The Last Bus

The Last Bus

About love, strangers and coincidences

Nawang leaned back on his seat and scratched his chin, unconsciously enjoying the sound that his nails made against the skin and a rough field of growing facial hair. The sky was dull and it looked as if it could rain at any moment. He felt bored. Not having had enough sleep the previous night, he found it hard to keep from yawning now and then.

“Don’t stay up late and gamble with those useless ragamuffins”, Uma Sherpa, her landlady, had been clear to warn him. “You’ll end up losing business. There are lots of people who arrive early at the bus stop.” Nawang had smiled in his characteristic manner that could mean, “Yes I’ve heard you, but I don’t care”. But right now he regretted not having heeded her advice. There were still ten more days for the month to end and he barely had enough money left.

There was activity in the bus stop, but mostly due to people leaving Gangtok. His only hope was the last bus, scheduled to reach a couple of hours from now. But he also knew that it was a thin chance. Most of the people who arrived by that bus were locals and not tourists. So he wouldn’t be able to jack up the rates and neither could he fix a deal for a later tour. Feeling a little sad at his future prospects for the day, Nawang rolled down the window of his cab to let a buzzing fly out. He decided to wait inside. But, feeling bored after a while, he got out to have a smoke. Just as he lighted a match, it began to drizzle and the mild September temperatures dropped further. Nawang ran towards the covered area of the bus terminal.

“Hey Nawang”, a voice called out from behind. He turned to see the smiling face of Dewa.

“Hey Dewa!” he exclaimed, “no customers today?”

“What are you saying!”? Dewa looked genuinely elated “Just been back from Rumtek ” dropped off a group of foreign tourists who wanted to stay there a while; paid me really well, you know. I will also be taking them to Changoo day after tomorrow“.

”You’re lucky“, Nawang, despite his own miserable condition, felt happy for Dewa. ”I’m still looking for tourists“.

”Well, you have to be here early.“ Dewa said, ”When did you arrive?“

”Ah “ about fifteen minutes back.” Nawang answered hesitatingly.

“Oh no ” that’s too late and you know that.“ Dewa nodded his head regrettably ”You ought to have been here hours ago. Its late tourist season now . Make the most of it so you can save some extra bucks.“

”Yeah“, Nawang yawned and flopped down on a nearby bench. ”Here, have a smoke“. He offered his half smoked cigarette to Dewa, who gratefully acknowledged. After a few hard puffs, he handed back the stub to Nawang.

”Want to go to a movie tonight?“ asked Dewa. ”There’s a new action picture playing.“

”Nah ’“, Nawang said, ”no money! There’s still a few more days in the month and I got to eat.“

”I can pay for you“, offered Dewa, ” and you can pay me back later.“

”No thanks. Anyway, don’t feel like it either.’

Dewa sat down beside him. Nawang liked Dewa, though most of his other friends didn’t. They considered him to be too prudent, not quite the norm among taxi cab drivers. But Nawang liked Dewa, his kind words, thoughtful gestures and practical advice, though he rarely made any attempts to heed them.

“Have you been gambling a lot again?” Dewa asked. “How did you finish off all your money?”

“Yes”, Nawang nodded dejectedly, almost unable to hide his disgust at himself, “each time I think I’ll stop, I go on with renewed vigour. I don’t think I’ll survive here much longer. Perhaps I’ll go back to the village and do farming with my father.”

Dewa placed a compassionate arm around Nawang’s shoulder and patted him. “Oh no!” he said, “You just have to try harder. There’s still another bus arriving soon. Who knows you might find some tourists there.” Nawang nodded silently, though he didn’t feel as optimistic as Dewa.

They chatted for a while and then Dewa left. Nawang looked at the clock. There was still twenty minutes till the last bus arrived. But the rain had stopped. So he dragged himself to his taxicab and leaned back on his seat. A wave of laziness engulfed him and he closed his eyes. Almost instantly, he fell asleep.

He woke up at a light tap on his shoulders.

“Ji ” ji “memsaab *” (* Ma“am) He propped himself up on his seat. The lady in front of him was smiling.

”Do you want to be hired?’ she asked. Nawang noticed that she was carrying a backpack and a small suitcase. Without a trace of doubt she was a tourist. Dressed in a pair of jeans and a light yellow jacket, she appeared elegantly tall. Her fair complexion was almost glowing.

“Sure ” “, he promptly opened the rear door. ”Kahan jana hain*?“ (*Where do you want to go?)

She climbed in while Nawang handled her luggage into the cab.

”Did you arrive in the last bus?“ he asked.

