Chapter 1: Getting together
again
It’s been 10 long
years since Vikram and I are good friends. And it’s been almost 5 years that
he’s married now. I am still working hard to make myself an eligible bachelor
and then get into the position and condition of listening to my wedding bells.
Everyone in my friends circle always felt jealous about our friendship. Vikram
and Abhinav - The Half-Blood Brothers,
as they used to call us, we always made them burn. Not that we didn’t have any
other friends to mingle with, our circle was quite different.
In the small part
of Bangalore, there is a place called Whitefield. Not much of yesteryears
field, but an isle of technological geeks and nerds who run the entire
territory, contribute massively to the progress of the city and the country.
Not too far in the distant future, after 10 years of living our own lives,
Vikram was living in Maratahalli with his precise family, and I’d come back
from the Dreamworld called Mumbai. I
didn’t want to disturb his streak of happy moments with his wife and decided to
drop in a message and he’d call me back as and when he’d get some free time. I
moved back to my home quite far from where Vikram was staying. Vikram had lost
his parents recently and this news came to me as a shocker when the recent
blasts in Hyderabad quivered the whole nation. It was Vikram’s misfortune that
he’d sent his parents to visit Tirupati as they always wanted to go there and
visit the temple one last time after his marriage. Their parents wish was
fulfilled anyway, but it also seemed that their life’s purpose was fulfilled
too. As far as Vikram was concerned, he always was and is considered a part of
my family and he never forgets to visit my place even when I am not there at
home.
After some days,
Vikram called back, “Hey Abhya! You are back. Why the hell you dropped a
message? You are bloody earning and still act like a school kid.” Vikram was
full of exclamation marks.
“I was supposed to call, but
you too are not a school kid anymore. You are a family man now. I thought of meeting
you when you were free. So I messaged.” I kindly justified his extra large
question.
Vikram was a very decently
spoken guy, never used swear words and the worst he ever said was “YOU MONKEY!” and that was still sweet. I
always wondered, how such a God-loving, no-swearing could, teetotaller ever
enjoy life like an adult. Though he wasn’t too much into spirituality, he
admired more of realism in it. And for a change, he was a hardcore
non-vegetarian which I wasn’t. He always tried to convince me to eat one small
leg piece and I always refused, just the way he turned me down when I offered
him a beer in my party when I got my dream job in Mumbai.
“So, what brings the Psycho to Bangalore? Is it another quick
switch in your job?” Vikram started the conversation.
“Not now Vikky. Invite me
over dinner and I will tell you my story.” I suck talking over the phone imagining
expressions on the other side. I fixed the plan for the evening and
disconnected the call.
When I visited his home, it just looked like a replica of
my own. I was imagining if he’d taken over my home and parents when I wasn’t
there. Nevertheless, he was happily living with his only wife and she looked
damn gorgeous in green. Vikram was aware of my flirtatious nature and
instructed me beforehand,
“Do not get too “myself” (bold, underlined and italic)
with Anusha. She’ll kill both of us.”
“Yes sir.” I replied firmly
and threw myself over the couch.
“Tea, coffee, or milk?”
Anusha asked us so that she could leave us alone.
“Coffee.” Vikram and I said in
unison.
“Even now?” Vikram gazed
into my face while I was honestly admiring the green kurti his wife was
wearing.
“WHAT! I just love the
colour and it perfectly fits her.” I rolled my eyes and shrugged my shoulders.
“I was asking about the
coffee, you nutcase.” Vikram said wryly. “I know you’ll never stop
bird-watching.” He added. “Just be careful. I know you are still a virgin and I
am still trying to be a father.” There was a blend of threat and caution in his
tone.
“Aye Aye Captain!” I stood
up and saluted him sarcastically and sat down again.
“So. Did you finally find a
leg piece in Bangalore?” Vikram was eager to know my mission, the reason why I
came back to the place I didn’t want to be.
“I kind of found.” My voice
toned down and all the humour was gone.
“What happened? Everything
okay with you?” Vikram showed his concern and his hands were on my shoulders.
“Life. As usual.” I said
with a sigh. “Trying to settle and that’s the mission why I am here.”
“Get married soon. You’ll
learn to settle when you have shitload of responsibilities on your head.” He
smiled and brought life back in our conversation.
“Here’s your coffee.” Anusha
barged in with a fibre tray that had pistachio green floral designs on it. What’s with the Lady in Green and her
obsession with all this Eco-friendly stuff?
The moment she leaned
forward to offer the coffee, “Ahem ahem!” I cleared my throat as her all-gold
Mangalsutra popped out from her cleavage and hit my glasses. My eyes were
locked on her assets and fortunately, the steam of the hot coffee created a
mist on my glasses as she moved towards Vikram to offer his cup of coffee.
“HOT!” I winked at Vikram
while I cleaned the mist off my glasses. He too smiled and we both enjoyed a
brief coffee sipping session in utter silence.
No comments:
Post a Comment