A Rainy Day in the City

He sat crouched one the narrow wooden panel by the bay windows and watched the rain incessantly lash down on the city. The city traffic packed as ever seemed to crawl as cars buses and bikes were being drenched by the lashing August rain. He felt a strange comfort knowing he wasn’t down there, as he snuggled the warm cup of green tea in his hands.

Nellie McKay was playing in the background but her soft voice was drowned by the din coming from the open kitchen nearby. The sound of the chopping board punctuated her mellifluous singing. “It was just one those things” McKay sang. And there she was, her black hair tied in a top knot as she made steamed momos. He looked at her once, turning away from the bay window. She was earnestly alternating between stir frying the chicken on the pan and chopping the veggies. He smiled softly as he saw her beautiful face.

“What is this new nonsense of turning veg” she enquired, a tad irritated. She would’ve ideally loved to make just chicken steamed momos without having to make a veg option for him. He smiled back sheepishly.

This meeting was an unexpected one. He had come to the city for some official work and had planned to get back the same evening. His work was done a couple of hours earlier than he thought it would. He decided to surprise her with a visit.

“You’re lucky I’m home you know. Come in unannounced and usually you’d not find me home. Harsh is out of town and I have the car to myself. It’s just that the rains were too heavy today”. She always knew how to hide her joy at seeing him quite well.

“Yeah right. I know how much you love leaving your four walls”, he smiled to himself as he took off his jacket at the corridor.

She was about to make momos for herself with the leftover chicken and was happy she had company. His announcement that he’d given up meat surprised her, although she was used to his sudden whims by now. “Your latest fad eh”, she mildly rebuked him as she ruffled his wet hair. “Go dry yourself and let me make momos for you in the meantime.”

As he kept staring at the traffic and the city from the 15th floor apartment, he remembered a time when the city was his own too. The memories came back flooding as he sipped on his hot tea. Their high school years and then their sophomore years. Years of joy fun and laughter. Years of love.

Nellie McKay was now singing “How About You”, as he found himself dozing off by the window porch. He could still hear her voice in the background, chattering away over Ms McKay’s soothing vocals. He loved the fact that sometimes she didn’t even wait for his reply. She just loved talking. It was a sign that she was happy. She tended to clamp up at other times.

“Wake up and have the second best steamed momos and watch me devour the best of them”, she gently shook him from his slumber.

He woke up and looked at the two plates with the piping hot food staring at him from the adjoining dining table. The first bite of his momo took him straight back to the good old days of college. When they’d bunk their lectures and sneak in to see a movie midday, hiding their piping hot steamed momos from the ushers. The thrill of sharing a hot snack with her in the darkness of the movie hall came back to him as he devoured his momos.The spicy red sauce that accompanied it was also doing its job…watering his eyes, making them burn in pleasure. She looked at him in eager anticipation to know how they had turned out. He kept munching away, oblivious to her presence. He was way too lost in the past.

She kept staring at him for some more time, still hoping she’d get a reaction from him. But he was too lost to notice. She smiled softly seeing him enjoy his lunch. She knew she’d got her answer. She got up from her chair and went across to sit next to him. He was still devouring away his momos with gusto. She put her head on his shoulder as she put her arms around his arm. He looked up and turned to see her. This is…this is…awesome you know, he finally said his mouth still filled with food. She didn’t say anything in reply. She shut her eyes and kept her head on his shoulders. Her afternoon was perfect.

As he finished his lunch he looked up at her. She was still sitting next to him. Her chicken steamed momos untouched, sat on the beautiful china on the table.

“You better finish your lunch.”

“I’m not hungry anymore.”

They sat next to each other for the whole afternoon talking, reminiscing and laughing. It was as if time stood still that afternoon, as two friends revisited their lives with each other in intimate detail. And neither of them wanted to come out of it. The rains continued to play havoc outside, sweeping the dirt off the city. It was almost as if the cobwebs of time were removed to freshen up those memories all over again.

It was evening and both of them were now at her balcony as they watched the endless showers go on and on.

“Looks like you’ll miss your flight this evening”, she said without looking at him.

He looked at her and smiled knowingly. She smiled back as she buried her face in his shoulders.

Copyright (c) Pratik Majumdar, 2020. Any article, story, write-up cannot be reproduced in its entirety or in part, without permission. URL links can be used instead.