STORY TIME, 1 - TEASED
"Srinivas is an intelligent boy and a rank holder in Civil Engineering. He has absolutely no bad habits. Drinking and smoking are bad for health you see. Eerrr... the only thing that he is addicted to is painting. He is an excellent painter. One has to have a hobby in life you see. He is a very responsible boy. Can you imagine at the age of 27, with only four years of work experience, he is now handling a multi crore project!", and thus went on Srinivas's uncle proudly introducing, which seemed to look more so like bragging about his favorite nephew to Lata's parents, the first time Srinivas and his family had gone to see Lata seeking her hand in marriage.
As it was an event where the bride, groom and their families were meeting for the first time, Lata appeared in front of them draped in a pink sarie around her fair and slim body. She walked with her eyes down cast carrying a food tray which had samosas and sweets. Srinivas's family looked at Lata who was only 24 years of age and their face lit up with joy. Immediately their eyes were all on Srinivas who was staring mesmarised by her looks. Looking at her rosy lips that were smiling a shy smile and here dimpled cheeks, his heart had skipped a beat. He realised he was being watched by the elders and dropped his gaze immediately. As she placed the tray on the table her gaze moved to the handsome Srinivas who sat with a downcast eyes with a smile that lingered under his well trimmed mustache. Her heart fluttered for a moment. For all the wooing by men that she had experienced in the past she was determined to take ample time to get to know the man she would wed.
"Among the 3 children we have she is the only girl and the eldest. Our relatives dissuaded us from getting her educated further. They said that she might not find a suitable boy for marriage. But I was determined to give her the best in life. In another two years time she will be promoted to the post of a Professor from the Assistant Professor cadre that she now holds", said Lata's father proudly.
The first time Srinivas spoke to Lata, he knew he had met his life partner. After four months of courting, they realised they shared a great chemistry. Both gave their consent for marriage to their respective family members. The wedding date was fixed and it was supposed to happen after two months. The wedding preparations were already in full gusto. The couple were looking for a rented house to live in after they were wed. Lata was successful in looking for a two bed room flat that was only five blocks away from the college where she worked, considering the fact that Srinivas had a bike to ride till his work place and that she could walk till hers everyday.
It so happened that Mrs. Rekha the flat owner permitted Lata to have a look at the flat. Lata accompanied by her colleague and close friend Sheela went to have a look at the place. Mrs.Rekha an elderly lady in her late 60's was enthusiastic about showing the flat. It was on the fifth floor facing west. It was already late in the evening and all the three got to view the breath taking sun set from the balcony outside the master bed room. While exiting the flat Mrs. Rekha secured the front door and locked it, while the two young women discussed the pros and cons of living in the flat. It was at that moment Mrs. Rekha's phone rang. She gently asked Lata to hold the door key while she rummaged for the phone in her hand bag.It was a call from her husband asking her to return home immediately without wasting time, to attend a pressing matter urgently. Mrs. Rekha left the apartment in a haste bidding good bye to the young women. In the process she forgot to collect the key from Lata. It was only after she left did Lata find the key still clutched in her right fist. As Mrs. Rekha had already driven her car out of the apartment premises by the time Lata and Sheela came out of the building, Lata decided to return the key the following day.
That night Lata called Srinivas to inform him of the unoccupied flat for rent. Surprisingly Lata found Srinivas's "Hello Sweetheart!" filled with excitement. SPARKS BUILDERS the company where Srinivas worked as a Civil Engineer handled multi crore assignments every year. They were employee friendly and took great care of their workers. Awards, picnics, parties and many more such events were a part of the work environment.
Srinivas let Lata know that there was a buzz in the office that he was nominated for the 'Best Employee of the Year Award', "...moreover you know how much Mr. Antony trusts me and loves me", he said.
She was proud of him. She then narrated her day's happenings and finally it was decided that they would meet at the Sun Set Point the next evening and before Srinivas could drop Lata home, they would return Mrs. Rekha's key.
