“It was hot & humid — like most days in Hyderabad. I was in a crowded bus that neither had air conditioning nor proper ventilation, reading Haruki Murakami’s The Elephant Vanishes & listening to music.
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I stood at the back of the bus, leaning against a seat, enjoying the breeze. I was wary of my surroundings, securing my belongings from pickpockets & other pests. I glanced around the bus & then I saw him.
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It’s hard to describe him. He had no differentiating characteristics. He was the perfect example of a boy you pass by every day, who you might glance at for a moment, then a few steps later forget what he looked like.
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He was standing by the front door of the bus, not leaning on anything or anyone, not touching the bacteria-infested handgrip. He stood with perfect balance, as if somebody put Venus de Milo silently on the bus. He was wearing earphones & had a slight smile on his face. Sometimes he closed his eyes for a few moments, enjoying whatever music he was listening to.
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Maybe he’s the one, I said to myself.
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This is not the first time this happened. As a hopeless romantic, seeing any boy that piqued my interest will immediately trigger my brain to write fairytales.
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Random Cuties — that’s what I called them. Unicorns among the pretty. The term does not apply to any handsome boy I see. It has to be someone special…or at least someone I imagined to be special.
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OH SHIT!
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He looked at me! We made eye contact for the flash of a second. I immediately returned to my book. Did he notice me looking? My head couldn’t stop overthinking.
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I obviously couldn’t read properly. I glanced back at him & he was staring at me. Eye contact more than once, it had to mean something!
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Should I introduce myself?
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What if things go wrong?
What’s the worst that could happen?
It’s a crowded bus. Moving to the front will definitely annoy people.
What if he got annoyed? He might scream & call me a pervert & then the whole bus will beat me to death.
And the worst. What if he’s not like I imagined?
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And then, our eyes locked & he smiled. Just a small curve on that perfectly ordinary but beautiful face. I quickly return to my book.
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My iPod randomly shuffled to Explosions in the Sky’s “The Only Moment We Were Alone.” I cranked up the volume, put my book away & took a breath.
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As far as I know,
He might be listening to Explosions in the Sky.
He might be a fan of Murakami & Final Fantasy IX.
He might be single.
He might be the perfect match for me.
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Besides, as the old saying goes: if it’s meant to be, it will be.

The bus stopped at my destination. It was time to go. I decided to not look in his direction. I got off & enjoyed the warm sun & breeze of fresh air, finally out of that metal Schrodinger’s box.

I turned my head to the right, & there he was, enjoying the breeze. He turned, surprised to see me.

He smiled.

So, if it’s meant to be, it will be?”

Thanks for the memorable #CommuteKahani, Yuktha!

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