the last few days with her, she must have been a torture, whoever she was.








A few days later, I saw her at a railway station, arguing at the ticket window. She did not have change and the person at the desk was not ready to give her change for 100Rs. So, she took the entire station on her head.

"You people don't even know how to treat women. I will take a rally out against you people. You people think you have the right to do anything. I will start a camapign against you all. You will loose your job."

She blabbered non-stop for like 10minutes. The person at the window had to finally repent his action and gave her change from his own pocket and pleaded her to leave.

Luckily, there was the glass in the middle or else even he would have had experienced her slap.

But the on-lookers had a good time.

That's the advantage girls have, shout at the top of your voice and the world bows down to you.

A few days later, I saw her arguing with a rickshaw driver. He didn't have a rupee to give back to her, and she started non stop.



"All you drivers are the same. Inspite of having change you people don't give it. Just want to earn money by cheating."

And the lecture continues for another 5minutes.
I was just thinking, when does the slap come in. Maybe the driver had a good day.
When the driver felt that he was beating his head against a wall, he somehow managed to get a rupee and gave it to her.

And what she does, in front of the driver, gives it to a small poor boy begging on the roads.



Once incidentally she was with her friends at an ice-cream parlour, where even I was with my friends.

Some other guys also, I guess from my college were present there. They started whistling and passing comments.



A minute later, we hear three slaps back to back. We turn back, and its this was the same girl in action. The guys quietly left the place.



Now, she was a horror in my eyes. Friendship with her was impossible. How could anyone be friends with her? She spoke less with her mouth and more with her hands.



But I was wrong.



One weekend, I was on my monthly social visit to a orphanage, where I teach children.

There even she was there. Playing, laughing and enjoying with children.



I was shocked to see her there. A girl of this nature, at a place like this was impossible to think about.

Well, that was the first time I met her face to face.

The father of the school introduced the both of us.



Ishita, that was her name.

We just smiled at each other, and moved on.



But that smile was surely everlasting, she looked so sweet with that smile on her face, rather than that horrifying look she normally carries.







We again met at the library a few days on. She was trying to reach for a book, and I offered to get it for her.


"You guys, just need a chance to hit on a girl. Just saw a girl alone, and you come up to try and hit on her."

I surely didn't have any such intentions. I was stunned. With a hand on my cheeks, just to avoid the slap.

"I am sorry, but I was just trying to help you out."

"Help, my foot. I very well know guys like you."

I went and sat at the table, and began reading a newspaper, to shocked to even stabilise soon.


How did people even tolerate her for a second?



Next day she was on the same train I was in.

All of a sudden she came to me.

I was scared and jumped back, thinking she came here to slap me, which she forgot yesterday.



"I am sorry for yesterday. I was actually in a bad mood, and thought all guys are the same."

And again that killer smile and she left.

I was so addicted to such suicidal smiles.

That weekend, we again met, and that to again co-incidentally. She had come with her friends to watch the movie, and I was with my friends.





We just excahnged quick smiles and Hi's and moved into our seats.


As if meeting at the theatre wasn't enough, she was seated right next to me.


It was a romantic movie, and I was wondering what was she doing there.

And hopefully she wasn't in a bad mood today, or that would have been the end of me.





Somewhere toward the middle of the movie, her cell started ringing, and while trying to reach for her cell, she slipped all the coke and pop-corn on me.


And as if I had just appointed some advocates, my friends started screaming on her.



She was so shocked, that she just left the hall, and I guess with tears in her eyes.


I also went behind her, having no clue what pulled me out. I tried to console her, but stopping a girl cry is surely not my cup of tea.



But somehow, she stopped crying. But it was too late, I guess. The movie was over and people were moving out.


I offered to drop her back home, and we left walking.




That's when I actually found out, who the real Ishita was.


She surely was not that egoistic, angry young girl, I had seen her all this while as.


She was cool, frank, zero attitude, chatterbox, just like the girl next door.


She would easy mingle around, but was really short tempered.


Two extremes of her, from where its extremely difficult to get her back was, her anger and her emotions.


We soon became really good friends. Hanged around together, fought with each other, played pranks on each other and every sort of nonsense possible.




Once I went to her place.

If the daughter was like this, how would the rest of the family be, I just kept wondering till I finally met them.