The next morning when Srinivas reached his work place, Mr. Antony the Managing Director of the Company summoned him into his lavish and well kept office. Mr. Antony happened to be one of the best senior employees the company could ever have. An elderly gentleman who was extremely serious regarding his work and the performance of the employees. The workers would avoid getting into his bad books at any cost and hence would work tirelessly. But other wise he was well known for his humane qualities. As SPARKS BUILDERS had a contract with Gupta Co. and Limited which was one of the best firms in the city. They had planned to build a commercial complex worth crores of rupees, hence a blue print was laid out by the builders and the testimonials of the same were drafted. All this and much more was shown to Srinivas and his team for a final detailed look as they had to make a presentation of the same when Mr. Gupta and his team arrives to finalize the deal. At the end of the day he stacked away the blue print and the rest of the documents safely away in a Locker. He was aware of the fact that Srinivas worked hard, was sincere, dutiful and trustworthy.
Mr. Antony called him aside and let him know, "I would bestow a great responsibility on you. There is a possibility for me to leave town in a day or two. It's the project of the construction of the bridge in Kolkata that needs some urgent attention. During that period if Mr. Gupta drops by our office I want you and your team to make a good presentation. The needed documents are there in the Locker. I want no one tampering the documents or playing foul, it's not that I don't trust anyone here. As a precaution I leave the key in your safe hands. Take great care... Wish you good luck!" Srinivas accepted the key with much pride, assured the MD of safe keeping, shook hands with him and slipping the key into his trouser's pocket he walked out of the room.
As it was a busy day for both Srinivas and Lata, they were relieved that they found themselves at the Sun Set Point perched on a bench. Our young Civil Engineer and Mr. Perfect, narrated joyfully and with much pride the days happenings to his Lady Love. He did not dare to move the prized possession, the Locker Key from his pocket. Our Assistant Professor and Ms. Charming let the Love of her Life know of the Flat that which she had had a look at the previous day. She innocently showed him the Flat Key which was still in her possession. Both of them started discussing about the Flat. Their conversation slowly proceeded towards making plans for staying in the Flat. In their excitement Srinivas playfully tied the key to the end of Lata's sari pallu calling her the Home Minister. She brandishing the end of her pallu acted like a daunting mistress of the house. By the end of it all both of them were in splits of laughter. Some of the passers by would have definitely wondered what the joke was all about. The couple made plans for their future and every now and then teased each other.
They had lost track of time and the sun had set. The climate had started changing with cool breeze blowing, like the one that occurs before it rains. Thick black clouds had started forming. Srinivas was sure that it would rain any moment. Off late the climate had turned unpredictable. Hence both of them left immediately. They reached the parking lot and Srinivas mounted his bike. All his efforts in starting it went in vain. His concern was Lata's safety and started looking for an auto rickshaw. As the night was getting cooler, Lata had started shivering like a leaf.
A Mercedes stopped near them, the gentleman at the driver's seat rolled down the window and asked, "want a lift?" Srinivas was happily surprised to see Mr. Antony. A short chat revealed that they were travelling the opposite direction. The very fatherly Mr. Antony realised that the young lady was shivering. He handed his coat to Lata and after much refusal she obliged to accept his favor.
He looked at Srinivas and said, "Hand it over to me in the office and dont take the trouble to get it washed. I'll get it done myself."
"Yes Sir. Thank you" was his reply.
With this Mr. Antony rolled up the window of his car and drove away. The couple were lucky to get an auto rickshaw and they hurriedly left. As the rickshaw was approaching Lata's house, she remembered the Key that had to be returned to Mrs. Rekha. She looked into her purse for the key, but it wasn't there. She finally over turned the contents of her hand bag and was astonished to find the Key missing.
"Where is it Srinivas?" she squeeked in panic.
Srinivas was equally confused. He searched his pockets, his bag and wallet but couldn't find it. Both of them tried to remember where it must have got misplaced or if it were flung far away in their playfulness, but they couldn't come to a conclusion.
