Couple of the week

Neha* and Vidur had actually known each other a while. This was no sudden meeting of eyes across a crowded room. They had been in school together from the time they were both in KG. Only, even though they had been in the same school for the last thirteen years, their paths had seldom crossed. Vidur was the good boy, getting excellent marks, a class monitor, good at sports, Neha was the girl who had the same group of friends from when she was nine and spent most of her time at the back of the class talking to them. If they did talk, it was only very briefly.

But school doesn’t last forever, and after they graduated, the chances were high that they’d never run into each other again. But, never say never, folks! One night, Neha was working late, and her colleagues asked her to run down to the local pizza place and pick up dinner for all of them. Vidur was also working late, and his colleagues asked him the same thing. As luck would have it, they chose the same pizza parlour, and as Neha was paying, Vidur leaned over and asked her what school she had gone to.

“I reacted with great suspicion,” says Neha now, “I never liked anyone from my school, except the five or six people I was friends with. School was not a happy time for me.” But, Vidur had seemed harmless, so she reluctantly told him.

“I knew it was her the moment I saw her,” says Vidur, “Not many people know this, but I had liked Neha for a long time. It’s just that she seemed so unfriendly, and never spoke to anyone outside her group, so I had never had a chance to talk to her.”

Luckily, for both of them, age had given Neha a little more poise and politeness, so she answered Vidur’s questions, warily at first, but then really got into the conversation. The two of them sat down right there and finished off a whole pizza. Sadly, their colleagues had to go hungry for a little while longer, and then, had to eat cold pizza, but you can’t have everything.

The next day, when Neha woke up, her mother asked if she knew a Vidur from her school, because his mother had just called, wanting to arrange a match. Vidur hadn’t even told his mother about Neha yet, she had just heard about her from another friend.

“When it’s meant to be, it’s meant to be, no?” Neha says, squeezing Vidur’s arm, “I mean, it was like I had no choice.” Choice or not, the two of them seem thrilled, so no complaints there.