Life returned back to normal for Priya and me. Priya even got back to her usual energetic self. Her relation with her parents returned to normal as well. And I was very happy about it.

By now, almost everyone knew about our relationship, and we didn't bother trying to keep it hidden anymore. Which meant we were able to spend a lot more time together. There was some gossip initially, but soon it faded away, and people found newer topics to discuss.

I also started concentrating more on my studies as my goals had become a lot more important to me. And it showed in the efforts I put in.

Everything was going well. The only downside was that Mary was still angry at me and refused to talk. I was hoping that time would heal our relation and everything would return to normal.

Months passed by, and I had soon reached an important milestone. I had finally saved enough to buy my dream car. I had talked to Priya about this before. So I took Priya along to the car dealership.

We both had decided on the colour and model. She was heavily inclined towards red colour, and I was okay with it.

On discussion, we found out that there was a considerable waiting period for the car due to heavy demand for the vehicle. It could take from 3 to 6 months for delivery. It was slightly more than what I had expected. But I still decided to go ahead with it.

There was still another 4 months left in the final year. I just hoped I could get the car before I finished college. As I wanted to take Priya on a ride in it.

I paid a small deposit for the booking, which was fully refundable if I decided to cancel later. We left after I completed all the formalities.

I felt everything was going too good for me lately and just wished things would continue the same. Time felt like it was flying by us. I always believed time flies fast when you are having a good time, and it slows down when you are having a difficult time. Guess I was in the good part of my life now.

I didn't realize how fast the remaining days of the year passed by. I just knew I spend most of it with Priya and books.

The final exams came and went by fast as well.

And thus, our college life had come to an end. We were all upset but at the same time looking forward to our bright future as well.

Priya’s family had planned a foreign trip to celebrate this. So she left town for a couple of weeks.

I got busy with my coaching classes. I enjoyed it a bit, knowing this will be the last year I'll be doing it. I was just waiting for the final results to be announced and the allocation of places where we will be doing our one-year compulsory practice. We were asked to give our preference, but the final assignment was entirely up to luck.

There was another good thing that happened in between. Mary finally came and spoke to me. She said she had overreacted a bit and hoped we could still remain friends. I was more than happy to hear that.

I guess she might have been afraid that we might not see much of each other again and didn't want to part on bad terms.

Soon the final results and allocation details were announced.

I had come at 8th Rank in the University finals. I felt very proud about it. I'm sure the Dean would be thrilled as well.

The allocation results were very mixed. Both Mary and I were allocated to different hospitals but in Mysore itself. Whereas Priya was assigned to a hospital in Trivandrum. My heart was bleeding. I couldn't imagine how I would survive being away from her for a year. And to make it worse, we all had to report within a week. Which didn't leave us with much time for anything.

Priya came back the next day. She was also very upset with the allocations, but there was not much either of us could do about it. We just spend as much time as possible with each other over the next couple of days.

Priya had to leave for Trivandrum on Saturday night by train. She had to pack and prepare, so we decided to meet later in the evening on the day.

On Saturday morning, I got a surprise call. It was from the car dealership. My car was ready, and I could have it today if I could complete the payment.

I went to the shop immediately. The salesperson showed me the brand new car waiting in the showroom. I was pleased to see it, but at the same time, I felt like I missing something. Something significant that I had to do. I spent a lot of time in the showroom looking at the car.

The salesperson was a bit confused, as last time I was too eager to just get hold of the car. But he patiently waited.

After some time, I asked him

"Do you also sell used cars?”

"We do have some but not too many as that’s not our main business.”

"Ok. Do you have any used car of a similar model we are looking at right now?”

"Actually, we do. We just got one yesterday. It is in good condition and has not been driven much. It's just that it is around 8 years old.“

"What about the price?”

"Let me check. I assume it would come to half the price of the new one. You can even take delivery today itself if you can make the complete payment. “

He showed me the car, and it seemed old but in good condition.

I stood there in silence for some time. I was lost in thought, unable to take a decision for a long time.

But suddenly, everything became very clear to me.

I knew at that moment what was important to me and what I had to do.