Train tales Ch-3

Rain

"Can you both stop?" A woman scolded her kids as they opened their windows in the harsh rain just to collect some water at their palms and splash at each other.

Romeo saw that and smiled. What sweet-small ways kids have to stay happy!

Playing in the rain.

It again triggered the same memory of someone.

It was a day when the rain wasn't stopping just like now.

~~~~~~~~~~~~ 1 year ago~~~~~~~~~

"As I cry

There are drops on my cheeks

When I see the rain

It feels like God crying.

And there are drops on the earth"

Romeo wrote his thoughts to his only secret keeper.

" Seat 54" the new passenger murmured to himself.
"Hey, are you okay? " He asked when he heard the next person sitting in his compartment whimper.

"Yeah! I am not crying, It's just the raindrops on my face, " he said with his head still in his diary, "One can't even cry in silence!! " He wrote.

"Who apparently likes path through your eyes? "

This time Romeo felt he knew this voice and looked up

And found someone known,

Someone he didn't expect,

Someone he forgot

But whose memories were never forgotten.

The known stranger's face too turned out white with shock and surprise.

"Oh my God! I can't believe it's you!" Romeo exclaimed in excitement and formed a hug.

" 10 years! What a coincidence!!" Prem concluded.

"Where have you been for so long?

Why did you leave without telling me?

Oh, God! Why did I even hug you?

I just hate you, for doing that?

Why did you never visit?

How is Aunt?

Did you finish college?

What did you study?

Why are you just smiling? Answer me." Ordered Romeo.

"I don't know. It just feels so good to hear you, the way you sound, to see you, the way you look. " Prem said adoring him.

"Why did you never tell me about your mother's office transfer? Neither contacted me ever." Romeo asks in a low sad voice.

"I am happy to see you. Can we leave that please?" Prem sighed.

There was a brief pause.

Nobody knew what to say.

It was peace and disturbance rushing all over Romeo's body.

Peace, for all the years he waited to see him,

Disturbance, for all the years he couldn't see him

He wished this train ride wouldn't end or just get a little longer. Every second he was getting to see him or even getting to breathe in the same place as he does was priceless.

Prem broke the emotional chaotic silence.

"So...Do you still play football?"

"No! I stopped after school."

"So...what you do now?"

"Hear people's fiction-made non-fiction stories. I am at a publishing firm."

"Never thought that. I never knew you were fond of books."

"Time changes people. What about you?"

"Business," Prem answered.

"Why were you crying, is something bothering you?" Prem looked at his diary.

"Wish I could tell you."

The train jolted and after a few minutes, it stopped.

Everyone thought maybe there was some train running late ahead of it making it delayed too but as the train didn't move for the next twenty minutes passengers got up from their seats to find out what happened.

While some people were trying to find the train employees like the people who take food orders, some were just going to the next coach to know if they knew anything and some were telling stories of what happened when the train stopped like this, once upon a time.

Some were speaking the truth and some were trying to make the truth.

The stories had many variations, some were of partition, some were of robbers and some were of ghosts.

Both Romeo and Prem were finding their own amusement in it.

They were laughing and guessing which could be true and which ain't.

When it was half an hour and the train still had not started, passengers switched their storytelling session to just complaining about how slow this train was, how bad their service was, and next time they would get their reservation on some other one.

Prem and Romeo rolled their eyes, as they use to in school, in the class bitching sessions.

They paused for a minute, looked at each other, and laughed.

Maybe they now don't know much about each other lives,

Maybe they don't look exactly the same as they used to,

Yet they both are the same old friends.

While the children were trying to push the train through their seats by applying hand force on the compartment walls, some people came back with the news that there was some problem with the engine and it would take two hours more for the train to start.

Everybody sighed but Romeo smiled. Two hours more was a gift for him.

They both went to the train door to check out the place.

The rain was harsh but beautiful.

Prem splashed some water drops on Romeo and giggled.

That's how their sweet small rain war began which ended up in getting out from the train and drenching.

They laughed and ran in the fields like they were teens again.

Rain and wind both danced with them in their joy.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Romeo remembers being drenched in water with him.

What a sweet pain it is, when you just want to hug someone and your hands just shy away and hug their own body like it knows he lives there too.

And the cold wind touches his lips and lands on yours making an innocent kiss, which just feels to you and him and the sweet intruder, called wind!!

The lips come to know and they smile.

He never went to rain after that but something in him wanted to again touch it.

Maybe say a thank you!

Maybe hold its hand and tell it and him that he is okay and he wishes the same for him.