‘It’s way past twelve! You had to go to the hospital!’ the girl protested.

Kamal looked around, embarrassed. There were two princes waiting on him. ‘I need half an hour,’ he said in a hushed tone to the girl who was clearly his sister. Clearly, she couldn’t care less.

‘The dispensary closes for lunch in thirty minutes. If you miss that, Ma won’t get the medicine till evening. It’ll be very late!’ she countered.

‘Meera!’

‘Fine, I’ll go get it myself.’

By then, Shivaji Park had come to a halt, glued to this family drama. Abhimanyu noticed that only Kamal looked flustered. Meera, on the other hand, stood stoically, barely noticing the crowd.

‘Fine. Let’s go,’ said Kamal, giving in. He turned to Ranjit sheepishly. ‘Ranjitji, I am extremely sorry. Urgent family matter. Please have someone take over.’

‘Till I get you next time,’ Abhimanyu called out to Kamal with a wry smile that betrayed his dejection.

‘Can’t wait,’ Kamal doffed his cap to the prince and followed his sister.

Ranjit Singh threw up his hands in exasperation. His star player leaving meant that the match was no longer his to win.

As she got off the pitch, Meera turned to see if Kamal was behind her. That’s when, just for a fraction of a second, Meera and Abhimanyu’s eyes met. His still filled with defeat, her’s exuding a quiet confidence – a look Abhimanyu knew right then he would never forget.

Fourteen balls later, the match was over as Abhimanyu made short work of the opposition’s tail. He left the park in a hurry, eager to gather his thoughts. A mere twenty-four hours in Bombay and his Ranakpour days seemed like another life to him. He was swaying in the new world like an unmoored ship, and now drifting towards a girl he hadn’t even met.

*

By the time Abhimanyu returned to his new home, he knew that he had to see Meera again.

Later, several of his close confidantes would ask him, not once but many times, about what he’d seen in her that day in Shivaji Park. ‘The mole on her chin mesmerized me such that I couldn’t tell the middle stump from the off,’ Abhimanyu would half joke. He would maintain that it had not been love at first sight. After all, a prince of Ranakpour wouldn’t fall for a commoner with no wealth at first glance just because of the sound of her sweet voice. When probed further, Abhimanyu would cryptically add, ‘It was a matter of circumstance.’ That was a half truth. While it certainly wasn’t love at first sight, it didn’t take long for Abhimanyu to completely fall for Meera Apte. To the young and privileged prince of old India, Meera represented the independent spirit of the new nation. She epitomized the fresh start Abhimanyu was yearning for.

Soon after that day at the park, Abhimanyu began to spend more time with Ranjit and Kamal. His bowling action improved, and in time, he was able to threaten Kamal’s composure at the crease, if not bowl him out completely. His growing friendship with Kamal allowed him a glimpse into a world he’d never known before, and he grew close to a family that he began to care for.