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Prologue
Madhubala Malik twirled around her spacious living room adorned in a plead black anarkali with embroidered sleeves. There was a dance in her step and joy on her lips as she smiled and frowned alternatively trying to figure out which emotion her reddened face wore best. She put a gold chandelier earring up to her left cheek and tried imaging how well it would define her already sculpted bone structure. Once satisfied with her final appearance, she turned to a preoccupied Rishabh for approval. "Do I look okay?"
"Umm?" His nose was buried deep into a computer screen and he answered without even bothering to look up. "I want to take you right now".
Had you and I not known the context, we would both have concluded that this man deems his woman sexy. That he is profoundly attracted to her current form and thus made the remark that he would like to make love to her in that outfit.
Unfortunately, we both know better. Plus, there was no husk in the tone of his voice. He spoke those seemingly provocative words in robotic, monotone with his attention drifting off to an entirely different plane of consciousness than the one his girlfriend occupied. The odd part is, she didn't seem to mind.
"Is that so?" Madhubala said without a worry. "I should change into something modest then. I am going to the gurudwara after groceries. I would not want eyes on me for all the wrong reasons".
"Wait", Rishabh's mind was finally back to the present. "I just said that for the sake of it. Just to make you happy". And, my heart broke for Madhu at that minute more than any other minute I had been observing these two. What an asshole to have the audacity say such a thing when he is clearly at fault!
"So, I don't look good then?" Madhu seemed unfazed by his clearly cruel remark.
"I don't know. Maybe you do, I can't tell. After ten years of being together, nothing you do makes my heart race any more. Everyday is just a habit".
Was this man looking for trouble? If I was his girlfriend, this would be the cause of a breakup on the spot.
"Okay, if that is what you think then... You know what? I like the black suit and so I am going to damn well wear it. Goodbye!" She was angry by now as was apparent from her slamming the door on her way out the house. But this went unnoticed on Rishabh's part as his head was long back inside the mystical world of his laptop.
