In the midst of a densely populated jungle, a sonorous blaring noise brought the mighty Tyrannosaurus rex to a grinding halt. Its gleaming black-red eyes swayed in the direction of that rambunctious raucous for a fleeting instant and when it could not discern the source accurately , it continued its ambling along the paved pathway. It was sunny beyond the hot sultry sun. Nauseated by lack of any wind and bored from the long walk, a rumbling noise started shaking the earth violently. But this time, it discovered the source of the noise quite easily, for , it was from its very own stomach. As its luck would have been, the Tyrannosaurus was very unlucky despite the jungle's immense population . Its hunger started to scream at the top of the voice for some food - Anything. Baring a very dejected look on its otherwise graceful face, a small gust of air was its only salvation. It was then it started to believe in angels. Just like a perfect sinusoidal wave, the tantalizing aroma of something caught the right side of its nostrils unawares. Sensing that its mid-day microsleep was very much round the corner , it lunged itself forward towards the unsuspecting prey. After a sumptuous meal, it embarked on the final lap of its journey to accomplish its ultimate final destiny - Sleep. Suddenly, its instinctional alarm went-off, causing it to be consciously aware of any anything in its vicinity.
'Excuse Me. You are Rahul. Right ?' was the only thing which he heard from behind, thus proving his alarm was right once again . Her tightness of pink T-shirt was the first thing which caught his sharp black eye balls. Moving further up a bit, he could see her lipstick smeared slightly lightly above her luscious lips. Finally, he rested his gaze onto hers. The reflected light from him, through her optic nerves, entered her brain and she could see a person who was atleast 5 cms taller than her own height of 173cm. 'How do you know my name?' was his curt reply. He saw her being flushed at the blunt abruptness of the question. Patiently awaiting her response, he scrutinized her from toe to head. Still, she was flushing as if she had accidentally seen a man bathing in his shower room. His eyes lingered upon " I see what you see" imprinted in tiny bold red letters between her delectable honky ponky. He was also completely surprised by her total lack of disconcerting nature when he ogled her tracks of land lecherously in that momentariness .His insides was relieved when he saw her smiling . Looking at her, breaking the ice berg, casually he said "Nice Pair". "I work out regularly in the gym " was her prompt response together with a smile which went beyond her impeccable artistic countenance. "Kindly tell me how do you work out with your eyes" said Rahul with a deceptively innocent look upon his charming face . It took a second longer than the normal time for the impact of his reply to register in her brain. The second she deduced that he meant her eyes to be ‘nice pair’ , her initial flushing transformed into a bright red blushing which was more than sufficient to stop a moving vehicle. But, she still managed to maintain a degree of commandness over herself which made him to start liking her.
“ I have an important work now. I need to be leaving immediately”. There was a tremendous urgency in his voice. She said coolly “You do not have any work. As of now, you are awaiting your admission”. He was amazed by this unknown girl’s knowledge of him when he did not even know her name. This time though, it was he who regained his composure and spoke slowly “You are right. But, sleep is work, according to me. Anyway, unless you are not prepared to tell as to why you stopped me in the first place, I have work at home”. Hearing this, she looked amused. Without any forewarning, she uttered “I Love You”.
In that split second, Rahul saw her chubby cheeks turn red and understood why she had smiled and did not say anything when he ogled her initially. She gave an askance glance at him. Glimpsing her glance straight, he gave her a nonchalant reply “What makes you think you are in love with me?”. Startled by this unexpected line of question, she took her time and in a self-assured manner responded “ 3 and half years ago, I saw you in the Anna University campus with your friends near the coffee shop . I was awestruck by your presence. I studied in AC Tech and am currently employed in TCS. Starting from college to my Team Lead at TCS, I have received numerous proposals. I rejected each and every one of them to be with you. I have been following your every step like a shadow for the past 3 and half years till now”. Even the vehicles around them stopped honking their horns, the rustling of the leaves fell into an unmitigated quietness and a pin drop silence ensued . “So?” was his indifferent reply which broke that eternal stillness. “What do you mean “so?”” was her angry retort. “It means I just meant “so?”” remarked Rahul jestingly and caught her gentle left hand gently and proceeded towards Tuscana from where he had had his sumptuous meal before he encountered her.
