Accidentally in Love
Chapter 1: Flaring Hope

The afternoon was pleasant, and cotton candy vendors outside Rajshri cinema did a roaring business. People poured in like bees over a fragrant flower, and the huge life size posters of Salman Khan received many adoring sighs. The ticket counter was overcrowded, as men and women equally struggled. Another man with black shades on, walked inconspicuously amid the crowd with a small bundle of papers stuck in between his fingers, as he kept muttering something.

“Naina, mujhe toh yakeen nahi ho raha ke hum wapas yahaan aaye hai”, Preeti, a girl dressed in multicolored skirt, with green top exclaimed.

A girl dressed in blue jeans and pink v-necked top, with her long hair tied in a ponytail grinned, and spread her arms as if rejoicing the weather, “ek baar toh banta hai yaar.”

Another girl who was wearing jeans and orange shirt, sighed, “bol toh aise rahi hai jaise maano aaj ke baad kabhi yahan aayegi hi nahi.”

Naina grinned at her friend and shrugged, “kaun jaane kismet me kya likha hai kal. Soch na, aisa ladka mila jo bilkul movies nahi dekhta ho, toh mera kya hoga?”

Swati patted her arm, “toh tu mana bhi toh kar sakti hai.”

Preeti chuckled, “hamare gharwalo ko jaanti hai fir bhi aisa bol rahi hai? Kal se Naina ko dekhne ladke wale aane lagenge. Iska matlab jaanti hai na? Taiji toh isko bahar bhi nahi nikalne degi. Aur unn logo ke laaye hue saare rishte me, mujhe pura yakeen hai ke ek ladka bhi aisa nahi hoga jo movies dekhta ho.”

Naina’s lips curved downward for a moment, as she contemplated her future. Preeti and Swati noticed this and tickled her, trying to cheer her up. Swati hugged her friend, “tu dekh lena. Tujhko Salman se bhi zyada handsome ladka milega.”

Naina smiled, “woh toh hone se raha. Salman se zyada handsome aur koi ho hi nahi sakta. Achcha chalo ab andar, warna picture shuru ho jayegi.”

Naina Agarwal, 22, a studious girl from a reputed college in Ahmedabad, and currently working as a teacher in a school had agreed to meet prospective grooms for her wedding from tomorrow. She considered today as the last day of her freedom, and hence had wanted to spend it with her best friend Swati, and her sister Preeti. It was her luck that just today a new movie of her favorite hero, Salman Khan, had released and she had planned to see it with her friends. Armed with advance booked tickets, the three girls joined the fast moving haphazard queue of people going inside.

As the three girls entered inside, a whizzing black car came to a halt outside the theater and two boys descended from it, jumping and calling to the third one. A man descended from the driver’s side, and stroked his fingers through his hair. He shed his black suit jacket, throwing it inside the car, and opened one more button on his shirt. A boyish grin lighted up his face as he saw the antics of his friends.

Locking the car, he rotated his shoulders once, “itna kudo mat dono. Dekhkar koi maanega nahi ke office me kaam karte ho.”

One of the boys frowned, “kya yaar Sameer. Subah se toh office me the. Ab toh naam japna chod. Movie dekhne ke liye waise bhi tu subah 8 baje se kaam karva raha hai.”

Sameer laughed, “Munna… yaad hai na. Nanu kehte hai ke kaam sabse pehle. Nautanki jitni karni thi college me kar li.”

The third friend struck a thoughtful pose, “hmmm… iska matlab Sameer tu movie me maze nahi karega? Aur andar kisi ladki pe line nahi maarega?”

Sameer punched his friend playfully, “chup kar Pandit… main kaam ke saath maze kar sakta hun. Aur movies dekhna toh kabhi nahi chodunga. Lekin haan… ab kisi pe line nahi maar sakta.”

As they queued up for tickets, Munna frowned, “tu baat aise kar raha hai maano kal hi shaadi kar lega. Isse pehle bhi toh ladkiya dekh chuka hai tu nanaji ke kehne pe.”

Sameer looked thoughtful, “haan dekha hai, par woh sab mazak-masti me dekha. Serious nahi tha. Par ab Nanu se waada kiya hai ke jaldi settle ho jaunga.”

“Bhaiya abhi wale show ki teen ticket dena, balcony ki”, Pandit asked.

