The Snowfall Love Chapter 2.

                                             The Snowfall Love.

                                       Chapter 2. The Last Night Conversation.

We came back from the kitchen, Saurabh was holding the tray with two coffee cups on it. He put down the tray on the table and Bhalu came running from the kitchen and jumped onto my lap. Saurabh sat next to me (or I can say in front of my wheelchair). We started talking and at a time while I was talking to him I realized that I was talking to myself too, like inner talking where my heart was saying. ‘I feel good when I talk and it feels happier to talk to him and is too comfortable.’ And then I thought that I never have felt this level of comfort with any outsider before. Our conversation started with the place we live and ended with the story of us living alone. Saurabh, basically from West Bengal and I am from Delhi. He asked me, “Why you live here then, if you belong to Delhi?” I replied, “I shifted here only a year ago. I had some family thing and ended up here.” 

“Alone?”

“Umm! Yeah. I had to, I felt to be a burden on them, a paralyzed person need someone around all the time.”

“Can I ask you something?”

“Yeah, sure! I guess by now we have lost the formality thing.”

“Yeah right. I just thought if you will hurt or…”

“No, ask.”

“How did you end up being on wheelchair?”

“A year ago before I shifted to Dehradun, I met with an accident and lost my neural contact of brain to legs. (Chuckles softly).”

“Umm..”

“I mean I got paralyzed.”

“Oh! I am sorry.”

“No need of any sympathy I am cool.”

We took the last sip of coffee together (accidentally) and we laughed, after a long time I felt alive. I was gently rushing my hands over Bhalu’s back and he was looking happy. Saurabh told me that he too lost his family in a car crash and he was the only survivor and to start fresh he ended up being here. I asked him that how he knew my eye lens color. He reciprocated (something too unexpected), “I saw you the day the left Bhalu here and I peeked into your window from a distance while you were reading the book.” It was an awkward situation for me because I was confused that should I feel bad about being stalked or should I feel good that someone noticed me (because this happened after a long time). Anyhow we ended the conversation and he stood up, he took a few steps towards to door and suddenly Bhalu jumped off my lap and grabbed Saurabh’s trouser by his mouth and started jumping over him, trying to stand on two feet taking support of Saurabh’s chest(like a big dog does). We both understood what Bhalu wanted but that was too uncomfortable, sharing home with someone unknown. Saurabh tried to convince him but Bhalu is Bhalu no one can make him understand until he himself doesn’t want to! So we ended up being in a house together. It was too awkward to be with someone unknown but still we had to manage. Saurabh came back to the couch and Bhalu was sitting next to him. We again started talking and this time Bhalu was into his lap. When we were talking I found a lot common between two of us and for the first time I was feeling exactly the opposite of say, ‘opposite attracts’. I was feeling so enlighten from inside and that too after a long time. By the time our conversation was turning more into personal (that’s what happens when you talk a lot for a long time). I asked him if he has ever been in love or is in love and he totally denied it (I felt too happy after his answer). He asked about me then, it was quite embarrassing for me to share my personal life because it was not normal at all. At the age of 23 I am divorcee and on wheelchair but as he told me about himself I felt like I should not hide it then, so I told him about me. At first he was shocked and didn’t speak for like two minutes and then when he said, “wow! God, I just skipped my beat knowing you married and I felt like live again knowing you single now.” We both laughed out loud and it was becoming more comfortable with him. We were near to window, he was standing and I on my chair and we were looking out as far as we could. We both like to paint and listening music so he played a song in his phone and we were listening it through earplugs. I fell asleep there and he noticed that. At first he tapped me and asked me if I want to go on bed, that time I denied saying its fine here but then I fell asleep for the second time. This time he didn’t ask me, he just lift me up into his arms and it was something that I should have felt angry but I don’t know why it felt better. He took me into my room and laid me down on bed and went back into the hall. I asked him where he is going, he reciprocated, “in hall will sleep on couch with Bhalu.”

The next morning when I woke up I could hear the voice of Meera, she came back and her voice was clearing showing that it could be the last day of Saurabh if I won’t stop her at time. So I managed myself to be on wheelchair and then I dragged myself near to the stairs from where I was able to see everything (that was too much of fun). Meera was shouting at him and she was having the broom stick in her hand.

Meera, “kaun hai re tu? Andar kaise aaya? Bata nahi to abhi police ko fone karti hai main.” (She was Marathi and after a month when I shift here mother send her here for me). And Saurabh was just saying, “wo Riya and Bhalu..” before he could complete his sentence Meera was about to give him a broom kick. I was watching it all and laughing but then I thought now it’s my time to speak otherwise he will die (I died of laughing). I shouted from there, “Meera stop, I know him.” And he was saved by me. Meera was shocked to see me upstairs and she came to me in hurry and asked me that why was I upstairs if my room is downstairs and that moment  when I looked at Saurabh’s face, believe me he was totally blank and must be thinking that now Meera will kill him. He came near me and lifted me down  (by now I was feeling normal being into his arms like happy normal) and we all three gathered in the hall. I asked Meera to cool herself down and to make coffee and breakfast for us. Bhalu came and he sat between me and Saurabh. I was playing with him and suddenly Saurabh spoke and said, “I feel good about my decision of leaving him with you Riya.” (Hearing my name from him was like something amazing and loving that my heart was looking for). I reciprocated, “maybe yes, because of that I found someone with me.” Meera came back from the kitchen with breakfast and coffee. We all three sat together on the dining and there I told everything to Meera that he left Bhalu at door and then how he saved me yesterday and helped me as well. After hearing she apologized to him and we were done with the breakfast too and so was Bhalu (it seems more complicated naming a dog Bhalu but I loved it so I never thought of anyone else). And then the time came, time for him to leave, time for him to step out of the house but the string between us, our Bhalu stopped him again and this time me and Saurabh we both made him understand. When Saurabh stepped out of the door I stopped him (I don’t know about him but I skipped my beat when I said his name). He turned back with a smile and asked, “Haan?”  I asked him to come sometime if he wish to so that Bhalu can spend some time with him and asked him if he can take Bhalu for walks. He nodded his head in yes and smiled and then he was gone. I came back near to my window and saw him going, when I came near to the couch I saw a letter hidden between the pillow written, ‘thank you’ on the envelope.