The Quikr Love Story

Hearts will never be practical until they are made unbreakable.

'Reply received to your ad :- I want more information. Please text me at 996******.'

He was keen to sell of the tablet that his uncle bought for him not knowing that he already bought the same tablet a week ago. He was glad he got a response to his ad so quickly but little did he know, that this text would end up being one of the most important texts of his life. 

He was Sarthak, a man in his early 20s, tall, dark and decent looking.  Sarthak had some strange qualities, he was ambitious and a procrastinator at the same time! More often that not, he was sarcastic and had a very dry, spontaneous sense of humor. Despite two heartbreaks, his faith in love wasn't shattered. However, he would feel a strange sense of incompleteness. When with friends, he would usually be very jovial but by himself he would usually be very mellow. Sarthak had never sold anything online earlier. Through penetrative advertisement, online classifieds like OLX and Quikr gained a lot of popularity. He tried his hand at selling the tablet off at some local electronic stores but the price that they offered didn't appeal to him at all and hence he thought of trying Quikr for the first time. Within a few hours, he got that text.

Sarthak saved the number as 'Buyer 1' in his phone and sent the person a text through whatsapp. Since the display picture was blank, he didn't know if it was a guy or a girl.

'Hi sir/ma'am, this is Sarthak, I am glad you responded to my ad, as you asked for, I am more than happy to give you whatever information you need'  

'Hi Sarthak, this is Aagya, I wanted to know about the specifications of the tablet from you but I googled them out and I am really keen to buy the tab. I am cool with the price you are offering and would like to buy it as soon as possible as I have to gift it to my father. I saw your location in your profile and is it ok if we meet at the Churchgate CCD in the evening, by 6ish and complete this transaction?'

For some strange reason, Sarthak loved her name! He was thrilled that the tab got a buyer in no time and that now he will have some cash to spend on other things! He agreed on meeting Aagya at the desired place.  Dressed in his typical attire, a 'Chandler Bing quoted' t shirt and shorts, Sarthak reached CCD on time. He searched for a woman sitting on a table alone, but he couldn't see anyone. He chose a table and sat there going through some tweets on his phone. As time passed by, his patience became his best companion. After a few more minutes, he saw a girl entering the cafe. Dressed in a 'F.R.I.E.N.D.S' t shirt and jeans, she had the most amazing eyes he had ever seen in his life! Her eyes had captivated him so much that he had to force himself to look away in order to avoid freaking her out! Sarthak somehow knew this girl is Aagya, she saw him and came upto him smiling and asked him if he was Sarthak and sat on the table.

'I am so sorry I kept you waiting, the stupid train halted randomly for too long!' 

'Its completely alright Aagya! Isnt it amazing that both of us are wearing T-shirts related to friends?!' 

Aagya was astonished at the coincidence and they went on discussing the intricacies of friends almost ceremoniously! They ordered coffee while Sarthak showed her the tablet. Going by the manner in which the two were conversing, it seemed like they had forgotten about the tab completely! Aagya told him that she worked in an advertising agency and wanted to gift her father this tab with her first salary. They exchanged the basic details of their lives to each other and spoke for almost a couple of hours conversing about varied topics! Aagya told him that she had a lot of difficulty opening up to someone usually but the ease with which she was being able to share incidents with him was crazy! Sarthak automatically noticed the little intricacies in Aagya and was absolutely blown away by all of them! The spark in those hazel eyes that would emerge whenever she would laugh, the cute voice that she had, the way she tied up her long luscious hair, everything seemed like the perfect package! Aagya was dumbfounded by Sarthak's spontaneity and humor! She was sick and tired of the guys trying to impress her by sending her barely humorous forwards, but this was such a refreshing change! But she was afraid. she didn't want to fall for him. she was afraid of anything related to love.

As they were about to leave the cafe, Sarthak got some cookies off the shelf and put it in the handbag that carried the tab with a little note saying :- Wish your dad a very happy b'day from my side too!' which he had written on a post it when she had gone to the washroom. He dropped her to the cab and bade goodbye, something he didnt want to do at all. He experienced a strange sense of sorrow as he walked away, he wanted to see those eyes again and turned around instinctively only to see that Aagya too was looking at him through the cab! 

When Sarthak sat in his room, he noticed something different about himself. He wasn't feeling any emptiness within him, after ages he felt alive! He couldn't help but realise that he was smiling! He almost never smiled when he was alone, he felt nothing less than wonderful. But just then a strange fear kicked in, he was afraid of his heart being broken again, he was afraid of thinking too much and therefore he tried to stop his mind from wandering in that direction. Just then he got a text :-

Thank you so much for the cookies Sarthak, that was so cute! Also I am glad you gave me the tablet at such a good price, but more than anything else I had an amazing time, thank you! 

The pleasure was all mine Aagya, never did I imagine Quikr would give me the opportunity to bond with an amazing person like you! I have never been able to converse with anyone with such minimal effort, I love our bond already! 

