"Ahh... Excuse me."

It was a herculean task, but I was glad I didn't die saying that. I have never really understood why talking to pretty girls is so much difficult that you have to sum up all the courage in your guts to utter just 2 words?

...But she didn't respond.

"Excuse me miss!", I exclaimed this time with a stronger tone. This time, she looked at me.

"It may not be right to ask like this, but I have been noticing for the past some time that something is bothering you". Of course, I didn't mention the bus stop episode.

She looked surprised and confused. Hesitatingly she said, "No... No it's nothing". The rest of face made it pretty clear that her lips were lying.

"Well I know I am a stranger, but I have learnt in my life that it's easier to share your difficulties with strangers. Who knows I may be able to help you out", I said to her with a calm expression.

"'I have learnt in my life' crap? Seriously? That's what you could come up with?", I punched myself on the face, in my mind.

Now she really looked startled. I was also hoping that no one else in this bus would have understood the English conversation I just had. But to my utter bad luck, half of the crowd was now staring at us, making me nervous more than her. 

"Damn you educated people!". I tried to maintain my composed stature. She wanted to say something but she stopped herself, as if trying to contain a damaged dam.

To ease-out her uneasiness I uttered, "Well if you still don't want to share, that's perfectly alright, I understand. Any ways, just as a conversation starter, would you like to tell where are you going?"

 She took a small pause and collected herself. "I am going to meet my aunt in Ve*******nam".

I did not hear the last word properly, these bloody unpronounceable names of the places here.

 "Oh really! I am going at the same place. My friend lives there." Amazed at how easily those lies came out of my mouth, I continued, "By the way, my name is Ritendra. My friends call me Rids. And what would your name be?".

She smiled and replied. "My name is Anna. Get up Anna."

"WHAT??!".


*  *   *   *  *


"Anna. Get up Anna! Anna!...", the 'uncle' whom I had pushed aside before, was trying to wake me up. He was wiry- but not as much as me-, had a small moustache over his coal-black face. Wearing plain pant-shirt and old fashioned specs, and even more old fashioned hair-style, he looked like he has come from 1980s.

"Oh, what happened to me". I blabbered with an inaudible voice.  The man did not reply but helped me get up.
I figured that when the driver hit the brake abruptly, I must have fell down hard and blacked out for a moment.

"Oh, so all that conversation was a dream?", a deep sense of pain ran through my guts. I quickly glanced over the seat across me. SHE WASN'T THERE! 

Half of the bus was now empty, but the bus seemed to have not moved from its position. I heard a commotion going on outside the bus, but I still did not know what the hell had happened. And more importantly, where on earth, did the girl go?