THE GIRL NEXT DOOR

      I went to another floor of the hostel. A new room. There was a girl who was a total chic. She always wore minimum clothes, had heavy busts flaunting all the time and talked in a rather quirky voice. I always found her shouting and laughing in top of her voice in the hostel corridor. She wasn't working and someone told she is a rich spoilt only child of some rich politician. But still, I never make an impression on people based on the looks or what people say. Because sometimes I find some people genuine and nice who are hated by the majority and tagged as 'bad' girl or boy. But yes, I found her irritating, specially her voice.

        As time passed, I talked with her a few times here and there on this and that, and she was ok. Unless she does no harm to me, I have no problem with her.

With time, I noticed she is always nice to everyone. She never complains or shouts unlike her room mate, who gets irritated and angry at each and everything. She always said a "hi" whenever she saw me and talked nicely. Yes, her voice was still irritating, but now when I got close, I actually listened to what she said and she talked sense.

With passing days, I started liking her. She had a positive vibe. She didn't work, was preparing for some exam. So usually she slept the whole day and in the evening she wore almost next to nothing, put on her best make up, all groomed and went out. If not, she would either sit in the TV room watching TV or chit chat with someone in the hostel or talked over the phone. Never had I seen her gloomy, angry, irritated or bitching.

I first liked her when I heard her saying to a girl, "Why do you sit alone and don't talk to anyone?" This girl was a thief and so everybody stayed away from her. As a result she too didnot approach anyone and stayed alone. I overheard the conversation and realised this chirpy girl is so good. The thief girl actually stole food from the fridge and things from everyone's room. And she talked to her so nicely.

When her roommate complained over anything and shouted, she was always calm and stood by her side, listening to her bullshit and trying to solve it. And always at the end, I saw her succeeding in making her roommate smile, either with a joke or otherwise.

She offered whatever she ate, to everyone present. And talked always lovingly to everyone. She had a different attitude to life. She ordered lots of things, dresses, books online, while she was not working. And every day she went partying with friends wearing new expensive clothes. Her lifestyle was different; she was 'living life to the fullest everyday' type.

One day, a Sunday, earthquake hit Delhi, when Nepal was the epicentre. Only we two were present in the whole hostel. We rushed downstairs and waited for long for a second one, as was predicted. And then we talked for the first time.

"Where are you from?" I started.

"Lucknow and Gorakhpur"

"Why two places?"

"Well my father lives in Gorakhpur and my Dadu lives in Lucknow"

I didn't enquire much; I thought maybe her mother lived with her dadu and her father lives away.

"And who else in the family?"

"I have a younger brother. Waise it's a joint family. So there are lot many people, cousins"

"It must be fun, right, especially while growing up?" I concluded the conversation as we went upstairs and then to our rooms.

Then we met again in the TV room, having lunch. We chit chatted again about Shahid Mira wedding and similar stuff. She talks positive. While talking I noticed a tattoo in her wrist to which she said "I will replace this with another one 'Dadu's princess', I have finalised." I smiled, "So your grandfather loves you a lot?"

"He is not my grandfather."

"Then?"

"He is my Uncle, my father's sister's husband."

"Oh......!" Kahani mein twist, I thought. I didnt enquire further.

"So your Uncle loves you a lot? ....Since the tattoo" I resumed.

"Yes, he is the one who had brought me up and never says no to anything. I am his jaan."

"So you live with your uncle?"

"Actually my aunt took me with her after my birth and so, I have always been closed to my Dadu"

"Oh......" I didn't understand.

"Why did your aunt took you?"

"Because she loved me a lot."

"Oh..........." confusing and vague reply it was, I thought.

"So your mother also stays with your aunt?" confused I was, but I questioned.

"No my mother died while giving birth to me. So my aunt took me with her."

"Oh, I m sorry...",
I felt bad, so to cover up, I resumed, 
"..Your uncle and aunt, you mean?"

"It's ok..... No my aunt married later. But she didn't let me go after marriage. Dadu too liked me"

"And your dad?"

"He married again right after my mother's death"

"And this brother?"

"He is dadu's son"

"So you must ne really close to your uncle and aunt?"

"My aunt died in 2010"

"Oh..."

So basically this lovely girl, she never met her mother, her dad remarried and lives away, her aunt adopted her but she too died after marriage and giving birth to a child, so her uncle is her everything in this world now, and thus "dadu's princess"

Her Uncle is quite old and has heart problems, is a rich industrialist and politician. She is the only one to take care of him and vice versa. The brother is young, still in school. And she has to manage the whole business when her uncle gets sick. No joint family members come to help. Her roomie said.

On mother's day, she uploaded an old b/w pic of her mother as her whatsapp profile pic. She looks just like her mother.

..................

I could understand the reason behind her happy go lucky nature. One, who gets everything, complains the most. But she already has lost everything, so maybe she knows the meaning and value of her life and how to live it.

After a few days, she went home, her Dadu was hospitalised. In a few days she left the hostel, her Dadu expired. And her whatsapp status after a few days was, "Now I have nothing to lose" I sighed seeing that.

But but...................I met her again, after a long gap and she is the same, eternally happy, cheerful, shouting. Wearing a skin tight fluorescent green sleeveless short dress, hairs done, hot pink lipstick adorned her lips, high heels and giving me a grin and a bear hug, asked "How are you, Pranamee? Long time"

Her roomie told me one day, when we were discussing her Dadu's death,

"Have you seen her ears? They are small. Even her mother and aunt had small ears. It is said, people who have small ears, die early. And she herself had told me that. She believes in that. So she is living each day"

I don't know about the ear funda but my prediction was right, she is living each day, actually.

.......................

We don't know when we are dying, so is it that which has stopped us from living life each day?