IshRa FF : Bas Ek Sanam Chahiye (Updated Chapter 13 & 14 page 60) - Page 8

Chapter 4

Saturday morning, Raman had set out with his mother to meet Ishita at an event she was managing outside the city. It was a marriage hall that was being set up for the night. Mihir was going to meet them there after picking up Shagun from an early morning shoot. Unfortunately Raman's morning had started on the wrong foot with his accountant and he was in a foul mood.

"What do you mean, you made a mistake?! That is a huge problem, how did you miss that? What do I hire you for? Find a way to fix it! I'm not going to lose money over YOUR mistake, understood? If I do, it's coming out of your wages."

Shit...they'd have to take a loss for the first 6 months of the Tandon project if this didn't get sorted out. He called and yelled at a few other employees briefly before his mother dragged him out of the house in frustration.

"Raman, chetti kar we can't miss this appointment. This girl already looks so busy, if we don't keep our times she very well might decline to take us on!"

"What nonsense, why would she turn us down Ma. We have enough money to replace all her clients for a year." There was no calming him down now and his mother knew it. She gave him a knowing look.

"You never used to be like this you know; saying such awful things like it was nothing. My sweet, polite, kind hearted Happy you were. Your Papa used to brag about how you were always in a good mood no matter what. Hope one day our Happy comes back to us." She said it jokingly but there was sadness behind her words.

"Stop it Ma, don't start your drama. Chalo ab."

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The marriage hall they entered was decorated in a nautical theme with shades of blue, white and gray all around. Well placed lighting gave everything a fresh and bright look. White flowers were alternated with lilacs across the tables in the dining area. It was beautiful; simple but stunning to Raman's eyes. As he and his mother followed the signs toward the management office where they were to meet the creator of all this, Raman received a call.

"Ma why don't you go ahead, I'll find the office and join you shortly. I have to take this call." He walked over to a corner behind a working tent to get some privacy and answered the call.

"What's the update?" He barked into the phone as unknowingly a figure working just behind the cloth of the tent got startled. "I just can't accept that answer Vinod. This was your responsibility and you've put so much of my money on the line for a stupid stupid mistake your team made. Do you expect me to continue to employ you after this? Like I said this morning, find a feasible solution or you will pay for it one way or another."

Raman hung up blindingly furious, with the situation this had put the company in and the risk to the Tandon project. But most of all he was mad at himself; at his inability to deal with this in a calm and reasonable way. It used to be one of his strengths but now he would simply lose his temper due to a lack of patience. Or maybe it was because of something less flattering like arrogance or snobbery. Whatever the root, it wasn't productive but he felt helpless in the face of his own emotions.

He paced in place for a minute trying to calm down. Unsuccessful, he turned around suddenly to head back and collided right into someone walking out of the tent. There was a loud thud like a box falling and all he could see around him were floating wisps of cotton.

"Arrey idiot, can't you watch where you're walk..."
Before he could finish, he had looked up to see that through the floating white noise was a woman touching a hand to her head where he had bumped her with his. He stood frozen for a second as he stared at her, the cotton tufts falling slowly around them. Her soft yellow and white dupatta was flapping in the breeze around her hourglass frame. Long graceful fingers were touching creamy skin. She had large, beautiful almond eyes drawn thickly with kajal and flowing jet black hair which was now covered in white fibers.

"Escuuuse me! But you could also look where you're going nai? It's my stuff on the ground and in the air, don't know why you're getting all huffy" She retorted back.

Temporarily silenced while staring, Raman's anger which was just under the surface resurged at her response. "You're the one carrying around useless cotton things, waiting to shower them on unsuspecting strangers!"

Her big eyes grew bigger in outrage. "Oh so now I've done it on purpose! What bakwas! I've got better things to do than wait around for rude strangers to crash into me!" With hands on her hips, she leaned forward while yelling at him.

"Acchha? Looking at you it doesn't seem like it!!" Internally Raman was confused why his 12 year old self was coming through in his tone.

"I guess that's the problem, you're looking but you clearly can't see anything. I can recommend a good ophthalmologist if you want! Or better, a neurologist!"

"My eyes are totally fine thank you, as is my brain. They both see things that are worth looking at!"

"Agh! Kuch bhi!"

This made Raman smile suddenly and his anger broke. She noticed his smirk and got even angrier. A crowd of workers had gathered around them and Raman noticed that he was now nose to nose with this crazy woman he had been arguing with.

"Ma'am are you okay?"

This question seemed to have brought her out of the private trance they had been sharing. She looked around awkwardly, backing away as she noticed her own proximity to this irritating stranger. "Sab teekh hai. You all can go back to work, thank you."

She looked back into his eyes, anger once again sharpening her gaze. Without saying anything further Raman bent down to start filling the box with the weird cotton things that were spread out all around them. "You can leave it. I'll have someone pick it up." She spoke, her tone still hardened. But he continued, ignoring her.

"Aiyyo yeh aadmi..." it was just a mutter under the breath. Before he could look up and respond, she had walked away and he could see her gesture to some boys to come and clean up the mess. Without looking back at him she then walked off. Raman stood up and dusted himself off. He couldn't explain it but the fury that had been pounding through his blood was gone, replaced by a pounding of a different kind. There was something familiar about her. And her eyes, he couldn't wipe away the image from in front of his eyes. Finally, apologizing to the boys doing the cleanup, he left to go find his mother.