Pause and Resume - Part 5

The sun rays shined brightly. The alarm rang incessantly. He kept tossing on the bed but didn't bother to snooze the alarm. After lot of coaxing, he got up from the bed unwillingly. His head was breaking due to lack of sleep. He dragged himself up and got ready for the day. He skipped the breakfast because he was in no mood to prepare food.

Dina woke up to the day with freshness and great zeal of life. There was motivation and positive vibes within her to start the day. She had never felt  relaxed and good until today. After persistent questioning from mother and 'I told you so' conversation with her dad, she was dead tired. She didn't realize when she was asleep while she was lying on the bed. But today she was up for any challenge. She now realized how much baggage of emotion she had carried when she came home. 

But her new found energy turned sour when she saw her phone. There was no messages from her husband. She was furious at him that she didn't care to check whether he had texted or called her or not. She didn't bother to even call him or text him. Why would she? It was he who had done the wrong. She had decided that she wouldn't call him or text him like she would do every time they had fight.

She threw her blanket aside in anger and stomped towards bathroom to freshen up. Warm bath didn't calm her mood. Even her favorite breakfast didn't calm her down. Nothing calmed her. Instead it raised her fury. She snapped at anyone she laid her eyes on. She came home tired and emotionally drained. She didn't speak to her mother or dad during dinner. She played with her food for sometime though she was hungry. She slept on her bed with empty stomach. 

Sleep didn't arrive immediately like yesterday. She constantly thought about Amit. "Why didn't he call? Is ego more important than his wife? ", she wondered even though it applied to her as well. She tossed on her bed with agitation. She watched her phone to check for messages and calls. There were none from him.  

Amit reached to empty house from work. Everything lay on the same place he had left during the morning. He felt lonely. He looked at his phone. There were no calls and messages from her. He was about to dial her number when his friend ,Nitin called. After several times refusing the invitation to go out with his friend, he allowed Nitin to crash at his place. He didn't mind a company. But when Nitin arrived, he didn't realize that his friend would bring in others too. Soon his house was crowded with unknown people. 

(To be continued)

Pause and Resume - Part 4

Amit was confused when she banged the door. He wondered what wrong did he do this time. He pondered on the activities he did while she was there during morning. "Is it because I got up late and she had to prepare breakfast for herself? Or is it because I left straight to bathroom without giving her morning kiss?", he wondered. But his ego precluded such thoughts. 

"Why should I say sorry? I didn't do anything wrong. Why do I bother? She will come back home tonight with better mood and make up with me. I know her well. She can't stay mad at me for longer.", he said to himself. Fights happened before. Dina had left home before. Hearts were broken many times and bandaged several times.  But they could never stay away from each other any longer. 

The day passed quickly. Amit arrived home quite early than last night. He had neither received any messages from her nor did he message her back. His bruised ego never let him though he would check his phone several times. When he arrived home, no one was there to welcome him. She had not come back. But it wasn't too late for her not to come back. 

He was strangely relieved that she was not there and there was no drama surrounding him. Silence bothered him still. He wasn't too tired to cook food for himself but he was used to her serving him hot food. So he ordered food from outside. He watched news after changing several channels on the TV. When food arrived, he waited for some time. "What if she came home!", he thought. 

Several hours passed. She didn't come. He gave in to his hunger. He devoured the food. Outside food always seemed tastier than food prepared by her. It had become tiring for him eat her food without making a single comment on the taste. He felt peaceful tonight while having dinner. There was no one to bother him by asking silly question about how food was. He was free. 

He jumped on the bed. He felt euphoric. He would get the entire bed tonight. The thought of sleeping anywhere on the bed, any position he liked made him, having the entire blanket to oneself and switching on the AC to lowest degree made him feel more excited. "Freedom!", he exclaimed. He remembered the times when he would never get the blanket because Dina would cover whole blanket to herself . There were times when he would be kicked to end of the bed by her. Tonight it was going to be different. As he closed his eyes and proceeded to sleep, he opened them abruptly.  For the first time, he felt difficulty to sleep. After tossing several times on the bed, he didn't realize when the night turned into day.

