Kids Short Story – Autorickshaw trouble once more solved with wit
Photo credit: kamagong from morguefile.com
(Note: Image does not illustrate or has any resemblance with characters depicted in the story)
Once after a very tiring day, Swapnil was returning home. During his tour from his office to his house, there is one route in which Swapnil avails the auto keeping in mind the relaxation and fare. But today when that same relaxation is needed in a bit more ratio, Swapnil faced a difficulty. Swapnil again is known for his instant wisdom and so he applied the same to get rid of the situation and make it go in his way which he likes.
As Swapnil reached the autostop, he found one auto was already waiting for one more passenger before starting. The left seat beside the driver was empty. Swapnil quickly acquired that and settled himself in a relaxing position and was all set to start. But the auto after starting dint go much when Swapnil noticed a man, a bit far away waving the hand to the auto. Swapnil was sure that since no more empty seat was left, so the auto wont stop also to take him in. But to his astonishment he found the auto slowly applied brakes and slowed down and gradually came to a hault, to take that passenger as well.
Swapnil was sure that it was only beside him that the new unexpected passenger would be offered the seat, by making Swapnil forcefully adjusting and bringing out the amount of space needed for the new passenger to sit. To his expectation the driver requested Swapnil to draw nearer to the driver and bear, adjust and share his seat with the new passenger.
Now Swapnil knew that the passenger who was standing needed to go a long distance to reach the autostand. So he might be tired to go there. But then there are other auto also which comes with one or couple of seats empty going in the same route. Besides this there are buses in the same route. He could avail all those, but no, he was ready to adjust as well and grab the seat beside Swapnil only. Now Swapnil was already tired and wanted to relax and not sit so closely. Moreover he is going to pay the same fare like the ones who is seating at the back. So if they are not going to share or sacrifice their seat and would go relaxing all the way to their destination (option also is not there understood), why would he share or sacrifice his. Also again this sharing would make the one sitting the left most, get his half part of the body out of the auto and sit, which again is a risk. Is that only because Swapnil was a bit late in arriving to the autostand. Then in that case from next time onwards he would never ever grab a seat other than a one in the back row of the drivers’. Better he would wait for the next auto to arrive. And now also he wants him to be taken back to the autostop where he could wait and grab a seat in back row and let this person go alone beside the driver. But that is again weird. So Swapnil quickly played one trick.
He knew noone might have noticed his right hand much, while he was getting up in the auto as all were much more excited to start on having the last expected passenger rather than noticing who is the passenger himself. Also he has not done anything special with his right hand for which his right hand would come into notice of everybody. So he quickly bent his right hand full 90 degrees and shifted to his right hurriedly to allow the new passenger to grab a bit of seat to his left and that his bent right hand touches the belly of the driver. It touched and immediately as the new passenger was about to take the seat the driver bursted into laughter.
The new passenger was shocked, stopped and went back to his original standing position without taking the seat. Everyone as well was giving a look as to why the driver laughed. The driver understanding everyone’s query without keeping it secret for any longer continued pointing at Swapnil and saying, “Sir please remove your hand, or rather straighten your hand. If you bend and keep like this its going to touch my belly and would going to tickle me there. In this situation I would be unable to drive. We could meet with an accident anytime. We all would be in risk.”
Swapnil immediately said, “But no I dont have any other option than this. You might not have noticed that from the time I got up in this auto I was holding this this way only, bent. This is because my right hand broke a couple of weeks before. I had a pluster on this till yesterday. Today only in the morning it was opened but the doctor told that my injury case was a bit complex, so though the pluster is no more required, but I have to hold my hand bent like this for another one week. It wont be a problem if I straighten once or twice for short while, which again is required, (so opened the pluster as with the pluster I would not be able to straighten my hand anytime even if I have intentions to do so) and the pain I would incur while straightening would make me remember again to bend it. You know its tough to remember and do that even without the pluster, but now since I am remembering then how could I straighten just because you are telling?”
The auto driver, though was a bit stunned with this strange, peculiar, particular type of case, asked Swapnil to seat at his right and the person who was sitting at the driver’s right to come to his left and share the seat with the new passenger.
To that also Swapnil refused saying, “From right side a lot of vehicles come from opposite side and I need to save myself from slight touches also a lot of times. During other times I could have even done that but not this time as I cant properly hold. And that is because, to properly hold I need to use both of my hands and in this case as you know, I have already mentioned, I could only use my left hand.
Then the driver a bit annoyed glanced to the passengers sitting at the back with a feel that whether anyone from there is willing to give his seat to Swapnil and in turn sit at his left sharing with the new passenger. But getting no response, without saying another word, started to run his auto once again with the previous legal strength of passengers only, sitting right at their same, old, unchanged position, as they were, just when the auto started from the autostand.
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