Esha smiled and said, “Well, actually, I should say thank you to you for coming back and persuading me to go with you and Lucky. I enjoyed the evening. And by the way, Siddharth, I just got a job.”
Siddharth sounded happy for her. “Well, that calls for a party, don’t you think?”
“Yes, we must celebrate, but only when I get my first salary,” she said laughing.
“Ok, I’ll wait,” he said. “Have you told Lucky yet?”
“No, not yet. I’m going to call her right away,” she answered.
“No, wait,” he said. “I’ll come and pick you up and then we can go and see her together and share the good news.”
She agreed. The tension between them had evaporated and they were becoming good friends again.
Chapter 6
Lucky’s cousin was getting married in Delhi and Siddharth was taking her to the airport. Esha had come with to see her off and was sitting unhappily in the back of the car.
When they reached the departure terminal at the airport, Siddharth took Lucky’s suitcase out of the trunk while she checked her ticket and ID cards for the security check. Then she turned to say goodbye to Siddharth and Esha.
“What am I going to do without you?” cried Esha holding Lucky in her arms as if she would never let her go.
“Ah c’mon, it’s only for three weeks. I will be back soon. I’m going to miss you too. Sidd, just look at how this girl is crying. It’s as if I’m going away for a very long time,” said Lucky, wiping the tears from Esha’s face.
“Please take care of her, Sidd. She’s not very good at taking care of herself,” Lucky added.
“I will, Lucky. Don’t worry. You have a good journey. I will miss you too,” said Siddharth and gave Lucky a hug.
Esha stood back wondering. ‘Do they love each other? Is she in love with him? Lucky had never spoken so directly to him before.’
The thought of them being together excited her so much that she started smiling and her face was radiant. She had seen them talking and whispering from day one but had never assumed they could be in love. But then she remembered about meeting Siddharth’s girlfriend at the restaurant. Had he told Lucky about her or had they broken up? The thought ran through her mind that perhaps he was playing a double game, but he wasn’t like that. Her mother’s words came back to her - “A friend can be more dangerous than any vultures and hyenas.”
“I don’t want to miss my flight. I’d better hurry. See you soon. Bye,” said Lucky as she hurried off to the departure gate in the airport.
Siddharth turned towards Esha. “Shall we go?”
“Yes,” replied Esha wiping her tears from her eyes.
“There’s one more right there,” he said, pointing to her other eye, and she smiled at his gesture.
“So, where shall we have dinner?” asked Siddharth reversing his car out of the parking bay.
“Dinner?” Esha asked. “Actually, I was thinking of having something to eat when I got home. It’s been a hectic day and I need some time to settle down before work tomorrow.”
“Wonderful. So do I get to have dinner made by you? Lucky always says you are such a good cook,” asked Siddharth looking at her with wishful eyes. Esha didn’t know what to say. She couldn’t invite him home now that Lucky wasn’t there. After all, it would feel so weird.
She thought for a moment, then replied, “I don’t think there are enough groceries at home for me to make a good meal for both of us, so I think we should eat out if you are hungry.” She hoped he wouldn’t insist on eating at her house.
“No problem. Let’s do that,” he said easily. Switching on the AC of the car, he said, “By the way my Mom was asking about you.”
Esha looked at him and smiled, “How is she?”
Siddharth smiled back and said, “She’s good, but still after me about getting married.”
Esha felt uneasy with the sudden mention of marriage. She turned to look at him and was about to ask him what had happened to his girlfriend, when her phone rang.
“Hi, Esha. This is Ramya. I’m at Mittal hospital. I need your help. Please!”
“Ramya, what’s happened?” asked Esha and she wondered how she could help Aakash’s girlfriend.
“We need A- blood very urgently. I asked them at the hospital to call our work to find out if there were any donors with the A- blood type and your name and number came up. Can you help? Aakash needs blood urgently. He has lost a lot of blood,” said Ramya.
“Ok, sure. I’ll be there shortly. But what happened?” asked Esha
As she listened to what Ramya was saying, she placed her hand over her mouth and then let out a moan, “Oh no!”
Siddharth, who had been listening to her side of the conversation, asked, “Is something wrong?”
Esha turned to him and said desperately, “I need to go to Mittal hospital right away. It’s urgent. Can you please drop me there?”
Half an hour later, Esha was on a hospital bed giving blood while Siddharth sat beside her and talked to her. The bottle was almost half-full when Ramya came into the room and started crying. Esha asked her to calm down. Ramya wiped her tears and said, “Thank you so much, Esha. I didn’t think you would come after how we treated you.”
Esha smiled back and saw Siddharth looking puzzled. Ramya came closer, held Esha’s hand in hers and said, “I am indebted to you always. I laughed at you the other day, but thank you so much for putting that aside and coming to help him.”
After Ramya left, Siddharth asked her what Ramya was referring to. Esha told him that Aakash was Lucky’s ex-boyfriend. She had come face to face with Ramya and Aakash in the foyer near the lift of the building where she had gone for an interview. She had no idea that they both worked for the same company. She told him how they had laughed at her and had mocked her about her looks.
Siddharth frowned, “Looks?”
