A Tipsy Night in Tila Town

From the day I decided to forget about him, he has been lingering in my mind more than ever. It's like my thoughts refuse to let him go. I barely see him around college—after all, seniors don't have as many classes. But on the rare occasions that I do spot him, my heart betrays me every single time.My mind starts singing:

"Iss dil pe kya kya guzarti hai

Jab uski nazar baat karti hai

Meri bekhudi badhne lagi

Wo khayalon mei jab muskuraye toh

Haaye toh

Sochti hu kabhi uska dil mujhpe aaye toh."

Translation:"What all this heart goes through

When his gaze speaks volumes to me.

My restlessness only grows,

When in my thoughts, he smiles softly.

Oh, what if, just once,

His heart starts beating for me."

I know it's foolish to let my imagination run wild, but how can I control it when even fleeting glimpses of him feel like stolen moments from some romantic dream?On my birthday, my friends took me to Majnu Ka Tila in North Delhi. It was a vibrant little haven of Tibetan and Korean culture, with colorful flags strung across narrow lanes and cozy restaurants smelling heaven. We chose to dine at a Korean restaurant—it was my choice, after all.The seven of us squeezed onto a table that had not been nearly big enough for our appetites. Sitting on one side of me was my roommate Pooja. Riya, Ankita, Ananya, Sameera, and Megha filled up the remaining chairs. We looked over the menu for a moment, struggling to decipher the dishes described.

Riya: (raising an eyebrow) So. What exactly is this Kimchi thing? Is it spicy?

Megha: (reading from her phone) It's fermented cabbage. Super popular in Korea.

Ananya: (wrinkling his nose) Fermented? Like. rotten? Why would anyone eat that?

Pooja: (rolling her eyes) It's not rotten. It's like achar (pickle), just fancier.

When the waiter came, we all placed our orders—bibimbap, bulgogi, ramen, and a plate of Korean pancakes to share. But then, three of them—Ananya, Sameers, and Ankita—didn't. They opted to try makgeolli, a traditional Korean rice drink.

Ananya: (excitedly) It's fermented rice wine. Sounds fancy, right?

Ankita: Let's see if it's as good as the drinks we had during Holi.

Aditi: (curiously) Wait, is it strong? I've never had rice wine before.

Sameera: (grinning) Why don't you try it and find out?

And finally, they brought a makgeolli in a ceramic kettle and poured it into very small bowls. I took the smallest sip imaginable. It is sweet and mildly tangy, but definitely not something I expected from what I hear.

Riya: (eying me) So? So?

Aditi: It is nice, I suppose, but it's not doing anything, though. Nothing happens. Absolutely nothing.

Ananya: (Laughing) You're just sipping at it like some kind of a tea! Drinking it is where it's at!

Feeling a mix of confidence and curiosity, I thought I would gobble the entire bowl in one sitting. Worst that could happen, right? Except that I had never gotten drunk in my life before. And now was the first time I was going through it.It was warm, genuinely authentic, and had low tables and cushions to sit on on the floor. We were sitting cross-legged on the floor giggling and gossiping over the bowls of bibimbap and plates of kimchi pancakes. I was by then very drunk after my incident with Makgeolli but blissfully content.

A poster of Korean girl groups and boy bands was hanging along the wall right outside the restaurant door. I almost had a heart attack when I looked at the picture of EXO, my favorite boy band in the world.

Me: (I pointed excitedly) Oh my God, guys, it's EXO! Look, look! And there's him-my bias!I pointed directly to the picture of Chanyeol, which almost glows with joy.

Pooja: (pulling out her phone with a laugh) Oh no, here we go. Drunk Aditi is now in K-pop stan mode!

Sameera: Hey, wait, let me record this, Aditi. Tell the world how much you love. uh. what's his name again?

Aditit: (grinning dreamily) His name is Chanyeol! Look at him—he's so perfect. His raspy voice his style, his everything! Chanyeol oppa, saranghaeyo!

Everyone burst out laughing as I made a little finger gesture towards the poster.

Megha: (giggling) Aditi, I think you just confessed your love to a piece of paper.

Ananya: And we've got it all on video. This is going viral!

From there, we walked to this sweet shop adjacent to a café, which was famous for its desserts. The aroma of freshly baked pastries and chocolates was making my mouth water. But once we went in, it was pretty crowded.

Pooja: (To the hostess) How long is the wait?

Hostess: About 30 minutes.Sameera: Thirty minutes?

By that time, I'll be hungry again.We settled on stealing the desserts. Armed with our little boxes of sweetness, we sat on the steps outside the café and dug in. I don't know if it was the sugar or the makgeolli, but my drunkenness reached a whole new level.

Me: (chewing blissfully) This is the best thing I've ever tasted. Like, better than anything. Better than life!

Megha: (teasing) Better than Chanyeol?

Aditi: (dramatically gasping) Never! But almost.

After dessert, we strolled into this tiny little shop full of plushies, stationery, and other junk. I was walking with Pooja and another friend when something weird caught my eye.

Aditi: (squinting at a guy across the store) Wait a minute. Is that Tanmay?

Pooja: (looking in the direction I pointed) Uh, Aditi, that's not him. That guy doesn't even look like Tanmay.

Ananya: (laughs) She's seeing Tanmay everywhere now. It's official—you've got it bad, girl.

Aditi: (smiling sheepishly) I mean, it's not my fault if every tall guy with a backpack reminds me of him.

Pooja: Or if every drunk thought leads to him. Aditi, you're hopeless.

Aditi: (giggling) I know, I know. But seriously, I thought it was him for a second.

Some window shopping and tonnes of laughter later, we stepped outside. We took pictures in the twinkling lights that lined up the streets. I saw this gelato place during this period.

Aditi: (grabbing Pooja's arm) Gelato! Let's take that!

Pooja: (smiling) Aditi, seriously? Weren't you too full?

Me: It's not about hunger. It's all about the experience!We got scoops of creamy gelato in color and savored every bite strolling back into the hostel; by the time we returned, I was a little tipsy yet completely content.I ended that night lying in bed with a smiling face.

My birthday was everything and more: good food, great friends, and memories that I could turn to whenever I needed it. Even in all the chaos, days like these remind me of just how beautiful things can be.