I still
remember the date. It was an usual sunny day in May 2012. I was just packing my
bags for the two months long summer vacations. It was also the end of my first
year of engineering. I just wanted to run away from Trichy considering two
things, one I was no more a junior after that day and secondly I was never a
victim of forty five degree Celsius of temperature before. Packing was one of
the tough job for me because my mother used to help me in such things.
I came to
remember to buy some necessary things and some snacks at the last hour. Also I
had to take the printout of my ticket. Though Indian railways had allowed the sms
tickets from that month, you should have a backup in India as unexpected things
were always waiting for us. I rushed to shopping center and got those things.
When I reached at hostels, the cab driver was already there dialing my phone
number again and again. Tamilians are born punctual and I had to install the
‘punctuality’ in my system later. I had only five minutes to get my all things
if I wanted to reach the railway station on time. My roommate was not there in
the room. So I took one paper and wrote greetings to him and sticked it on the
wall and left the hostel after fifteen minutes.
The cab
driver never stopped blabbering and it was actually scaring me that I would not
make it. The traffic accelerated my heart beats. There was an announcement of
my train when I reached. I kept the change with the cab driver and hurried
towards the platform. The AC coach was too far to take chance. Hence I got into
one of the sleeper coaches and started to move only after the train started to
run. First I thanked my luck for getting me into the train. Finally I reached
at my allotted seat and I settled the luggage. The TT came after two hours to
check the tickets. I proudly took out my smartphone and showed him. He gave me
a dirty glance and started blabbering in Tamil. I requested for the English and
he explained me. The pan card number registered for the verification was wrong.
Obviously it was! As the ticket was booked by my friend and he would have
entered his number.
The TT
agreed to allow me in the train only if I submitted the print copy of the
ticket as a token of proof. I breathed deeply and opened a pouch to give him
the ticket. Unfortunately the ticket was not there. Again I received the dirty
look! He gave me some time to search the ticket till he finished all the
checking. I took more than a hour but the ticket was nowhere. I checked each
and every corner. I tried to remember all the things I did that day
sequentially. But I was damn sure that I kept the ticket in my pouch as I
believed so. The TT came again and said that he used to meet people like me
everyday who try to fool the system. My throat was cold enough not to speak
anything. I convinced him a lot. But as usual Tamil people who are nothing but
the masters of discipline are hard to melt. I agree that discipline is
necessary in our life till it looks like a punishment. The TT told me that
practically I boarded the train without a ticket. So I had to pay three
thousand and five hundred rupees for that booked seat of mine. I counted the
cash and it was only two thousand bucks. He offered me a seat in sleeper class
with a sarcastic smile like he had succeeded to find out one more fraud. Again
I moved all the luggage to sleeper class. I did not even have money to buy
meals. First I finished all the snacks with me. Then I controlled myself from
the smell of food from the pantry car which I used to hate usually. But It was
tempting that day. One old couple shared their food with me in the night. I
took their phone number to express my gratitude later.
Finally I
reached my home and my mother cooked delicious dishes every day. But I could
not forget the incident. The two months flew away shortly and I once again
returned to college with three print copies of ticket this time. As I entered
into my hostel room all the things were there as before. My roommate was yet to
come. The message on the wall got my attention which I had written for my
roommate. “Hey, enjoy your holidays and make them memorable. So that you can
pass next four months in this hell by remembering the memories. Bye. Have a
happy and safe journey!” I tore that paper and whoa!!
It was my
missing TICKET!
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