The city was soaked to the bone.
Raindrops tapped restlessly against the glass panes of Bus, like fingers trying to be let in. The air inside reeked of dampening jackets, worn leather, and someone’s overly ambitious deodorant. People were crammed shoulder to shoulder absorbed in their own little worlds of earbuds and phones.
Aarohi pushed into the bus holding her tote bag against her chest and water falling from the ends of her hair. Her day had been long and boring.
There were no seats near the front so she moved deeper into the vehicle, her boots making a squeaky sound on the metal floor.
That's when she saw him.
Back of the bus. Third seat back from the end. Black hoodie, sleeves up over his hands. His side profile stared out the foggy window and lost in whatever music hummed through his headphones. Something about his posture, the slope of his nose, the curve of his lips....
Her breath hitched.
Arjun.
She stiffened for a moment. Then someone elbowed past her with an irritated "excuse me" and she blinked herself awake again, sliding into the vacant seat a few rows in front of him.
She didn't look back right away. Instead she looked at her own reflection in the foggy drenched glass and her heart thudding for no logical reason.
Was it really him?
She hadn’t seen Arjun in years. Not since they graduated high school.
He had been quietly existing his whole life. he was never the brooding, mysterious type of quiet but the unseen type. The boy you always think has something critical going on in his head but he would never share it.
Aarohi remembered him. He used to sit in the second row from the back in maths, with a neat notebook and handwriting annoyingly perfect. They’d barely ever spoken. Maybe once or twice when she’d asked for a pen. He was polite, reserved. Always kind, but never memorable.
Until now.
Her eyes flicked back almost involuntarily. He looked older, of course. A little leaner a little more worn around the eyes. But still him. Definitely him.
Did he recognize her?
She wasn’t sure. He had not glanced in her direction. His eyes remained glued to the rain-slicked world outside, lips moving slightly to whatever lyrics he sang silently.
Aarohi fidgeted in her seat. Should she speak? What would she say?
"Hi! Do you remember me? We graduated together and never spoke."
Great. Ideal icebreaker.
She looked back once again. Still no eye contact.
Perhaps he truly didn't remember her. Perhaps she was imagining things and maybe just reading too much into a fleeting moment on a rainy day.
But still… the way he looked got something inside of her going. Not so much a crush. But more of a pang of curiosity. A glimpse into an old version of herself. A chapter she'd never taken the time to read properly.
She turned her eyes again to the window, seeing water run down the glass in slow lazy streaks. Outside world passing by with hazy signs, blaring cars, and a storm of umbrellas. But the time inside the bus seemed slower. She remained motionless just tracing the seam of her bag with her fingers and pretending not to glance back.
Unnoticed by her, a boy in a black hoodie had seen her as well. The first second she'd boarded the bus actually. He'd dropped the volume on his music and cocked his head to the side just enough to see her out of the corner of his eye. And when she passed him by without so much as a glance he breathed a soft sigh.
Arjun remembered.
Of course he did.
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