MIRA

7. The Encounter🚝

''Hello...?'' Mira said.

''Hi Mira..? Are you busy now? I could ring up later....?'' Vikranth said in a strong American accent.

'Oh...Hi Vikranth. No no, it's fine. I'm home.'' Mira said.

Few more seconds of silence followed before he said, ''Okay...eh..do you have any plans for tomorrow?''

''Umm....nope. I mean it's Sunday and I have no plans.'' Mira said smiling.

''I was wondering if we could meet tomorrow afternoon for lunch...is that okay with you?''

''Sure, no problem.''

''Great! I know this Indian food place, but it's not in Quincy...I guess I can come over and fetch you.''

''Oh....is the place accessible by public transport? I mean I don't want to bother you...plus it would be good for me to familiarise myself with the city.''

''Yea, I was going to suggest that but I didn't know if you were familiar with the public transport here...''

''Actually... I've been on the RED LINE train a few times since I got here, I think I'll be fine. Just text me the name of the place yea?''

''Sounds cool. I''ll see you then.''

''Yep...Bye Vikranth.'' Mira said ending the call and sighed as she cleaned up the mess from the water spill.

Mira had spoken to Vikranth after about nine years. She noticed that his voice sounded a lot more modulated than it did when she last met him. Even so, a slight bit of nervousness (evident between his pauses)was there in his voice. She realised that the last time she met him, he was after all a young boy in college, so his voice was a lot more youthful back then...

***

Mira was up early next day as she had to do her laundry before heading out to meet Vikranth. After breakfast, Mira faced the biggest challenge....and that was deciding what to wear! Mira always values comfort and takes into account of the weather as well when deciding what to wear...Luckily for her, it was a warm morning which meant that Mira could confidently opt for shorts or skirts.

Mira finally decided to wear a white printed tee with a denim short skirt (which went to just above her knees), paired with beige sneakers. Although Mira was satisfied with her outfit, she became a little conscious at the thought that she was going to see Vikranth for the first time. 🙈Then she looked out the window, it was such a nice day and she looked great, so disregarding the Vikranth factor, Mira decided to leave the apartment.🌞

Vikranth had texted that morning asking her to meet him at the subway station she gets off, so that they could walk to the restaurant together. Mira left extra early because it was her first time going to this place and she wasn't sure how long it would take her to reach, and being the punctual person she was, Mira thought that it was better to be early than be late...

''Hmm... and we made it 10 minutes early.'' Mira said to herself as she reached the entrance of the subway station. Mira looked around to see if Vikranth could be spotted. She didn't know from which direction he would come, so she just scanned everywhere for a few minutes when suddenly,

''Mira...?'' she heard a voice from behind her and turned around to see a tall, dark, and young man standing there with a smile. It was Vikranth.

''Heyy..'' Mira said looking at Vikranth. She noticed that he was also wearing a white t-shirt and navy blue shorts, he also looked slim and physically fit. Maybe it was because he was in casuals but Vikranth looked more like a teenager than a man to Mira.