The man at the ticket counter shook his head, “sorry saabji… ticket toh saare bik gaye. Ab sirf kal ki tickets hai.”

The three friends were horrified. Sameer Maheshwari, the heir of Maheshwari industries, was a movie freak, and his two childhood friends Munna and Pandit always accompanied him to see every movie. This was a ritual they diligently followed since last ten years, from the time Sameer had permission to go to theatres alone. Earlier it was a practice for them to see every new movie in first show. As they had grown up and joined office, the first show had to be sacrificed, but still they would make time to see on the first day. It seemed that today luck was not with them.

Sameer however was not one to give up; he looked around and spotted the man in black shades meandering through the crowd. He grinned and muttered, “ticket toh leke rahunga. Chalo yaaro.”

After a bit of negotiation, they had three tickets bought in black, and happily proceeded inside. Pandit enquired, “Sameer… tu keh raha tha ke nanaji se waada kiya hai. Iska matlab jis ladki se woh kahenge usse shaadi kar lega?”

Sameer glanced around at the rows inside the semi-dark theatre, “nahi re. Ladki ko dekhuga, usse baat karunga. Achchi lagi toh hi baat aage badhayenge. Nanu meri marzi ke khilaf kabhi kisiko pasand nahi karenge mere liye.”

They reached their seats, and settled down, excited to see the movie. Engrossed in their own world they didn’t spot the three girls sitting beside them, and the girls also chattered away not paying attention as the empty seats beside them filled. Few moments later, the lights turned off, plunging them in darkness, and Sameer heard a voice beside him, “shsh… chup kar Preeti. Mere Salman ki movie shuru ho rahi hai.”

Sameer chuckled to himself, and thought, ‘mera Salman toh aise bol rahi hai jaise maano uska honewala pati ho.’

After the popular ad of Vicco Vajradanti, the beginning credits started to roll on the screen. A few people hooted and whistled. After an action-packed start, finally the heartthrob of millions appeared on the screen, and quite a lot of dreamy sighs could be heard in the theatre.

Naina spoke up in an adoring dreamy tone, “haaye… Mera Salman toh iss pure duniya me sabse handsome hai.”

Sameer frowned at this Salman obsession, and turned to look at the girl sitting next to him. He could see she was wearing a pink top, that hugged her curves a little too well for his comfort, but he couldn’t see her face as she was turned away from him talking to the girl sitting next to her. He shifted his eyes back to the screen, to see Salman clad in extra tight red t-shirt and wondered what exactly did girls like in him. He hated such extravagant multicolored colored shirts and t-shirts, and more than that he hated colored pants.

He shuddered at the thought of wearing such clothes, ‘pata nahi aaj kal ki ladkiyo ko kya kya pasand aata hai. Kaash kal jisse milne jaa raha hun woh aisi naa ho.’

As confusion of Prem and Raja ensued on-screen, Sameer forgot all thoughts of work and the impending visit to see a prospective bride tomorrow. He started to enjoy every moment of the movie, and laughed heartily, often joking with his friends. The cheerful tune of “tan tana tan tan tan tara” sounded throughout the theatre, and people hooted. Sameer got into the hang of it, and curved his finger inserting them in his mouth, and whistled loudly.

Naina jerked on hearing the loud whistle beside her, and turned with the intention to give the boy a piece of her mind. At the same time, when she jerked, her hand brushed against Sameer’s and he shuddered, turning to look at the girl next to him. Time seemed to stop as their eyes met, the sounds of the song, whistles and jeers faded away, and a tingle of awareness ran down their bodies.

Naina’s expression suddenly softened, her heart picking up pace, and she thought, ‘maine toh abhi abhi kaha tha ke Salman duniya me sabse zyada handsome hai. Par yeh toh… yeh toh Salman se bhi zyada handsome hai.”

Sameer’s eyes widened slightly, his pupils dilating; his heart gave one loud thud and then started to beat in a slow heavy rhythm, “wow… yeh toh pink me Karishma se bhi zyada kaatil lag rahi hai.”

