He hurriedly managed to catch the train. This was one of those very rare moments when Saurabh would be running late for anything, literally so. The previous night’s conversation had been feeling surreal and he didn’t really have a heart to leave her and her city. For once he hated heading towards his hometown.

It all started when she confessed her feelings towards him. Something that had taken him months to even come to terms with. Now when they finally figured out they were madly in love with each other, it was time for him to leave.

Luckily enough he found a perfect window seat in spite of running late. Her teary eyes continued to flash before his eyes. Her lovely soft voice, the songs that she had sang for him. The endless walks and pani-puri trips. Waiting outside her window hoping she’d open the curtains and look outside, only to find him standing below the street light. All memories came gushing by. The early morning breeze reminded him of her long hair flowing in the wind at the hill. He could feel her presence in that bogie which soon was crowded long after he had stepped in. He had never in his wildest dreams imagined, he’d get used to someone to a level of intoxication. He felt a piercing feeling right in the centre of his chest. All the romanticizing of distance making the heart grow fonder seemed wrong on so many levels. It was nowhere close to any kind of a pleasant experience. He was already experiencing the withdrawal symptoms.

Saurabh’s job demanded him to hop between multiple cities. By now he had already started reconsidering his life’s calculations. Away from his parents, he also had the responsibility of his little brother’s education. He continued scrolling through the text messages exchanged between the two of them the previous night. It all felt like a sweet dream, from which he’d wake up any moment. Unlike her true nature, she seemed to go visibly silent in her texts and all the usual long messages from her were replaced with monosyllabic replies. He felt uneasy for not figuring out what was going on in her mind. It felt as if he had missed out on a lot of messages exchanges between the lines of her curt replies.

Saurabh closed his eyes. He could vividly imagine her beautiful face gleaming with joy. Her luscious long hair shining in the morning sun and the faint dimple on her cheek visible every time she’d smile at him, or herself. He felt the urge to holding time still, watching her all day long. The way the wind was gushing in from the open window, he could barely breathe as the train caught speed. He could still feel her presence and could smell her perfume.

Saurabh continued looking outside the window. The sun was emerging from the horizon, as the sky was ready to light up and shine in all its glory. The picturesque setting was too good not to be captured through his photographic lenses. He had been developing the art of photography since quite a few years and today’s capture felt special for some reason. The sun was shining a little brighter. He felt a little merrier than usual. The monsoon clouds had receded the week that went by and the sky had an intense blue shade that was turning crimson every passing second. The splash of colours seemed to light up his spirits, yet somehow Anamika’s teary eyes kept flashing.

Pushing the disturbing thoughts aside, he focused his mind and the lenses onto the scenery outside and captured the beauty from the moving train. He could capture a flying bird from a far distance and the speed of the train didn’t seem much of a hindrance. He managed to get some beautiful clicks which he couldn’t wait to show it to her.

While on his unstoppable train of thoughts, the real one came to a halt at the next station. As if jolted back to reality and woken up into a nightmare, Saurabh froze as his phone started ringing with a name flashing on the screen, ‘Wifey’.