CHAPTER 2
3 days later...
It was a bright sunny day with birds chirping. Last night it had drizzled a bit and it had made the weather even more pleasant. Ashu was getting ready for the hospital. No, he is not a patient, but he is a doctor, actually an intern since last 6 months or he should say that he will become a full-fledged doctor in the next 6 months. Even he doesn't believe that he finally made it this far, but yeah, he is a doctor! It has been around 2 months since he had completed his MBBS from the AIIMS, Delhi' in India and then applied in a renowned hospital, Sant'Eugenio' in Florence, Italy for completing his internship. It had been around 2 years since she left him and 2 years to their breakup, but sometimes he feels that he is the one who needs immediate medical attention, more than the patients he serves along with his respective senior doctors. Now he knows that why people say that first love is like intoxication, like a bug. Although after 2 years the intoxication has died down a lot but still sometimes the bug goes up in his head and then he is thrown back in the past and when he comes crawling back he just ends up wasting his whole time reliving the now-bitter-but-then-sweet-memories that he and Mallika had created 2 years back. Whatever, he finished the coffee in his cup as he gathered his robe, I-Card and cell phone before clambering down the stairs, starting his bike and then rushing off to the hospital.
The entire day passed by him assisting Dr. Mathew and Dr. Abele in surgeries and operations, and as the evening approached with the lobby of hospital attaining an orange-yellowish mist. There had been a bus accident nearby and so he and his batch mates along with the whole staff of the hospital were on their feet the whole day with doing a suture on one patient or assisting a very complicated surgery of the other one. His tummy grumbled with hunger as he had not eaten anything since morning but just had munched on a sandwich with a cup of coffee in the noon in the hospital canteen itself. Even his head was aching badly by seeing so much of blood in one day itself and he really needed a change. Anyways his shift was over too so he moved out of the hospital entrance. There was a cafe nearby and he thought to go there for munching onto something and gulping down a big and hot mug of coffee for energizing his now-tired-down self. He put on his helmet as per his habit before he started his bike and zoomed off.
Nidhi had just finished her coffee when her cell phone buzzed. She saw that he call was from her baba; she picked up the call as she got up to leave when she bumped into someone. Her phone slipped from her hand and broke down. She quickly picked it up without even looking at the culprit who broke her dear cell phone.
"My phone... It's broken!" she said as she raised her eyes to look at the culprit.
"You..." was the only word she could utter as she saw Ashutosh in front of him.
"Yes... Kyu main yaha nahi aa sakta kya?" he said as he raised his one brow in his typical style.
"Aa to sakte hain. Kyu nahi aa sakte but har baar mera koi loss karna zaroori nahi hai naa." She said with sarcasm dripping from her tone.
"Agar aap gaur kare to this time it was your mistake... you were so immersed in your phone that you didn't see me coming and bumped into me...Vaise bhi lagta hai khane-peene ki chheezo ka aur khaane peene ki jagaho ka aapki aur meri behes ka koi connection hai." he said as he moved a hand through his hair.
"Oh really... mana ke mai dekh kar nahi chal rahi thi par aap toh dekh sakte hai naa... you could have walked properly if not me." She retorted not willing to back out from the arguement.
"See Miss...Verma, right... I am very much tired and not at all in a mood to argue with u or anyone. So please... I think we should hold on this argument here and continue some other time. Aap ke phone ko theek main karva dunga. Waise bhi aap mere ghar ke bagal mein hi rehti hai... jab chahe aa jaiyegaa ladai continue karne ke liye. I'll be ready." He said and again ran a tired hand through his hair. Nidhi was at a loss of words. He uttered those words with so much truth; she could see the tinge of tiredness in his eyes and his appearance. The sleeves of his shirt were rolled till his elbows and the top button was open too. He looked dead tired and worn out and his eyes were slightly red as if he had not slept properly since a long time.
"Now if you excuse me, I would like to go home. Please..." Nidhi came out of her trance hearing him utter those words. She mentally chided herself for again noticing his features and averted her eyes.
