Chapter 2 - First Impressions
The next morning...
"Thanks for letting me stay over Preet", said Gaurav, as he poured himself some juice.
"Any time," said Preet. "Pass the toast".
"So, what do you want to do today?" asked Gaurav.
"I don't know," said Preet shrugging his shoulders. "We can watch some TV. Maybe there's a game on or something."
"Hey I almost forgot, did you ask your dad about us going to Europe for the summer?" asked Gaurav.
"No," sighed Preet.
"Why not?" asked Gaurav. "You know our group leaves in only a few days."
"I know," said Preet. "But it's not that easy for me to talk to my father." Just then Heer came to the table with a plate of eggs. "Perhaps my favorite bhabi can help," he tried.
"Preet, I don't know why you always have to make Bauji out to be some kind of a monster, just talk to him and tell him what you want," said Heer.
"Forget it bhabi," said Preet. "If I ask Bauji he'll probably say no.'"
"Ask me what Preet?" said Lalit, as he and Prem suddenly appeared and joined the boys at the table.
"Um...uh...nothing," muttered Preet.
Lalit looked at his son carefully before picking up the newspaper and turning his attention to the business section. Heer looked at Preet encouragingly, but he just turned his face away.
Just then, Gaurav spoke up. "Um...Mr. Juneja, do you realize that most people die without ever leaving their country."
"So?" said Lalit, with his eyes narrowing on Gaurav.
"So...as a father, I'm sure you wouldn't want Preet to be one of those unfortunate people," said Gaurav.
"You're forgetting that Preet has spent the last few years of his life in Canada," said Lalit. "Last time I checked that was another country."
Preet kicked his friend under the table, but Gaurav kept on going. "Yeah well...I'm sure you'd like him to continue to expand his horizons. You know, take the path off the beaten road."
"Preet!" cried Lalit. "What the hell is he talking about?"
"Um...uh...woh...you see...a couple of our friends are backpacking across Europe this summer and I'd like to go," said Preet.
"Europe?" said Lalit. "You just got back from Canada a few months ago. Why would you want to go to Europe now?"
"Uh...culture...I think I should experience some different cultures," stammered Preet.
"Different cultures?" said Lalit. "You want to try out different kinds of wine and cheese?"
"No...I mean...I don't know," said Preet, shrugging his shoulders. "You, PB and Herman Bhaiya go there all the time...and..."
"On business Preet," Lalit corrected him. "We go there on business to attend important meetings and conferences. We stay at our luxury hotels there to keep abreast of how things are being operated, and we dine in fine restaurants, not live out of a backpack like some aimless hippies who don't know what they want out of the rest of their lives."
"But all of my friends are going," protested Preet.
"I don't care," said Lalit flatly. "That's not a good enough reason for me to let you go."
"You see that!" Preet said to Heer and Gaurav. "I knew he wouldn't agree to let me go! I never should have come back here in the first place!"
"Correction," said Lalit. "I said I wouldn't let you go on a useless trip to Europe. I am, however, sending you on a trip to Ludhiana."
"Ludhiana?" said Preet.
"What's in Ludiana?" asked Gaurav.
"We're almost done renovating our luxury hotel there. I want you go and supervise the hiring of the staff and get things up and running," said Lalit.
"Me? Wouldn't Prem Bhaiya be better suited for this?" asked Preet. "I don't know anything about hotel operations."
"You have an MBA Preet," Lalit pointed out. "It's been several months since you graduated and you've been doing nothing except killing time. I want you to start sharing in the responsibilities and pulling your weight around here."
"But Prem Bhaiya...," tried Preet.
"Prem is leaving for a meeting in Toronto in a few days, and Herman is busy managing things here," continued Lalit.
"Come on Preet," Prem said encouragingly. "This will be a good first independent project for you, and there is plenty of managerial staff there to assist you. You have worked with me during the summer months before. Trust me, you've picked up more experience and knowledge than you think."
"While you're there, I also want you to meet with Dev Dutt," added Lalit. "He's an up and coming science fiction author, and we've given him his big break by publishing his very first novel. It's doing well in terms of pre-order sales, and our publishing house wants to set up several promotional book signings for him. I want you take care of it and make sure everything gets done right. He's also getting married. You'll be representing Juneja enterprises at the wedding."
"Did someone say wedding?" asked Heer. "Ooo...sounds exciting."
