My College girlfriend.

We were new to the college, fresh from our higher secondary school. The dreamland where we are treated as adults, where we can bunk the class and go to movies. Place where teachers will not scold us or ask us to do homework. And above all where we could have a girlfriend.

After the first week, it became obvious that things are not what they seem. Yes, you can bunk the classes but it will permanently go into your attendance files. Scolding is replaced by insults and the new name for homework is project work. At least we can have proper girlfriends and that was the only hope that was bringing us to the college. But there again we are faced with more challenges. First of all college girls are more mean towards you, which makes you wonder what happened to the sweet school girls who used to help you with your homework and exams. Man, they have all changed!

Anyway luck favours the brave and we choose to be brave, on other hand what’s there to lose?

The hunt begins. The best ones are pre-booked by college seniors and we don’t want to mess with them. The average ones are taken by the movie-star lookalikes in the class. And there is tough competition to get the rest. I realised that I was late to the playground and my choices are fast running out.

Just when you though all hopes are lost, there is a ray of hope. It came as a beautiful warm gaze from one of the beautiful-girl group during that long and boring Hindi Literature session. First I could not believe that she was looking at me. Or is it someone behind me? I slowly turned my head around and to my relief, it was the college wall with dull white paint behind me. Still I wasn’t convinced, is she having one of those daydreams, where you look at something and let your mind run free? May be I was that something and who wouldn’t daydream in Hindi class? But wait, she is smiling at me. How should I respond? Should I smile back (polite response) or say hi (show that I am brave)? So I did the obvious, I looked down. When I looked at her again, she was still looking at me, still with that infectious smile. But she slowly turned her attention to her book and was reading something to herself.

She had me with that first gaze. The sun looked warmer, the breeze cooler and the rain was singing. Even the college toilet was looking like a throne. Things that hormones does to you!!

I managed to find her name, it was Helen {obviously name changed here}. After 2 days I managed to smile back at her but didn’t have the courage to talk to her. What’s the rush, she is not going to go anywhere? Or would she? There are boys still hunting. I better check with my friends to see how they have progressed? Pity on them, I thought. Why are they not lucky like me?

One evening, I, Sandeep {name NOT changed}, Faisal {name NOT changed}, Niyaz {name NOT changed} and couple of other guys met together in the playground after the college. We were talking about usual stuffs, bikes and cricket. After some time, we slipped to the obvious topic, girls. I was happy to find out that all of them have made good progress except of Faisal who was rejected and was called an idiot by a girl. Poor fellow, we gave him courage and support.

When it was my turn to talk, I told them that there is an angle for me and I gave them a clue that she is in the Hindi literature class. Everyone was anxious. Finally after a lot of persuasion I told them that it was Helen. Sandeep was shell shocked. He told me to forget her since she is already in love with him. I told him that’s impossible, since she smiles at me and told him about that amazing gaze she gives me. Sandeep told me that it is the same gaze that gave him several sleepless nights.

To our surprise, Niyaz shouted at both of us. He claimed that the gaze was meant for him since he sits in our path and is the first in her path. He obviously has a point but we will never agree to that. After all we 3 sit somewhere in the same line of sight.

We all then came to a consensus. The next day we 3 will walk up to Helen and ask her who she really loves? For who was that beautiful smile meant to be and who is that beautiful gaze targeting?

Faisal, who was silent till that moment, suddenly said, “No need guys. I already asked her. She was the one who rejected her. She is just counting the number of idiots in the class.”

Only then did we understand the game. She was marking us out one at a time and we fools jumped into her trap. Talk about black widow spider, this is the human version.

Now looking back at this story, we still laugh at these beautiful moments. The following years we were seniors and our classmates had no choice. The tables were turned!!!