There was something amiss in her life ' although, at this point she had everything going, there was a sense of void ' she felt uncomfortable. Reluctantly, she got herself some breakfast and switched on the TV- soaps and reality shows did not interest her; news channels were a pass, music was blaring these days, she preferred the soft-melodious ones ' she switched it off and quietly ate her breakfast. All the while, thinking what the issue was, she felt neglected ' by everybody around her, especially her husband. Her friends' network had drained, the online social networking was never her thing, she just knew that all her friends from school and college were well settled with a family, some with kids as well, few who chose to work were also well placed, drawing hefty salaries ' she wondered if all of them were actually happy. The thought about her friends always brought this knot at her throat, she should not have lost touch with her friends, this was indeed her biggest regret. She lay down on the couch, continuing to think, a few delightful memories of her past flashed by ' some from her college days, her previous job, early years of her marriage ' there were a myriad of sweet moments which existed during those days of yore, where were they all now?
She slowly drifted into sleep, only to be woken up by a beep from her mobile ' she tossed and turned finally picked up the phone, opening one of her eye, she peeked to see who had messaged her ' it was Rakesh's message. With a questioning look on her face, she read the message, 'I have a client meet tonight, will be out for dinner. Don't wait' ' It was short, she thought it was sweet of him to be thoughtful enough to inform me. She checked the time, it was 4.30 p.m already. She felt like speaking to Rakesh, she dialed the number and on the second ring, he cut the call ' he was busy. Few tears trickled down her eyes, there were days earlier that both would be over the phone for hours together ' now, he did not have time to speak to her. She clamped the phone on the couch and got up to freshen herself, then she was back at her kitchen making tea ' after much thought on why she felt so hungry at 4.30 in the evening, she realized that she had skipped lunch.
She made herself a small snack and plonked herself on the couch yet again. Her mobile phone vibrated, she started hunting for it and finally found it behind one of the cushions on the couch, by this time it had gone silent. She read '2 missed calls', 'Who could it be?' well it was Rakesh, a smile traced on her face, she called him ' she counted the rings, after about 3 rings there was a stern 'Yea, kahan thi?' at the other end, she went blank, the smile vanished, she replied blatantly, 'Kitchen mein thi'. There was an expected pause, 'What are you doing at home? Office nahi gayi?' To Raksha grew uncomfortably disturbed, 'Mann nahi kar raha tha'. Rakesh sensed that anything he said now would only erupt into an argument, he carefully chose his words and the tone, 'You had called?' Raksha had almost forgotten about the impromptu call that she had given him. 'Umm it was nothing, you are not back for dinner right? Where's the meeting?' Rakesh was perplexed, she never asked such questions, 'Trident, Nariman pe hai, kyon?' after completing the statement, he was only wishing he had not added the 'kyon?' at the end. Pat came Raksha's reply, 'Aise hi pucha', before he could continue, she wanted to get even with him and ended the call. She felt relieved for a few minutes, however, the ecstasy did not last long, she started reminiscing and thought maybe he did not deserve such bad treatment. She gave up thinking about it and declared finally, 'Mein sochti bahut hoon!'
After a few more hours of nothingness, she decided to treat herself with some Pizza, she called the nearest pizza vendor and ordered for an elaborate Italian dinner. She went out to the balcony, another half hour to kill before dinner arrived, the skyscrapers were all lit up with neon lights, Mumbai definitely looked good, it looked better when it rained. She loved rains, back in her hometown in UP and here, walking in the rains were her favorite pastime, however, rainy season had just gone by, it was November and there would not be any rains, the winds were chilly. She was thinking again, reprimanded herself for doing so and smiled at her own silliness.
The door bell rang ' while she walked up to the door, she kept thinking, 'What if it is Rakesh? Will he be angry when he gets to know about her splurge on dinner?', she opened the door and excitedly received the Pizza, Coke and Garlic Bread ' paid the pizza guy ' finally, settled down all the stuff right in front of the TV. It was around 8.30 PM, a little early for dinner, but 'What the heck!' I skipped lunch, its ok to eat at early. She started gorging on the pizza and as she tuned channels, news flashed about terror attacks in Mumbai, she sat up - Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus railway station had been the first target, she would have arrived at the station around the same time when the rogues had ransacked the station, her first instinct was to call her friends from her workplace who took the train. As she was scrolling the contact list, more news flashed on the TV, she paused a moment to read the news, the terrorists were now at Nariman house, Hotel Trident, Oberoi, her head was spinning, her fingers went numb. There were tears welling up in her eyes, she gasped for air, finally blurted out, 'Rakesh'.