"Lucky Mrs. Rekha has still not contacted me enquiring about the key. What if she does, what do I tell her?" panicked Lata.
"I'll head back to the Sunset Point and look for it. Luckily it has not yet started raining. False alarm I suppose," assured Srinivas.
By then they had stopped in front of Lata's house. She got out of the rickshaw, handed over Mr. Antony's coat to Srinivas and bid him a good night.
Srinivas immediately returned to the Sun Set Point in the same auto rickshaw. After a thorough search in the arena, Srinivas couldn't locate the key. By then Lata had called him twice enquiring about the same. But he didn't have a satisfying answer to her questions. Finally he assured her that he would scan the area first thing in the morning. He remembered that his bike was parked in the parking lot and relaised that it wouldn't start. He managed to push it all the way till the petrol bunk. Fortunately there was a mechanic who managed to set it right in no time. Wearing Mr. Antony's coat he started towards his home.
About three blocks away from his house he heard a whistle being blown continuously and "STOP, STOP, STOP" being bellowed after him. He was shocked to see a group of police men running towards him. He then realised that he was so absorbed in thinking about the day's happenings that he had not noticed the 'NO ENTRY' sign board which had been recently put up at the entrance of the street. The police threatened to arrest him for tress passing in spite of the sign board that was very visible, which indicates that he was up to no good.
Srinivas pleaded innocent. With a sense of fear and dejection he thought, "This is not happening to me. What more awaits!?! This is not my day!"
He later learnt that there was a political protest march in the area and violence could erupt any time. Because of which there was a diversion in the traffic. Hence the security was on high alert. The police didn't want to take any risk and wanted to clear all doubts. They checked Srinivas's vehicle, bag and even his pockets. He had to empty the contents of his pockets on to the dash board of the police car which he did with much hesitation. Mrs. Rekha's Key was already missing and now he was in no mind to see his office Locker Key vanish. His eyes were all the time secured on the Key. Once he was cleared of all allegations he was permitted to leave. He immediately moved the things that were on the dash board into Mr. Antony's coat pocket in a hurry. He left the place as fast as he could and reached the secure confines of his home.
"NEED TO DISCUSS A NEW PROJECT. COME TO WORK AS SOON AS POSSIBLE." read the message by Mr. Antony which was sent to Srinivas early in the morning.
The events of the previous day took a toll on Srinivas's mind because of which he had a disturbed sleep at night. He woke up later than the usual time in the morning. In a hurry he emptied the contents of Mr. Antony's coat pocket into his trouser pocket and rushed to the office. By then Mr. Antony was already at his desk. Srinivas returned the coat to Mr. Antony with a "Thank You!" When he went to hang the coat on the coat stand he spotted a lighter colour coat already hanging on the stand. He guessed it was the one his MD wore to he office that day.
"I had to postpone my trip to Kolkata by two days as I need to look into this new project from Delhi." Saying this Mr. Antony started discussing the project with Srinivas for two long hours. After which Srinivas left to attend to his on sight work along with his team. In the process his plans to visit the Sun Set Point slipped out of his mind completely.
Lata anxiously waited for the news about the Flat Key from Srinivas. It was mid morning already and she could wait no longer. She calls Srinivas who was so absorbed in his work that as soon as he saw Lata's name on this phone, it felt like he was instantly transported to the Sun Set Point.
"I got held up at work", when he replied Lata lost her temper.
"How could you be so irresponsible? If you would have only let me know, I would have gone there in the morning."
"You have no idea how busy I have been."
"What do you expect me to tell Mrs Rekha? Never mind I am at fault."
Even before Srinivas could react the line was disconnected.
"How touchy!" he thought.
He knew he had lost Lata's trust and didn't know of its consequences. Considering the fact that he couldn't handle too many matters at the same time, he decided to concentrate his mind, time and energy to the task at hand. So he continued his work.