"Okay... aur mere phone ki repairing ka zimma aapko lene ki zarurat nahi hai. I can do that myself. And yes don't you think that I am forgiving you. Mere baba ne mujhe yeh phone gift kiya tha so it's very dear to me. I am letting the matter go just because it was a mistake and you too seem disturbed." She said and moved out of the cafe. Ashu shook his head disbelievingly the moment she moved past him and then he too moved out. He sat on his bike and was about to start it when he saw Nidhi struggling to stop a cab. He just hung his helmet on the handle and placed his thumb and forefinger on his chin to see if she is able to do that. After a few minutes he smiled as he put on his helmet and started his bike and stopped it in front of her.
"Phone todne ke badle I think I can gave you a lift till your apartment as compensation. Nidhi saw Ashu in front of her offering a lift and she didn't like the idea of taking a lift from a man who just broke her cell and she had fought with him on the sane matter too.
"No thanks... By the way we both live in the same building so aap mujhe sirf mere apartment' tak lift denge aur khud kahan jaayenge. Have you decided to leave the apartment just now." She replied back sarcastically.
"Actually hamari building' thoda ajeeb ho jata...nahi... isiliye... by the way it's close to night and you should not go alone at this time and that too in a completely new country. This is what my common sense says. What does yours say?" he asked. Nidhi pondered over his words for a minute before agreeing. She moved forward and took her place behind him on his bike. He started the vehicle and they moved on. Although the road was not very crowded with traffic but still he didn't speed up his bike. Although his not speeding up the bike was not intentional but purely inadvertent.
"If you don't mind...can I ask you a question?" he asked a few minutes later.
"Hmm... sure." She agreed.
"Aapko dar nahi lag raha... I meanyou are taking a lift from a person you hardly know and that too in a completely new place to you. Aap mujhse sirf do baar mili hai and both the meetings were disastrous enough that you think at least once before you come along with me..." he asked her in a mock serious tone as turned the bike to the left. The turning of the bike unbalanced her posture on the bike and she slipped a bit near to him and clutched on his shoulder to stop herself from falling.
"Drive properly..." she said as she removed her hand from on his shoulder.
"Shayad aapko Newton's second law yaad hoga... inertia se aisa hi hota hai Ms. Verma. Anyways you didn't answer my question..." he further said.
"Well as an answer to your question... Don't you worry Mr. Ashutosh...right...? I know judo-karate and I am a brown belt in martial arts so..." she trailed off saying this in an exact copy of his tone. Ashu smiled at her statement. Even Nidhi pondered over the thought that why did she trust himwhen she barely knows him but didn't ler her thoughts reflect on her face.
"Oh...! Martial arts... then I better shut my mouth and drive quietly."
"Why? Kya aapko dar lag raha hai that you are giving lift to a girl you hardly know and who knows martial arts and whom you have just met twicw. Aur un dono mulakato mein hi... you have given her enough reasons either by eating her pizza or by breaking her cell, to show you her martial skills." She replied contributing in the healthy banter. Ashu laughed hearing her words, a carefree laugh after a long time.
"Must say Ms. Verma... you have an impeccable sense of humor and a good presence of mind too." He couldn't stop himself from complimenting on her witty replies. A small controlled smile split on Nidhi's face and she looked away not letting him see that but the mirror allowed Ashu to see her small smile.
The bike came to a halt in front of their building.
"So Ms. Verma... here we are. Aapki building aa gayi jahan mera ghar bhi hain." Nidhi smiled at Ashu's words as she got down and moved towards the entrance of the building.
"Ms. Verma aapke yaha thank you bolne ka riwaaz nahi hain kya? You know... after someone gives you a lift. And don't you add anything after 'Ms' and before' Verma'?" Ashu asked when Nidhi reached near the gate. Nidhi turned on hearing this.
"Thank you ka riwaaz toh hain par kaha isiliye nahi kyuki aap hi ne kaha tha ke you are offering me the lift as a compensation... and ek ajnabee ki jankaari ke liye mujhe lagta hai Ms. Verma hai kaafi hai." She replied to his question, smiled and again turned to go. Ashu just shrugged his shoulders watching her retreating back and was about to start his bike to go and park it when he heard his name being called.
"Ashutosh... Thank you for the lift aur haan mai 'Ms' ke baad aur 'Verma' ke pehle Nidhi lagati hoon. Ms. Nidhi Verma..." she turned after unlocking the gate and moving in and replied to him before she vanished quickly rushing towards the stairs.
"Nidhi... Ms. Nidhi Verma..." he uttered after she was gone and a smile stretched on his lips before he moved to park his bike.
Edited by amreen_ashni - 9 years ago
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