She nodded, smiled and relaxed gracefully on the seat.

”Hotel Tibet please“ she said. Nawang felt a slight disappointment. Hotel Tibet wasn’t too far away. But who would want to turn away such a customer? ”It’ll be tough to crank up the rates in front of such a beautiful maiden“, he thought. But nevertheless he decided to give it a shot. ”That’ll be fifty rupees“, he said as he seated himself. As he was mentally preparing for a bit of haggling, he heard a soft ”okay” from behind. Gleefully surprised, he started the engine.

It was a little brighter now, with the sun having decided to come out from behind the fluffy white cauliflower-like clouds and cast its golden rays on the hills. Despite the rush on the streets, things suddenly appeared peaceful to Nawang. A spell of a shower had left Gangtok fresh and clean and Nawang loved the smell of earth.

“Where are you coming from memsaab?” Nawang inquired as they pulled out of the bus stop and headed for her destination.

“Bombay” she said. She was looking out of the window, a sense of quaint wonder in her large, clear, black eyes.

“Wow”, Nawang exclaimed, “The city of stars! How long will you be staying?”

“Oh” just a few days” she laughed.

Silent for a while, Nawang wondered if it would be right for him to offer his services for a trip around Gangtok, if she intended to go on one. Then he decided to get the better of his prudence.

“Memsaab, are you planning to visit the tourist spots?” he asked her as they stopped at a signal. “ ” Rumtek, ten points, Changoo ’“

”Yes of course“ she laughed, ”that’s why I’m here“.

”Then you can hire me memsaab“, Nawang beamed, ”best rates in Gangtok memsaab. No one can beat that; and very very flexible too, just as per your schedule.“

Memsaab laughed; a mellow, bell-like sound that sounded incredibly sweet to Nawang’s ears.

”Why sure“ she said, ”so how many days does it take to tour all these places that you just mentioned?“

They had reached the hotel. Nawang parked the car by the side of the road and got off. ”Three days should be reasonable“ Nawang sounded like a wise old man as he opened the rear door to let her out, ”but you could rush it in two. Its really up to you“.

He bent down and got her luggage. ”I’ll help you with these into the hotel“.

She looked at him and smiled. ”Thank you.’

Nawang, for a moment, lost his words, his thoughts and the will to move. Transfixed, he lost himself in those eyes. They were the most beautiful pair of eyes he had ever seen; large, clear crystals shining like pure sunlight on morning dew.

“You don’t need to talk when you have such eyes”, Nawang thought as they entered the hotel, “they speak for you and everything gets done by themselves.”

“This is for your help,” she offered Nawang some more money, which he hesitated to accept.

“No memsaab, its fine”, he grinned humbly.

“Please, I insist.” she said.

He was looking into her eyes. He never realized when the money came into his palms.

“What’s a good time to start tomorrow?” she asked.

“Nine o”clock memsaab. I’ll wait for you in the lobby here.“

”Good. Thank you“, she said and walked towards the reception desk.

Nawang watched her depart. Then, he slowly walked back to his cab. ”How could someone have such beautiful eyes?’ he wondered. On his way back he felt happy all of a sudden. The sun was close to the horizon, the crowd in the bus stop had thinned and a canopy of peace seemed to have descended all over. There was noise all around, but Nawang was deaf to them. All he could sense was the thumping of his heart and the smell of pure air. He met Dewa on his way to buy a pack of cigarettes.

“Hey Dewa” he laughed, “Let’s go to that movie after all. I changed my mind”.

The next morning was very bright. The sky was clear and almost without any trace of clouds.

“Memsaab”, said Nawang, “you are lucky. Kangchendzonga view from Tashi View point will be absolutely fabulous.”

As they drove away from the din and bustle of the lower Gangtok area along the narrow road amidst the panorama of green hills, it became quieter.

“Very beautiful”, Nawang heard her say. Dressed in an olive colored flannel jacket, a pair of blue jeans and sneakers, she looked even more attractive than the previous day. But her eyes hid behind sunglasses. Nawang wished she’d take them off. He had never found driving so effortless. Everything moved smoothly. It was as if the car drove itself.

“Are you a student memsaab?”

She was silent, absorbed perhaps in nature’s bounty. So Nawang had to repeat himself.

“No.” she smiled and replied.

They reached Tashi View point and climbed up a flight of stairs to the observation circle. She was silent. Mt. Kangchendzonga, tall, glorious, breathtaking, dwarfed them.

“Actually the views are even better during sunrise” Nawang said.