(To be continued)

Pause and Resume - Part 3

The morning was no different. The cold vibes between husband and wife couldn't be melted by the warm sun rays. Amit hated silence. His wife, Dina hadn't spoken since yesterday night. He was early riser but today was not his day. He woke up late to find Dina had already woken up. He was always the first one to prepare tea for both of them. Yesterday's uneventful happening tossed his routine. 

After freshening up, he waited for Dina to prepare him breakfast and tea. Few minutes later, he dragged himself to the kitchen to see that Dina's cup lying on the sink. The workstation was clean and the vessels were empty. Amit felt subdued as he prepared tea for himself. He didn't understand woman. His ego inside him fueled his despair in him by speaking against her, "It should be her consoling me. I have to console her for what? If she doesn't want to speak, let it be. I won't speak to her too." 

He had his food silently while she got ready for work. As she was about to leave with an airbag, she said solemnly, "I won't be coming tonight. I will be staying at my house."   He didn't respond. He was feeling strangely relieved for the first time. He didn't know whether he should be happy or sad for that. She waited for few minutes for his response. When there was no response, she banged the door. 

As she descended the building, thoughts fluttered in her mind. "Why does he do that? Why is he cold? I do everything for him and he doesn't react. He is always focused on his work. Does he really love me?" She checked her phone to see whether there were any messages from him. There were none. Later she checked taxi hailing app to see where her designated cab was. When she saw it had reached, she got inside. She left home with thoughts still bothering her.

The ride to her paternal house was bumpy one. There was huge traffic jam and took over two hours to reach a 20 minute ride destination.  Her paternal house was like a heavenly abode to her. Unlike the plush apartment she shared with her husband, the house was palatial. The rooms were huge and corridors were longer. The house reflected the hard earned wealth of her father. 

Her mother welcomed her when she entered the hallway. "How come my sunshine is up in the morning?", her mother asked cheerfully. "I fought with Amit yesterday. I will be staying here..", she replied. "For few day?", her mother asked, rolling her eyes. "I am not sure.", she said as she walked towards her room, leaving her bag on the floor.  Her mother motioned the servant to carry the bag to Dina's room. "They fight like kids. No wonder she hasn't learnt to grow up. She still throws her stuffs here and there.", her mother complained to herself.

(To be continued)

Pause and Resume - Part 2

Her eyes were red. Her mouth was curled into disgust. She wanted to spank him badly. She held her both fists tighter. "Why did you do that? What is your problem? Don't you love me anymore? Did you find someone else? Is that why you are late?", she growled, holding his collar. He released her grip and pleaded, "Please stop your drama again. I just had a bad day at work."

She didn't listen. She went on and on about the list of complaints she had in her mind for the week. Amit put his hands on his hip firmly and shook his head in defiantly. He wondered "How does she come up with such a list?" He didn't speak or stop her in between. He let her speak while his mind wandered around what had happened during the day. 

When she was done, she looked annoyingly at him. "Are you done Can I go now? I will go change and why don't you serve the dinner. I will right back.", he said coolly. "Did you even listen to what I said?", she started to speak. But he interrupted her in between. "Please! I had difficult day today. I need rest. Let's talk about this tomorrow.", he said while walking towards the bedroom. 

"I also had difficult day. I manage work as well as home. But I don't come home bringing tensions from work. I thought I would bring back the romance in our life. But you don't seem to respond at all. You have become so cold after marriage. You only bothered about work ,work and only work. I don't exist in your world at all.", she cribbed. It was true that their life had become standstill. They were more distant than together during the most trying time of their life.

"Your work is different than mine. You are boss in your boutique. I on the other hand have to prove my worth to my bosses. At least in the end you make nominal profit while sometimes I don't get anything at all from the work I do", he said sulkily. "That's why I told you to join my father's business. But you never listen.", she argued. "Now enough !Serve me dinner soon. I want to sleep.", he said. 

