Rajveer really likes to keep his life in order and doesn't like anything that messes it up. But when his mom insists he spend the summer with a woman she introduces him to, Rajveer has no choice. Even though he didn't want to, he ends up caught in a...
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I felt my insides burn as I puked for the third time after getting on the train. Strange mechanical sounds reached my ears, and I felt the nausea hit me again. I never wanted to get on a train again. Once in my life was enough.
The loudspeakers dinged.
"May I have your attention please, Train no. 12497 from New Delhi via Ramgarh to Jaipur AJMER SHATABDI express is about to reach the destination in 5 minutes. If you have any luggage, please collect it. Please do not leave any items unattended as they may be removed or destroyed by security staff. Thank you.."
Jaipur. I'd finally made it.
That meant I'd be meeting him soon.
Anticipation made my stomach swirl, and goosebumps erupted all over my body. The mix of excitement and nervousness about meeting him threatened to make me sick once more.
Grabbing the bottle of water I had kept aside earlier, I rinsed my mouth with water and then quickly chugged down the remaining water.
Standing up, I washed my face with water and swiftly dried it with tissue paper. After straightening my clothes, I exited the train washroom.
I rushed to my compartment, not wanting to be left on the train. I have heard about people getting lost in train journey and I don't want to be one of them.
Everyone started lining up in the aisle, and I jumped to get my luggage from the overhead bin. A tall man, maybe in his early 50s with a brown leather jacket beat me to my suitcase and pulled it out. "Here, let me get it for you."
He set the small navy blue suitcase in the aisle and smiled, and I yanked it close to myself before he could take it hostage. His smile dimmed, and he turned to face the exit gate of the train. As they filed up the Gallery, I kept expecting him to "help" me more and request payment, but he never did.
When we reached the terminal, he disappeared into the massive crowd, and panic seized me. He'd known what he was doing. He could have told me where to go, but now I was all alone.
As I blindly followed the crowd, I tried to read the signs overhead, but my fear-scrambled mind couldn't make sense.
A railway employee who was mopping the floor nearby seemed pretty accessible to me, so I decided to ask her instead.
"Someone is coming to pick me up. Can you tell me where the parking lot and the bathroom are?"
The lady scanned me up and down, scoffed as she didn't believe me probably because she doubted anyone would come to pick up someone like me. Probably due to my dress, I was wearing a light colour suit which was faded and had small holes which weren't really visible.
"Bathroom is at the end of the corridor, and the exit is just opposite to it." She told me in a tone which conveyed that she didn't want to talk to me any further and got back to mopping.
I stared at the lady as the lady mopped the floor without even taking a glance at me. So this was what grandmother said about city people being unfriendly.
I couldn't help but compare this with my home Village, how everyone was talking with each other constantly. Although I knew only a few of them meant good but atleast they were friendly.
I shook my head and grabbed her suitcase and stood still for a moment, taking in the chaos of the railway station.
I have never seen so many people gathered together except for the Dussehra Mela which is held every year in our village.
All of this was too new. Even I felt somewhat new.
New place, new name, new person, new life. Maybe. For this summer, atleast.
I should be excited. Money and job all were here. But all I felt was ... scared. Home, however, wasn't an option right now. I had to do this for my little sister.
My grandmother's advice rang in my head: Seduce first. Love will come.
It was time to see a man.
I marched straight into the bathroom, took an empty stall, and changed out of my comfortable travel clothes and into a tight pink dress.
Even though the dress was expensive and uncomfortable, it was perfect to get the man interested in me. Also I didn't buy it so I should be more grateful for it.
After exchanging my flat shoes for a pair of high heels that looked like weapons, I left the stall to brush my teeth until my gums hurt and apply the smallest amount of eyeliner, mascara, this shimmery stuff to hide the tired bags under my eyes, and blood red lipstick. There. That was as good as it got.
Lifting my chin, I exited the bathroom and joined the crowd. I sounded out the words on the overhead signs with determination and followed the foot traffic through the station. After I passed security, I finally got out of the station. Outside I started scanning the people and their faces, searching, searching, searching ...
There he was.
He'd been staring at me, so i'd done what I did best when a man seemed interested. I did a little stationary flossing.
It was as natural as breathing, the subtle hip shift. Finding the light with my cheekbones, drawing attention to my mouth, and sucking his soul out with my eyes. It was a maneuver I normally performed with a high success rate. Instead, he'd only looked pissed off.
*****
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