Please don't get me wrong, I really like you!

"See you at 6pm :)" was the message that flashed on his mobile. He smiled and looked at the watch; it was time for him to leave to meet her.


**********************

Time: 6.15pm

She was sitting quietly in the cafe and he was looking at her expecting her to look at him and speak. They were in the same position for the past 15 minutes. They had ordered whatever they wanted and from then on there was silence. This was the third time they were meeting personally. He was thinking whether he said something that upset her in their last meeting or when they spoke last night, but he could not think of anything that would upset her.

He had known her for the past 8 months now and never was she upset. They met online and exchanged their interests and communicated with each other for hundreds of times through email and chat before they took their relationship to the next level i.e. exchanged their phone numbers. They had not seen each other yet, but were very good at communicating with each other. On phone, they gave space to each other and had fixed timings to talk with each other, but messages could be sent anytime as per their protocol. They were both having fun, in this friendship or relationship; at least that's what he thought. She was thinking hard and he was worried seeing this. In this acquaintance of 8 months, they never had a quarrel. He thought there must be something that he had done that was not right or maybe something that he had said that was not of her liking, but he also was thinking that she was alright just before they met as she sent messages throughout the day. They spoke the previous night and everything seemed normal. What is it that could have gone wrong in this short time?

He patiently waited for her to say something. The waiter brought their order and placed it on the table. She thanked the waiter and slowly picked up the snacks to eat. After some time, she left some money on the table and left without saying goodbye.

As he saw her leaving the cafe, a message flashed on his mobile - "How was your day?”

It was from her. He wanted to ignore the message, but he responded as he would normally respond giving some details on how his day went. At 10pm his phone rang and he answered it. This was the usual time they talk in the evening. This has been the case for the past few months; the day they exchanged their phone numbers. She spoke as if nothing was wrong. He was surprised at first and wondered what could have gone wrong in the evening, but stopped himself from asking the question. They went to bed after speaking for about an hour. He forwarded a "Good Night" message and she replied with a smiley and messaged "Good Night". He immediately replied, "See you tomorrow" to which he did not get any response. He waited for about 15-20 minutes, but she did not reply. He sent another message "Awake?” waited for few more minutes and thought she was asleep already and he went to sleep.

In the middle of the night, he woke up to drink some water and checked the message and he had a message from her and the message read...

"Good Morning. I hope you had a good night's sleep. I did not want to message you before because that would disturb your sleep. I cannot meet you again. I don't know what to say; I like you very much. I like the way you speak and I like the way you maintained dignity all through these months that we have known each other. You have respected me and I respect you totally, but there is something that is not right between you and me being together. I like the way our friendship has blossomed and would love to continue it the way it has been as long as possible. Maybe we have taken a wrong decision by meeting each other. Please don't misunderstand - you have become a part of my daily routine and I will continue to talk to you and write to you - but, it was very awkward to meet you. I don’t know maybe it was something wrong on my part that I am not able to communicate with you as freely as I could when on phone. I tried for 2 days to be comfortable talking to you in person, but it seems that it is better to have a virtual friend to whom I can speak my mind than to have to relate a face to the voice I hear. I will try to forget your face and try to be virtual friends forever. Please don't get me wrong, I really like you!"

**********************

A moment to cherish...

She slowed down and started walking slowly while her husband continued jogging and was a little ahead of her in the neighborhood park. She suddenly felt giddy and thought that she would fall down. She held a tree nearby and waited to become stable. She tried to remember what she ate the previous night or early in the morning. She just had her breakfast, but the previous night she and her husband had food on a road-side stall and a myriad thoughts crossed over her mind.


Her husband had warned her of having food from that road side stall, but she turned a deaf ear to whatever he said. She loved roadside food! She believed that to enjoy life, one should have the roadside food. It shows the culture of the city you live in and on top of that she hated the social clubs and the so-called elite restaurants that neither offer tasty food nor let you enjoy the food thinking about the price of each item on the menu. Not that they could not afford! They both certainly could afford these elite restaurants and they go out and visit these restaurants may be once or twice a month, but these road-side stalls have their own charm. You could have tasty dishes before or after your dinner without thinking twice - if only, you were not very particular about hygiene.

She was still struggling to control herself. She tried to look up and relax and now was looking at the morning sun that just came up and was piercing her eyes. She shut her eyes in disdain and looked down immediately. She turned around taking support of the tree for her back; laid her head to rest on the tree and slid down to sit on the ground in the mud. She did not care about how dirty the surroundings were as all she wanted to do was to take rest. If possible, she wanted to lie down and sleep there. She was not able to understand what was happening to her. She was, otherwise, very healthy woman and did not have any major ailments, but today she was not in her control. She sat down and closed her eyes trying to breathe deep & slow and trying to regain control over herself.

Noticing that his wife was not with him, he stopped and turned around to see that his wife was sitting under a tree. He ran back with a water bottle in his hand and checked with her about how she was feeling just when she was regaining control. He, being a doctor, asked her to take some water and relax while he checked her pulse. He observed that she was tense about having such an uncontrollable giddiness though it was for a short time.

