कुछ मंज़र यूँ ही, आओ फिरसे चलें..!

आओ फिर चलें ख़्वाबों के उस भंवर में, जहाँ हो बस तुम और मैं

चलो फिर चलें उन् खुली हवाओं में, और लिखें कुछ अफ़साने रेत पे

उन् सपनों की दुनिया में, जहां वक़्त का कोई तक़ाज़ा न हो

बस तुम हो और मैं हूँ और हमारे कुछ जज़्बात हों

क्यों खो गए हैं हम इस दुनियादारी में 

क्यों छूट गए हैं हम इन् चार दीवारों में

क्यों न आज हम फिर थोड़ा खुल के जीयें

क्यों न आज हम फिर खुद को आज़माएं

जानते हो, मेरी ख़्वाबों की दुनिया में, एक छोटी सी चिड़िया आई है

धीमे से आकर उसने कुछ मधुर सा, एक गीत सुनाया है

आओ न उसे हम भी गुनगुनायें

थोड़ा हसें, थोड़ा मुस्कुराएं और थोड़ा सा चहक लें

क्या तुमने महसूस किया, इन हवाओं की खुशबुओं को

क्या तुमने देखा उस उड़ती हुई तितली के परों को

चलो न आज हम इन् लम्हों को चुरा लें

और कैद कर इन्हें, अपने साथ लम्बी उड़ान भरें

Marry me..!

“Marry me.” Ashish said.

Ashish and Shobha were best  friends since their school time. They weren’t found always together but they always knew that they were there for eachother. Ashish had been working on the prospect of going to US for his Masters degree since 2 years. He was finally invited by the University of West Virginia and was to leave the next day. It was just impossible for him to leave Shobha in this state when she was so devastated because of her broken first love. He just didn’t know how and what to convince her since he couldn’t see her like this. So, the only thing that had popped out of his mouth when he saw her crying was “Marry Me.”

Shobha had loved Raj from the bottom of her heart. He was her first love. He was the man of her dreams. He was handsome, cheerful, chivalrous, good humored and loved her a lot.. Or at least she felt so. She had been away for an internship for couple of months and when she was back, she had seen Raj with another girl. Her heart ached at the feeling of her first love being rendered unfulfilled. She felt the stabbing pain of his betrayal every minute in her heart, mind and soul.  She hadn’t stepped out of her house for last one week but finally had gone to meet Ashish since he was leaving for the US the next day. That is when Ashish looked at her and the first thing he had said was “Marry me.”. She knew it was not a question from him. It was just a statement. They both loved each other since their childhood times but it never meant anything in a romantic way. They were more like siblings. But she understood the intention behind his words. He just wanted to protect her, take care of her and wipe away all of her pain. He just wanted her to be happy and it left him devastated to see her like this. She knew the implications if she said a yes to him. He was going to study in the US and he was just not ready for a relationship.. And definitely not a long distance one. Shobha wasn’t ready for a relationship right now either. She just didn’t want to be in love right now. And, definitely not with her best buddy.

Shobha went to Ashish, gave him a big hug and a big cheerful smile and said, “I promise I will be okay after you go. Go and chase your dreams Ashish :-)”.