A long whistle awakened me the next morning. I enquired and came to know my train would be coming two hours later. I prepared to go into the nearby cabin for breakfast, alone, but the lady—I argued. She was still sleeping, wrapped up in the blanket last night I offered. I came close to her, unveiled the warm covering from her body, shook her shoulder asking to get up. At this, she made a gentle twist of her body, rubbed her eyes, stretched her hands, composed herself, endeavour- ing to rise. We were in a close up; we could gaze at each other dis- tinctly. So I did; hair disconcerted, eyes sleepy, a good and healthy physique with a lovely countenance, she appeared before the exposure of my eyes. In that moment, she looked very charming. As I kept looking at her, I recalled the incident of the last night and thought that but for my help, she would have frozen. A sense of pity surged my spirit. I tried to break the silence ; quickly she folded the blanket and kept it on my hand, thanking me very much. She asked me the time, I told it was seven morning. I wanted to know also, where she would be going and when her train was due. She replied she would go to Lucknow by the 9 o'clock train. "And of yours" she asked; I replied, "Of course, the same as yours". She seemed to have released a smile and entered the "toilet”.
Meanwhile, I packed my luggage, disengaged myself from the thought of the lady, unknown and unseen, so long with me, yielded. Soon she dressed up and followed me to the cabin.
* * * * * *
We talked and passed the intervening hours, as if within a moment. The scheduled train was ready to pick us up and so we got into a compartment. Sounds of differnt wavelengths mingled into the air, creating a sensation among the passengers in the platform. I purchased a newspaper from one among many others having platform occupations —passengers their life, their meagre earnings.
I recalled, analysed and manipulated the things in my mind, musing upon the situation, the person by my side so presented, until the rattlings and jostlings of the wheels escaped into the landscape passing by.
* * * * * *