He said in a very low tone, "You may have to go through some tests to get it confirmed, but I think you are about to become a MOM! Congratulations to both of us!!"

Relieved of the tension, she blushed, smiled & hugged her husband and made a mental note to take care of her health for the next few months.

P.S. Post dedicated to all Mothers. Happy Mothers' Day!


********************

Vision 2020 - AHB's experience

Disclaimer: All the incidents and characters are purely fictional and any resemblance to persons living or dead is purely coincidental. In case, any of the events described here happen to anyone in 2020 (or before or after 2020) then the readers are expected to forget that they read this narration.



**** START *****



This story is about an average human being (AHB) who works in a software company.



Year: 2020

Date: Some Random Date in the year

Time: 6.45am in the morning.

Place: MLPL (Multi-Level Parking Lot) in a software company



AHB: Ooh, I am getting late. The call is at 8am and I am still entering the MLPL. I wonder whether I will get to park the carbot or not.



He swipes in and gets into the MLPL. He goes around to all the parking levels and is disappointed that all the slots are taken up. He curses himself.



AHB: I should not have watched the IPL13 matches. I dozed off late and could not come in by 6am and now, I will be missing this important call that is at 8am. Maybe, I will have to go out of the entrance and park my carbot outside the campus.



He travels down in his carbot and just before exiting, he sees that a parking slot has just become empty. He gets down from his carbot and orders to his carbot "D14".



The carbot doesn't move. He notices that he did not pick his ID card from the carbot and so it did not move. He thinks that he should remember to keep the carbot's carpod in the sun so that it gets charged and it announces why it is not moving. It is only giving out important messages and not announcing everything.



He again orders "D14". Carbot responds:



Carbot: 'NOT EMPTY. NOT EMPTY.



AHB: What do you mean, not empty? It is empty. The other carbot just left.



AHB then notices that the carbot just left the MLPL after the owner sat in the carbot. He realizes that the system does not know that the parking location is empty unless it leaves the MLPL.



AHB: The system should be intelligent enough to notice that the carbot has left the parking space, why should the carbot leave the lot to recognize the empty space! The person who developed this must be a fool.



He now orders his carbot "D14" and the carbot promptly drives itself to D14 and parks itself. He goes to the elevators although he was on the first floor and swipes his card and while the elevator comes to the first floor, he thinks -



AHB: I have unnecessarily used the elevator. I am on the 1st floor, I could have easily walked - now Rs.1000 will be deducted from my salary for using the elevator.



He pacified himself almost immediately as using the stairs also would have cost him Rs.500. He takes the elevator and comes down to the entrance of the building. He puts the bag into the scanner with his laptop inside the bag and swipes on the machine with his id card and the scanner starts. The security person wearing 'Ray-Ban' glasses sits in the shade and wishes him 'Good Morning' while the bag is scanned through and shows the items in the bag onto the screen for the security personnel to view these. The barcode on the laptop is matched with the swipe-in entry and after the scan; AHB takes his bag and leaves to his building.



While walking by he sees the e-smoking zone that is built on the way to his building. He notices that men and women go into the e-smoking zone and just stand there. The smoke is filtered and reused to remove any bacteria so that the users can enjoy the smoke without any adverse effects. He hears two people walking ahead of him discussing about the e-smoke zone:



Person 1: It was better in earlier days; we used to take our own cigarettes and used match sticks or lighter to light our cigarettes. Nowadays, it is all reused smoke; I am not getting the same satisfaction as before.



Person 2: Dude, think about the environment; this facility boasts of reusing the smoke and the recent advancements in technology have made it to reuse the same smoke for about a week and these facilities are maintained over the weekend to fill in new smoke for the next whole week. Previously this campus used to burn 5,000 cigarettes per day and now it is only burning 1,000 cigarettes per week!



He, not being a smoker, just walks past them and reaches his building. He opens the palm and keeps it in the sun and the time displays 7.30am. He tries to enter the building by swiping in, but then seeing others he remembers that he has to scan his finger too. His finger is scanned in the biometric device and he swipes his id card at the same time and walks past the turnstile to the elevator. He thinks twice before using the elevator and finally decides to use the stairs in order to save money. He takes the stairs to reach the 4th floor where his actual work is. Here again, he has to use the retina scanner and swipe in. The retina scanner does not recognize him and he goes to the restroom to wash his eyes so that the retina scanner can recognize him. He swipes the card on the tap and makes a bowl out of his palms. The water from the tap fills his hands and stops and without wasting a drop of water he keeps his eyes in his palms so that his eyes are cleared of all the dust and goes back to his wing entrance thinking, another Rs.200 deducted for this water.



He finally reaches his desk at about 8am and logs on to his system to see that the call is postponed to the next day. He checks other emails and replies to the ones that expect his reply and forwards with instructions that require delegation. After getting some work done and postponing some tasks for post lunch session he dreadfully walks towards the cafeteria for lunch.