Seated in a remote plush corner of the pizzeria, Rahul ordered Tantrum and when asked about her preference, she requested “+ 1” to the pleasant steward which made Rahul to exclaim “Hey. Just because I had ordered Tantrum, it doesn’t necessarily mean that you must also have the same beverage. Do get yourself whatever you like the best”. “I like Tantrum the best” she said. But, it was very evident from her facial expression that she had wanted that drink only to please him. Saying no more on the topic, Rahul’s sole comment “ Infatuation is sometimes confused with true love” and like a boomerang, he got her response “Sometimes, infatuation leads to true love if one loves truly” which eventually made Rahul to go into a big smile and think to himself “Beauty and Brains going together – Deadly combination”.
In the mean time, the steward kept their items on the table and dispersed with a low bow. Taking a small sip, he enquired “ You told me that you were awestruck by my presence when you dished your eyes on me for the first time, then rejected many a proposal, and followed every movement of mine. First of all, I am touched by your entire gesture. But, kindly tell me what made you to choose and think that I am the most appropriate person for you”. “You are street smart. Witty. The prince of my dreams. And the most important one – You see. This one is a woman’s thing. Don’t take me crazy. We, women can always say when we see a person whether he will keep us happy or not. And you were the only one who fitted the bill exactly”. Saying thus, she drank even more slowly than him. All this while ,her sight never ever lost a single sight of him. She felt she was in a paradise where none existed excepting them.
A loud tinkle of china in the background made her to keep her foot firmly on the terrafirma. Rahul had only half his share left when he answered “ Okay. Let us analyze the situation practically and come to a solution. From what you have said, all I could understand was that you love me because deep in your heart you feel that I will keep you happy in this life. Right ?”. ‘Yes’ was her happy prompt reply. ‘So, it means that incase if I met with an accident today accidentally and lost my brain and in due course all the other things which you said - Street smart, witty etc etc . You will cease to love me. Correct ?’. Her expression changed from instant happiness to instant cheerlessness and started to nearly shout “No. No. I didn’t mean anything like that. I love u truly”.
With the same sangfroidness in a calm steady tone, he said “Dear. You did not mean it. But, your well-chosen words meant everything I said. Street smart. Witty etc etc are all my attributes. They are just a part of me. I will exist without them even if I land in a coma for several years. I want someone who loves me completely even in such a situation incase if I were pushed to that state also. I am strongly of the opinion that such a love ,which does not demand or expect any expectation, has the power to cure even the most incurable coma. So, basically, you loved my attributes which are your personal expectations in life. That makes it an infatuation than true love. Expectations hurt big time, dear. Unfortunately, I am rather a person who wants someone to love me for what I am, as an individual ,and not for what I possess. What I possess may or may not be there with me tomorrow as I had demonstrated to you with the accident example. I may have fitted your bill exactly. But, sadly. You are way off the target of mine”. Saying thus, he finished his remaining share of the drink.
When she heard what he said, she started crying like a child who had lost her lollipop - defying and denying everything which Rahul told her then. Like a melodramatic film actress, she started cursing him “You won’t marry any other person in this life”. Placidly, he replied ‘ Tell me something which I do not know already. I will learn from you”. She being an intelligent girl, he knew that she understood every word of what he said. But, she was adamant enough to make him see her way which was absolutely dangerous for both of them .
Seeing her unstoppable flow of non-stop tears, he shouted ‘ Otha! Thevdiya!! In the event that you do want to humiliate yourself by crying in public, do it as you wish. Don’t disgrace my prestige and status in the process’. When he addressed her like that, she was completely shell-shocked. Wiping her tears - all love forgotten, she was besides herself and her voice shook in anger when she almost screamed ‘What did you call me now?’. Unperturbed by her livid anger, Rahul sat up straight in his chair and by the same coolness with which he had uttered those cruel words, he said ‘See. You have stopped crying. All thanks to Ravanan film’. Her anger changed from confusion to total confusion and she exclaimed ‘Pardon me?’ He started laughing and with the same tone continued ‘Well. You wouldn’t have stopped crying if I had tried to console you at that time unless you had gotten what you desired – Me. I had no other option but to say those harsh heart-pricking words which I knew would make you stop crying automatically but instead make you focus on me like a lioness going for her kill.’ She gave him a weak smile and responded ‘Yes. I was going for the kill if you hadn’t given me this explanation. Infact, I intended to butcher you. But, one thing which I don’t understand is why you thanked Ravanan film’. ‘ If you had seen ‘Usure pogudhey’ song, Vikram would have told Ash that guys could very easily digest a girl’s bad words but not their tears. This dialogue prompted me to act in that manner with a flair and dash of my own style’. Deeply impressed, she replied feebly, ‘You are the most complicated and interesting person whom I have ever met so far in my life’. ‘On the contrary, I am just an ordinary simple living thing’ was all that he said. “Chanceless” she muttered under her breath .Finally, she acknowledged and accepted the hardened fact that her love story might one day very well become another script for Gautam Vasudev Menon’s film.
