A Familiar Stranger, The Weight of Knowledge

Mumbai, June 6, 1980 – 9:35 AM

Arjun stood still for a moment, his mind adjusting to the weight of the past and the future colliding in real-time.

Nisha Agarwal.

It had been decades since he had last seen her, yet here she was—standing in front of him, young, full of life, unburdened by time.

In his past life, Nisha had been one of his closest friends in college. She had a sharp mind, a quick tongue, and a way of cutting through people's nonsense with a single look. But she had also been kind—one of the few who had believed in him before anyone else.

After graduation, she had disappeared from his life. He had never found out what happened to her.

And now, fate had given him another chance.

"Arjun, tu sun raha hai ki nahi?" Her voice snapped him out of his thoughts.

He blinked. "Huh?"

She rolled her eyes, adjusting the strap of her sling bag over her shoulder. "I said, where were you yesterday? Professor Sharma was taking attendance, and he nearly marked you absent!"

Right. College. Attendance.

He had completely forgotten about that.

Rajiv chuckled beside him. "Arjun bhai had some deep thinking to do, Nisha. Look at him—he's acting like he's seen the future or something!"

Arjun forced a smile. "Just got caught up in some things."

Nisha narrowed her eyes slightly. "You've been acting weird all morning."

Arjun hesitated. She was sharp. Too sharp. It wouldn't take her long to figure out that something was different about him.

Before she could ask anything else, Rajiv groaned. "Forget all this! Let's go inside before the seniors catch us. They're in full ragging mode today."

That worked as a distraction.

Nisha sighed. "Ugh, don't remind me. I already saw some of them near the library, making the freshers sing old Bollywood songs."

Arjun smirked. "That's not too bad."

Rajiv shuddered. "Wait till they ask you to dance in the middle of the canteen. It's a nightmare."

Nisha shot him a teasing look. "Sounds like personal experience?"

Rajiv grinned. "Of course. You think I got this charming confidence for free?"

Arjun chuckled, shaking his head.

For a moment, it felt like nothing had changed. Like he was just another 18-year-old walking into college with his friends, cracking jokes, and worrying about ragging.

But deep down, he knew better.

9:45 AM – Inside the College Building

The corridors of the college were exactly as he remembered—cream-colored walls, dusty notice boards pinned with faded posters, wooden benches lined up against the walls where students lounged between lectures.

The faint hum of fans mixed with the sound of hurried footsteps and distant laughter.

Arjun walked beside Nisha and Rajiv, his mind only half-present in the conversation. The other half was calculating.

He knew exactly what was coming.

In a few months, India would face one of the worst financial crises of the decade. The 1980s would be a period of slow economic reforms, but the real boom wouldn't come until the liberalization of 1991.

That gave him a window of opportunity.

If he played his cards right, he could start investing in undervalued companies before they skyrocketed in the next decade. He could buy land in areas that would soon become Mumbai's financial hub.

The real question was—how to get started?

He had no money of his own. His family was middle-class. He couldn't just walk into a stockbroker's office and start investing like some millionaire.

He needed an entry point.

"Arjun?"

He snapped out of his thoughts.

Nisha was watching him with a frown. "You're lost in your head again."

Rajiv nudged him. "Kya chal raha hai, bhai? You've been weirdly serious all morning."

Arjun hesitated. He couldn't tell them the truth. Not yet.

He exhaled and gave a half-truth instead.

"I was just thinking about the future."

Rajiv laughed. "Future? Bhai, focus on passing this semester first. That's the real battle!"

Nisha, however, didn't laugh. She studied him carefully, like she could sense there was more he wasn't saying.

Before she could question him further, a loud voice interrupted them.

"Arre! First-years!"

The three of them turned.

A group of seniors—four guys, wearing casual shirts and jeans, arms crossed—were blocking the corridor ahead.

Rajiv groaned. "Bhai, we're dead."

Nisha muttered, "Just stay quiet and don't make eye contact."

Arjun, however, felt an unexpected sense of nostalgia.

He remembered this moment. He had lived it before.

Back then, he had been nervous, just like Rajiv and Nisha. He had been forced to sing a song in front of the whole class while the seniors laughed.

But this time… he was different.

One of the seniors, a tall guy with a cocky smirk, pointed at them. "You three! Come here."

Rajiv sighed. "Chal, let's get this over with."

As they walked toward the group, Arjun felt an odd sense of amusement.

The seniors thought they had power.

They had no idea they were standing in front of someone who knew every single thing about the next 45 years of the world.

It was almost funny.

The tall senior smirked at him. "What's your name?"

Arjun met his gaze steadily. "Arjun Mehta."

The senior clapped a hand on his shoulder. "Alright, Arjun Mehta. Since you look so confident, let's give you a simple task. Sing a love song. Right here. Right now."

Rajiv looked horrified. "Oh no."

Nisha muttered under her breath, "This is so stupid."

Arjun, however, smiled.

The seniors expected him to hesitate, to stutter, to look embarrassed. That's what most freshers did.

But Arjun was not most freshers.

Without missing a beat, he started singing.

"Tera mujhse hai pehle ka naata koi…"

His voice was calm, steady. He wasn't the best singer, but he sang with confidence.

A few students passing by stopped to watch. Even the seniors seemed surprised.

By the time he finished the first few lines, the tall senior laughed and clapped him on the back. "Bhai, you've got guts! Alright, you're safe."

Rajiv and Nisha stared at him.

As the seniors moved on to their next target, Rajiv whispered, "Bhai, what was that? You didn't even hesitate!"

Arjun shrugged. "Why make it a big deal?"

Nisha gave him a strange look. "You're… different."

He just smiled.

She didn't know how right she was.