***** INTERVAL ****



Menu reads:



Pan Pizza - Rs.2500

Sub of the day - Rs.2000

North Indian Meals (Full) - Rs.1800

South Indian Meals (Full) - Rs.1750

(Limited) Plate Meals (North Indian) - Rs.1400

(Limited) Plate Meals (South Indian) - Rs.1350

Any 1 item of your choice (Dosa, Idly, etc.) - Veg. - Rs.1000

Any 1 item of your choice (Non-veg) - Rs.1250.

Soft Drinks, Juices, Icecreams - Flat Rate - Rs.999



He feels sorry for himself to not have brought his own box from home that day and goes on to the counters. He orders one North Indian Full meals, but checks his wallet and sees that he has only Rs.1600 in his pocket. He immediately says that he wants the North Indian Plate meals (Limited). The person at the counter (vendor) asks him:



Vendor: Do you need a plate?

AHB: Of course, I need a plate. How else would I have food?

Vendor: It will cost you Rs.200 extra sir.

AHB: What!? But, how are others having it?

Vendor: Sir, most of the customers take plates for rent and when they return the plate, they get Rs.100 back. The same is applicable for spoons also; we charge Rs.100 for spoon and when they return the spoon we give them Rs.50 back.

AHB: (Surprised): But why do you need to charge for plate and spoon!?

Vendor: Sir, there were times when we had problems with spoons in our food courts. In order to curb the issue with spoons, we introduced this offer. It was successful - so, we extended it to plates and glasses.

AHB: (Calculating) Please change my order to 1 Masala Dosa and a plate for rent. Will I get the sambar and chutney or do I have to buy those separately?

Vendor: (Smiling) Sir, Sambar and Chutney are included in the price for Dosa. They will be served in the plate itself. Since you took the plate for rent - you will have a comfortable meal sir.

AHB: Where should I return this plate to get the money back?

Vendor: Sir, you have to give it near the 'Soiled Plates' counter to the right.

AHB: Thank You.



AHB goes to the Dosa counter, stands in the queue for 45 minutes to give the token. He is asked to stand in another queue to take the plate. He stands there for about 30 minutes and finally stands in the Dosa queue for 25 minutes to be served with a Dosa. He takes it and after searching for 20-25 minutes, he gets a corner seat on a table that still has flies all around and that is yet to be cleaned. Unable to bear the hunger, he sits there and immediately a person comes with a machine in his hand. Before he even asks the question, he says - 'Sir, please swipe your id in this machine. It costs Rs.100 to sit and eat here."



Without asking further questions, AHB swipes his ID card and finishes his lunch and waits in the queue to return the plate. When he reaches the start of the queue - The person says "Sorry sir, no change - we do not have Rs.100. Please take a fresh spoon instead - it costs Rs.100 anyway". Unable to say no and thinking he would exchange it at the original cash counter; he takes the spoon and comes out of the queue. He stands in queue to wash his hands and repents that he should have paid Rs.100 for the spoon - he would not have spent the Rs.200 here for water and he would at least have saved this time of standing in the queue, but satisfies himself by saying that Dosa could not be eaten with a spoon.



He goes to the cash counter and gives the spoon to the person and expects Rs.100 in return. The vendor returns Rs.50. AHB is confused now and asks why he was paid only Rs.50 and the vendor responds:



Vendor: "Sir, I had told you that when you return the spoon you would get only Rs.50"

AHB: "But I returned the plate and got a fresh spoon because he did not have change."

Vendor: "Sorry sir, we do not know whether this spoon is fresh or not and cannot give you Rs.100. We have to wash it again. The rates of water, detergent and everything else have gone up. You are in software field and earn a lot sir. What is this petty Rs.50 for you!? Please understand sir, please"



AHB doesn't understand what to say and just leaves the place and is now back at his desk to complete the remaining work carefully taking stairs (because they are charged only once per day) and is happy that the retina scanner worked fine for the first time. He finishes his work at around 5.30pm and is ready to leave when the security guard asks him to swipe a machine that is for leaving the campus late. He says that he just finished his work and that it was only 5.30pm, but the guard says that since the company working hours were only for 8.5 hours including 0.5 hours of lunch and that he overstayed for about an hour, the overstay charges will be deducted from his salary. Having no other option, he swipes and goes to the MLPL and takes the stairs forgetting that he took the elevator in the morning. He realizes that with this swipe he would lose another Rs.500 now. Not caring much, he just goes home slowly letting his carbot take him home.



The next day he comes in to the entrance of the MLPL at 6am and realizes that he did not bring his ID Card. He goes to the security guard and informs the same and the security guard says -



"Sir, if you want to take a temporary pass; we will charge you only half salary - and if you want to take a permanent pass, then we need a complaint in the local police station and we will charge you 1 month complete salary. Please tell me which one you want to go with."



