The river water gushed Past at cosmic speeds on a journey to nowhere just a few feet away. The monsoon-swollen river glinted in the sun, hidden with dark dangers seemingly inches away. Yet the picnic continued peacefully, after all, the previous day's hectic preparations. Shopping, arranging for the bus, collecting money, and finally, the early morning drive to the picturesque hill resort 40 km away on top of the world at about 8000 feet into the fairyland sky.
Avid party and picnic goers, Leena and Pradeep hardly got to see one another amidst all the action and the drama. 'Are you sure we need to carry chicken and fish too,' Leena seemed to have vegetarian tendencies the previous day.
'Why should we not? Do you mean cooking out there will be easier with vegetables? Sure the majority will not agree,' Pradeep was in charge of the kitchen with big aluminum pots, the cooking gas cylinder, and the stove.
'I was asking some guys, and they certainly want meat,' Ganesh had taken the initiative and done much of the dirty work. Having studied together for several years, the class group of 37 wished to celebrate impending graduation. One last fling in the Himalayan wilderness before degree colleges caught up, and they scattered like proverbial autumn leaves. Social media should keep them in contact constantly. Also, society has drastically changed, and people come together using different websites and mobile applications.
Leena did arrange the games and the music with enthusiasm. The fun came out of a bit of book she had bought at the flea market. She had played those crazy games in the classes too. Music blasted the hillside soon. Hindi, English, and regional songs left nothing to the imagination.
'We will get a moment together after lunch is made,' Pradeep was the eternal lover in quest of those little intimacies that kept love and feel alive. They had come close quite a while since the relationships needed time to blossom into reality. As we know that these online apps have been instrumental in bringing young people together. Besides, the future was quite a question mark regarding the family agreement, jobs, and careers after college education concluded. Real-life seemed light-years away after innocent classroom fantasies. Would everything turn out the way they had planned it?
A sumptuous lunch did, after all, the ceremonious give and take, appetites laid to rest. Leena and Pradeep did make it behind the single thorn-filled bushes at the periphery of the picnic ground. 'Past and future are uncertain, let us. Let the most of the living present,' Pradeep seemed realistic. Why don't we opt for it?
'I believe in the here and now too,' Leena seemed to live in no dreams either. She remembered the Principal saying at the morning assembly that nobody is indispensable! Life and service will go on, no matter what...Hectic intimacy took over, with oblivion taking over in eternal silence.
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