Munna hooted and his hand bumped against Sameer’s back, and Preeti clasped Naina’s hand in her eagerness, thus breaking the unintentional eye lock. The sounds of music and loud claps began to sound again; Sameer and Naina shook themselves and turned towards the screen. What was that? They both thought about the sudden sensations that had erupted within them, but neither dared to turn and look to reconfirm their reactions. Instead they both tried to focus on the screen, and as minutes ticked by, they relaxed pushing the incident to the back of their minds labelling it as an unimportant anomaly.

Naina had just begun to enjoy the movie earnestly again, when another song came up. She started praying inwardly that he shouldn’t whistle again, but to her utmost surprise he suddenly stood up and started dancing with his friends. How can anyone behave like this in a theatre? Her eyes followed down his back, noticing the neat white shirt, tucked in black trousers. She was sure he was wearing formal shoes as well, even though she couldn’t see them. He was well dressed, and that meant he belonged to a good family, so how could he dance like this… like… like… a tapori… Yes, that’s what the three boys were doing, dancing like the tapori Salman Khan in the movie.

Swati giggled at the antics of the boys, and Preeti glared, “pata nahi kahan se aise awara ladke aa jaate hai.”

The next few moments passed in a blur for all of them. Munna suddenly bumped into Sameer who stumbled, sprawling backwards in his seat, his arms splayed and accidentally one of his arm landed around Naina’s shoulder. He stilled, his entire body pulsing with awareness of how silky her hair felt under his forearm, how tiny her frame was that his one hand could wrap so easily around her. She had frozen in shock too, her lips parted, eyes rounded, and Sameer’s gaze fixed on her features as he registered the soft curve of her cheeks, the lushness of her lips. He couldn’t see the color of her eyes, but they called to him on some level, making him feel as if he was connected to her.

Naina sat shocked with the weight of his arm around her shoulder, and his gaze fixed on her. She too found herself helpless to react in any way other than looking at his face. His hair looked silky, and was long at the front, a few locks falling on his forehead. Unknown to her, her fingers trembled slightly, as if fighting the itch to reach up and set those locks right. His eyes were dark, and something burned behind his pupils, something that evoked a similar burning sensation within her. In the dim ever-changing light falling on his face from the big screen, she could see he had a shadow of stubble, but that darkness failed to hide his chiseled jawline. His mouth suddenly parted slightly as he breathed out, and her gaze shifted to his lips – perfect, that was the only word that came to her mind, even as she wondered how she knew his lips were perfect when she hadn’t ever seen any other man’s lips ever. As he breathed again, her gaze dropped even further and she noticed he had two buttons undone on his shirt, the slight peek she got of his skin was enough to accelerate her heartbeats.

Suddenly, his hand was lifted and thrown away from Naina, much to the disappointment of both, which they successfully hid. Preeti had done that, and was now glaring at Sameer, “yeh kya badtameezi hai. Dur raho meri behen se, samjhe tum?”

Sameer didn’t know why but he was irked at this interference, “itna hi badtameez hun toh tumhari behen khud bhi mujhe dur kar sakti hai.”

“Woh tum jaise awara gire hue ladko ke muh nahi lagti”, Preeti flared at the nerve of the unknown boy.

Pandit laughed and leaned forward, “iska matlab tum lagti ho?”

Swati gripped Preeti’s shoulders and pulled back, “chod na yaar. Hum movie dekhne aaye hai, jhagda karne nahi.”

Munna placed his forearm on the seat partition, and tilted his head, “chalo, teeno me se ek ladki toh khubsurat honeke saath saath samajhdaar bhi hai.”

Preeti shrugged off Swati’s hand, still glaring at Sameer. He narrowed his eyes, challenging her to say something else. His eyes shifted to Naina for a moment, who still looked surprised by whatever had happened and was still staring at him. His gaze softened, as he saw her face, and he muttered an apology explaining that he didn’t do it on purpose. Naina nodded, averting her eyes from his face. Preeti was still fuming, so she offered Naina to exchange seats, “Naina, tujhe wahan problem hai toh idhar aa jaa. Wahan main bethti hun.”

Sameer pretended to pay attention to the movie, but silently mumbled under his breath, “don’t go… don’t go…”

Naina cleared her throat, “jaane de na Preeti. Kuch nahi hua, main theek hun. Movie dekhte hai araam se.”

As they all focused on the movie, Sameer let out a breath of relief, not understanding why he wanted her to keep sitting beside him. Naina bit the corner of her lip, failing to understand why she didn’t want to move from there.