AHB has a weary face and decides to go back home and take off for that day instead of losing his salary and knowing that he cannot go around in the campus without his ID card. He turns around to leave for home and he receives 2 messages on his mobile:



Message 1: "Dear Employee, Based on the attendance records, you did not spend more than 8 hours in the working area. So, your leave was deducted. Your current leave balance is 5"

Message 2: "Dear Employee, Based on the attendance records, you have spent more time in the building than the actual working hours i.e. beyond 8.5 hours (considering your first swipe in and last swipe out). An amount of Rs.10000 will be deducted from your salary for this 1 hour. Please note that these charges cover your overstay in any building including the Food courts. Please get in touch with HR in case of any questions."



AHB just exclaims "What a day!"



**** THE END *****​

Simple things in life...

She was looking out of the window of the office bus that she was travelling in on a Friday morning when she saw a two wheeler being driven by a person with, maybe, his daughter in the back seat who was trying to read for an exam. She suddenly remembered her school/ college days when her dad used to drop her at the examination center. He would take leave on that day to make sure his daughter reaches the examination hall on time and used to wait till the exam was over to bring her back.




She missed him; she wondered what he was doing at that time and immediately called him. He spoke to her with usual questions about his son-in-law and his granddaughter. He asked whether she wanted to speak to her mom, but she politely refused saying that she was on the way to office. She cut the call and looked out the window again. The girl and her dad on the two-wheeler were gone.



She decided that she would go and meet her parents this weekend. It has been a long time since she visited them; maybe more than 15 days though they were in the same city. She wanted to go there and get pampered. She could be free; not that she did not have freedom in her house now, but to be at your parents' house has a different feeling than to be in your own house. You feel you are relieved of all the tensions. She wanted to have no control anymore. She thought it would be better to let someone else handle her life.



She had to get up early in the morning, get herself ready and get her daughter ready for school. Also, prepare breakfast, lunch for all 3 members in the family and as soon as she reached home, prepare dinner and make sure her daughter's homework is complete. If there was a party or a function on a weekday then it requires a little more planning and running around. After all this, she was thinking that she was not having enough time to spend with her parents ever. On top of this, she would have pressure at work and travel takes most of the time. With this busy life it was getting difficult for her to continue, but she was just trying to make sure that their future is safe.



You cannot always live in the present, she thought. There are so many things to take care of; daughter's studies and wedding, home loan, their retirement and many more things that worry her and thinking of this, she again pacified herself that whatever she was doing was right. She continued to look around looking specifically at no one and thinking nothing in particular.



Once she reached office, she kept aside all her thoughts and concentrated on finishing her work for the day. With required breaks, and spending quality time with friends at work during lunch, she finished her work and promptly went back to take the bus back to her house. As soon as she reached, she got fresh and prepared dinner; helped her daughter with her studies and went to bed after having their family dinner.



Next morning, she woke her daughter up for her final exam for that year. After sometime she wished her daughter 'All the best' for her exam and saw her off when her daughter got on to the two-wheeler with her Dad and opened the book and held it against his back to start revising.



She smiled, went back into the house, closed the door contented that her daughter was also growing up the way she did and was not missing the simple things in life.



******************** THE END *************************

~ R-Square

I know everything about you...

"I know everything about you. You were a very good student, in fact, a brilliant student who went on to top your school. You got selected in this premier institute without any external coaching and have been performing well for the past 2 years..."




The girl continued speaking and the boy was just looking at her.

"I have admired you for the past 2 years, wanted to talk to you and get in touch with you. I got the chance recently when we were part of the same group for submitting the project report. I was very happy that I was in the same group as you were. There were times when I came to your room, wanted to knock on the door, but hesitated and left. I don't know why this is happening to me, but I never felt this way. I was never like this. I had people following me, there are still people messaging me, asking for a date or at least for a coffee and here I am trying to ask you these same questions. I believe that I have fallen for you and want to meet you daily. Will you come out with me for one date? I know, you must be thinking, being a girl, how shameless I am..."

He just said, "Not that…"

She cut in... "Then? What are you thinking? Is it because of the rumors in college that I already have many affairs? Believe me, none of them is true. It is true that I am frank and open and it is true that I laugh out loud. Not every girl who laughs out loud has a bad character. There are people who are here just for fun; I am here because it was my ambition. I got into this institute after spending one whole year preparing for the entrance exam. I have struggled and got through. I agree my parents have been supportive, but it was my perseverance that got me here. I know it does not mean anything to you, but I am just saying this to say that I am not going to stop bothering you until I get a response, but wait... you cannot just say 'No' and escape; you have to justify your 'No'; if you are going to say 'No'."

She paused after a long time; waited for him to speak. He was just looking at her and did not answer. She was feeling thirsty now and so asked...

"Can I get some water? I am thirsty"

He did not answer and was still looking at her. She looked around, saw a bottle of water, took it and drank some water; put the bottle back and looked at him expecting an answer...

