Chapter 5

A lot of time had passed, it was May - June already and Neil had been really busy over the past few months not just dating Raina but also applying for the universities.

He wanted to pursue chemical engineering and after applying to a lot of universities, he finally secured his place at Loughborough University.

Neil was about to leave in the next couple of days and he couldn't believe how fast this year had gone by. Suddenly Neil came across a picture of him and Alia together during the Durga Puja festival and he realized that in these past few months he had seen very little of Alia, as she was busy with her school but somewhere Neil knew it had to do something with his closeness with Raina. He felt that he had ignored Alia all this while. But he was going to do nothing about it. Neil is one of those sorts of people who are afraid of confrontations. He doesn't like things to get awkward, hence he sometimes gets lazy and let things get sort out at their own pace which is not handy every time.

Alia came home from her tuition classes and she saw her mother working frantically working in the kitchen. She was preparing some snacks and packing and then double packing them in ziplock bags.

'Maa.. Eta Ki? What's all this?' Alia asked.

'Aloo… You don't remember Neil is leaving in two days, so I am preparing all this for him to take back.' Tapur told Alia.

Alia was shocked when she heard this. She didn't realize that she had distanced herself so much that she forgot that it was time for Neil to head back to the UK.

'Aloo babu, please do me a favor. Please take these snacks upstairs to Neil and help him pack. I have to go to the temple now.' Tapur requested her daughter.

Alia took all these snacks upstairs and while climbing each stair she was just praying that she should not have to meet Raina.

She reached upstairs and straightaway went to Neil's room, who surprisingly was packing alone in his room. Alia heaved a sigh of relief and she progressed her way into the room.

'Neil, Ma has sent this for you to keep in your suitcase', Alia handed over the snacks to him.

Neil was shocked to see Alia in her room. He noticed that she had lost a bit of weight and had some dark circles. He assumed that it must be due to the work pressure as she entered her 12th grade.

Alia sat down where Neil's suitcase was and she started organizing his bag and made space for the snacks. The whole time she helped Neil in packing his suitcase, she didn't utter a word to him. It was evident that she was sad but the fact that she hadn't spent any time with him, bugged her even more.

Finally, Neil broke the silence, 'Aloo.. everything okay with you in school? You seem to have lost some weight and you have developed under eyes. Are you not sleeping properly at night? Please do not take so much pressure of work. You will do very well in your board exams.'

Alia still looking down as she didn't know how to face him and she just nodded her head.

Neil further continued, 'I am sorry Aloo… I am a bad friend … I ignored you so much in the past few days. But why didn't you came and fought with me? Why did you disappear?'

'I didn't want to be the third wheel between you and Raina.' Alia replied.

Neil wasn't expecting such a blunt reply from Alia and it further confirmed that she was upset with him for ignoring her so much.

Alia realized that she might have been a bit harsh with her answer, hence she mustered courage and asked, 'Neil, do you want to go for one last round of some egg rolls and KC Das's Rosugullas?'

At that moment itself, Neil's phone buzzed and it was Raina who was calling. Alia saw her name flashing on his phone. Neil picked up the call and put it on speaker and said, 'Hi Raina, what's up?'

'Hey Baby! What are you doing?' Raina asked.

'I'm just busy packing.' Neil replied.

'Baby, why don't you come over to my house, and then we can chill till late at night as tomorrow you are leaving for the UK.'

Alia heard Raina's plan and she felt disappointed and she got up from the bed and was about to leave when suddenly Neil grabbed her hand. Alia stared at him with a confused look on her face.

'Raina, I don't think it's a good idea. I have plans with Alia already and I want to call it an early night today. I shall see you tomorrow before leaving. Alright.' Neil said no to Raina while still clutching onto Alia's hand.

'Oh! I would have preferred if it was us two but I guess you have made up your mind. Anyways say hi to Alia. It's been a while since I have seen her. I'll see you tomorrow. Bye. Love you.' Raina hung up the phone.

Neil shook his head and gave a faint smile. He knew Raina wasn't happy with his plan but he cannot afford to neglect Alia once again. He looked at Alia, still clutching her hand, and asked,

'Why were you getting up to leave? You thought I would ignore you again? It's been ages since we have chilled together and I would not let go of that opportunity for anyone.'

Alia was very happy that she got an opportunity to spend some time with Neil. Both of them finished packing quickly and then headed their way to explore the busy streets of Calcutta.

Their first stop was their favorite egg roll stall in Chowrangee Lane. Both of them ate two rolls each and then progressed to KC Das's sweet shop for some Bengali sweets. They both were experiencing a food coma by eating all those delicious rosugullas and sandesh.

'Wow! I think I am going to explode after all that eating. I am officially in a food coma.' Neil exclaimed.

He looked at Alia and she looked very happy and he was gutted with himself that how come he ignored his best friend all these days. Neil was staring at her when Alia noticed him and said, 'What? Why are you looking at me like that?'

Neil smiled and said, 'What's your favorite place in Calcutta? As in your go-to place when you are not feeling your 100% or you are upset about something. A place which helps you lift your mood.'

'Erm… Neil do you really want to see my favorite place in Calcutta?' Alia asked Neil.

'Yeah sure. Take me.' Neil said.

Alia and Neil started walking towards her favorite place in the city. After walking for a few minutes, Neil realized that they are heading towards the Howrah Bridge.

'Aloo… Why are you taking me to Howrah?'

'Coz that's my favorite place.' Alia replied.

'Really.. the busy bridge is your favorite place? Are you kidding?'

'I know it's unusual but I don't know I just feel so peaceful here. Whenever I am feeling sad or lonely or tensed I just come here and try to unwind from the day's stress. It helps me forget all my problems. This setting is so contrasting; the busy roads together with the tranquil waters of the Hoogly river. We have the bridge which witnesses both - the bustling noise on the roads as well the silence of the waters. I feel in some way it is personifying our lives. We have many situations that cause restlessness but we can only find inner peace by looking for it in our hearts. It depends on a person's perspective on what they actually want to see whether they want to focus on the chaos of their lives or they want to cherish the little peaceful and happy moments. I don't know it's hard to explain and it probably doesn't make any sense to you but I just look out at it in this way.' Alia said.

Neil smiled. Alia said something very deep to him. They continued to walk on the bridge. They did not speak much but the silence was peaceful.