Sweetness of Love- Part 16

Why? Why don't people leave her alone? But they keep coming. They keep bothering her. Only thing she  ever wanted in life is space. Unfortunately people didn't understand this. She always wished that she was at calm place filled with only happiness.

That day was very far away. It would take her long time to come there. She was putting lot of effort to get there. But God wasn't kind to her. She faced difficulties as well as distractions in life. She begged the life to be simple. What's life when there is no twists?

She followed this funda i.e life is filled with twists. She accepted the hardship in their life as and when they came. Anyway she would face Sameer too. But she still didn't understand how she could get him out of his life.

She was annoyed with the offer. How dare he said that? She felt gross when he said that. Be with him. She wasn't so poor to  be with him. She could still manage her mother and herself. She had learnt to be independent in hard way when her father had left her. She had helped her mother to lead a secure life though she was too small to understand what is life.

She tried to distract her mind. But those thoughts came every time she sat empty handed. She decided to go for walk. The air was pleasant. The moon shined bright. The clouds momentarily covered the moon. The road was deserted.  But she wasn't scared. She knew the basic martial arts that was enough to protect her from the men like Sameer.


Aggh! This was second time she was thinking about him.  "Why?  He is not worth thinking abou!",she advised herself. She distracted herself to future she had always dreamed. As she was engrossed with planning, a huge brawny hand grabbed her mouth from behind to prevent her from screaming. However she hit him hard on his stomach with all the strength from her elbow.

(To be continued)

Sweetness of Love- Part 15

She had prayed all the Gods from entire universe. Nothing worked. He had again ruined her only source of income. She was angry, frustrated and disappointed. She only wanted him away from her life. She cursed the time when she had accidentally met him.

He had done it again. This time he had embarrassed her in front of everyone. He had called her princess. "Hey princess, why do you work when I am there?", he said. She quietly ignored him and got back to her work.

He didn't leave there. He called the manager and relieved her from work. She had begged the manager to not to listen to lies of this god forsaken guy. But he didn't listen. She packed her bag and walked out. Her mind was filled with thoughts of what will happen next.

Sameer walked past her. "What? What the hell do you want from me?", she asked. "You have taken my source of income. How will I find another job? How will I pay my bills?",she continued. He smiled sheepishly.

"Why do you worry so much? I am there! I will take care of your bills.", he said. "No! I don't want your help. I am not that type of girl. I have dreams. I want achieve them through my hard work.", she protested.

" Well! Be with me. Let me show you life. I will take care of you and your expenses.", he said. She glared at him and slaps him hard. His cheeks turned pink. It's like bee had stung him. He is shocked. He had never been slapped by his dad ..forget about being slapped by girl.

(To be continued)

Sweetness of Love- Part 14

Days passed since Dhriti was discharged from hospital. She was fine now though she felt bit weak now and then. The medicines were curing her. However peace never stuck to her life for long time. Sameer never left her alone. He followed her everywhere.

She ran towards her part time job as soon as her last class got over. It was her first day at the job. It wasn't great. She had to handle orders in the small cafe where hardly people hung. She had chosen the place carefully in order to avoid any more contacts from Sameer.

She had been trying to avoid him since the time he start jeopardizing her work by reliving her and paying her boss the double amount they were paying her at home. She had searched this place carefully. She was confident that he wouldn't follow her in this dingy cafe.

But that never happened. He found her. He had seen her cleaning the counter in the cafe. How did he find her was dumb question. She knew it. He had some people to spy on her. He must have paid some of her classmates to spy on her. She hated them.

She made face when she saw him. She disliked him zillion times. Even if he was last person in planet earth, she wouldn't let him in. He smiled and walked  towards the counter to place the order. She glared at him. It had been zillionth time that she had glared at him and he didn't bother.

As a good professional, she placed his order. She prepared his latte and sandwhich as per his requirements (lot of cheese and no cucumber). She prayed that he just had his snack and left. She hoped that he didn't make her quit this job too.