Quickly picking up the phone which had fallen from her hand, with shivering fingers she dialed Rakesh, all the while praying to God; hoping that nothing should have happened ' a thousand possibilities ran in her head, the venue must have changed, meeting should have been cancelled or even better, meeting was over long back and Rakesh was heading home - the phone was finally ringing after many attempts ' the network jam almost always happens at the most inopportune moment. Rakesh cut the call and she was seemingly frustrated, she quickly typed out a message, 'There are terrorists at your hotel?!' and hit send, waited impatiently for a response, she nervously held on to the phone and occasionally looked at the TV teary eyed. After few moments ' although it seemed like ages, there was a response ' 'I know' it was from Rakesh. She replied, 'Are you safe?', to which she almost got an immediate response, 'I don't know!' She broke down, for the first time in her life she was hopelessly lost, she started gasping for air, she did not know what to do. She held on to the phone like it was her savior, it beeped again, it was Rakesh, the message read ' 'I don't know if I will get out of here alive, but if I do, you can quit your job'. What the hell, it was no time to discuss if she had to work or not, when his life was in jeopardy, she was still frozen, not knowing what to reply, she let out a scream ' a scream of despair, hurt, frustration. Quickly, she replied 'Don't worry Raki, you'll be alright. I am ready to work all my life, if you come home safe.' The tears in her eyes were just not stopping, all the tiffs that they had over trivial stuff seem to have no meaning, she longed to be there with him during this horrid hour. If this was the end, she wanted them to end it together, she picked up her bag and was determined to go to the attack infested area. Just then the phone rang, she rushed to see if it was Rakesh ' but it was her Father-in-law, 'Beti, sab teek hai na? Rakesh ka number nahi lag raha hai. There are some terror attacks in Mumbai, we were worried, is everything ok there?' she wanted to blurt out that nothing was ok, Rakesh was amidst this horrendous event. But then something from inside told her that she should fight this battle a little longer all by herself, she said, everything is ok and promised to keep him updated on any unpleasant occurrence.
She stepped out of the house, not sure what she was going to do ' how was she going to get to the hotel where all the action was happening? After locking the house, fighting back the tears ' she started walking, after sometime, she was almost running furiously not knowing where and how she would get there, all the while clutching on to the cell phone like it was her lifeline. She held it in both hands pressed it hard against her chest, for the first time after many days, she was not thinking. She had gone blank, all she wanted at this point was meet her husband and hug him hard. Just then the cell beeped again, she fumbled to look at the screen, it was Rakesh, she looked up at the sky and prayed for a split second and hoped that the message would read, 'I'm safe, heading home now'. However, the message read, 'I don't know if it is the right time, but just wanted to say, 'I love you! and if I ever hurt you, 'I'm sorry!''. She went weak in the knees, her vision blurred with tears, she dropped hard on the platform. She replied to the message, 'I love you too! Pls come back '
***The End***
Monsoon’s are really not the season when you should be confined in your office, it sucks and how!!
Oh, how I hate these Saas, Bahu serials!! I aint much of a serial person - never had enuff patience to watch those prolonged dramas with high glycerine quotient - I am more of the reality show person, and specifically, watch those towards the fag end when there are only couple of contestants left. 
Josey could sense blood trickling out of his hands, he knew life was oozing out, he would be gone soon. He had made his decision, he did not want to live anymore, did not want to struggle anymore, he could already sense the freedom he would gain, when his soul will fly free from this earthly body. He hated his body anyways, too thin for anybody’s liking.
That’s my prayer for the day…it’s been long since I introspected…I have grown by years, but has it translated in growth by character? Well, I’d say no!
Well, Chetan is not my favorite author, but have read all his books – actually even bought some of his books! He definitely has a mass appeal, without resorting to sleaze, although he does use foul language once in a while. 
). She said, ‘I will tell you later’. 
