Friend Request

Harshit kept on checking the profiles of different people on Facebook to get rid of his boredom. It was one of his most favorite things to do nowadays. The moment he was about to log out, a girl’s profile caught his interest. One of her friends was his friend too. Gunjan Tripathi, he read the name out aloud to himself, while checking out some of the pictures on her profile. Nothing extraordinary. He thought to himself. She looked like just another geek you meet on the street every day. With black half rimmed glasses on her fair face, long hair and a cute smile, she looked alluring in a mysterious way. Something about this girl intrigued Harshit.

He sent her a message on Facebook messenger and a friend request too: Hi dear! My name is Harshit Sahu. I am a third year engineering student and I stay at Malad. I was wondering if we could be friends. Please reply. I am sure we will be very good friends.

Harshit’s wait for Gunjan’s reply turned from hours to days to months to years. Almost three and a half. A day later, he had sent her a message again- Hi Gunjan. This is Harshit again. Have you seen my last message? Can you please reply back?

To his disappointment, she never replied back. Harshit had always considered himself good-looking all these years. He never had to try too hard to get female attention. It was something which he received naturally. Getting no response from a girl made him feel like he had been rejected. Even though it was on social media, he didn’t quite like it. After stalking Gunjan’s profile for a few days in a row, he gave up and moved on with things that actually mattered in life. He still had one crucial year to complete and his family had high hopes from him. Campus placements in college helped him secure a good job after completing his education. As time passed, he forgot about this so-called friend request he had sent to a girl named Gunjan Tripathi.

While returning home from work, Harshit spent most of his time on his cell phone rather than noticing what actually happened on the streets. Getting pick and drop service from his company actually gave him that liberty. One such day, he saw a message on his Facebook messenger app. It was a ‘Hi’ from Gunjan Tripathi. Harshit couldn’t believe his eyes. Even though he didn’t quite remember her, reading his previous messages to her made him red with fury. Who did this girl even think she is? Has she risen from the dead after 3 ½ years? After all these years, all she cares to write is one word and nothing except that. His big ego made him ignore her message. That’s what she gets for not responding to his messages at the apt time.

A few days later, Gunjan sent him the same message again. Just a Hi. Harshit chose to ignore her once more. A week later, she accepted the friend request he had sent ages ago. How he wished he would have cancelled this request when he had the chance. He was infuriated and felt like blocking her immediately. Yet a part of him was curious to know what this girl was up to. Ultimately, he decided to check Gunjan’s profile for the last time before he could click on the ‘Block’ option. And boy! Was he amazed? Her posture was erect and her body language oozed confidence. Unlike the timidity he had noticed in her pictures years back. The glasses had gone too; even though the cuteness was still intact.

After glancing through most of her pictures, Harshit was impressed and he hated it. Who the hell is this girl? Or is he actually falling in some trap he had created for himself? For days, nothing happened after Gunjan Tripathi and Harshit Sahu became friends on Facebook. Coincidentally, when both of them were online, Harshit was the one to initiate a chat. He was too inquisitive and by now, he had realized that the girl he had tried to approach was either too shy or too arrogant. It was high time he uncovered the mystery.

"Hi Gunjan. How are you?" Surprisingly, she replied seconds later and didn’t try to log out as Harshit had assumed.

"I am fine. How are you, Harshit?"

"Great. So, what do you do?"

"Nothing exciting. I am just a freelance writer."

"Why use the word just? If you enjoy your profession, there’s nothing like it. I am an electrical engineer and I love my job. If you are passionate about your writing, you should be more confident about it."

"I guess you are right. Confidence is something I’ve always lacked."

"Why is that?"

"Maybe because I’ve been told too many times that I’m not good enough."

"Don’t bother listening to the ones who put you down. Just be the way you are. Even if you are weird, it’s okay to be weird."

"Why didn’t I ever think of that before?"

"You can think about it now. It’s never too late. Is that the reason why you didn’t reply to my message sooner?"

Gunjan didn’t answer back for a long time despite staying online. Harshit cursed himself mentally for bringing up the topic. So far, things were going pretty smooth.

"I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have asked."

"It’s fine. You are actually right. I was not quite sure about myself. Perhaps that’s why I never replied to you."

"So, what made you change your mind now?"

"I desperately need a friend. Someone I can talk to about anything and everything without thinking twice. I’ve been feeling lonely nowadays."

