Ragini had managed to reach Dadar Central Railway station early. Her train for Chennai was to leave at 4:30 in the afternoon. It would be a relatively fast journey as 24 hours was super-fast for the 1328kms that the train had to cover.She entered the train and made her way to the second-class sleeper compartment where she had a reserved seat. She was seated next to a family with a couple and a small child. They asked her if it was okay for her to sleep on the top-most berth. She didn't have any problem with that. That way she figured that she could sleep longer in the morning as the middle and lower berths were arranged pretty quickly to accommodate for the seated passengers once they woke up. Being a teenager meant she liked to sleep long hours. Also, having just finished her exams she looked forward to some extra rest.The evening earlier she had told two of her internet friends that she would be arriving in Chennai in a couple of days. There was one guy called Kishore and one girl called Rama. Kishore and Rama didn't know each other. Ragini had become friends over the months with each of them separately. Rama had asked Ragini if she could call her from her cousin Asha's house on the coming Friday. Then they could try and meet up over the weekend. The plan was to meet maybe at the beach that was supposedly not far from Asha's home. Kishore had also given Ragini his home telephone number and he hoped to be able to meet Ragini as soon as she reached. "That would be awkward", Ragini thought while she was watching the train leave the railway platform on time at Dadar station.Everyone was settled in. Ragini read the novel she had brought along with her until the train reached the first big station. Soon, the sun had set and reading inside the train was difficult.She then generally found herself getting hungry and looked at what she had got along in her big hand bag. Since her mother was now generally always tired and sickly, Ragini didn't carry any home-made food. She found a packet of cream biscuits and drank what remained of her water. She ordered the railway canteen meal for later in the night when the person from a passing canteen staff member.Having settled in well, all the passengers in the compartment seemed to want to start up conversations.The family travelling with her asked her a lot of questions about why she was travelling alone, etc. Ragini didn't mind. She loved telling stories about the people in her life. She was also very curious, so she listened intently to some anecdotes of their life they shared. Someone started singing a popular Hindi-movie song and they all found themselves immersed in the melody.Before she knew it, Ragini had eaten dinner, climbed up into her berth and fell asleep super quick. The next thing she knew, she woke up sweating. It was already quite late the next morning.The family with whom she was travelling asked her to join them for breakfast at the next station. Apparently, it was famous for very good vadas and idlis. Ragini was excited about eating a hot breakfast and returned to her seat, waiting impatiently. While she was waiting, she looked across and saw the young girl who had sung the song the night before. She realised that the girl was probably her own age. She started a conversation with the girl, whose name was Radhika. Ragini was wondering why she had not noticed or chatted with Radhika the night before. She seemed friendly and they both were soon talking about movies, singing, fashion and their favorite shopping spots in Mumbai. At breakfast and the lunch that followed, Ragini learnt a lot about Radhika. Apparently, Radhika would probably be getting married to a boy in Chennai the next month. Radhika’s parents, whom she was travelling with, were convinced that it was a good match. Their horoscopes matched, the families knew each other from years and even though Radhika didn't remember it herself, she had even played with Kumaran as a child.Ragini was quite concerned whether Radhika would like the prospective groom enough to get married so quickly. She realised that she had had such a different upbringing and so much freedom. She thought of her old parents with a feeling of gratitude. Even though she was an only child, she was not raised by over-bearing parents. Her father was a free-spirited thinker and her mother was busy in her own world most of the time. They of course loved Ragini a lot and made a lot of sacrifices for her daily, but Ragini was not their sole focus. The day passed by in chats, exchanges of email addresses and a lot more singing.Chennai station would soon be arriving and all the passengers, Ragini included, started getting their stuff ready. The green landscapes whirling by outside the window were soon starting to have a more urban look and feel.Ragini missed her home and her family already but pushed those thoughts aside.
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