P for "Pet Puja"

During my engineering days, I was in a very small town in Odisha. Blessed with the beaches, that place also had something that often gets unnoticed, "Super Affordable Food". You could get a complete meal with some variety at a hygienic place steps away from the college gate just at forty rupees. 

So eating out was a very regular deal for my college mates.

But I was perceived to be from a different breed. I was the person who barely ate out. Some people called me a miser while others looked after my reputation and rather called me a health freak. It was all going fine till the third year of college. 

But as soon as our semester 6 started, every single day after the first lecture I would meet my friend(now my lifeline) Shivangi who would ask me to come out to an eatery to have breakfast. Initially, I made excuses that I already had breakfast in the hostel, I am not hungry, and I am getting late for my classes. But she could see through all of them. We would go together and stuff ourselves till we are full, and after we were done, she would swiftly move and make the payments. I would then tell her it's my turn next, and I would pay the next time. She would silently agree and we would get to our class at least fifteen minutes late. The lecturer was too sweet to refuse us from his class.

The same story continued on most days for the next year or a year and a half. We would either be late in class because of having food outside, or we would go out and have lunch and be late for classes after lunch. Needless to say, she would go and make the payments on most days, never having me worry about the payments. 

I remember one particular day when we were having food at the same outlet. In came another common friend of ours at took a seat on the table just beside ours. Just after he joined he casually remarked, "This guy is robbing you off, he always makes you pay for the food you eat outside" 

"I would appreciate it if keep your nose outside our business", she responded with a stern tone. 

Though they thought I was not around I heard their conversation. 

When we came out after settling the bills, I couldn't hold it longer.

"Why do you keep sponsoring the food every time. On the days when I say that I don't want to come, you still manage to pull me with your puppy face. Why are you wasting your money on me". I asked everything I had to in just one go.

She took me to the bench in the garden and made me sit on it.

"You know, you become so sad when you are hungry, and I would prefer a happier Bhumik on any given day. I know that you are not able to have food properly in your hostel, and fall sick repeatedly because of it".

"You know I don't like to eat unhealthy food outside na"

"Just shut your mouth off, don't do this unhealthy drama in front of me. I know where this all the unhealthy voices are coming from. Just take out your wallet, hand it all to me whatever you have in there. See that's where the problem is. I know you are too proud to tell this to anybody. I know that these two years your sister is paying for all your expenses, and every penny that you have to take from her upsets you too deep. I know when you were coming back to college from your internship last week you didn't eat anything on train for the two whole days because of it. I know much more than I can tell you now. Just know that I won't let you think twice before eating out now, because I know how much you love to stuff yourselves with these samosas, despite the unhealthy story that you keep singing in front of others, hurry we are again getting so late for next class, another stare this time for sure !!"

I was too overwhelmed to reply to her. 

I wondered how she came to know of all these, I barely told anybody from college about this. It was my closely held secret, and somehow she managed to break the barrier. 

Fast forward three years later...

Today I was a little sad about how things fared out on the last two days. Just after I called her, I received her callback in the evening today.

"Hello", I said.

"Kya khayga bol, mai abhi order kr deti hun", is the first sentence she spoke sensing all my inner turmoil just in a single word.

Here is me an here attacking the food
 that our teacher got for us