Timeless - Collection of Indian Short Stories

KRYSTALL

It wasn't supposed to happen this way. Teesta had it all planned out. Her 21st birthday in the year 2051.

She was supposed to go on a road trip with her best friend, across India. The rivers, the mountains, the monuments, they had planned to see them all in her dad's old nano-moto. But Divya backed out the night before, stating she had just received the appointment letter for her job and couldn't delay her joining.

"But we planned this months ago!" Teesta protested over the virtual call. The electromagnetic signals forming Divya's likeness in front of Teesta looked very sorry.

"I am sorry darling, can't we plan this for next year?"

Disappointed, Teesta shut the virtual system.

She couldn't brood on her birthday eve. In a flash she decide to go on a solo trip. She wouldn't let the year long exercise of convincing her parents for the trip, go in vain.

The next day she packed a few comfortable clothes, and headed towards her yellow nano-moto. It was one of the older two seater cars, with a maximum speed capped to 180 kmph. But Teesta didn't care, she didn't intend to go beyond 150 kmph anyway in this self driving car.

Hitting the expressway, she found it to be quite deserted, though the airway above was heavily congested with the latest flying nano-motos. Teesta played the latest trending songs, as the car drove on, requiring minimal intervention.

Starting from her home town in Alwar, she drove towards Delhi, reaching it within a couple of hours. Enjoying the famous Chole Bhature and Chaats at various road-side food vendors, she admired the famed historical structures spread across Old Delhi. These green spacious monuments were a stark comparison to the isolated concrete high rises of Alwar. Taking a stroll through the Lodhi Garden, she pulled out her buzzing phone to check on the messages.

'New Match Found!'

She read the notification on the latest app Krystall that she had downloaded.

She had chatted with a couple of guys before, but it had all fizzled out, in between her exams and internships. Though not a big fan of virtual dating, she used the App since none of the guys she met till date had caught her fancy, and meeting guys at bars and clubs always carried the risk of catching a virus.

Wondering how people found partners before Krystall, Teesta absent mindedly clicked on the new notification.

Siddhartha Sharma, 24 years, Jaipur, Genetic Engineer, Enjoys music, food and travel, Compatibility match 98%

The photograph of an attractive guy with round specs smiled at her. His hair were curly and he had a slight beard on his face.

Browsing through his profile, she found several of his pictures clicked in different parts of the world. One album that caught her particular attention was titled 'Delhi - Haridwar - Nainitaal'. He had driven through the same places that she had intended to travel in her solo trip.

Closing the application, she headed out of the garden. Sipping tea while seated in her car, she messaged her new match.

'Hi'

She waited a second before her phone beeped back.

'Hey there! I see it's your birthday today. Wishing you a very happy one. What plans for the day?'

Teesta stared at the auto responses that shot up at her from the app.

She chose the first one.

'Thank you.'

She waited for the app to throw some more suggestions for conversations. Finding 'Partying with friends', 'Spending quality time with family', 'Movies and chill' and other responses inappropriate for her current situation, she proceeded to write her own response.