(To be continued)

Sweetness of Love- Part 13

He looked at her. She was glaring at him as usual. "Why are you looking at me like that? I helped you. Don't you say thanks to people who help you? Where is the courtesy nowadays in this mordern world?", he asked.

Her mother nudged her and asked her to say thanks. She said," Thanks!" . Her mother smiled at him and said, "She is not that open. Since the time her father left us, she doesn't trust any men. She is wary about strangers she meets." She didn't like her mother sharing about past to strangers.

She was annoyed.  "Is she always like this.. angry?", he asked. "Yes! I am always angry", she wanted to scream. She has always been annoyed with life, people and health.  She couldn't remember the time she was happy. Ironically true!

She was discharged with additional medicines prescribed by doctors for her cure. She had told her mother to pay the medical bills. But her mother didn't accept the money. She told her that the bills were settled by Sameer.

She didn't like it. Why was he trying to get close with her? Whatever! She was never letting this guy into her life. She had many things to take care about instead of falling into love trap. She had her family, part time job and her college. She couldn't afford to jeopardize it with love.

And she knew Sameer didn't have anything to think about. Though he was upper middle class boy, he had nothing to worry about. His future was already set. He had to manage his dad's business and possible would get married to richest father's daughter. While her future lay on her hands and if she didn't do anything now, she would lose everything.

(To be continued)

Sweetness of Love - Part 12

Love is strange. You never realize whether it is love or crush until the reality sets in. Till then we are smitten by the sweet feeling. Sameer was charmed by her pale beauty. But he didn't understand whether it was love or just crush.

It was last period. It was Dhriti's favorite subject. Unfortunately she always felt tired and weak during the last few minutes of the hour before it was time to go home. The bell rang. It was relief though she felt disappointed. 

She was the last person to get out of the class. She felt little dizzy. She stood for sometime to calm down. Later she resumed walking. She didn't even manage to reach the gate. She felt dizzy again. However this time the world around her whirled. She simply stood, calming herself down. But that didn't work.

She fainted. Her light body fell on the ground like feather. Everyone surrounded her. They tried to understand what had happened to her. Some tried to wake her up. Some tried to fan their book to bring air. Sameer arrived. He picked her up and took her to nearest clinic without thinking for a second.

When she opened her eyes, she saw her mother waiting anxiously for her. She observed around her to realize where she was. The pale hospital scent made her to throw up. She hated hospitals, medicine and being patient.

"How did I get here?", she asked. " I bought you here. How are you now?",  Sameer replied and appeared from nowhere. She was shocked. Why the lad followed her everywhere like Mary'little lamb? She hated the sight of him and all the guys who tried to get friendly with her for only one purpose.

(To be continued)

Sweetness of Love- Pat 11

He saw her at last on the rainy day of  Friday morning. It was special. He hadn't  believed his eyes until the frail girl was walking past him. He was numb for few seconds. He didn't feel anything other than the rain droplets falling on him.

As soon as he saw her frail figure walk inside the college, he ran towards her. She was carrying an umbrella. She tried to manage to walk as the wind blew her umbrella. He got inside the shade of umbrella and held the umbrella for her. She was startled and bit annoyed.

They got inside the college indoors. She wiped the wet drops on her hands. She didn't say anything to him and headed towards her next class. " What! You won't thank me?",he said casually. His voice echoed and she turned to see him. She glared at him.

"Hi! I am Sameer. It was pleasure meeting you.", he said while offering his hand for shake. She didn't care to introduce herself. She walked away after whispering her thanks to him. She jogged towards her class as she was late for class.

He was disheartened. He expected her to be warm. Unlike other girls, she didn't get charmed. Maybe the way he greeted himself was not right. Maybe it didn't ignite the spark between them. Maybe he wished too much. Maybe she was not that type of girl he hanged around.

He should give up. But something about her attracted him. He wanted to know her. He wanted to get closer with her. He didn't want to lose her.