He finally said with a straight face, "Do you know... you just spoke 375 words and there are 750 vowels in it?"



She stared at him with mouth wide open, wanted to ask him if he even listened to what she said, but stopped herself thinking it would be a waste of time. Turned around and left thanking God that he did not fall for her!!!

************************ NOT THE END************************

.

.

.

.



(For those people who started counting the words and vowels, the story did not end....highlight 'THE END' statement above)



His room-mate, who was sleeping on the bed, woke up and asked, "You are a genious. How did you count the words and the vowels in whatever she spoke and so quickly?"



He replied...

"Sorry buddy, I did not count anything. She wanted a reason for a 'No' and I could not give her one. I just answered in a way so that she and I both would be happy!! In the process I realized that she does not know everything about me and that I already have girlfriend back in my hometown..."

********************************** THE END*****************************

The Destination - Part 12 ***FINAL PART****

********* Part 12 **** FINAL PART **********


Kumar, Kishore and Navya get down at Hyderabad. Kishore and Kumar go to Kumar's house. Kumar's parents know Kishore well; ask about his well-being and how his brother's wedding was performed. Both Kishore and Kumar avoid giving details about Kumar missing the wedding, but inform that Kumar had been to Vizag to Kishore's house. Kumar gets ready and goes to office and Kishore is all set to go to Navya's house.

Navya goes to her house. Navya's parents are surprised to see Navya at home on a Monday morning. They inquire about her health and whether she was facing any problems. Navya says that everything's fine and just says that she has something to tell them and would let them know about it after taking bath. While having breakfast, she informs about her love for Kishore and Navya's father asks Navya to invite him for lunch. She informs that he is in town and would ask him to come home that day. Navya is happy to hear this and his father takes off for the day to be at home to meet Kishore.

Kishore checks with Navya whether her parents are home and goes to Navya's house after having breakfast. Navya's parents are fair and they inquire about Kishore's education and family background. Knowing the details and more importantly that their daughter liked Kishore, they agree to get Navya married to Kishore if Kishore's parents agree. Kishore promises that he would take the same approach to take Navya to his house and check with his parents, but Navya's parents ask him to bring their parents to Hyderabad to meet them. Kishore agrees and tells them that he would plan for their visit the following weekend. He takes permission to take Navya out, promising to bring her back before it is too late.

Kishore calls Kumar and asks him to come home early that day. By the time Kumar reaches home, Navya and Kishore are at Kumar's house and Kumar realizes that Kishore has told all the details to his mother about Kishore and Navya's love.

Kishore: "Your Vizag trip worked out very well for us. We were thinking how to inform Navya's parents, but with your trip we could gather the courage to travel to Hyderabad and inform Navya's parents. It is good for us that you overslept :)"

"Nuvvu Vizag raavadam maaku chaala manchidi ayyindi. Appati daaka ela ela anukunnamu kaani, nuvvu vachaka - neetho Hyd vachesi vishayam Navya parents ki cheppeddam ane dhairyam vachesindi. Nuvvu ekkuva niddara povadam maaku manchidi ra :)"

Kumar and Navya smile at this statement. Navya wants to call Preeti and Kalyani to inform about this. Mr.Rao answers the call.

Navya: Uncle, this is Navya, Preeti's room mate. My wedding is fixed, just wanted to inform this to Preeti."

"Uncle nenu Navya maatladutunnanu; Preeti room mate ni. Naaku pelli fix ayyindi ade chepdaamu ani."

Mr.Rao: "I will give the phone to Preeti. By the way, who is the groom?"

"Preeti ki istaanu.. intaki abbayi evaru?"

Navya: "He is my Inter class mate uncle. He stays in Vizag too."

"Naa Inter class mate uncle, Vizag lone untaadu."

Mr.Rao: "Is it Love Marriage?"

"Love marriage aa?"

Navya: "Yes uncle, but our parents accepted. I wanted to inform Preeti about it"

"Aunu uncle, kaani parents oppukunnaru, adi Preeti ki chepadaamu ani."

Mr.Rao: "Do they have an option? These days love marriages have become too common"

"Oppukoka emi chestaaru.. ee madhya love marriages ekkuva ayipoyayi."

Before Navya says anything, Mr.Rao hands the phone over to Preeti. Navya informs Preeti about this; Preeti is surprised to hear that Kishore is Navya's college mate and congratulates Navya. She does not get any more details and hangs up soon. Navya calls Kalyani immediately after this call.

Navya: "Hey Kalyani, Good news."

Kalyani: "What's the good news? Did you go all the way and meet your parents this time?"

"Emiti good news? Ee sari Hyd daaka velli me parents ni kalisava?"

Navya: "Yes, I met them and Kishore met them too"

"Yes, nenu kalisenu and Kishore kooda kalisedu"

Kalyani: "Who is Kishore?"

Navya: "Your Kishore Anna"

"Mee Kishore Anna"

Kalyani: "Why did Kishore Anna meet your parents and how is that good news?"