Esha smiled and said, “You know, the way I dress.”
He looked confused by what she said. She pressed her lips together, thinking of a way to explain. “I don’t dress the way a city girl does normally... and …” she said looking away.
Siddharth looked angry. “Are you crazy? Don’t even think like that. Don’t judge yourself by what others say. You are very beautiful and the way you dress… your elegance can’t be copied by any other girl.”
She opened her mouth and felt herself blushing. “But that isn’t what people want these days. They don’t want simplicity.”
Siddharth took her hands gently and said, “What other people think and do shouldn’t matter to you. If you dress up according to them, you will no longer be Esha… and I like the way you are. And you should be proud of yourself. Where is the Esha who slapped Aditya? I wish you had stood up to Aakash and Ramya in the lift. Don’t let people misjudge or disrespect your simplicity.”
Esha looked at him and her eyes beamed with admiration and respect. No one had ever made her feel so special the way Siddharth did by saying those words.
Siddharth frowned at her and asked, “And yet, you still came here to give him blood. Amazing!”
“I know he was wrong and I won’t be able to forgive him, but I still can’t risk letting his life slip away because of his foolishness.”
Siddharth squeezed her hand gently, “You did the right thing. There are very few like you.”
Siddharth waited with her until she had finished donating blood and then drove her home as she was feeling quite exhausted and wanted to go straight to bed.
***
Esha woke up the next morning feeling tired and her head was throbbing. She had just sat up on the side of the bed when Siddharth walked into her room and handed her a cup of coffee. “Good morning Esha! How are you feeling this morning?” She was so surprised to see him there, and looked at him with astonishment on her face, she took the cup of coffee he was holding out to her. What was he doing here and when had he arrived? She tried to remember what had happened the night before, but it was all a blur. She had been
so tired when she got home.
She panicked and asked him, “What are you doing here, Siddharth?”
She didn’t understand why he was there. Had something happened with her and him that she couldn’t remember.
Siddharth looked at her and said in a serious tone, “I know what you’re thinking. But I’m not like that. Let me explain.”
Esha felt tears fill up her eyes, “Then why are you here? How am I going to face my mother?” she said crying.
Siddharth looked shocked. He took a step towards her, “Are you insane? Do you think I could do such a thing to you? Why do you always think so negatively about me?” he asked scornfully.
Esha moved away from him and shouted, “No, don’t come near me. First tell me what happened yesterday. I don’t remember anything or what made you come here.”
Esha was really sobbing now. He stepped back and sank down into a chair. “Esha...I honestly didn’t do anything wrong with you, sweetheart. You fainted when we got out of the car, after coming back from the hospital. You can even ask Lucky, I called her to ask where the house keys were and told her you had fainted.”
Esha stopped crying and looked at him. Siddharth eyes were also red. “Esha...I have come to know you very well since the first day I saw you in the pub when you spat out the alcohol that you tasted. I know how you do not like anyone looking at you when you are not properly dressed, the way you did when I came back to ask you to come to the movies with Lucky and me and how you panic thinking of being alone with me when Lucky isn’t around. Remember last night when I wanted to come here and have dinner with you?”
Esha felt so overwhelmed by the fact that he had paid such close attention to how she had behaved in those circumstances. ‘I was correct then. He was the guy I saw in the pub. That’s why I felt like I have seen him somewhere before!’ she thought.
He came over and sat next to her. “You tell me Esha, after knowing all of these things, would I take advantage of you? Am I that kind of a person? Since you’ve known me, have I ever touched you inappropriately?”
“No,” she answered him quietly. She couldn’t look at him. She felt so ashamed to have thought badly of him. Tears rolled down her face. She couldn’t help it. “Hey, please Esha, don’t cry.” he pleaded. “I remember the pain in your eyes when you left my office that day I accused you of being disloyal. It never goes away and I can’t sleep at night thinking about how I have hurt you. I cannot bear it anymore. Please don’t cry.”
Esha wiped her tears and with a sad face said, “But I did make a mistake that day and you had every right to shout at me. I destroyed all your dreams for your designs and then I foolishly sent that email which made you look stupid in front of all those potential clients.”
Siddharth looked surprised. “Did you send an email?” he asked softly.
Esha looked up and meekly said, “I did. I thought of showing it to you before sending it, but then you accidentally knocked my hand on the keyboard and it got sent. No one replied so I thought it went to spam mail and decided not to tell you about it. I’m so sorry.”
Siddharth started to laugh. “Ok, ok. So that’s why a client said they were very impressed with the services and benefits mentioned in an email. I had no idea what email they were talking about.”
Esha wanted to smile watching him laugh out loud. Their eyes met and it was the most beautiful moment. She wanted to freeze it. She wanted to stay in the moment. But just then her phone rang. It was Lucky. She jerked herself back to reality. ‘What am I thinking? Lucky and Siddharth love each other. How can I come between them?’ she thought unhappily.
She picked up her phone and moved away from Siddharth’s side. She tried to extend the call as much as possible, chatting away to Lucky and asking her all sorts of questions until, finally she saw him picking up his wallet and getting up to leave. She waved at him. She wanted him to leave, so she kept herself busy talking to Lucky and ignored him.