(To be continued)

Sweetness of Love- Part 10

It hadn't been too long. But he was already missing her. Was it really love or attraction that would fade in thin air? Maybe he was just overthinking. He knew the medicine for such kind of disease. He had to distract himself into hard core rock music and other girls. He always hung with girls.. pretty girls since he was thirteen,

He still felt lost. He kind of wanted to see her again.. feel that soft skin and those shy eyes. He had searched for her in whole campus. Where could he find her? His friends asked him to forget her. But he couldn't.

He had to see her. He didn't know anything about her.. even her name. He had searched through each classes. But he never found her. Who was she? Was she student from other college? Did she leave him?

"No! This can't be", She sighed. She had missed many classes. She was anemic. Her skin was pale and bones could been seen through her skin. She felt her breath go down during the exam. She had prayed it didn't continue.

But it happened. She had asked the examiner to let her out. The examiner was aware of her illness and let her out. She was barely out for few minutes and she felt it again. She sat down on the floor. She felt relieved. She looked at the time. She had few minutes for the exam to end.

She had ran towards the boy. If he hadn't held her for three seconds, she could complete her paper. But the horrid lad had held her and she wasted those precious three seconds and also her precious marks.


(To be continued)

Sweetness of Love- Part 9

Memories. Sweet memories. Bitter memories. Some happy ones and some bitter ones resurface after years of hiding them . He had left instantly when he heard her daughter's name. He tried to distract himself. But those memories didn't fade.

It remain fresh in his mind. It seemed as if those memories had occurred yesterday itself. Those days.. they were special. Sometimes he wished those days never passed soon. Sometimes he wondered why it had happened.. why he ever met her! Everything would be normal if life was simple.

  **** Five years back *****

The day was amazing. It was last exam. He had waited for the last bell to ring. He hadn't written a single word in the paper. It was Accounts exam. He understood the subject but he disliked the very thought of writing exam. Maybe he had exam phobia.  But he never feared about the exam, when he entered the exam hall. Maybe he was used to his dad paying the little bribes to the faculty to get him passed.

This practice happened since the school days. He hated studies and loved play times like other kids. Unfortunately his friends grew up faster than him while he was still immature. He had no goals. His only aim was to enjoy life without working.

Now he waited for last bell. God! The minutes passed so slowly for the fun time to start. As soon as there was only one minute to pass, he rushed towards the examiner's table. He placed his paper and ran out. He had almost bumped the girl who was running towards his side.

He held her before she could fall down on the floor. He felt delicate bones and soft skin under his hand. He looked at her. It was love at first sight. He wished he held her for little long, only to explore her beautiful grey eyes. Unfortunately she had got away hurriedly from his clutch.


(To be continued)

Sweetness of Love- Part 8

Her mother wondered, "Why did he come? Did he learn about my granddaughter? Where is my daughter?" She didn't want to let him in. But he forced himself inside. She didn't say anything. She didn't want to create any scene in front of his neighbors.

He looked around the hall. It was typical middle class where the furniture were second hand goods and placed in unorganized way. He could feel the poverty crying out from certain places while some showed the signs of little riches.

Her mother followed him and asked him politely, " What would you like- tea or coffee?" "Nothing Aunty!", he replied. "Hmm.. so what brings you?", she asked. Dhriti had just returned and was surprised to see Sameer. "Ma! What else can bring him here? He only wanted to check whether I had anyone other than family in my life.", she said suddenly.

" No, I don't have anyone in my life. My family is everything to me. I don't need a man to take care of my family and me. I am independent woman. Are you happy now?", she sneered. Her daughter ran towards her mother due to fear. She didn't want to face her mother's fury.

He smiled. He had seen many of her furies. But this one made him smile. He couldn't believe that vulnerable woman like her would do say all that. He walked closer to her daughter and asked, " What is your name, darling?". He offered a chocolate as treat to her. She accepted like the usual excited kids of her age.

Her daughter stared at her glare and returned the chocolate. "I am Trisha.", her daughter said shyly, looking down. She felt awkward by his presence. Her name "Trisha" rang bells, bringing memories he held deep down inside

(To be continued)

Sweetness of Love- Part 7

It didn't take him long to get all the details about her. He had learnt about her family- she had five year old daughter and a mother. She wasn't in any relationship. She was staying in small apartment from the past twenty years.. that was the only thing that he had known wouldn't change about her. He knew how much she loved her house.