It was afternoon when he received a call from his MD saying that Mr. Gupta and his team will be present at the office in another two hours time as he had just got out of the flight from Delhi. By then he would want Srinivas and his team ready with the presentation.
"Please bring the key to the Locker along with you," were his last words before he could drop the call.
Srinivas ended his work immediately and left to the office with his team. As soon as he reached, he checked for the key in his pocket and to his astonishment, the key was missing.
"No, Not again! Murphy's Law, I suppose." he thought.
He remembered that he had emptied the contents of Mr. Antony's coat's pocket into his trouser pocket just before he could leave home. He rummaged his entire cubical for the key. Alas! He didn't find it.
"Everything alright Srinivas?" enquired Anil his team mate noticing the worried look on Srinivas's face and the considerable amount of time he had taken to join his team.
With no time to give a satisfying reply Srinivas only nodded his head and said "I'll be back soon."
He soon found himself on his bike on his way back home.
"You are home very early", exclaimed his mother as she opened the door for him.
Srinivas dashed his way to his room not bothering to respond. He rummaged his room, upturned his drawers and turned every cupboard inside out to find the Key. It was still missing.
"Mother did our helper find a key on my bedroom floor or anywhere else in the house while she was cleaning?" bellowed Srinivas from his room.
His mother with a confused look on her face denied finding anything at all on the floor apart from dirt.
In a hushed tone she said, "Please keep your voice low, the elders in the house are asleep. You'll wake them up."
"What do I do now? What do I tell Mr. Antony?" with these thoughts eating on his once peaceful and proactive mind, Srinivaas headed towards his office.
He was frightened and embarrassed to face his MD. So much so he wanted to hide himself in a place where no one could find him. The Key to retrieve the documents of a Multi Crore project was missing. He sincerely wished this was all a dream and that he would wake up on his bed.
Noticing Srinivas's long absence Mr. Antony summoned him into his room. Cold sweat trickled down Srinivas's fore head as he was tensed. He was sure he would be sacked as soon as Mr. Antony learns the truth. He was ready to face the consequences. It was close to evening and along with the setting sun, his good name would also set down by the end of the day.
The students saw their charming Chemistry Assistant Professor who was normally relaxed, trot across the campus soon after class hours. She decided to look for the Key at the Sun Set Point all by herself. She knew that there was very less chances for her to find it there. But she hoped she would. She found a couple enjoy their time perched on the same bench where she and Srinivas had spent the previous evening. With much hesitation and a bit of embarrassment she sought their permission to look around the bench for the Key. To her dismay, it wasn't there. She managed to approach the maintenance personnel of the place and enquire about the lost key. They treated her question like a joke, laughed at it and turned her away. Embarrassed and disappointed she headed home wondering what explanation she would give Mrs. Rekha when she calls enquiring about the key. She even wondered what was keeping Mrs. Rekha from not calling her. As Lata kept thinking of this and much more even at home, she started tidying her room. Lost in her thoughts she started folding the sari that hung on a rope which she had worn the previous day. As she did so she found a knot at the end of the sari pallu and a metal sticking out of it. She realised what it was and her joy had no bounds, there were tears of joy in her eyes. But her joy was also accompanied by a sense of guilt and embarrassment. She immediately called Srinivas, but sadly he disconnected her call. She was sure that the morning's tiff had angered him and decided to see him at his work place as soon as possible.
Srinivas stood in his MD's office shame faced with his head hanging low. The normally polite and serene Mr. Antony was fuming with rage.
"I thought you were a responsible man," told the MD making every effort to keep his temper under control and had stood up from his seat.
"Sir let me explain," interrupted Srinivas.
"I want no explanation, but the Key," shot back the MD suppressing his anger. "In another fifteen minutes time Mr. Gupta will be here. By then I want you back in my office with the key. Get out now."
"But Sir."
"Not another word. Out!"
