Musical Notes (The Last Page Series-2)

Black and White

With a beige coat on top of a white turtleneck, Abhik was out on his weekly adventures around London. Every Sunday, the only day he gets off work, he goes out to explore the environment of a city so far away from the one he is so used to. He felt like it was the shat somudro taro nodi parer desh (the world beyond the seven seas and thirteen rivers) his mother used to tell him stories about.

His destination today- Westfield Stratford City

Getting on the bus, he couldn't help but marvel at the surroundings. The vibes were truly something else. Not to mention the few heart attacks the cultural shocks gave him from time to time, but he enjoyed those as well. True, it wasn't home but it was also nothing short of a dreamland, for a young son of Bengal who hadn't gone further than Digha and Mandarmani.

 Breaking his reverie was the vibration of his phone in his back pocket. He took it out and glanced at the screen, his mom's name glaring at him. Picking up the call, he heard the very question every Bengali mother must ask her child, who no longer lives with her, in order for her day to go well,

"Kheyechis?"

(Have you eaten?)

Abhik could help but chuckle.

"Oh ma amar. Akhon ekhane sobe 9:30. Ami berieche, rastae kheyenebo. Tomra kheyecho?", he asked.

(Oh my mother....It is only 9:30 am here, I am outside so I will have something on the way. Have you all eaten?)

"Amader ar ki, shokal shokal utechilam. Mishti r dodhimongol holo, tarpor gaye holud. Akhon sobai biyer jonno toiri hochhe.", he got the reply.

(We all had to wake up early for Mishti's dodhimongol. Then gaye holud commenced. Now everyone is getting ready for the wedding.)

He just hummed, not trusting himself to speak on the matter. 

"Sobai toke khub miss korche. Mishti to parle biye postpone kore dito tui jodi asbi boltis-"

(Everyone is missing you. Mishti was even ready to postpone her wedding if that meant you would come-)

"Ma, I have reached. I need to go. Talk to you later, love you. Bye!", he interrupted her, and with the quick words he cut the call.

Yeah, you guessed it right, he did cut the call because he could no longer hear what felt like lies to him. Ki korbe bolun, manusher mon, obhiman to ho ei. (What can he do, a human's heart, ego does come in between...)

But he had not lied. He had truly reached his destination. Looking at the hustle and bustle of the streets, he grinned a bit. It was like he was back in Park Street.

Getting off the bus, he decided to take a stroll amongst the familiarity. Closing his eyes, he tried to imagine himself back in the jam packed roads of Kolkata. That helped him clear his mind a bit.

When he finally decided to open them, his sight fell on a public piano. Giving in to his impulsive thoughts he sat down on the stool and brushed his hand elegant and slender fingers along the cold black and white keys.

He had no control over himself as the muscle memory kicked him, his fingers moving automatically. Soon in the air filled the tunes of Bojhena Se Bojhena, one of his favourite hits of Arijit Singh (A/N: Listen to it, it's a great song.)

Slowly a crowd began to form around, swaying to the soothing melody. But then, it was no longer just the piano playing. A sweet feminine voice sang the lyrics, correctly timing it with the rhythm of his hands, making the performance twice as good as it was.

Abhik looked around, trying to put a face to the wonderful voice. And...he got it. A few centimeters behind him, singing her heart out was.....Mia?!

What on earth is she doing here...he thought. He had every reason to currently believe that he was being stalked by an obsessive fan. Little did he know, the person he was labelling as a stalker was everything but one. Instead she.....nevermind, you all will get to know, one day. 

As he struck the last chords, the crowd thundered with applause. He saw Mia do a mock curtsy, making him shake his head in amusement. 

When the people finally decided to go back to their own work, he got up to confront her.

"What are you doing here?", his questioned came out unnecessarily harsh. Mia was taken aback.

"Um....I actually have...a...a part time job as a barista in the Starbucks nearby...", she stuttered, trying to figure out what made him so irritated at her.

"Oh", he went red with embarrassment, realising his stalker thoughts were  indeed a bit....what do you say.....far-fetched. 

"I thought you said your bengali was rusty, you sang pretty well.", Abhik tried to cover up with a compliment.

Now it was Pragyaparamita's turn to blush.

"Thanks. For both the things.", she said.

Abhik raised his eyebrow in question, as she cleared his doubt,

"For the compliment and accepting the friend request."

Last night's memories flooded back to him, a look of comprehension evident on his face. 

"Did you have breakfast?", she asked out of the blue.

"I have not, in fact.", he admitted.

"How about you come over to Starbucks? We have breakfast options, and what is better than a coffee to start you day?", she shyly suggested.

Contemplating his option for a while, he thought it was for the best. Signaling for her to show the way, he followed her to where he could finally feed the rats in his stomach.

Glossary:-

Digha and Mandamani- Two coastal places in India us Bengalis love to visit whenever the word vacation comes up.

Dodhimongol- A ritual of bengali marriages where on the wedding day the bride and the groom need to wake up before the sun rises to have a specially prepared breakfast made with flattened rice, because they cannot eat after the sun rises and before the wedding has ended.

Gaye holud- Another ritual, which quite literally means Turmeric on Skin, where turmeric paste is applied on the bride and groom. It is believed that turmeric gets rid of bad omen and they can have a good start to a new life. Also the glow turmeric gives is very essential.

Park Street- It is really known as the Neighbourhood of the Englishmen, thus the comparison. The best place to celebrate Christmas in all of Kolkata

A/N: Hehe, sorry for the really late update. In my defence, I was preparing for a really important exam which happened yesterday evening *phew*. Anyways, do comment if you liked the chapter. Adios!