The lights turned onn as the words “interval” bloomed on the screen in big bold letters. People got up from their seats, again forming a beeline this time towards the exit to buy some snacks or use the washroom. The girls left from one side of the aisle, and the boys from other, Sameer and Naina turned once to look at each other, but as soon as their eyes met they hastily turned forward slightly embarrassed at having been caught staring. However, at that moment both of them failed to register that they were caught only because the other person had also turned to look.

After a quick trip to washroom, the girls bought cream rolls and bottles of mangola for themselves. As they left to go back inside, the boys sauntered over and bought cream rolls and campa cola. The movie started, and all of them resolutely paid attention to the screen. Naina giggled as both Prem and Raja used their twin status to turn every situation in their favor. If she suddenly found the on-screen Salman Khan less appealing than before, she chose to ignore it, rather than attributing the cause to a certain boy sitting next to her. Sameer also determinedly focused on the screen, ignoring the sudden impulsive urges to turn his head, and shift his concentration from Karishma to a certain incredibly alluring girl sitting next to him.

Feeling thirsty, she kept her half-eaten cream-roll carefully on the partition, and knelt to pick up the bottle of mangola. Sameer also knelt after a moment to take his bottle of campa cola, but frowned as his hand found nothing. Puzzled he looked here and there, and suddenly spotted the girl next to him fusing her lips to his bottle and taking a sip, her gaze fixed on the screen.

He smirked, leaning forward, he slowly whispered, “ek baar puch toh leti peene se pehle.”

Meanwhile, Naina had realized that she wasn’t drinking mangola, and on hearing his whisper so close to her she sucked in a huge amount of cold drink and coughed and sputtered. Preeti thumped her back, admonishing her to drink slowly, without shifting her attention from the movie. Naina stared horrified at Sameer, and he chuckled at her state, his eyes darting to the glistening drops of cola on her lips and chin. He pulled out his handkerchief, and offered it to her, taking the bottle away from her hands. She shook her head, unable to say anything.

He frowned, “le lo. Warna top pe nishaan pad jayenge cold drink ke, fir ghar pe kya bologi”, he gently explained somehow sure that this trip to theatre was not known at her home. Naina hesitated for a few moments more, but he patiently waited for her to accept, so she extended her hand and quickly took the kerchief taking care not to touch him. Sameer smiled, and picked up his cream-roll, turning in his seat and focusing on the movie, not wanting to embarrass her more.

She carefully wiped her mouth, and her top, hoping that she didn’t miss any stray drop. When she turned to thank him and return his kerchief, her mouth fell open in surprise as he was munching away on her cream-roll. Slightly annoyed, she poked his arm, angrily hissing, “yeh achcha hai… maine galti se tumhari cold-drink pee li toh tum mera cream-roll kha loge.”

He looked at her, confused, “kya? Yeh mera cream-roll hai.”

She shook her head, and patted the partition, “mera hai. Maine yahan rakha tha.”

He frowned, “maine bhi rakha tha.”

“Uss side rakha hoga tumne”, she suggested.

He sighed, “dekho… yeh mera hi hai, aur maine yahin rakha tha. Lekin isse pehle ke tumhari behen hume baate karte dekhle aur fir jhagde, main uss side bhi dikha deta hun tumko.”

He leaned back on his seat as much as he could, so she could see past him, on the other side, and said, “dekha…” He trailed off, as he saw a half-eaten cream-roll over there. He glanced up to see Munna and Pandit devouring the last bite of theirs, so that meant… this was his… and the one he was eating… was hers… Oh shit. He turned to look at her to find her looking at him with an “I-told-you-so” expression.

“Ah… sorry”, he started to hand over her cream-roll back, but then hesitated realizing that he had almost finished it. Having a sudden moment of brainwave, he picked up his own half-eaten cream-roll and offered it to her, “tum yeh kha lo… tumhara wala toh khatam hone aaya hai.”

She looked horrified, “kya? Main yeh nahi kha sakti… jhootha hai.”

He looked incredulously at her, as if he didn’t understand what was the issue, “toh usme kya hua? Main toh Munna, Pandit ka jhootha kha leta hun. Abhi bahar nahi jaa sakta warna tumhare liye naya laa deta. Bhuka rehne se achcha hai, yahi kha lo na.”