"Yeah real exciting," muttered Preet.
"It's time you stand on your own 2 feet and do something with your life Preet. You can take this...this friend of yours with you if you like," said Lalit, pointing at Gaurav with a disappointed look. "Well, I have a meeting to get to. Prem, I'll wait for you in the car." He took one final sip of his coffee and then walked away with the morning paper tucked under his arm.
Preet waited until his father was out of ear-shot before turning to his brother. "Great! Old Yamraj totally killed my plans for the summer. PB can't you talk to him or something?"
"I'd like to help you out Preet, believe me I would, but I'm afraid there really is too much going on here in our offices in Delhi, and we can definitely use another pair of hands," sighed Prem. "I'm sure you'll do a great job. And don't worry, if you need anything, Herman and I will just be a phone call away." Prem saw his brother frown and smiled. He put a reassuring hand on his shoulder. "Look Preet, I know you and Bauji don't always see eye to eye, but this time, I think he's right. You've been in a daze ever since Ma passed away...we all were...but you still haven't snapped out of it. There is so much potential in you. I can see it, but you have to give yourself a chance to explore it too. I want you to take up this hotel project in Ludhiana with full sincerity and give it all you've got. I want you to make me proud. I know you can."
2 days later...
Preet parked his car across from the museum and checked his watch. He was on time, and was supposed to meet Gaurav here. They had a long drive ahead of them and Preet had wanted to get an early start, but his friend was nowhere to be seen. Where is he? He wondered. He was about to call Gaurav when he saw a small group of handicapped children approach the museum, accompanied by 2 nuns. Cries of disappointment rose from the group as they stood at the entrance with long faces. Just then a pretty young girl, with long brown hair pulled back in a pony tail and a warm smile on her face passed by. She immediately stopped on seeing the children.
"Hey guys what's wrong?" asked the girl.
"The children wish to visit the museum," explained one of the nuns. "But the floor of the entrance is lined with grates. The children's crutches get stuck in them. And the braces on their legs make them too heavy for old women like us to lift."
The young girl studied the situation for a minute, then smiled. "Idea!" She said snapping her fingers. She swung the large gate close to the children. One by one, she took their crutches and helped them climb onto it, 4 or 5 at a time. Once the children had climbed on, she slowly swung them across, past the grates. She then helped them climb down and handed them their crutches again. After a few rounds, all the children had made it across. The nuns praised the girl for her intelligence and for the consideration she had shown their group.
Preet smiled as he watched one of the children kiss the girl on her cheek. The girl kissed the child back, waved to the rest of the children, then continued on her way.
"Hey Preet, sorry I'm late," said Gaurav, as he jumped into the car. "I hope I didn't keep you waiting too long."
"Huhn? Oh yeah...it's okay no problem," said Preet. "Actually I'm glad you were late. I just saw the most amazing girl."
"Girl? What girl?" Gaurav asked looking around.
Preet quickly recounted what he had just seen. "I mean, aside from the fact that it was a brilliant move, who stops and helps anybody these days?"
"That's true," said Gaurav. "But get to real stuff...was she pretty or not?"
"Now that you mention it," chuckled Preet. "She was pretty, very pretty. She had long brown hair, fair skin, rosy cheeks, and the most amazing smile. It was almost contagious. I couldn't take my eyes off her because of it."
"Uh-huhn," said Gaurav. "Too bad she's gone."
"Yeah", sighed Preet.
"And we're running late," Gaurav reminded him.
"Oh yeah...right," smiled Preet. He glanced once more in the direction the girl had walked off in, then turned his focus towards the task at hand. "Ludhiana here we come."
A few hours later...
"I still can't believe I gave up Europe for this", yawned Gaurav, as he lazily gazed at the scenery passing by outside the car's window.
"Come on Gaurav, that's what chaddi buddies are for right?" chuckled Preet.
"Maybe," sighed Gaurav.
"Besides, Europe is not going anywhere," added Preet. "We'll work a couple of weeks at the hotel, get things up and running, and earn enough to go to Europe in the fall."
"Hey that's right," Gaurav said, brightening up at the idea. He picked up a map and began to study it. "So...just where are we anyway? And when are we going to stop and get something to eat? We've been driving for hours."
"We've almost reached Ambala," said Preet. "We'll stop and have lunch there."
A short while later...