Same here! I was sick of all the creepy guys out there, the conversations i had with you were totally worth remembering! I think you are a complete sweetheart!
' 
Aagya could only think about his dimples when she sent the last text, all this seemed so crazy but real at the same time! She knew things had not worked out for her in the future when love was concerned and she always kept a foots distance away from it but this time she didn't want an inch's distance. 

Sarthak shut his eyes, pictured Aagya, and typed the following words almost automatically :-

For many years you have been
A part of my life on some way or another
You have always been deep within my soul
And once I looked into your eyes
I knew no other would ever,could ever
Steal my heart like you did in that very moment we met.

Without the fear of the whole 'what will she think' routine, he sent her the poem. After sending it, he felt his heart beat faster, he started freaking out a little thinking he moved too fast. But then he knew he meant every word he said and hoped Aagya would feel the correct vibes. Sarthak waited for her response, his best companion, patience chose to leave his side then.  

I cried a little when i read your last text, I always wanted someone that was brutally honest as well as romantic in nature, a combination I thought I'd never find. I am sure you too are gushing with a rush of feelings and this all seems too quick, but hey we got in touch because of Quikr! hehe! I wont be typical and hide my feelings with you, I don't want to meet you some more and take my own sweet time and decide about us as I already know you are the one.

Sometimes one meeting is all it takes and sometimes even after many meetings, emotions go down the drain. In this hi-tech world of new technologies emerging everyday, their story was the perfect amalgamation of the ways of the modern world and the traditional love at first sight concept that was almost extinct!

As Sarthak read the text,he went to the kitchen and made coffee, and he remembered a quote from Emily Bront :- She's more myself than I am. Whatever our souls are made of, hers and mine are the same.

Chocolate Sandwich

Have a bite no!!’ – said Sanyukta emphatically to Samarth, as the sandwich vendor continued to stare at her.

‘Aye kya dekhta hai be.. chup chaap sandwich bana.’ – said a not so amused Samarth as he opened his mouth to dig into the sandwich from her hand. No matter what mood Samarth was in, he couldn’t resist his all time favorite cheese and chocolate sandwich. He had discovered this delicacy at a road side stall called Mamaji’s. When he was about to try the sandwich for the first time, he was a little hesitant, the words chocolate and cheese didn’t mix too well in his head, but taking risks was in his veins. As soon as he had a bite, he got a foodgasm and instantly Samarth knew he had to share that experience with the love of his life, Sanyukta.

It had almost been two years since they were together! Samarth’s heart had never desired something as much as it desired Sanyukta as soon as he saw her. He had always been a shy person and mustering the courage to express his feelings to her took a lot of time but when it happened, there was nothing that could stop them. Sanyukta didn’t realize the storm of feelings that Samarth had for her upfront. She got hints at times, but she didn’t want to be one of those that misunderstand the other’s feelings. With time, she got the clarity she needed, and her joy knew no bounds.

They were an incredibly cute couple, the compatibility they had was fascinating.  Samarth loved every little thing about Sanyukta. Even though a considerable amount of time had passed since they were in a relationship, there were times when he would look at her and he would not be able to believe the fact that he was in a relationship with Sanyukta! She was so so gorgeous! He would naturally come up with new words to describe her amazing aura, like, Cutieful! He loved playing T.T with her and most of all he loved to make her laugh!  What attracted Sanyukta to Samarth was his amazing sense of humor. He wasn't the forward sending kind, but he was a natural at coming up with witty statements spontaneously out of nowhere! Sanyukta found this quality really endearing. She loved how he made her feel even when they would just be around each other doing absolutely nothing. Such things would keep reminding her how true and pure their bond was.

Love is an incurable disease they say, but if it is so, Sanyukta and Samarth were glad that they were infected. They had come to that sandwich stall after quite some months and Sanyukta loved every bite of it. But the last bite that she had, felt a little salty, which was strange as it was a chocolate sandwich.

Samarth loved her with all his heart and he wanted to spend the rest of his life with her. Though his wish was fulfilled, he didn't know his life wouldn't last too long. That night, Samarth was returning home after an excruciatingly long day at work. He was listening to his favorite playlist when he suddenly felt a piercing pain in his ears, a speeding SUV had rammed into the cab, the cab hit an electric pole and the impact was such that Samarth passed away on the spot.

Sanyukta got a call from Samarth’s mobile; a passerby broke out the news to her. She couldn't believe her ears! She thought this was one of Samarth’s pranks and she wanted to beat the hell out of him for scaring her like this. Sanyukta wished she could meet him to hit him, she wished he could feel that pain.

She rushed to the hospital where he was declared dead on arrival. She somehow mustered the courage to see his body, she felt an immense pain in her heart as she saw his face. Her heart didn't want to believe the fact that he was no more. The love that Sanyukta’s heart contained for him was so strong that her brain couldn’t help but agree with her heart.

The sandwich vendor stared at Sanyukta, he saw her holding the sandwich up in the air and mouthing the words, ‘’Have a bite no’’. 

If Schizophrenia is a disease, Sanyukta was glad she was infected.