"Kishore Anna mee parents ni enduku kalisadu and adi good news enduku avutundi?"

Navya: "My parents agreed for our marriage"

"Maa parents pelliki oppukunnaru"

Kalyani: "Whose wedding?"

"Evariki pelli?"

Navya: "Kishore and I are getting married"

"Kishore ki naaku pelli"

Kalyani is totally shocked to hear this. Kumar and Kishore are all smiles. Kalyani talks for a while and gets all the details she requires and then says..

Kalyani: "You have got your setup done. Poor Preeti is stuck now"

"Mee pani baane undi. Paapam Preeti ye ala ayipoyindi"

Navya: "Why? What happened?"

Kalyani explains that after they left for Hyderabad, Preeti went to her Uncle's place to explain in detail on what happened, but her uncle was not ready to listen to anything. He even started screening the calls that she was getting. It looks like Kumar called in the night and her uncle was upset about Preeti not being able to speak up and tell the truth about her love. Her uncle had a lot of trust and was thinking that he had given all the freedom that Preeti should get, but now he thinks that Preeti is cheating him by not telling about her love. Navya tells Kalyani that Kumar is a nice guy and he never had intentions to meet or love Preeti. It was just a coincidence that Kumar met Preeti & Kalyani; the theatre trip they had and the movie they watched were all coincidental. She also adds that Kumar never followed Preeti. Navya asks Kalyani to go to Preeti and talk to her personally.

Kalyani goes to Preeti's uncle's house and wants to talk to her, but she waits outside the room as Preeti and her uncle discuss about Navya's wedding. After that, Mr.Rao tells Preeti that Kumar had called the previous night and wanted to talk to her.

Mr.Rao: "Preeti, that guy called last night after you slept"

"Preeti, ninna raatri nuvvu padukunnaka aa abbayi call chesaadu"

Preeti: "Who was that uncle?"

"Evaru uncle?"

Mr.Rao: "Your Boyfriend, Kumar"

"Ade, nee boyfriend, Kumar"

Preeti is almost in tears and does not speak anything and Kalyani enters the room.

Kalyani: "Uncle, Preeti does not have a boyfriend"

"Uncle, Preeti ki boyfriend ledu"

Preeti tries to stop Kalyani from speaking, but Kalyani does not listen to her. Kalyani continues...

Kalyani: Uncle, she respects you and aunt so much that though Mahesh proposed to her when she was in college, she rejected the proposal only because she thought she was already a burden to you and she wanted to finish her studies without any issues so that you would be happy. Mahesh is a nice guy and she still likes him.

"Uncle, meeru anna Aunty anna tanaki chaala gauravam undi kabatte Mahesh college lo unnappudu propose chesina reject chesindi. Aame mee gurinchi aalochinchi first studies complete cheddamu anukundi. Mahesh manchi atanu and Preeti ki kooda atanu ante inka ishtam."

Mr.Rao: "Then why did that boy Kumar tell me that he was coming to Vizag to meet his girlfriend?"

"Mari aa abbayi Kumar naaku Vizag lo atani girlfriend ni kalavadaaniki vastunnanu ani enduku cheppadu?"

Kalyani: "He must have just lied to get away from your questions."

" Meeru adige prasnalaku samadhanam cheppaleka ala abaddham cheppi untaadu"

Mr.Rao: "Okay, why did Preeti introduce Kumar as his boyfriend to Mahesh?"

"Sare mari, Preeti Kumar tana boyfriend ani Mahesh ki enduku parichayam chesindi?"

Preeti & Kalyani are both surprised to hear this. They now think how Mr.Rao knew about this in detail and whether he was at the bakery following Preeti.

Kalyani: "How did you...?"

"Adi meeku ela...?"

Mr.Rao: I will tell you how I knew about that, but first tell me why Preeti introduced Kumar as her boyfriend to Mahesh?

Kalyani explains every detail to Mr.Rao on how Mahesh proposed and Preeti rejected. When Preeti saw Mahesh in the bakery unexpectedly, she wanted to tell him that she was committed and that was not something she had planned for; it just came out and that matched with what Kumar had told Mr.Rao in the train and asks Mr.Rao to tell the details about how he knew about Mahesh and Kumar meeting at the bakery.

Mr.Rao: "Mahesh had come to our house few days back with his parents and put a proposal for wedding with Preeti. He had convinced his parents and wanted to take our permission for the wedding as he said he knew that Preeti likes him, but does not want to go against my wish. I was very happy to hear that. I liked the boy and his family background and was okay. He said he would go and meet Preeti and inform her about the same. By the time he went to your house, your parents told that you went to the bakery. He went to the bakery and met Preeti who introduced Kumar as his boyfriend. Mahesh called me and informed that Preeti loves someone named Kumar and wished that they both get married. I immediately came to your house and saw Preeti and Kumar coming together. I met Preeti and asked about it, but Preeti denied any relationship with Kumar. I had never doubted Preeti until then, but after this incident I started doubting her. It is good that you came and clarified everything. I am happy to hear this.