Preet and Gaurav walked into a small and for the most part empty restaurant. A waiter with a large smile plastered on his face came running to greet them. He led them to an empty table and dusted the chairs off so they could take their seats, then proceeded to read over a list of dishes of the day. After taking their order, he ran off to give it to the cook.
Gaurav picked up a piece of silverware and inspected it carefully. "Not exactly a 5 star establishment is it?" He blew on the spoon then wiped it clean with a napkin.
"No," chuckled Preet. "But I'm so hungry right now I could care less." Just then, a bright light hit his eye. "What on earth?" he mumbled, squinting as he shielded himself with his right hand. He looked around to see where the light was coming from. To his surprise, he saw the same girl who he had seen earlier in Delhi helping the handicapped children. She was sitting not too far away at a table by the window. Sunlight was reflecting off her butter knife and hitting Preet straight in the eye. "Gaurav", Preet said excitedly. "You'll never believe it, but she's here!"
"What? Who's here?" asked Gaurav.
"That girl I told you about," said Preet. "The one I saw outside the museum."
"Really? Where?" said Gaurav.
"Wait! Don't turn around!" hissed Preet. "I don't want her to think we're oogling her or something."
"Okay, so what now?" said Gaurav.
"I'm just going to walk by her casually and say Hi'," said Preet. "Hopefully she'll return my greeting and we can strike up a conversation."
"Go for it man," said Gaurav.
Preet took a deep breath and headed to the table by the window. Along the way, the waiter intercepted him.
"Saab saab! Tussi kithe ja rahe ho (Sir sir! Where are you going)?" the waiter asked worriedly. "I was just bringing your food." He nudged Preet back to his table. "It's piping hot and delicious. You don't want to leave without eating do you?"
"No, you don't understand," sighed Preet. "I'm not leaving...I just want to go over there...I mean...uh...I just want to wash my hands before eating."
"Oh", the waiter sighed in relief. "Of course...the washroom is just down that way and to the left."
Preet nodded then quickly hurried towards the table by the window, but when he got there, he was surprised to see it occupied by a different girl altogether. She was busy checking her make-up in her compact, and looked up in surprise when Preet appeared at her table.
"What?" she asked.
"Nothing...uh...I'm sorry...I thought you were someone else," stammered Preet.
The girl rolled her eyes, shook her head, and went back to examining herself.
Preet slowly walked back to his own table. His eyes scanned the premises, but there was no sign of the brown haired girl with the beautiful smile.
A short while later...
"I'll have to admit, the place doesn't look like much, but the food was great," said Gaurav. "You want some of this ice cream?"
"No, I'm good," smiled Preet, as he checked his pockets. "Listen, I think I left my wallet in the car. I'll go and get it then pay the bill. You can finish up your dessert in the meantime, and then we'll be on our way."
Gaurav nodded and happily turned back to the ice cream in front of him.
Preet quickly walked to his car and found his wallet in the dashboard. He was about to head back to the restaurant, when a young boy stopped him.
"Saab Saab! Joote polish karau ge saab (Sir Sir! Would you care to have your shoes polished sir)?" the boy asked.
"No thanks, maybe another time," said Preet.
"Please Saab. I promise I'll do a really good job. Bauhat bhook lag rahi hai, joote polish kara lo na saab (I'm really hungry, please sir, let me polish your shoes)," urged the young boy.
"I don't have time to get my shoes polished today," said Preet. "But that doesn't mean you have to go hungry." He playfully ruffled the boy's hair. "Come on. I'll take you inside, and you can order whatever you like...on me."
"Saab...can they come too?" the boy asked, pointing to a little boy and girl standing in the distance. "They're my siblings."
"Sure," laughed Preet, as he motioned to the other 2 children. "Come on guys, let's go."
The children happily ran to him, and he scooped up the little girl in his arms and tossed her in the air, before leading them all inside. Little did he know someone had witnessed his act of kindness with a smile on her face.
Once back inside, Preet sat the children down at a table and called for the waiter. He helped them order their choice of lunch, and instructed the waiter to give them a generous helping of ice cream afterwards. He then paid for their meal as well as his own and Gaurav's, and was heading back to his table, when he heard a commotion.
"Ugh! You idiot!" A girl was shouting at Gaurav. "Look what you've done!"
"I'm so sorry", said Gaurav. "I swear I didn't see you coming."