Her smile then returned in full vigor yet she egged him on persistently once again ‘So, your final reply would be?’ ‘Ah! You are a tough little nut to crack. Aren’t you?’ he responded with an even bigger smile and proceeded further ‘ Fine. If I say ‘yes’ to you now, there will come a time in the future where I will definitely give you a divorce notice for lack of compatibility . For just a small ‘no’ , you started crying here. From what I have perceived about you since we met today, you will be surely torn to grief and lose your entire life if I were to give you the notice at that time. I am the sort of person who wants everyone to be happy. But, at that moment, seeing my ex-wife shattered, I would be sad too and dashed to pieces . It is not just about yours or mine but everyone’s happiness will be in jeopardy. I have laid the complete future to you as to what will transpire if I do say ‘yes’ now .
So , you think and decide whether I should tell “yes” or “no” . I will abide by your decision ‘.
After a lot of deliberation and contemplation, during the time which the steward brought and kept the bill, she said ‘ Yep. You are right. You better tell me “no” than “yes” ‘. ‘Are you saying this with full-hearted or just like how you ordered Tantrum for the sake of mine, you are saying this to me’. Raising her eyebrow, she tweeted ‘You are very sharp. But, this time, I am telling you with my full conscience involved. Nevertheless, there is one thing which I want to say from the bottom of my heart - I will miss you very much’. She gave him a sudden kiss on his right cheek. ‘You will surely get a person who fits your bill exactly'. He placed his hands over hers and added further 'But, one thing dearie. Just be extra careful and cautious when you select your next person, for, I do not want to see or hear that you are unhappy again’. With a lot more confidence in her voice, she said decisively ‘Yes. I will. For you and most importantly for my happiness’.
Saying thus, after paying the bill on a fifty-fifty basis, she knew this might be the last time she would see him. She clasped her hands tightly on to his for one last time and before she could bid him adieu , Rahul commented again ‘Nice pair’. Magically, an extra inch of smile attached to her face and she remarked mischievously ‘At least do you mean now what I think you mean?’. ‘Of course dear. I really meant your dangling’. He gave a short pause and said ‘ear-rings’. Both of them looked at each other and burst out laughing until tears of happiness rolled from their eyes. After their laughter had subsided, she gave him a big hug which Rahul reciprocated with the same intensity. She felt a drop of water drenching her T-shirt and realized that he had shed a drop of tear.
Throughout this entire episode, he had shown a character of remarkable flawlessness which none would have displayed and this act of his aroused her curiosity. She blurted out asking ‘What’s wrong?’. To which, he replied with the same old characteristic coolness ‘ I never knew any girl would love me so deeply and sincerely. I am indeed a fool to miss out on such a wonderful person. I sincerely pray to god that no harm comes to you’. She was overwhelmed with emotion when Rahul actually told her this. He wiped her tears off and bade goodbye to her and started walking when she swiftly caught him by the hands and kissed him on his lips – gently, warmly , passionately and then lovingly . Had it not been for the pizzeria employees, they knew they would have been mummified in that posture for several eras together. ‘What was that for?’ he asked her teasingly when they had unlocked their lip lock. ‘A parting gift to my favorite person in this world ’ was her terse reply and she started walking without turning her back again.
Rahul could distinctly hear the sound of her sobs very clearly. But, he knew there was no way for oil and water to be mixed together. It is only best when they are left unmixed. She understood it too. He saw the last of her tight pink T-shirt disappearing over the horizon.
Standing alone, his mind and heart was heavier than osmium. The nearby trees blew a gentle breeze which cleared away his heavy thoughts. In a matter of minutes, they became lighter than the lightest feather. The Tyrannosaurus Rex was ready for its next grueling battle – SLEEP.
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