The first word...

Our meeting in itself was not an accident. It happened more than a year ago.

She is working at a place close to my office and used to shuttle like me from my place to office daily. I had not talked to her before but had seen her occasionally in the same bus I used to commute to office. She was actually my friends friend. Every time I had seen her, she used to be with her ear phones on and listening to the songs from the mobile. She was so lost in listening to the songs that she hardly noticed any happenings around.

It was one of those rainy days in Chennai, and I was on the way home from office following a very busy day. The streets were wet and traffic was at its worst. After a long wait enroute, I finally got to my penultimate stop where I got stuck due to lack of transport. I was waving my hands at the passing buses and autos but none would stop. There was none around me and it was getting late.

It was then that a van arrived at the stop. It was enroute to place in the other direction of my home. It was dark and I could hardly make out the person who got out of the van. The van left and slowly my eyes could realize the figure moving towards me. It was her, partly worried and partly relieved, came to me and asked "Late ayidicha??".