“Really?” she whispered. Something told Nawang that she wasn’t listening. She was looking at the mountains, her lips “ clear, smooth and perfectly shaped - slightly open. ”Could you please take a photograph of mine?“ she asked after a while, handing Nawang her camera.

”Squeank “ zip!” went the shutter.

“A Goddess amidst nature”, thought Nawang, “Both so beautiful! Perhaps different kinds of beauty, but so natural.”

“Thank you” she smiled, “do you want to have your picture taken too?

”Nahin memsaab“.” Nawang was a little embarrassed, “I can come here any time.”

Nawang headed down to the cafeteria below for a smoke and a cup of tea. All the while he thought of her pristine beauty, as nicotine filled his brain and the sun, the hills.

As they drove towards Changoo Lake, it began to get darker.

“That’s strange”, she exclaimed at the sudden onset of clouds.

“The weather here is quite unpredictable memsaab”, Nawang mentioned. Then to comfort her, added, “I think it will be clear in Changoo.”

“I hope so,” she said.

She was absorbed in the stunning vistas that nature presented one on the way to Changoo. Soon however, it began to rain, lightly at first but quickly transforming itself into an atrocious downpour; huge drops of water in a torrential descent created a tremendous din and greatly narrowed visibility. Nawang was well aware of the dangers of driving on narrow tortuous roads during such weather. He eased the car to a halt in front of a decrepit hut in the outskirts of a tiny village.

“We’ll wait till the rain stops memsaab”, he said, “Its very dangerous to drive now.”

“I agree” she said and eased back on the seat. “How far is Changoo from here?”

“About half an hour memsaab.” said Nawang, “Memsaab, would you like to have some tea?”

“That would be so wonderful” she smiled, “but where on earth would you get tea here?”

“Oh ” this is a small tea joint memsaab“, Nawang felt delighted to inform her, pointing to the hut outside which they had parked, ”I’ll go and get some.’

Then, without giving her a chance to speak any further, he rushed out of the vehicle. Soon he came back with a couple of steaming cups of tea, carefully wrapped in plastic. He was thoroughly drenched.

“Li jiye memsaab”, turning back, he offered her a cup. She had taken off her dark glasses and was looking at him. “Thank you”.

The kindness and gratefulness reflected from her eyes mesmerized Nawang. As she took the cup, a finger touched his wrist. Soft, delicate — like the petals of a rose! Suddenly Nawang felt he was dying and a beautiful fragrance enveloped the surroundings. Everything seemed golden and foggy, but he could clearly see her eyes that shone through the mist like a torch; and he could hear the faint sound of her laughter gradually fading away “ ”Thank you “ thank you ” thank you ’“

~ ”Hey, don’t you want customers?“ Dewa nudged him awake. ”The last bus has just arrived. I think there are some tourists“.

Nawang found himself in his cab, Dewa leaning against it, smoking. A fly buzzed around his nose.

”Where’s memsaab “? It was raining ”“ Nawang looked around, quite flabbergasted.

”Dreaming, eh?“ laughed Dewa, ”well you’d better hurry before someone else gets here. I can see some tourists. And yes “ some pretty memsaabs too”. He laughed and walked away.

Lazily Nawang got out of the car and headed towards the bus. Passengers were still getting off. He spotted three young tourists, a two men and a woman, arranging their luggage. “Saab, taxi chahiye kya *?” Nawang asked the man in front of the group. (*Sir, do you need a taxi?) “Yes.” he mentioned.

“Chaliye saab, naya taxi hain.*” Nawang said. (*Come sir, I have a new taxi.)

The man took a look at Nawang, smiled and said, “Thik hain. Chalo * ” (*Ok, lets go.)

Then he turned to his friends and said “Okay let’s get going folks. We’ve got a taxi”.

They began to walk towards Nawang’s cab. After they had walked a bit, the man stopped and turned. Another woman with her back to them was still near the bus trying to get her things in order. She bent down to pick up her backpack. Nawang didn’t realize that she too was with the group, till the man called out to her, “Lena, do you want to be left behind. Hurry up now!”

“I’m coming!” she turned around and began to walk towards them. Suddenly she was in full view of Nawang, whose heart skipped a beat. He felt numb and everything around seemed to come to a standstill. All he could see was the woman who was now walking towards them, her face, her clothes, her eyes!

“We’ll go to hotel Tibet” the man addressed him. But Nawang couldn’t hear a thing. He felt slightly dizzy. A whisper escaped his lips, as he stood agape, staring at the clear, black, radiant eyes in front of him “ "Memsaab?”

---x---