❝Those were the very first days of my college; days of fun and excitement, days of being independent and responsible at the same time. Each and every moment of it was blissful and the best part was being finally allowed to ride my own scooter. But the sad part for me was, it was a dull – second-hand scooter. It made me jealous looking at my friends and colleagues, flaunting their brand new scooters and bikes!
My father would always chide me for my riding skills, he always ensured that I ride cautiously on the road as most of the days I used to be late for my college no matter how early would I wake up in the morning.
One day while riding to my college, a school bus suddenly came from the wrong direction and I being a novice driver lost my control and ended up hitting a guy walking on the road. We were both mildly injured; he got some bruises on his hand and I ended up with scratching my elbow. I immediately apologized to him and offered help, but he said that it was ok and left without saying anything further.
I picked up my scooter and rode back to college and rushed to class as I was already late. I was finding it difficult to concentrate on my lecture and I kept thinking about the accident and the boy relentlessly.
After the college was over I rushed to the parking space and took out my scooter; I realized that I can’t keep this accident hidden from my parents, my scooter had visible scratches and dents all over. Since it was just a second-hand scooter, honestly, I was not feeling too bad about it.
On my way back home, I was thinking of excuses to ensure that I don’t get scolded by my parents, but to my surprise, I wasn’t scolded at all. In fact, they were just worried whether or not I was fine. Dad advised me to be careful next time and I was lectured to the point where I was made to promise them that I’ll drive my scooter slowly and would be safe in future.
The next day I picked my scooter and left for my classes. I reached college and as I was moving out of the parking lot, some seniors called for me. I looked down and tried to walk past them, but they asked me to stop.
A senior asked, “fresher?”
I managed to give a cursory nod.
The other said, “Sing a nice song for us.”
I responded in a low voice, “I don’t know how to sing sir.”
One of them said, “OK if you can’t sing, you’ll have to propose the first boy that arrives from the gate.”
I knew that they would make fun of me if I sing, so I reluctantly chose the other option.
I looked at the gate and my heart thumped, I slowly started walking towards the gate. I saw a guy entering from the gate. I quickly went to him and uttered, “Excuse me! I love you, they asked me to propose you,” and in a single breath, I said everything that I didn’t want to with my head closely fixed to the ground.
As I looked up, I was gladly shocked and I went numb. He was the same guy I met with an accident the other day. I noticed that he had a plaster on his left hand and he had covered it with his shirt. I begged, “I am so sorry, I am stupid, I did not know you were hurt so bad.” With a gentle smile, he said, “Calm down, it’s OK, and it is not as bad as it looks. Let’s go.”
The seniors saw me coming with him and were shocked and apologetic, as he happened to be a year senior to them. He dropped me to my class and gave me his number in case anyone troubles me.
As time passed, we started chatting and meeting in the college and going out together. He would always be caring for me, and till date, he is one my closest friend who is always there for me. Once a stranger, now he was my best friend. Even today, we laugh at the accident that made our friendship a reality.
Earlier, I used to be sad over my dull, second-hand scooter but the same old, second-hand scooter and that unfortunate accident earned me a fortune- a friend for a lifetime, a partner for all crimes and fun!
With this, I learned to value things and to be always grateful for what we have and how we are. That old scooter still remains in my house and it still dwells in my heart.❞
Submitted By: Nikita Bhatt
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This story is submitted as a part of the #ActivScooterDiaries serie