"At least, you’re being honest."

Gunjan and Harshit ended up chatting for an hour. What started as a random conversation ended up being a revelation of sorts between two strangers. It didn’t just remain a one-time chat. They started chatting whenever they got the chance in their free time. They spoke about their respective work, life, relationships, current affairs and politics. What started as a way of passing time ended up becoming a habit. They chatted almost every single day and knew everything going on in the other person’s life; irrespective of the fact that they had never met personally. They had their own personal lives and there was this one hour which they had strictly dedicated to each other. It had become a custom.

Months later, Harshit insisted on meeting Gunjan. She refused a couple of times indirectly with different excuses making Harshit uncomfortable. Somehow, he couldn’t fathom her idea of not willing to meet him. Since they chatted every day, what was the harm in meeting once? Gunjan did agree much later, when she finally ran out of excuses. A time and place was decided and Harshit was present at the venue much earlier than anticipated. He just couldn’t contain his excitement to meet the girl who had been on his mind every second since the past few months.

He kept looking at his wrist watch as the seconds ticked. Every second seemed like an eternity to him. Gunjan arrived minutes later, wearing a bright yellow shirt and white pants. She had left her hair open and her face showed a slight touch of makeup, indicating that she had taken the efforts to dress up. Harshit lost his breath the moment he saw her entering the restaurant. She looked around everywhere and he didn’t bother to wave at her. He was too busy admiring her from the corner he was sitting at. When he had looked at her till his heart’s content, he waved at her before she could decide to go back. She approached him with a gentle smile on her face while he smiled broadly.

“It’s really you, Harshit!” Gunjan squeaked as she sat opposite him.

“What do you mean by it’s really me? Were you expecting someone else?”

She giggled like a five year old kid. “No. I actually thought you would end up being a 60 year old Uncle. I usually don’t trust social media for friendship and all. But I’m glad that you are the one I saw in those pictures. This is my first time, you know.”

Her statements amused Harshit and he leaned in towards her, slightly raising his eyebrows. “First time doing what, Gunjan?”

“Hmmmm. You know. Meeting someone you met online. I’m sure you must have met many people before. Since you’re really good looking and I’m really nervous.” She quickly pulled her tongue out. “Oops! I wasn’t supposed to say that.”

“I won’t lie I met a few people. But you have been the most interesting person till date. Even though I think you’re a bit weird.”

“A dear friend of mine told me that it’s okay to be weird. I’m just following his advice.” Harshit looked into Gunjan’s eyes which sparkled as she spoke. “You won’t believe me if I told you the different scenarios I imagined since the last 24 hours. I had a bad feeling that you would turn out to be a different person with a fake photo and fake profile. I end up slapping this guy and walking out of the hotel.”

“Hope you have changed your mind, now that you know it’s really me.”

“Of Course, I have, silly.” She thought for a minute. “Hope you aren’t regretting meeting me.”

“And why would I be? I knew what I was getting into. But I fail to understand why you had all those negative thoughts in your head. When I left home today, all I had thought about is having a wonderful time with you. Which is actually happening, so I have no reason to complain. Good things will happen to you only if you think positive, Gunjan. Even though you might not agree with the whole online dating thing, you won’t know much about it unless you dive into it.”

“You do have a point, Harshit. Throughout my life, others have taken decisions for me. Told me what is good and what is bad for me, without even asking for my opinion. I come from a conservative family. This is the first time, I’ve actually done something without telling anyone. I’ve never opened up to a stranger before. This friendship that we have been sharing since the last few months, is the best thing that has happened to me till date. It’s so special that I feared losing it, if it didn’t turn out to be true. I thought it’s better to live with a lie rather than knowing the reality and missing all the fun. I hope you are understanding what I mean.”

Harshit nodded his head and smiled at Gunjan.

“I do understand, Gunjan. So, what do you think about this meeting of ours?”

She pursed her lips and had a good look at him. “I really can’t say much. Maybe I’ll tell you when I’ve dived into the ocean and reached halfway.”

“Hope I stay in your life that long to listen to your answer.” Even though he said it in a sarcastic way, he intended on staying with her as far as he could. If he did get lucky!

“My heart says you will!”Gunjan and Harshit had a hearty laugh as they enjoyed this little moment together, unperturbed by the possibilities of the future. Unexpectedly that day, she did all the talking while he did all the listening and not the other way around.