Double Bell

With a shudder, the engine came to a stop. Alex let out a sigh, seated by the window on the right side four rows from the back. The bus had been stuck in traffic jam for almost fifteen minutes owing to the reconstruction of the road. But when a bus driver decides to kill the engine that is like all hopes are lost and they are going to be there for a while. If there was any way the bus could still have been moving, it would have been right now. Their attitude of ‘we don’t care if we loose some paint or if there is a dent’ always gave them an edge.

 Alex found it ironical that the when he was on a bus he used to enjoy those things which he otherwise criticized. Like how they carved their way through traffic. And when the bus driver who does all that decides to kill the engines, there really couldn’t be any way out.

The wind blew chilly, the warm rays of the sun hit his face and the road was still wet from the early morning rain. If it were any consolation, there wasn’t going to be any dusty winds coming from the construction site. Alex was going to be late for college that was for sure. There wasn’t much he could do about it. That was the only bus from his hometown to his college.

A smile came over Alex’s face as he remembered how it had been at the beginning of his college days. That was when he started using public transport. Back in his school days, he used to ride his cycle to school with his buddies Anand and Maya. On their way back from school they would go exploring new routes, new hangout places. Those were the days, he always used to think.  Probably the best part of his life till date. Maybe because of that, Alex used to hate taking the bus to college. He used to find it boring. Every day he took the same bus, the only bus, sat in the same seat, four rows from the back. It would be easier to get out of the bus if you sit once it was steaming with people, his father had advised him.

There was this funny incident that happened during the beginning of his bus riding days. He fell asleep on the bus on his way to college, missed his stopped and woke up half an hour after the bus passed his stop. And that wasn’t just it. He got on the next bus back to college, fell asleep again and missed the stop again. Too embarrassed to make a return trip again he went back home. His mother still used to tease him with that.

The engine finally sputtered to life and they were moving again. The driver hastily shifted gears. Each time he shifted gear it sounded like something under the bus broke. Alex checked his watch. He was going to be late than he had assumed. He had got used to that.  Ever since the road reconstruction had started, he was late almost every day. He had more than once used this excuse to be intentionally late for class.

Though he wasn’t very fond of taking the bus to college, he had begun to love it. It had become an inseparable part of his life. Alex and the bus conductor had become so acquainted that he no longer told him the name of the stop while taking the ticket. He would just give the conductor the money and conductor would give him the ticket and the balance and occasionally make small talks.  But this practice had more than once got him into making a fool of himself.  Once a while when the usual conductor had gone on leave, Alex did the same thing with the stand-in conductor. He would just give him the money and not say a word. Then the conductor would keep staring at him and he would realize his mistake.

The bus entered the only bus stand between Alex’s house and his college. As usual, a guy in his late twenties along with his friend, a college student got on the bus.  Both of them had the habit of talking very loud. The topic of discussion varied every day. Cricket, movies, politics and so the list went on. Both of them really loved talking, a lot. Alex used to find them annoying at first but as time went on, he started becoming interested in their discussions. He had even nicknamed them ‘RJ duo’. Every day Alex would wonder what would these guys talk today?

It wasn’t just the RJ duo that he used to notice. They were just one among the many. It was one of those things that made his bus rides enjoyable. Different people with different stories.

There were this father and daughter. She would sleep on the bus every day resting her head on her father’s shoulder. There was this bald man who always carried a suitcase.

Alex shifted his gaze towards the man sitting in the seat reserved for the handicapped. An average middle-class guy. Always wore similar shirts. He had some trouble with his legs. It wasn’t compassion that Alex felt for him, rather it was envy.

 Both Alex and the man got on the bus from the bus stand it started. Every day the man’s wife would drive him to the bus stand in their Nano. She would help him into his seat and she would sit there until the conductor would ring the double bell which means that bus is ready to go. Before she leaves, she would hold his face in her hands and kiss him on the forehead. There was so much emotion in that kiss. It was the most romantic thing Alex had ever seen. The vibes he would get were so intense. Before she left she would look at the conductor and without uttering a word she would say ‘take care of him’. What the man and his wife have, is probably what people call true love. For that reason, Alex had nicknamed the man ‘Romeo’.

The bus came to a stop at that last stop before Alex got down, breaking him out of the thought loop. It was rather ironical because there was a board at that bus stop put there by the traffic police which read ‘This is not the bus stop’. But every day every bus stopped there. Everyone had chosen to ignore the sign even the police. The bus stop was just in view from the traffic island where a policeman would stand and direct the traffic as there was no traffic signal there yet.

Alex looked anxiously at the front door of the bus. But he was disappointed. He didn’t find the face he was looking for. For a straight fifth day, she was not there. Of all the daily passengers on the bus, she was the most mysterious one. He hardly knew anything about her. And that is why she never had a nickname. She seemed to be a very energetic girl, always had a smile on her face. She always wore some western outfit, her hair left free and carried only a sling bag. Clearly, she was not going to college.  And she didn’t get down until after Alex had got down, so he never knew where she got down.

Alex couldn’t help wondering if something had happened to her. She had never missed the bus since the day Alex had first seen her. Even if the bus was early or late, she would be there.  Perhaps this was the only bus for her too. He kept having this feeling that she wasn’t just sick. He kept on telling himself that he was overthinking stuff. Maybe she had chicken pox.

The man sitting next to him opened a newspaper. As he turned the page from the obituary page, a chill went down his throat. Alex grabbed the paper from the man and turn the page back. It wasn’t her it was some other girl that looked like her. The man gave him an earful but he didn’t hear half of it.

The bus arrived at the college junction. Alex got down the bus. He waited there for the bus to leave. It was his last day riding that bus. His last day of college.  It was interesting how the people with whom he had never talked or even know their names had become so dear to him. He was going to miss them, especially her. He had hoped to see her one last time. The conductor rang the double bell once again and the bus moved away from him.

Alex crossed the road, eyes still at the bus. A bullet screeched to stop beside him, almost ramming him. It had no number plate, only a temporary registration. He looked at the rider. Dressed in a Louis Vuitton jacket, it was her.

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