She glared at him, “nahi kha sakti… jhootha khane se pyaar badhta hai.”

He coughed once, staring at her in surprise, while she clapped a hand over her mouth as she realized what she blurted. The expression in his eyes changed from surprise to something different, and he leaned towards her, flirtatiously whispering, “hamara pyaar toh mere cold drink aur tumhare cream-roll se hi badh gaya hai. Ab yeh wala meetha khake celebrate kar lete hai.”

She gasped at his audacity, and folded her arms, turning to look at the movie and still fuming. He chuckled and gleefully munched on the cream-rolls in his hand, polishing off both of them. She kept glancing at him from the corner of her eyes, and when he licked his fingers cheekily, she muttered, “bhukkad.”

He grinned, and replied, “suna maine.”

The rest of the movie passed in peace, or so it seemed. Naina kept glancing at Sameer whenever he shifted, or talked to his friends. He helplessly looked at her whenever she gasped or flinched seeing the fighting sequences on screen.

Finally when the end credits started to roll, they got up to leave, and this time the boys didn’t turn the other way, rather they made a beeline behind the girls. As they reached the end of the row, Swati and Preeti chattered non-stop and merged with the crowd, but Naina stopped as a burly man pushed past her. She stood, trying to catch a glimpse of the others, unable to find an opening to enter the swiftly moving bunch of people. Suddenly, she felt someone shift behind her, and a strong forearm shot out from beside her, grasping the back of the chair on the opposite row, effectively forming a barricade.

“Chalo”, Sameer whispered near her ear, and her heart thudded at his gesture as she made her way out finally. All throughout the way to the exit, she could feel his presence behind her, and she didn’t know why it was so reassuring.

Preeti and Swati were looking for her, and rushed up to her in relief as soon as they saw her exit. Naina smiled, but Preeti was glaring at Sameer who had exited behind her, and she pulled a face. Not being one to be left behind, Sameer also stuck his tongue out at her, and Naina giggled. He glanced at Naina once, and smiled, waving to her.

Naina kept looking at his retreating back, as he threw one arm around each of his friends and the trio made their way out. She didn’t know who he was, but it seemed as if he was a part of her life, an elemental feeling that refused to diminish. A soft smile adorned her face constantly as she went home in auto. What was his name? His friend had called him…. What was it… yes… Sameer. She whispered the name, feeling the newness and yet an inherent familiarity.

Sameer smiled to himself while driving home, thinking how much he had enjoyed sparring with that girl in theater. She was beautiful, he thought, recalling her features and how she looked in pink. It was the first time he had genuinely flirted with a girl. In college he had been often tagged as the flirt, and eligible bachelor, but all his flirting had been limited to harmless territory. Given the reputation of his family name, and Nanu’s belief in him, he had refrained from forming any alliances with any girl that he couldn’t maintain. Plus he had never felt interested in those girls who batted their eyelashes at him because he was handsome and rich. The girl, what was her name now… oh yes… Naina… how could he forget? Naina… He tested the name, as if savoring the texture of the syllables. She didn’t know him, but there had been a certain spark between them, that he longed to explore. Maybe he could look her up, it wouldn’t be difficult to find her, he thought. If nothing, then he could land up in all the shows of the next Salman movie. He chuckled at her obsession of Salman, and at his own sudden obsession of finding her.

The world of dreams, beautiful and pleasurable, was however short-lived. All hopes and the newness of the uncertainty crashed as they reached home and their respective family members talked about the meeting next day.

Sameer went to the terrace at night, and took in several deep breaths, his hand clutching the parapet as he cursed himself for flirting with an unknown girl, when he had just promised his Nanu that he would settle down. He was meeting a girl tomorrow, for God’s sake. How had he let himself be distracted?

Naina kept the white handkerchief – that she had forgotten to return – in her secret bag. This bag contained a picture of snowy mountains, a journal of stories, and valentine heart that she had bought for herself, and now this handkerchief – all unfulfilled dreams. How had she let herself be in this situation?

Lying on their beds, they both looked at the moon outside their windows, wondering what tomorrow would bring, praying to let this night be the longest because for once they felt that the sunrise would only snub the flaring hope their hearts had experienced today.