I had been thinking about a complex physics problem for a long time. But I couldn't find any way through it from beginning to end. The problem wasn't particularly difficult; it was just outside our syllabus. I kept thinking about what Rashidul Hasan Sir used to say — that only three people understood Einstein's theory of relativity. And my problem was based on Einstein's theory of relativity.
A spider sat crouched in the corner of the shelf, waiting to catch insects. Two or three geckos were circling around the light bulb with the same hope. And there I was, circling around Einstein's theory of relativity just like them.
The persistent ring ring of my phone tore through my web of thoughts in one swift stroke.
: Hello! Chiku?
From the question alone I could tell it was my friend Prince.
: Yes, it's that very Chiku you all call me.
I gave a short reply.
: Listen, those two girls we saw yesterday — they go to Eden College. I've tracked them all the way to their house.
Prince burst out excitedly.
: Well, good! What's the profit or loss for us in that?
I suddenly blurted out like an idiot.
: Good God, you really don't know how to make the most of things! You and... Listen, I'm pursuing both of them.
Prince spoke in a slightly heated tone.
: I'm not very interested. You can do whatever you want. Don't drag me into this anymore.
I tried to stop him.
: Then at least give me your proxies. And after college, take your car and wait in front of 'Chitra' for about... say, half an hour. Okay, bye bye...
With a click, he hung up the phone.
I forgot to mention — under pressure from my college friends, my nickname Chiku has become more popular than my real name. I don't object much, and they enjoy calling me that. My physical condition is the main reason for it. A six-foot man weighing 88 pounds. If I walked down the street at night, not just people but even the street dogs would be startled, thinking I'm a ghost. So what else could my name be but Chiku!
But I didn't try any less because of it. I left no stone unturned — doctors, quacks, hakims, fakirs, dervishes — I tried them all. But nothing worked. So finally I thought, whatever will happen to my body's health will happen naturally. As a last resort, I threw myself into improving my mental health.
Since I write some stories, I have a bit of a reputation in my friend circle. Whenever anyone falls into love troubles, friends come running to me. And when it comes to proxies, it's also Chiku. That's why Chiku is so popular.
By the time I finished practical class and came out, it was almost three o'clock. I came out to find the driver waiting for me with the car. I told him to go and stop in front of 'Chitra.' I closed my eyes and thought about the experiments I had just finished.
: Should I stop here, brother?
The driver's words jolted me awake. The car had already come to a stop beside 'Chitra.' The blazing sun was overhead. It felt like the sun was penetrating the car roof and hitting my head directly. Besides, these old three-door jeeps aren't particularly comfortable anyway. I was sweating sitting in the car. An hour passed instead of the promised half hour, and there was no sign of Prince. Just then he appeared from behind. I opened the door for him. And told the driver to head home.
: Don't even ask! It doesn't look like the rice will soften easily. She really gave me a hard time.
He said all these words in one breath and stopped.
: She's going to make a fool of you.
I replied.
: Not so easily. What am I lacking? Drop me at that corner up ahead. They'll come through here in a little while.
Prince said loudly. I dropped him off.
It's been about two weeks since I heard anything from Prince. I've been regularly giving his proxies. I was thinking of calling him. Just as I finished class and came out, I saw Prince standing there. As soon as he saw me, he shouted, "Victory!" Then he took out two tickets to 'Jawan' from his pocket and waved them two inches above my nose before walking away. I didn't need any further explanation.
I was driving toward the end of Bailey Road when I suddenly saw a huge crowd on the street. I told the driver to stop the car. I got out and pushed through the crowd to see an overturned rickshaw. Beside it lay a girl (from school or college, I couldn't tell) quite badly injured. The rickshaw puller was also seriously hurt. I heard from people in the crowd that a CNG had hit them and driven away.
Many in the crowd were making various pleasant and unpleasant comments, but no one was coming forward to help them. I left the rickshaw puller in the care of a few people. Then with the driver's help, I carried the girl to the car. I turned the car around and set off again. I reached PG Hospital and quickly took her to the emergency department. The doctor told the nurse to take her to the operating theater. The nurse took her away. Her bags were still in my hands. I found her name, address, phone number — everything. She was a final-year school student. I called her home from the hospital.
Soon after, her parents arrived in tears. Her father kept saying, "Son, if you hadn't been there today, God only knows what would have happened to her!" Her father had gone to arrange a cabin for her. Her mother asked me what I did, where I lived, and so on. We sat outside the operating room. The operation took about half an hour to complete. The nurse wheeled her out on a trolley. The doctor said the injuries weren't too serious, they just had to put in a few stitches.
She hadn't regained consciousness yet. The tiny droplets of sweat on her snow-white face, catching the bright neon light, were dazzling my eyes. I gave her mother my phone number and said, "Please let me know how she's doing at night. I'm leaving now. If it gets too late, my mother will worry."
When I left the hospital, it wasn't very late at night. The neon lights on the street were sparkling all around. The advertisements were flashing on and off... LG AC, TV, refrigerator... My eyes seemed still dazzled by that neon light falling on her snow-white face in front of the hospital operating room.
According to Einstein's formula, E equals MC squared. Then surely (in my opinion) attraction ultimately becomes love. The car was speeding toward home with a whooshing sound. I turned on the player. Manna Dey began to sing, "Oh why did she become so beautiful / turning back like that... / Of course I would be enchanted seeing her, / I am human after all..."