"Serve yourself! I am not your maid.", she sneered at him and stomped back towards room. She hit herself on her arm after colliding with the door. "Ahh!", she cried and turned back to his reaction. He smiled. "Laugh!Laugh! You love to hurt me.", she said, banging the door on him. He waited for sometime before heading to kitchen to feed his grumbling tummy.

(To be continued)

Pause and Resume - Part 1

It was already past midnight. The sky was clear and stars shined brightly. The lone dogs howled at the sight of the full moon on the empty street. The road was empty except for the bright red Toyota Vios. Amit hated it. Silence disturbed him.  The silent road reminded him of his worst possible day. He had left home for office today with hopes of big promotion. He came back home with broken dreams and hurt ego. One of his colleague who loved to lick bosses's ass got the promotion.

Whenever he thought about the day, his anger shot up and banged the steering wheel. He had worked hard for it. He even cancelled the holiday plannings with his wife last moment to work his ass off. He took the brunt of his bosses. He worked with laziest reportees to get that promotion with bonus pay. He never complained for the additional work he was handed. He simply did with hopes of getting something big in return.

He reached his apartment after long mind battle. As he parked his car on the allotted parking, he prayed there was no drama from his wife. He had planned to sleep after dinner. Sleep was the only thing that could help him to come out of it. He slowly walked towards the entrance and pressed the lift. The lift door was open but his mind was still in the office.

He walked inside after few minutes. He pressed the lift to fourth floor. The cold air blowing from the fan in the lift couldn't cool him down. He wished the journey to the floor didn't end so quickly. He brought himself to the door with great difficulty. He heaved a sigh and rang the doorbell. No one opened. He rang once again. When there was no response again, he took out the spare key mechanically. He opened the door.

He was welcomed to a dim lit scented candles and soft romantic music. "What was she upto?",he wondered. When he realized what it was, he muttered softly,"No today!" He looked for her. There she was, leaning seductively on casing of the door. She wore tiny black lacy camisole matched with black shorts. She was looking like goddess. But it didn't spur any interest in him. He was in no mood for any play.


She danced towards him. She seductively moved her hips and placed both her hands around his shoulder. As she proceeded to kiss him, he released her hands from him and pushed her aside. She felt insulted. A voice spoke in her mind, mocking her failed attempts to seduce her husband. It also sympathized her  for making efforts to spice up the relationship and blamed him for not appreciating her efforts. She spun towards him and growled, "Why did you do that?"


(To be continued)

Mind Your Business - Part 29

Everyone were enchanted by the appearance of their beloved Lord. Their eyes didn't leave the sight of the God for even a one second. They felt as if their purpose of their life on earth was fulfilled. They had no aspiration, dreams or desires. The demons felt that their pursuit of being demon had come to an end. They felt relived. After years of torturous retribution, a silver lining appeared.

They waited for Lord eagerly. Their chance for redemption would arrive soon. "The same way your family paid for actions last birth, the demons have been paying for their sins over many decades. They have completed their term of punishment. They were searching for pure soul to lead to me. You, Sakshi were the pure soul who bought them to me.", Lord said.

Everyone stared at Sakshi with bewilderment. "I , Lord! How can I be pure soul? I was just helping my family out of this trouble. I was an atheist before all this happened. I didn't know what else to do except come under your protection. Vicky was the one who discovered these demons. Isn't he the one who led them to you?", she exclaimed. Lord smiled and said, "This is the reason you are the pure soul. You took care of your family without thinking about your own children. You didn't mind your own business instead  you helped your brother and family irrespective whether they needed you or not. You didn't bother your safety. You kept your family and children's safety first. You could have turned blind eye towards your brother and your family. But you didn't . You chose to help them. You are truly pure soul."

