When I woke up in the morning, she wasn't in the room. After finishing my bath, she was ready to head to college without a word. I sensed she was the same girl who wouldn't stop talking the day before. I didn't plan on making a fuss about it. Once everything was settled, the bike's tire was flat.
"It's out of commission," I told Devu, who looked at me puzzled, eyeing the bike's tire.
"What's our plan now?"
"We can walk to the intersection and catch a bus from there."
She locked up the house and walked alongside me, but there was only silence. None of us spoke until we reached the bus stop. While waiting, she turned to me and reached out her hand.
"What?"
"Money for the bus fare," she asked without hesitation, out of habit.
"Aren't I riding that bus too? I'll pay for your ticket as well."
She didn't say anything. When the bus arrived, she boarded first, and I followed through the back door.
"Tickets... Tickets..."
"Two for College Junction..."
"Who's the second passenger?" asked the conductor solemnly.
"She's right ahead..."
"Show me, sir... otherwise, that ticket could end up with someone else. They're all shady characters... reluctant to part with their money..."
As he said that, I stepped forward a bit and indicated Devu to him. He returned without a word.
As the bus moved forward, it grew increasingly crowded. Unable to withstand the pressure from behind, I moved forward and reached where the women were standing. Devu was standing facing me. I noticed her glancing at my face every now and then. It was then that I observed the boy standing behind her, edging closer. He looked like a schoolboy, at least nineteen years old. Her face displayed clear displeasure at his actions. Even as she tried to distance herself from him, he persisted in encroaching on her space.
Seeing her distressed expression, I felt the urge to pull him off the bus and give him a piece of my mind.
"Why, brother, isn't it enough to stay back there? Why are you coming up here? This isn't your place," he asked as I positioned myself between them in the rush.
But I knew his type...
I simply smiled at him, not uttering a word, and reached out to grip his collarbone, applying pressure.
"Aahh... Dude... Let... Let... It hurts..." he pleaded, his voice barely audible.
Yet, even as he saw that I wasn't releasing my hold, he was on the verge of tears. He attempted to brush my hand away with his own, but my grip held firm.
"Dude... Dude... I didn't know she was yours. Aahh... Leave it, dude... I won't do this again..." he apologized, and I let go of his hand. After that, he made himself scarce in that area.
When the bus pulled up in front of the college, she hurried over to me.
"You didn't have to rough up that little guy..." she remarked as we walked together.
I responded with a smile. She reciprocated in kind.
"Is the bus always this packed?" I inquired.
"Mmm... Yeah, it's usually busy. But today's particularly bad," she explained.
Observing Hari, who seemed taken aback by our arrival, she bid me farewell and walked off.
"What's happening here?" he asked.
I recounted in detail what had transpired the previous day. Hari seemed skeptical after hearing it.
"Bro, are you sure about what you're saying? What if she's putting on an act? You're the only one in that house who's against her being there... What if she fabricated a story to get you on her side?"
That's when I started to consider the possibility of Hari's suspicion.
"You acted foolishly and took her words at face value. Now, she can stay at your place until she's done using you," he warned.
"Yeah, if I'm also caught in her scheme, she can just live in my house without any interference..."
As I pondered, the image of Devika, who had confided her sorrows to me the day before, surfaced in my mind. I sensed a blend of tears and hidden laughter in her. Just as I was starting to suspect she might be playing me for a fool, Hari interjected with his next remark.
"Bro, what if she's genuinely poor, like I suggested? What if what she told you is true?"
"You're quite the... just say something with certainty... don't be so wishy-washy," I retorted.
"Bro, please, don't get upset... give me until evening... within that time, I'll figure out what's real and what's not..."
Until that evening, a gnawing uncertainty lingered in my mind. Did she deceive me, as Hari suggested? Or was she speaking the truth? Both notions flickered back and forth in my thoughts. I fervently hoped that everything she had said was genuine. I wrestled with the passing hours until his return.
To be continued...