He also learnt that she was very busy with the work and family since she graduated college.She had no time for personal gratification. So how come she has a daughter? She never had affairs during college except him. He didn't understand why he had got sudden interest in meeting her.

He had driven towards her house with no sense of  where he was heading. He had planned to take long drive to clear his thoughts. But he ended up at her place. This was strange. He had never thought that his memories about the directions of her house would remain so fresh. He hadn't forgotten anything.

He was at her house. Nothing had changed. Her flat was located at the fourth floor of local chowk. He walked the stairs as the passerby looked at him with amused stares. He knocked the door of her flat after he tried to ring the bell. It was warm afternoon. A little girl opened the door. He watched her with bewilderment.

The child stared at him with the same eyes that reminded him of his childhood. "Yes?", she asked in sweet shrill voice. He patted her back gently and smiled. Somewhere deep in his hear, he wished that the little girl was his daughter. He felt foolish.

Her mother appeared. She was shocked to see him at their doorstep. She had last seen him when she had caught her daughter red handed with him. She had tried to keep him away from her daughter. But her efforts failed. They got closer until everything changed in her daughter's life.

(To be continued)

Sweetness of Love- Part 6

He smiled. He nodded his head to and fro for few minutes. " You will never change. You only want to run away from problems.", he said, jokingly. She stopped. She didn't turn behind. She couldn't stand looking at him any longer.  There were times when she would pray that the minutes passed slower so that she could look at his face all day. Now she only wanted to go away.. far away from all this pain.

"I expected better answer from you. I thought you would say- 'I am right for the job. Though I don\t have right skill set, this job will be challenge for me to learn them'. Instead, you say that you don't deserve the job. At least for once, won't you believe in yourself?", he said. She turned behind this time. She stared at him directly into his eyes.

" What do you want me to do? I am sorry! I came here. I didn't mean to...", she growled but stopped when she was about to speak more. She didn't want him to know what happened when she left him. She didn't want him to know about her child. "Sit down. We haven't finished.", he said calmly as well as firmly.

She sat. They still haven't finished. He was reading her CV again , looking for facts he would ask for or rather find what the hell she was doing when she left her. Her horrors almost surfaced when he asked her, "You never married! Interesting! Why?"  "I didn't think it was necessary with regards to my situation. I have to take care of my family.", she replied.

"Funny! It's funny to hear the word 'care' from selfish woman like you.", he whispered. "What? I didn't get you.", she asked. "Nothing!", he replied. Later he asked her few more questions and asked her to leave after telling her that he would let her know the final results.

She knew the answer. She was not getting the job. She felt that this was his way of poking fun at her and letting her know how miserable she was without him. As soon as she left, he had called his trusted friend to investigate on her. He wanted to know everything that had happened since the time she left him alone.

(To be continued)

Sweetness of Love- Part 5

"What do women want?", Sameer wondered. He watched her intently. She didn't change a bit. She was still the same .. same old Dhriti he had loved once upon a time. She seemed nervous. She didn't meet his eyes and looked around everywhere except him.

She was trying to avoid him. It was impossible.  She had to look at him. He was interviewing her. It would be rude if she didn't speak to her prospective boss without facing him. He spoke his first phrase," Why should we hire you?"

The golden silence was broken at last. She replied, "I have all the required skills for this job. I.." She didn't finish her sentence when he spoke in middle. This was rude. He hadn't change his habit of interrupting people. She glared at him. "How dare you?", she muttered.

" Everyone says that they have all the skills for this job. But let me tell you, this job needs special skills. As per your poor interaction with the HR, I am not fully convinced with you. The only evidence I have is your CV that speaks about your skills.", he said.

He looked at her. He could feel her anger bursting out at him. He wanted to laugh. He controlled his emotions though he was enjoying it.  "What do you mean? ",  she asked. He stared at her.  "How can she say like that to him? Does she have any idea about whom she was talking to?", he wondered.