Vicky put his hand around his sister's shoulder proudly. "Now it's time for me to do that for which I have come. King Shantanu and Queen Dhami, you paid for your sins. You have given up ego, ignorance, greed and possessiveness towards your unborn child. Your devotions during your life as human has bought me here. I am here to take you back with me. You are no longer tied to chain of birth and death cycle.", Lord said. The appearance of demon changed into pious souls. They had similar appearance of the Lord. They submerged and become part of Lord. 

While all this was happening, Vicky and Sakshi quickly rushed towards mother. They tried to wake up mother. Lord appeared next to mother. He touched her forehead gently. Mother slowly opened her eyes. She was surprised to see Lord next to her. Suddenly she let out cry,"Hey Ram!". She quickly got up to embrace her Lord. But Lord was gone. However Vicky and Sakshi were happy to see that mother could walk and talk like before. 

Everything became normal eventually. Sakshi shifted her children and started living with her family. Vicky now permanently shifted his base to his family abode. The hidden room was no longer hidden. It became room for religious activities used by family and priests of the temple. Shekhar recovered from his grievous injuries. Sheila and kids no longer remember the treacherous day. Mother was better than before. After that day, family's belief on God became stronger.

       *******  The End ******

Mind Your Business - Part 28

Vicky questions made sense to Sakshi too. His friends were innocent just like their mother and Shekhar. The demon killing them or torturing them made no sense. Was demon hiding something? Was this just cooked up story to buy away time? The demon said,"Your friends death was resultant of their past sins. You have to pay for all your actions- be it past or present. They paid their price this lifetime."

The demon's word struck him like arrows. What he said made no sense to him. He got up with anger and stomped towards him. His fear had vanished in thin air when he heard demon speak against his friends. He stared hard at the demon. There was no fear. There was only anger in his eyes. "Don't say anything about my friends! Don't speak of sin and karma when you have committed a grave sin ! A sinner talking about such things is like joke.", he growled. Sakshi calmed him down and said,"Calm down! He will pay for his actions soon. You don't dirty yourself by messing with him. Pallavi is here to take care of him."

"Okay! I will calm down. But why did he torture our mother and brother? What did they do? ", Vicky asked. Pallavi intervened after remaining aloof all this time, "Stop bickering! Calm your brother, Sakshi. Humans were designed such a way that they don't remember the activities they have done exactly past seven days, forget about seven lifetimes. Regarding your mother and brother, they were the innocent souls who forgot about the Lord's grace and needed to be woken up from their slumber. Ha! You forgot about the ending of demon's story! Would you remember what you did during your past life? I remember what you did. I remember what you did today, yesterday and all births you have taken in this earth. I also remember your family and entire world's activities as well as mine."

Vicky, Sakshi and the demons stared astonishingly at her. "Who was she?", they wondered. "Did I bring another destruction to the house? I thought she would save us.", Sakshi thought. Pallavi stood at the center surrounded by everyone.  She disappeared and formed ashes from which a light shined. It rose up and there stood the Lord Vishnu himself. His face was calm and wore a smile that could enlighten all the souls. His lotus eyes were sparkling with pride. The colour of his skin was like blue sky. He held Sudharasan chakra in one hand, conch in another hand and lotus in third hand. His strong legs stood firm on the earth, cleansing the impiousness from the land. The room lit due to thousands rays emitting from the Lord. The garland of fresh Tulsi leaves and jewelry decorated his chest.  His head was covered with massive golden crown. His wavy black hair hid behind his back.

Everyone stared amusingly at the appearance of Lord. They felt blessed to see the Lord's appearance this lifetime. It was miracle to them. Many sages perform stringent austerities to see Lord and they did nothing of such to get this blessing. Everyone bowed down in front of Lord to take his blessings. 

"Vikram (Vicky), I understand your disappointment. But death is part of life. One who takes life in this earth is sure to die. Your family paid for actions they did last birth. Your friends died miserably due to actions they did during last birth. Your life, your decisions, your emotions are controlled by actions you do.",  Lord Vishnu said. Vicky understood the bitter truth behind the answers to the question.

(To be continued)