"Sorry! Is that all you can say?! Sorry?!?" cried the girl.
"Hey Gaurav, what's going on?" Preet asked as he reached his friend.
"Preet, thank God you're here," said Gaurav, but before he could say anything else, the girl spoke up again. It was the same one Preet had seen checking her make-up earlier.
"What's wrong is that this idiot friend of yours ruined my top! Look at it!" she said, pointing to her clothes. "Chocolate ice cream everywhere! It looks like I've been playing in the mud!"
"It was an accident Preet," explained Gaurav. "I already apologized and I even offered to pay for another ice cream, but she just won't listen to reason."
"You fool! I don't care about the stupid ice cream!" cried the girl. "This was my favorite top and you just ruined it! Andha kahin ka (Blind fool)! You're lucky I don't press charges!"
"Look miss there's no need to behave so rudely over a top you can buy anywhere," said Preet. "My friend has apologized. If it makes you feel better, I'll pay you the cost to have your clothes cleaned or replaced."
"What?!" The girl cried loudly. "You think you can buy this top anywhere?! I'll have you know I only wear imported designer clothing! I'm sure you can't even begin to guess their price let alone afford it!"
"Whatever it is, I'm sure it's not worth the scene you're creating," frowned Preet. "And I'm sure everyone would appreciate it if you'd shut your mouth and stop shouting."
"How dare you speak to me that way?!" The girl screeched. "Do you have any idea who I am?!"
"No, and I don't care to know either," remarked Preet. "As far as I'm concerned, you're a spoiled little rich girl whose father gave her everything but forgot to teach her manners. Come on Gaurav, let's go."
The girl's mouth fell open as Preet pushed past her and left the restaurant with Gaurav in tow. She sat down at a table, folded her arms in front of her chest and mumbled angrily to herself. It wasn't long before the girl with long brown hair joined her.
"Hey Ashlesha," smiled Meher. "See, I told you I'd be back before you know it." Just then, she noticed her friend's spoiled clothes. "Oh no...what happened to you?"
"Don't ask!" said Ashlesha.
"Oookay," said Meher.
"Well if you must know," Ashlesha with a pout. "I had a run in with the rudest, most obnoxious guy in the whole world."
"And he spilled ice cream on your top?" asked Meher.
"No, his idiot friend did," said Ashlesha. "But he actually had the nerve to offer to pay me for my clothes. And then he practically told me to shut up because he thought I was being too loud."
"Sounds to me like he was being quite reasonable," remarked Meher. "I mean...not about the shut up part, but about paying for your clothes."
"Oh get real Meher," said Ashlesha, rolling her eyes. "He wasn't really going to pay for anything. He probably couldn't afford to either. I mean, why else would he be eating in this dump."
"We're eating here too," Meher pointed out.
"Only on account of you," Ashlesha pointed a finger accusingly at Meher. "The nerve of him to to assume this top could be bought anywhere. I mean, what would he know about fashion? He was too lazy to button up his own shirt. Ugh...So down market! He just wanted to put me down while making himself look good in front of everyone!"
"Ashlesha calm down," said Meher. "There is hardly anyone here."
"You see," argued Ashlesha. "You didn't even see him and he's even got you sold on him being the reasonable one."
"Well, I may not have seen him, but I did see someone do the sweetest thing ever," smiled Meher. She told Ashlesha about seeing a young man take some poor children inside the restaurant for lunch.
"Ew! You mean we're in the same room as some street urchins!" winced Ashlesha. "What if they have lice?! You know Meher this is all your fault."
"My fault?" cried Meher.
"Yes your fault," insisted Ashlesha. "It was your idea to come to here in the first place. If we hadn't, I would never had met him and none of this would have happened. To top it all off, my suitcases were in the other car. It left for Ludhiana a long time ago. I can't even change out of these icky clothes!"
"Alright baba, it's all my fault," sighed Meher. "I'll make it up to you some how, I promise. And I'm sure once we get home some soap and warm water will do wonders for your top. Now come on, let's get going. We're late enough as it is and you know how angry Kuljeet Ma can get."
Credit: The scene at the museum was inspired from Gajani. And the knife shining light into Preet's eyes idea came from 50 First Dates.
Chapter 3: Preview: We meet Meher's family and Preet reaches Ludhiana.
Link to Chapter 3: Coming soon
Link to: Table of Contents
comment:
p_commentcount