She felt guilty. She was here for the job. But she knew he wouldn't offer the job. She wanted to leave."Yeah! Maybe you are right. I am not right for job. I should leave.", she said, leaving him alone again.


(To be continued)

Sweetness of Love- Part 4

She walked out hopelessly. She knew that she didn't deserve this job. She had never done so bad in her interview. She couldn't face him. She remembered the day when she saw the job ad in linkedin. She suited the profile. The pay was good. It would meet all her needs. But he was the only reason that she couldn't work.

She had applied the job though knowing the fact she couldn't face him. But her desperate need made her apply the job. She felt that she could face him. Unfortunately she developed cold feet even before she met him.

Fear can even make strongest go down. However it depends on one's way of facing fear. She wanted to leave. But the HR had kept her waiting. She knew the results. She was rejected. She didn't understand why the HR kept her waiting. These formalities! It could have been done when she had left.

The HR had appeared again. But this time, she was not alone. The HR was with him. He had changed a lot. He looked more organised and smart. He wore grey suit. His hair was neatly combed. His face was clean shaven.  What startled her was him wearing the watch she had gifted him years back.

Strange! He hadn't removed the watch yet. He wore a poker face. Unlike those days, when he used to smile sheepishly. She searched for the smile that ignited her heart, She was about to leave. He stopped her. "There is one more round, please wait.", the HR said.

Dhriti was irritated. She wanted to go. She had another interview to attend. The HR left her with him. He spent few minutes to let everything to settle. The silence occupied between them. he words took it's time to arrive.


(To be continued)

Sweetness of Love- Part 3

The journey was going to be tough one. Dhriti knew that this journey was taking her to her past... past she had left behind. She was scared. She was going to face her past in few minutes. Oh! What would be to meet her prospective boss who was also part of her past.

She reached her destination after getting down the bus stop which was five minutes to the office. The office sprawled over two acres. The area had two four storey building. She was amazed by his success. At such young age, he had achieved so much. He wasn't like this when they were together. He was lazy and always shadowed by his father's mediocre business.

It was amazing to see a person without dreams actually be at top. She wondered, "Can anyone change so much within short span of time? Did separation make one tough and different?" She walked inside after giving details to the security about her interview.  She was given temporary IDs and lead to sitting area on the fourth floor. 

She waited. Her heart was beating faster. She thought about the questions she would be asked. But what affected her the most was how were they going to react when they saw each other. But he must have seen her CV. Would he still meet her?

She was making her mind ready to accept the fact that she would have to give up on this job too. He would ask her to leave soon. But that didn't happen. A lady dressed in typical western professional attire appeared and lead her inside.

The lady introduced herself as HR. She spoke about the job title. Later She asked several questions about her past experience and her skills. But Dhriti couldn't answer none of questions properly. She felt scared suddenly. She didn't want to face. "Why did I ever think about coming here? We will never be able to stay in one place properly.", she thought, feeling guilty for spoiling time for the job she knew she wouldn't get. 

(To be continued)

Sweetness of Love- Part 2

He was surprised. He had read the name (Dhriti Ranjan) on the CV several times. He thought he was dreaming. Why did their destiny bring them together when they had parted ways long back? God and his work! He was the one who separated them and now he was bringing back again.

Maybe she was not the one. Maybe his mind was playing games. Maybe they weren't meant to be together. He felt disheartened. Why? She was the one who dumped him. But still he loved her though there were many layers of hatred that hid his love for her.

Tiny drops fell on Dhriti's face. She was waiting for the bus. It was about to rain. Nothing was unusual about the city's weather. It had different moods for different parts of the day just like her. Morning would cool and pleasant. Afternoon would be hot like summer. Evening and nights would have pouring rainfall. But sometimes the cycles wouldn't be same.

Right now it was about to pour. She prayed that it rained after she had reached on time for interview. She didn't want to get wet at this time. She had made sure that she looked very professional in her dark cotton sari with 3/4th sleeve blouse. Her hair was tied back into a bun. She wore black bindi and kajal. She didn't apply any make up.

