4.

"Oh yes! In the next one, we'll improvise on that part some more, and the lathi scene needs to go, it confuses our audience."
"Sure, and are we rehearsing once more before we leave tomorrow or are we set?"
"We'll see! Guys,Its time we go home and get some rest, before that lets have a cup of tea at sutta point." suggested Dafli whom we named so because she was our dafli playing senior.
This was just another day in college for me, daily theatre group meetings after classes, practice sessions, chit chat and endless cups of tea with the group, who were not only my theatre buddies but also one of the best bunch of friends I had so far.
So here I was sipping tea, brainstorming and in peace with myself, just when the phone rang. It was an unknown number which had me in two minds about taking the call or not. I did, with a skeptical "hello"
"Hi, Am I speaking to Keya? said a male voice
"Umm, yes this is her, how may I help you?" I replied with an intention of cutting the call any second dreading this to be one of those annoying tele-marketing guys
"Ok! so how have you been? Its been months now" asked the voice
"Do I know you? can I know who's speaking? I asked curiously while my friends continued chattering in the background
"Hey, so you've gotten so busy that you forgot me already, new friend." the voice giggled making me more conscious and just when I was about to give up guessing it dawned on me. I only had one male 'new friend' in recent times, Deep. One cannot call us 'friends' as we lost touch the day I left his city. That wedding was one to remember, few magnificent days with family and 'new friends'. I had been so charmed by this man that I couldn't find the courage to even ask for his contact number or email ID while leaving, something I regretted for weeks. Now, after so many months, here he was on the other side of the phone. My friend found me.
"Deep. That's you!!!" I exclaimed so loud as to startle my friends who suddenly became interested in my conversation. I stood up from where I sat and walked towards a quieter corner.
"Oh, thank God! and here I started to think you really have forgotten me."
"Hey, no I haven't. So how did you even find my number?"
"I have my sources" came a flirty reply and an audible grin
Deep hadn't changed and so hadn't my love for his sense of humor. Our conversation lasted for 5 hours that evening. Later that night I realized that this was the first time I had ditched my friends in the middle of a tea session for a phone-call. It wasn't going to be the last time either.

I am asleep

There isn't any poetry coming from me in these times. These days, months, hours , the time span doesn't matter . Is it because there is too much calm living in my mind or too much turmoil?
 I get to work where I want to work , an opportunity to realize one of my dreams. I am one of the lucky ones to be granted a chance, so does that slow down poetry in me as if all we need to put our rhyming words is a feeling of exhilarating pain or happiness. For sure I am not overjoyed because I haven't made a complete position for myself in my career, there is more assessment to go before I can really say Bingo! Maybe that's the reason of my emotional neutrality. That sense of "wait till we get there" in fear of jinxing the awaited...
I am in no pain either, nothing acute to be more precise. Pain is so fundamental to our existence that there comes a point when you filter out unnecessary hurt on your own, so that leaves you with no drama, no frills. Is that the reason why I cannot bring myself to write?
Then there is that force that we feel the urgency to put into words. Dreams, love, unfulfilled wishes, death, life, nature... Its all around all the time. I have many a times described them before, is that the reason why I feel I have nothing more to say??
What am I waiting for? a good moment, a milestone..closure?
Maybe I'm only waiting for myself to return from someplace before we start afresh for another..

A breath kept short saving some air
were you nervous by my longing stare
I could feel your skin flush and  pound
she'll kiss me well was the beating sound
We closed our eyes, I cheated there
there was a smile in those eyes to swear