Ashamed and helpless, Srinivas moved out of the MD's office. Mr. Antony was certain that Srinivas had lost the key. It occurred to his mind that he had a duplicate key at home. The MD grabbed his coat and hurriedly put it on. He reached into the pocket of his coat for the car key but didn't find it there. He checked another pocket and found not the car key, but another of the same kind. When he pulled it out of his pocket, the sight of it gave him a pleasant surprise and a sense of relief. He then realised he had worn the coat which Srinivas had returned to him in the morning. His anger that was suppressed all this while got better of him.
He moved out of his room and roared, "SRINIVAS!"
Srinivas who was already in a dilemma and was aware that a word regarding the same had already reached every corner of the office. The rage in the MD's voice suggested that, Srinivas who was already in deep waters was sure to drown when he approaches him. He found Mr. Antony standing at his office door with his face turned red with anger.
"Are you fooling around?" asked the MD sternly.
Srinivas who was already scared to face him, was now confused.
Mr. Antony held the Locker Key in front of Srinivas's face and barked, "What was the Key doing in my coat pocket?"
"The Locker Key was found! How? When? Where?" were the questions swirling in Srinivas's mind. He was relieved to see it. While he collected his thoughts there was Mr. Antony speaking,"This is a multi crore project. You cannot joke around carelessly keeping the Locker Key in the coat pocket."
By then Srinivas realised that in a hurry he had forgotten to remove the Key from the coat pocket. Fortunately the MD had still not given the coat to the laundry. Srinivas was happy that the key was found.
He blurted out, "I thought that the safest place for the key would be your coat pocket. I must have forgotten to remove it from there, while returning the coat to you in the morning."
"What!? Stop talking nonsense. Go, get your team ready for the presentation. Mr. Gupta will be here any moment."
Srinivas, his team and Mr. Antony were soon in the presence of Mr. Gupta and his team, discussing the project backed by presentations. Mr. Gupta the CEO of the company owned the company as it was handed over to him from his family from generation to generation. He was technically old but seemingly young. A serious person by nature and was hard to be impressed. The MD of SPARKS BUILDERS was as nervous as a cat, but he managed to maintain his composure. After all the deal was of a Multi Crore and his team of efficient Civil Engineers had managed to do their best. It was a moment of joy and relief to the SPARKS BUILDERS team when they learnt that Mr. Gupta was impressed. The deal was finally signed. It was a proud moment for Srinivas and his team.
It was dark outside and the sun had already set. But Srinivas's heart was joyful, warm and sunny like the day light. As he and his team moved out of the MD's room, he locked eyes with the MD. The MD with a smile gave him a thumbs up sign. Srinivas decided to celebrate the victory with his team. As they walked down the deserted lobby a slim fair lady claded in a sari got up from her seat at the reception and walked towards Srinivas with her eyes downcast. Srinivas was surprised to see Lata approaching.
"What are you doing here at this hour? You shouldn't be here," Srinivas frantically reacted on seeing her.
She didn't respond. He suddenly remembered the lost Flat Key with a sigh. But it was too late to do anything about it at present. He was exhausted by the day's events and all that he needed was some relaxation. He couldn't read the expression on her face, if it were anger or disappointment. With her eyes still downcast she stood in front of Srinivas and held the Flat Key in front of his face. Once again the questions. "How? When? Were?" popped up in his mind but with a sense of joy, surprise and with a confused look on his face. Lata could read his face quite well.
She responded immediately, "You had tied it to my sari pallu yesterday and both of us forgot about it."
"So who's fault is it anyway?" asked Srinivas with a mischievous smile on his face.
For which both of them bursted out laughing aloud!
Finally our hero not only found the lost keys, but he also found the almost lost trust of his Lady Love and the almost lost Good Name at his work place. Srinivas got through one of those days where life took the pleasure of teasing him. If you are wondering whether he got the 'Best Employee of the Year Award' after all the commotion. Who cares, now when he has found the most precious things that were once almost lost. Anyways, all's well that ends well!
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