She wore tiny earrings and small necklace after her mother forced her to wear. She had prepared herself from past few days since she had applied for the job. She wanted this job badly. She didn't have enough to support her family and especially her daughter.

At last her prayers were heard. She got inside the bus. She took first seat which was empty. As soon as she paid the ticket, she got engrossed about the worries in her life. She had many things to take care and one of them was meeting her daughter's needs.



(To be continued) 

Sweetness of Love- Part 1

The sky was perfect blue. There was not a single cloud. It was perfect day for a good jog. Sameer jogged. He wasn't distracted by cold wind that momentarily passed him. He was only focused on beating his target. He had finished one lap. One more to go.

He passed the familiar parks and people. He didn't stop to greet them. He never liked meeting people nowadays. He now enjoyed being alone. Yes there were times when he thought about her, but then he would engross himself into lot of work. It was strange. He avoided memories and thoughts about her. After so many years, he wasn't able to forget her.

Why did he think about her on this nearly perfect day? He didn't want to ruin his day by thinking unpleasant. He jogged back home after finishing  his last lap. He rested for few minutes and had his juice.. as usual unsweetened orange juice. He hated bitter edible items few years back. He would add many sachets of sugar. But today he could drink a glass of unsweetened orange juice without feeling anything. 

He had started avoiding sugar since she had left him. Sugar reminded him the sweetness of love. He despised love. Love had turned him into a stone, he didn't recognize. He avoided anything or everything that reminded of love and her.

He washed his sorrow memories and wore clean white suit. He combed his hair perfectly. He made sure that not a single strand fell on his face. He was ready for the breakfast within fifteen minutes. He had cereals and bowl of fruits. Before his dad had arrived at breakfast table, he was off to work. He worked around the time. He made sure not a single minute was wasted for unproductive work. 

He took out his laptop and began to work while his driver took him to work. Everything worked systematically except during the times when his mind would deviate to thoughts about her.. his sweet love..Dhriti. Even now, her name bought goosebumps to his skin. What was she doing? Where was she? All these questions bothered him. However he had learnt to get back to work. He read through the CVs of his potential assistants. Nothing interested but one bought him back his old memories.

(To be continued) 

The Tiger's Hound- Part 40

The truth was out. The villagers looked at the offender with broody eyes. They felt deceived. They had vested their whole faith on this offender. They had been fooled. Their trust broken. They felt innocent and vulnerable. Who could ever doubt that the offender would be the panchayat himself?

How could he cheat his own people?   They had seen the Panchayat preaching them about conserving the forest. Then who was this guy standing in front of them? They couldn't believe that their panchayat had been associated with poaching for long time. His own son was bewildered with him. Shyam Babu was shocked that his father was involved in this activity while he was preaching around his town as well as neighboring the art of saving tigers and the way to co-live with them.

Unfortunately his belief on their family values were shaking. He respected his father for his thoughts on betterment of their village. But he never really thought that his father would be the mastermind of such sinful activities. He couldn't look at the villagers because of his father.

He bought the police and lead them to his father. Before he gave him to them, he asked him, "Why did you do this? The villagers look up at you for your values. Doesn't your values mean anything to you?" His father looked down with guilt and replied, "I did this to keep you secured and fulfill all your needs. I love you, son. I can't see you failing your dreams. I am sorry."

Shyam Babu cried while the police took his father. Prasun held him and offered him a shoulder to cry. He understand the pain of losing a dear one. He had lost many but he was happy that he had found Sheru. Sheru had become a hero again. This time it was big. He had not only saved a tiger. He had disclosed the poaching that was going on nearby his village.

Kimberly left within few days. She had trained about twelve tiger hounds who matched the almost the skill set of Sheru. She had left. But the training ground was not closed. It was continued by Prasun. He also helped Shyamlal during nights, petroling the jungle for any poaching sights. Sheru.. Sheru enjoyed his job of being The Tiger's Hound.


                                         **** The End ****