Preeti and Kalyani have smiles all over. Mr.Rao smiles and informs that he would talk to Mahesh and his parents for the Preeti & Mahesh's wedding. After a month or so, Kumar receives 2 invitations, Kishore and Navya's wedding and Preeti & Mahesh's wedding. He packs and gets to the railway station.

A co-passenger comes to his place and asks:

Co-Passenger: "Boy, please move a little"

"Babu, koncham jarugu."



Kumar assumes him to be a daily commuter.



Kumar (arrogantly, pointing to the vacant seat opposite to him): "Sit there"

"Akkada koorchondi"

The co-passenger sits down and asks.

Co-Passenger: "Boy, till where are you going?"

"Ekkada daaka veltunnavu babu?"

Kumar realizes that the sequence of events is similar to what happened before and patiently answers:



Kumar: "VISAKHAPTNAM to attend 2 weddings. One is of an old friend and the other of a new friend...”

Just about the time, the ticket examiner comes to check the tickets and he gets it verified and goes to his berth, but this time he thinks ... "Sleeping so much can cause trouble, if not for me - for others!!" and sets alarm on his clock to get down at his destination.

Conclusion:

Kumar never loved Preeti and Preeti never loved Kumar. They stay in touch after Preeti's wedding with Mahesh. Kumar and Preeti become good friends. Kishore and Navya leave for the US after their wedding. It is only a matter of time when Kumar & Kalyani each find their love and get married, but that would probably be another story.

************** THE END ************​

The Destination - Part 11

**********PART 11 *************


Kumar notices that Preeti is with Kalyani and is avoiding him, he tries to find an opportunity to talk to Preeti to ask about why she introduced him to Mahesh as his boyfriend. Kishore and Navya are busy talking about reaching Hyderabad and the place Navya stays and when Navya would return so that they can book the ticket together. Kishore thinks that he could talk to Navya on the way about how she knew the name 'Kumbhakarna', so decides to talk to Preeti.

Kumar: Preeti, I need to talk to you.

Preeti: I don't want to talk anything to you now except the fact that I want to know from how long you are following us.

Kumar: I have told you before that I saw you for the first time near the bus stop when you were trying to bargain for an auto; I had to wait for Kishore to come to Vizag and I thought the best way to pass the time was to watch a movie; I realized that only after you spoke to the auto driver that you wanted to go to the theatre. I knew your name and Kalyani's name based on your conversation and that too, I have told you before that it was because you were talking loud and not because I was following you.

Preeti doesn't answer and goes to Navya and Kishore and Kumar continues the conversation with Kalyani.

Kumar: "Kalyani, what is your friend's problem?"

"Kalyani, asalu mee friend problem emiti?"

Kayani: She does not have any problem.

"Aameki emi problem ledu"

Kumar: Then, why does she leave while I am talking to her?"

"Mari ala maatladutunte vellipotundi emiti?"

Kalyani: That's because you have lied to us and you are still not telling the truth on why you are following us.

Kumar: Why do you think I am following you?

Kalyani: You are not following me, but you are following Preeti.

Kumar: I am neither following you, nor Preeti. All I wanted to do this weekend was to attend Kishore's brother's wedding, but missed it. So, I thought I would meet him and then leave to Hyd today so that I will be in office on Monday.

Kalyani: If that is really true, how come you told Preeti's uncle that you were going to Vizag to meet your girlfriend?

Kumar: I do not have a girlfriend and I never told anyone that I was going to meet my girlfriend that too in Vizag when I was not planning on coming to Vizag.

It was then that he realized that he told Mr.Rao about his Vizag plan and out of frustration he had also told that he was going to Vizag to meet his girlfriend. He explains that in detail to Kalyani and also informs that he did not know that Mr.Rao was Preeti's uncle. Kalyani explains that after Preeti's parents passed away, Preeti was staying with her Aunt & Uncle. Once she got a job, she moved to Kalyani's house and has stayed there with Navya for quite some time. She also tells that Mahesh proposed to Preeti and Preeti had rejected because of respect to her uncle and aunt though she knows that Mahesh is a nice guy.

Kalyani: If all you said was true, why did you tell Preeti's uncle that you were going to Vizag and were coming here to meet your girlfriend.

Kumar: I guess that is the only mistake I did.

Kalyani: No, there are many other mistakes that you did, but I take it that was another mistake you did.

Preeti, Navya & Kishore keep discussing about things in Hyderabad. Preeti asks Kishore to take care of Navya and Kishore asks her not to worry about Navya as he and Kumar both would be travelling together. By the time the bus starts, Preeti and Kumar do not get time to talk to each other, bus starts and Kumar, Kishore and Navya bid farewell to Preeti & Kalyani.

