A young girl's dreams are shattered, and then she meets a charming stranger. What will this encounter lead to?
The Beginning…
It was close to sunset. The black Mercedes turned into the relatively quiet lane, causing a stir amongst the fallen, autumn leaves for a brief span of time. The darkened windows could not conceal the beautiful blonde woman who drove it. The residents of Koregaon Park, Lane E hardly noticed.
Although the lane was off the busy North Main Road, after one turned into it, it was almost as if one had entered an entirely alien world. The tree-lined street contained residential apartment complexes on both its sides. At the end of the lane, there was a guesthouse of some-or-the-other BPO company.
The ‘firangs’ who came from abroad for their work related trips moved around in classy vehicles depending upon their designation within the company’s hierarchy. Besides, due to the Osho Ashram the residents were now un-fazed by the sight of another golden-haired woman.
It was nothing new. They stayed for a while, blew a lot of unnecessary money, went to Goa and then went back home. People just shrugged and went about their business as usual.
Some of the firangs were quite beautiful, just like the English movie stars. This one was particularly striking; her sharp features left a distinct impression.
I thought that she had looked right at me, and smiled. I was walking down the road when she had arrived. I shook my head, and walked on. I began my night shift that day and I had woken up a couple of hours early. Therefore, I had time to step down to the cyber café downstairs and check my e-mails.
Two nights (or days) later, as I walked from my cab towards my building, I saw the same woman walk from the apartment that she lived in towards me. She looked stunning in her silvery robe, and strangely, her face was glowing, almost as if the moonlight was reflecting off it. I stood there, transfixed.
She came up to me and introduced herself. She said that she could not sleep. She was suffering from Jet Lag, and she was looking for a place that was open and still serving food. I told her that she could find an open restaurant only in one of the Five Star hotels nearby. I pointed the way to the Taj and even explained how she could find her way to Sun n’ Sand further down the road. She thanked me, and asked me what I was doing out at this time of the night. I smiled, and told her about my job. She nodded and thanked me for the directions. I wished her good night and walked up the two flights of stairs to my house.
It was the beginning of the month, and the calls had come back-to-back. My workday had been hectic and all I had wanted was to go home and sleep. My luck was not so great, though. As soon as I hit the bed, my thoughts turned to fantasies involving my Manager and I.
I had an irrevocable crush on him and for that there was no cure. He was tall, fair, handsome and flamboyant in a very “filmi” manner. I still remember the first day of my Process Training. My dream-man had suddenly materialised in front of me, and it took an enormous amount of control to still my racing heartbeats. All throughout my Training I hoped against hope that I would not be in his team, but in the end, I was. Proximity was never a cure for an infatuation, and I knew then that I was doomed. I would probably want him for the rest of my life and would never get him. I sighed, and closed my eyes. Sleep came, but very late.
Then Saturday arrived. The weekend was the time to relax, and finish off the chores of the whole week. In the afternoon, I sat in my chair, a bottle of chilled beer in my hand, wondering where my roommate had disappeared. My cell phone began to chime its tones. Wondering whom it was, I picked up the handset. My manager’s name leapt off the display. I took a deep breath in the hopes of calming my rapid heartbeat, and took the call.
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Read the rest of the story on http://www.geocities.com/madghare under the "Tall Tales" section.
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