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| Aerial view |
Way too cosy newly married couples bore and irritate me like wailing children. And the lucky me has both close by as I take the Rajdhani back to Mumbai.
One of the couple's seat is here and the other a few coupes away but both decide to sit together (understandably) here in my coupe (no, why?). Well, to be fair, since they are sitting extremely close to each other, they are occupying only one and a half seat between the two of them. But their wares - bags, food, etc takes away another one and a half seat. With one reservation, therefore, they are occupying three seats leaving others to figure out space.
One young gentleman who was with us when we boarded seems missing but I am too perturbed by the couple to notice. Objectively speaking, there is no 'couple' issue yet. All sorts of traveling people are oblivious to using space judiciously. This could therefore been coming from a father-son, friends or even siblings traveling together. But here is where the story thickens.
The man moves to an empty space in front of him. The woman winces. He explains that he wants to straighten up his legs. He is now sitting next to me. Before Maggi is cooked, the woman jumps over to his side and snuggles to her man . Now there are three of us and for an onlooker, we may be one odd 3 member family with a cuddling couple and an odd guy. I feel the discomfort and decide to take a walk across the compartments. When I am back I see the guy stretched over the whole seat, his head on the lap of the woman, napping. I try and find some space across and sit like a thief, crouched and crumpled.
Then I notice that my napkin is wrapped around the man's face, so that he is not bothered by the sun rays. That was MY napkin. Lovingly given by Indian Railways.
After sometime the guy wakes up. While I am still seething with anger over my napkin and my space, both of which are theirs by now, the woman pulls the guy's cheeks and keeps doing that while on a call with someone. My fellow passengers notice but ignore. After sometime, she kisses the guy. Only a peck on the cheek, nothing fancy. But that draws everyone. The uncle beside me, a girl and another uncle across. Then she declares something like she won the bet! Well woman you may see yourself as a gladiator but we didn't pay to watch this match!
Embarrassed, and wondering what's in store, the uncle pours into his mobile, the girl on to her book and the other uncle outside the window leaving me to wonder what to do. I chose to move into my berth upstairs. And as I climb up, I notice the other gentleman across, long lost, gaping at me with that look, exasperated.