"So, how many guys has she slapped so far.", asked her mom.

"First ask him, how many as he received so far.", interrupted her dad.

"I haven't slapped him yet.", came in Ishita's reply.

"That's why he had the guts to be here.", this one was from Ishita's sister.

"Nikhil, they are all gone crazy.", came in Ishita's quick response defending herself.

Getting in the mood, I also blabbered something.

"After all they are related to you."

She got so angry, that she ran behind me in the entire house.

Maybe that was her style to show me her house.

A few days later she dropped in at my place.

She had been there for like an hour, and Mom and she were chatting for like past entire time.

"Nikhil, why didn't you get her home before.", asked my mom, just when I entered the house.

I just didn't reply. What would have I even said.

Mom was busy talking that she forgot she had to even cook dinner, so she just decided to get it ordered from outside.

"Congratz, you won the bet, now out.", speaking ti Ishita, when Mom wasn't around.

I was just trying to get her out. God only knows what all she might have told mom, in my absence.

But mom just would not let her go. And I sat right across, just trying to bring that fake smile, every time my name came up.

Luckily time flied by that day and she went home.

My mom was so very impressed with her.

But my sister and dad were so dreaded by her presence that they gave me a warning never to get her back home. Mom had just forgotten everything including that we were also at home.

But, I had never seen Mom so happy in the past year or so.

Ishita surely had some magic in her.

We spent most of the time with each other and almost everyone in the school felt we were dating.
Once a guy came and asked Ishita,
"How is that loser boyfriend Nikhil...of yours doing?"
And came in Ishita's favourite reply.

A tight slap across his face, and she made sure he never showed his face to her again.

So no-one dare opened there mouth, or else they would have been royally screwed by our very own Ishita. The school was as if haunted by her and feared her as if she was the Ghost Principal or something.






But, I knew her in and out. She was like a coconut, hard from outside but tender and soft from inside. It was heaven to have a friend like her. She was the creator of most problems, and she had solutions to all problems.





Once she was angry with the entire class of ours. So she somehow convinced the History proffesor to keep a test the very next day.


And for the next 24hrs everyone kept abusing her like crazy.


No-one in the class was prepared for the test, and neither was she. So she came to the rescue of the class. She only convinced the proffesor again to delay the test by one week.




She was way to good at it. She had that strength to even melt stone with water. I always wondered how she did all this, that also so easily.


No-one ever said NO when she asked for help and she would always stand by you when you needed her.





She once started a revolt against a proffesor who had slapped one of our classmate's. Within a week's time she forced the principal to give a warning to that proffesor.
Once she starts, you just cant stop her.




No matter how dreadful she could be, people always praised her for she would stand by the truth always. She hated lies.

Her friends usually called her, 'Angel in Disguise.'




She never let her friends down, and never let them feel bored.


Back to present.

"So, basically that's how I met her, my first impression, and how our friendship grew."

Ranbir and Ishaan were just staring at me.

"What's wrong guys?"

Silence.

And then in a chorus.

"Do you like her?"

"You people want to be slapped or you want me to be slapped. She's just a friend."

"The typical Page 3 dialogue. We are just good friends.", popped in Ranbir.

The entire night I and Ishita were talked about like Breaking News on news channels that continues for atleast 24hrs.

Apart from that, loads of PS, movies, cards and nonsense talk was what we did the entire night.

It was one of the best ways to spent the first night after exams. Well the vacations have just begun.

A few days later, when the three of us were hanging out at the creek, we received messages of the inter-school events we were going to take part in.

Ishaan got confirmation for Youth Cult Fest and he was going to be in Delhi for the event in mid-July, thats 2weeks from now.

Ranbir was going to lead the footbal team in Football Mania at the grounds in Bangalore, towards the third week of July.

And then, surprisingly I was selected for the school team going to Kolkatta towards the second half of July for the CBSE annual Cricket Meet.

So, these were surely going to be some of the most awaited things in the near future.

After getting such awesome news in the day, we decided to party hard in the night.

And as usual Ranbir was drunk, and we carried him back home, reminding me of my first night out in Dubai.

But while entering the building, from no where Ranbir's mom saw us. We some how managed to rush into Ishaan's place, but a round of interrogation can be expected tomorrow.

...to be continued...