A Sip of Destiny

It was her last day in college. Reet walked slowly, taking her final steps toward her favorite spot—the canteen. With a heavy heart, she entered, took a deep breath at the counter, and asked, "Chai?"

"Chai." said Anuv, at the exact same moment.

They both turned to look at each other. Reet, the popular girl, top of her class in her Master's program, and president of the Media Club in her domain, Mass Communication, knew almost everyone on campus but couldn’t quite place this new-young face.

Anuv, on the other hand, was the new professor in the MBA department. It was his first day, and he was exploring the college grounds. An IIM doctoral student, he had recently decided to pursue a career in teaching. After wrapping up his first class, he had a sudden craving for chai. After asking a few students, he found his way to the canteen.

The first thing Anuv noticed about Reet was the hint of pink highlighter dusting her eyelids. It drew him in, making him look deeper into her eyes—a mistake, he thought for a second, for staring too long. Reet, in turn, noticed his shirt—a chartreuse color, the exact same shade as the one she had recently bought from H&M. Being a romantic bookworm who often drifted off into her own imaginary worlds, making eye contact like this felt intense, almost cinematic to her. Embarrassed, she quickly looked away.

They both felt awkward and chose seats far apart, avoiding each other's gaze.

The person at the counter was busy with his accounts and didn't even glance at them. After a quick look around to spot the new customer, he saw Reet sitting at table number 3 and scribbled, “Two chai, table 3.” He shouted, “Chotu, do chai, table 3!”

Reet was listening to The Local Train on her earbuds, while Anuv got a call. He left his seat and walked toward the garden just outside the canteen. Chotu placed two cups of chai in front of Reet, then hurried off before she could say a word. Frustrated, she looked around, trying to spot the guy with the same shirt, knowing the person at the counter had mixed up the orders. Ironically, the canteen began to fill up fast as the first half of the day ended. The table where Anuv had been sitting was now occupied by a group of students.

She noticed him re-entering the canteen from the garden, looking down at his phone. Out of nowhere, she called out,

“Hey, cool shirt!”

He seemed surprised to see every seat taken and didn’t hear her at first.

“Hey, listen, your chai...”

Hearing someone calling, he looked up and realized she was talking to him.

“Hmm?”

“Your chai is on my table. Here, take it.”

He walked over, took the chai, and glanced around, realizing there wasn’t a single free seat. His eyes searched the room, looking for a place to sit.

Seeing the crowded canteen, she hesitated for a moment before offering,

“You can sit here. There’s nowhere else you can put your butt.”

“What’s the time?” he asked, looking at his watch.

“Help yourself!” she replied, noticing the irony of his question since he was already wearing a watch.

He realized how silly his question was and sat down quietly across from her. She put her earbuds back in and began scrolling through her phone while sipping her chai.

Once again, he noticed her vibrant hair, which seemed to perfectly match her personality. He pulled out a diary from his bag and started jotting something down. Reet had always been fascinated by people with books or diaries—it was her thing. She couldn’t help herself and asked, looking at the diary,

“Are you a writer?”

“A writer who keeps his writings secret.” he replied, glancing at her.

She couldn’t help but be impressed and satisfied with his answer. They exchanged smiles for the first time and introduced themselves while sipping their chai.

“So, how does it feel to leave college? I’m sure you’ve made some great memories and had a lot of fun with your friends!”

“Yeah! These were the best days of my life, mostly because I was away from the chaotic and toxic atmosphere at home. I’m not ready to leave behind the life I had here. I don’t want it to end like this. I wish I had a few more days to feel this comfortable with the people I love. I’m really going to miss my friends, the classroom, the professors, and my hostel room where I made so many great memories.”

He felt sad hearing about the situation at her house, but he didn’t want to bring it up and make her feel worse. Instead, he asked, “Where are your friends? Why are you here alone if it's the last day with them?”

“I was too emotional to face them. They’re probably waiting for me outside the college.”

He started writing something in his diary again but was interrupted by her next question.

“So, is this what you always wanted? Teaching college students? Being a professor?” She asked curiously, her thoughts lingering on her own ambitions. She was considering the same path—pursuing a PhD and becoming a professor one day.

“Nah! But this is where life led me. I just never stopped working hard and took every opportunity life threw at me. I grabbed them all, and here I am, just following life’s path.”

She nodded, her eyes drifting from his face to his shirt.

“I have the same one, you know.”

“What?”

“The shirt you’re wearing. I have the same one.”

They had both finished their chai, but they sat there for a long time, lost in their conversation. There was something about Anuv that fascinated Reet. He had a calm demeanor, a genuine smile, and eyes that seemed to understand people, their struggles, and their stories. Anuv felt the same about Reet. She had a youthful face with a poker expression, but when she spoke to him, her eyes said so much more. Those eyes were filled with both failures and hopes, searching for a place where she could just be herself.

Suddenly, her phone rang. It was her friends, shouting at her for disappearing for so long. They were waiting for her.

“Time to go, Anuv.”

“Yeah, I have a class to teach.”

“I hope life always takes you to places where you feel happy and at peace.”

“Yeah!” he smiled, looking down for a moment. “And I hope you find peace in the middle of all the chaos. You’ll be fine, Reet. You’ll be happy and strong once you accept life as it is.”

Those words caught Reet off guard. Her heart skipped a beat; she knew exactly what he meant. Most people never noticed that part of her, but he did. Still, she didn’t let her face show any emotion. She was good at hiding her feelings in a crowd.

“Bye.” she said, looking directly into his eyes. She could see the different colors within them.

“Bye.” he replied, glancing at her brightly colored hair one last time before meeting her gaze and holding it for as long as he could.

They took opposite paths. Reet decided not to look back. Her heart was pounding as the distance between them grew, a strange feeling washing over her. She found herself wishing he would stop her. She kept telling herself not to look back and quickened her pace. Just as she was about to cross the garden, she heard:

“Reeeeet…”

She stopped, took a deep breath, and paused for a moment before turning around.

“Here! You forgot your earbuds.” Anuv said, slightly out of breath from rushing over.

“Oh! Yes, sorry, I forgot!” She took them from him with shaky hands, trying to avoid his gaze, unsure of why she felt so nervous.

“Thanks!” she said, finally meeting his eyes.

“Alright then, take care of yourself, okay?”

“Yeah, of course! You too!”

They turned to go their separate ways again. Reet had just started walking when she heard Anuv call out:

“Hey, I’m sure I didn’t mention that I write poems. Would you like to read some over two cups of chai?” The words slipped out before he even realized what he was saying.

Reet turned back to him, looked into his eyes, and nodded with a smile. They decided to meet that evening after college.

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To the beginning of an end...