Kumar walks into the bus, gets into the seat and closes his eyes to rest. Kishore sees that the seat that beside Navya's is occupied by a male passenger and sees that Kumar is already sleeping or at least trying to sleep; he asks Navya to sit beside Kumar and Kishore takes Navya's seat. As soon as the bus starts, Navya sits in Kishore's place. Kumar does not open the eyes, thinks that Kishore is at his place and asks:

Kumar: "Why is it that you are talking too much to that girl?"

"Emiti ra, aa ammayi toh antha gusa gusalu aadutunnavu?"

Navya does not answer and smiles within herself. Kumar repeats the question without opening his eyes and Navya still doesn't say anything.

Kumar: "Why are you not answering?"

"Enduku samadhanam cheppatledu?"

Navya: "If you open your eyes, you will know Kumbhakarna"

"Kallu teriste neeke telustundi Kumbhakarna"

Kumar opens his eyes and is shocked to see Navya sitting beside him. He searches for Kishore and sees that he is sitting in Navya's place. He doesn't understand what to say and feels bad for his behavior.

Kumar: Sorry, I thought it was Kishore who was sitting here.

Navya: That's okay.

Kumar: Why are you sitting here?

Navya: There was another male passenger near my seat so Kishore thought it would be better that I sit here.

Kumar: From when do you know Kishore?

Navya was surprised to hear this question. She was not expecting this question from Kumar.

Navya: Why do you ask?

Kumar: It should have been Kishore who told you the name 'Kumbhakarna'. Preeti has already told me that she had not told you the name; Kalyani is straight forward, I could tell by the way she talked and after Preeti's confirmation that Kalyani did not tell you the name; the only person who could tell you the name is Kishore. However, I am still not clear on how Kishore knew the name.

Navya: Kalyani told him.

Kumar: That means you agree that Kishore told you my name.

Navya is silent and just nods her consent.

Kumar: When did Kalyani tell Kishore that name?

Navya: When Kalyani and Kishore went into Kishore's house to meet Kishore's sister-in-law.

Kumar: Oh, Now I get it. But tell me this: You were not in any of the situations before, how is it that you know all these details.

Navya: Kishore tells me everything. I know about what you did in college; what movies you watched when you skipped classes in college and many other details.

It was now Kumar's turn to be surprised, but he realized few things and at least 2 major questions he had were answered. Navya knew the name from Kishore and not from Preeti or Kalyani like he thought. The second question was on why Preeti introduced him as her boyfriend to Mahesh to which Kalyani answered that Preeti wanted Mahesh to know that she was committed, but he still wanted to talk to Preeti.

Kumar: That is fine, but how do you know Kishore? Kalyani was the one who introduced Preeti to Kishore and was telling that you stay with Preeti and both were staying there for only a year and by that time Kishore had left for US.

Navya: Kishore is my class mate.

Navya was being cryptic. Kumar asks more questions about it and Navya starts giving more details.

Navya: In Intermediate, Kishore and I were classmates. My family moved to Hyderabad after I finished my Inter. Kishore and I liked each other and stayed in touch. It was only when Kishore was leaving for the US that we realized our love for each other and wanted to get committed. Kishore did not want to cause any trouble until he was settled with his job in the US. So, I took a job transfer and took the house right in front of Kishore's house so that I could keep in touch with Kishore's parents.

Kumar is surprised that it was a well-planned arrangement and that he did not know anything about it until now. After a little while, he asks Navya for Preeti's number as he wants to apologize to her for being rude. Navya teasingly asks whether he is impressed by Preeti. Kumar shakes his head and mentions that he likes Preeti, but does not love her.

The bus stops after 2-3 hours journey for dinner. Kumar, Kishore and Navya get down for dinner. Kumar tries to give them privacy by finishing his dinner early and takes his phone to call Preeti. After a couple of rings, he hears a male voice on the other side:

Kumar: Hello, this is Kumar speaking - can I talk to Preeti please?

Mr.Rao is on the other side and speaks back.

Mr.Rao: Preeti is sleeping now, please call back in the morning.

Mr.Rao cuts the call abruptly and Kumar does not understand whether he was causing any trouble to Preeti by calling her.

Kumar leaves Kishore and Navya to have their dinner in peace and gets into the bus, and occupies the seat that Kishore sat in before. Kishore and Navya get into the bus, before the bus starts, and Kishore sees that Kumar is already in the place that he was sitting in.

Kishore: Why are you sitting here?

"Ikkada enduku koorchunnavu?"

Kumar: So that I do not become a spoil-sport for you both

"Paanakam lo pudaka la nenu enduku ani"

Hearing this, Kishore turns to Navya and in return, Navya just smiles. Kishore understands that Navya told their story to Kumar and Kishore blushes.

Kumar: Now I understand that you are coming to Hyderabad to talk to her parents and I got many things clarified.

" Ippudu ardham ayyindi, valla parents ni kalavadaaniki Hyd ki vastunnavu ani and chaala vishayalu clarify ayyayi."

He still wanted to talk to Preeti and clarify that he was not following her.

********* To be continued ********​