He watched her for another minute, then waved back and walked out of the front door. Once he had left, she felt much better and could breathe more easily. Thank goodness, Lucky had called. If he had stayed any longer, she would not have been able to hide her true feelings from him.
Chapter 7
Three weeks had passed and Lucky was back home. Siddharth had called her every weekend while Lucky was away, but she always found some excuse to avoid going out with him.
“Hey,” said Lucky as she came into her room. “Siddharth just called. He wants us to join him for his birthday party tomorrow,” said Lucky.
“His birthday?” exclaimed Esha surprised.
She felt in her heart that she had to do something nice for him. After all, he was always so nice to her. She spent the whole day thinking about what to give him. Finally, she decided to make him a special birthday card.
The card was a simple one, with a small design and glitter on each corner. On the front of the card she sketched a baby smiling and inside she wrote, ‘Happy Birthday, Siddharth. May you always enjoy the best of both worlds and keep smiling like a child forever.’
When they reached the party, it was packed with people and lots of loud music. The crowd cheered loudly when Siddharth cut the birthday cake. Standing beside him was the woman that Esha remembered meeting in the restaurant when she was having lunch with Siddharth and who she thought might be his girlfriend.
If he was still with her, then why was he so friendly with Lucky? She wondered what was going on in his mind. She didn’t understand and felt he was cheating on Lucky. The crowd, the music, and the confusion made her head throb. She wanted to leave the party and looked around for Lucky so she could persuade her to leave with her as soon as possible.
She found Lucky and together they wished him. She handed him the birthday card she had made. Then she excused herself saying she had a lot of work on her mind and needed to get home early.
Siddharth looked at her annoyed. “Ah, c’mon,” he said.
However, she kept repeating, “I need to go.”
Siddharth turned to the girl standing next to him, the one Esha had met in the restaurant and said, “Rakhi, this is Lucky, my very close friend, make her comfortable. I will drop Esha home and come back.”
Lucky looked blankly at Siddharth while Rakhi escorted her inside. Esha felt uncomfortable and didn’t want to leave Lucky alone. She also didn’t want Siddharth to drop her home.
He drove fast, keeping his eyes on the road. His breathing was rough and heavy and Esha could sense that he was angry.
He parked the car just beside Esha’s house. She grabbed the door handle to open it and get out.
“Esha, do you want to ask me something? Or say something to me?” asked Siddharth looking straight ahead at the road in front of him.
“No,” she replied. “Thank you for the ride home.” She got out of the car and let herself into the house. Once inside, she watched Siddharth from the window. He just sat there staring ahead. After a few minutes, he slowly turned his head and looked at her standing at the window. Then he restarted the car and slowly drove away.
***
For the next few days, Esha kept very much to herself, only going to work and coming straight back home. She didn’t hang out with Lucky nor did she go with her when she went out with Siddharth.
When Lucky stopped going out with Siddharth and he stopped dropping in at the house, she didn’t ask Lucky anything about the change. She couldn’t think of a way to start the conversation about his girlfriend with Lucky. She wondered if Lucky would feel heartbroken as she seemed to like him a lot.
One quiet evening at home, a message beeped on her phone. It was from Siddharth. “Can you do me a favour?” it said.
Esha reluctantly typed, “What favour?”
Siddharth messaged back, “Tomorrow is the launch of my designer garments. We are having a fashion show where we will be showcasing our designs. I want you to wear one of them.”
Esha messaged back, “I can’t. I’d feel awkward. Find so
meone else.”
“Please. I won’t ask you to do anything ever again.... just once. This is all I am asking of you. I had always planned, even after you left my company that whenever my designs were going to be showcased to the world, that you would represent the company,” said the message.
Before Esha could respond, he sent another one, “Please, Esha. Just one last time. Only this one favour.”
***
The next day, Esha and Lucky went to the address Siddharth had messaged about where the fashion show was to be held. The open stage in the center was adorned with bright lights and everything looked very elegant. In front of the stage were rows of chairs for people to sit on.
After fitting into an outfit and with her hair and make-up done backstage, Esha got the opportunity to look out at the huge gathering in front of the stage. She felt scared. How was she going to walk out there in front of all those people?
“Are you sure I can walk out there? I’ve never done this before!” wailed Esha.
Lucky checked her over, making sure the slit was in the right place and that Esha’s hair was falling gracefully down her back. She quickly applied a touch of light red lipstick to Esha’s lips. “There you go,” she said. “You look beautiful just like a bride.”
Esha blushed and hugged Lucky.
A moment later, she pressed her lips together in desperation and said, “But what if I mess up?”
“I know you won't,” said Lucky.
“Even if you do, I am right there behind you,” added Siddharth with a smile.
Her eyes met his and he gave her an assuring smile.
She took a quick glance at herself in the mirror. The double-layered light purple gown was indeed making her look very elegant and the thin gold necklace was the perfect piece of jewellery to compliment the outfit. The colour was also wonderfully complimenting her skin.
She moved to stand in sequence with the other models and looked out at the stage. She closed her eyes and quickly said a silent prayer asking God to make everything go smoothly.
Rhythm Of Love Page 7