When was the last time you shared an UMBRELLA with someone?

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As the monsoon( term used for rainy season in India) showers announce their arrival, the dusty umbrellas come out of their hideouts in Indian homes. You can find colourful mushrooms moving on streets in the rain showers, if you are an imaginative soul:p From the top view of a 50-floored building, they might look like slow moving black carrom pucks, just a mere guess. Its a lot fun walking in the rain, holding an umbrella, unless it has no holes:p The fun lasts till you see an obese friend walking with a polythene cover on his head. All you would need to do is welcome him/her under your umbrella with a constipated smile and vacate 5/6th of the Beneath-Umbrella space to cover-up the 300 pounder:p So, how was your last Umbrella sharing experience? when was the last time you shared an umbrella with someone? Mine was a completely new and strange experience. Its an unbelievable, unexpected( for me) and an interesting story with shades of a romantic thriller. On a mid-october rainy evening in 2005, i was sleeping in the bus while returning home from the college. The bus Stop/station where i should have got down had already been surpassed and when i opened my eyes, the bus had moved one stop further. I hastily stepped down soon before it could move one more station ahead. I had to walk back another 1 mile or so to catch another bus to reach home. It was slightly drizzling then. I started walking briskly with a loaded bag on my back and a book in the hand. Half way through, i caught up with rain. I did'nt know what to do, i did'nt even have an umbrella, i anxiously looked around for some roof/shelter. All my eyes could find is but one tea stall at a distance of 50m, i rushed there. Now this real story takes an interesting turn. The rainfall did'nt seem to get lighter at any juncture, i was a bit tense because it was getting darker. Its risky to walk alone in the twilight hours in that dense non-residential place where i was standing. I took a coin from my pocket, inserted it in the coin phone at the tea stall, called up my dad to ask whether he could pick me up. Luckily, he was there at home and obliged me. I felt relieved. My body and clothes were wet. As I was adjusting my hairs and clothing, i saw a tender beauty walking towards me( i mean, the tea stall). Her face was'nt clear in that failing daylight, so i can't rate or describe it. But it was good enough to sense her angelic beauty. The perfume she wore was tantalising. She stood besides me with an umbrella in her hand. Without acting too smart or silly, i stood quiet and undisturbed behaving like a gentleman, infact, i am:p I did'nt understand why she stood there alone in that tea stall when she had an umbrella!:p I sneaked a look into her face, it was'nt a very cheerful one. It had gotten more darker by that time, almost a night. After few minutes, she asked me one question, " Do you belong to this area? " " No, i'm waiting for my Dad ", i replied. I still don't know why she asked that. Then she asked " Could you please come along with me, my hostel is near-by, i'm very afraid to walk alone in this place. please, i'm very nervous " " How far is your hostel? " - me " very near, very very near " - she ( Because of the way she said it, i chuckled and said in my mind, very polite, very very polite:p) We started walking together. while walking, i was thinking of so many things. Several questions started popping up in my mind; 1. why did she choose particularly me to guide her home safely? 2. Is she from Al-Qaeda or something or Is she a gangster/smuggler? ( I did'nt have much money, anyway, but had two functional kidneys, one beautiful heart, an efficient brain, etc) 3. What if my dad catches me walking with a girl, what explaination can i give? I felt like an idiot, after thinking about all that. After a furlong of silent walking, i looked at her. She was holding her umbrella just above her head and it was no way near my head level. I just asked myself "Am i her body guard?". May be for the time being, but i have a right asking her to lift her arm a bit and protect me from the rain hitting. I broke the silence to say softly " I don't mind holding an umbrella for you " She was quick-witted, hence got my point early and handed over the umbrella to me. Within a second, i metamorphosed from a BODYGUARD to a MAKE-UP MAN, who holds the umbrella for others( actresses):p I guided her through to the hostel safely, she thanked me a lot for that and went off, leaving me alone:( ofcourse, she was supposed to do that, she can't call me inside and offer a cup of coffee, its a LADIES HOSTEL. I was left alone in the dark, there were no street lights either, due to power cut. It was only then i realised that i had to walk back alone DRENCHING, without an UMBRELLA!! My dad was waiting there, wearing an angry frown....LOL -------------------THE END---------------- One last question, have you ever shared an umbrella with a stranger? would you, if approached by a stranger? Thanks for taking time and do share your thoughts:)