Set fire to the rain (Thread 2 announcement) - Page 86

"What? Oh no. This can't be good. This is cannot be happening".

We reached the parking lot. He got out of the vehicle and began pacing in angst.

"Are you afraid?"

"You don't understand. She will switch your birth control. She will do anything", he shivered a little and I was confused at best. He shot me a laugh.

"Look at your face, priceless! Nothing will happen Madhu. I just wanted to see that pout".

"I did not pout. I was confused".

"Liar". I suppose he caught me. Damn right he did but, I would never admit it. So, the walk back to the house was a whole lot of bickering and banter.

With my accelerated law degree and a bar exam on the way, I was excelling on the professional front. A reputed firm had already hired me as their corporate consultant. Although I preferred criminal law to business battles, I could not pass up the opportunity to intern with moguls in the field. Of course, it never goes down the way you plan. I was left in charge of lost causes or in simpler terms, cases that could never be won and could not be refused .

The case of the month was an employee suit for wrongful termination on the basis of gender discrimination. My first stop: Parle-G headquaters, Mumbai.

"May I speak with the HR personnel responsible for hiring secretaries please?"

A woman with a beauty mark on the corner of her bright red lip turned around and spoke seductively, "this is her".

I mentally rolled my eyes at the grammatical error. Her next action agitated me even more. She tucked a golf pencil between her teeth and spoke with a valley girl accent.

"Oh, what you got there? A delicate piece of paper". The sealed court document was now in her hands. Her talk had now turned into whispers, "so delicate. So smooth. Ooh, from the big court? You going against me?"

A cherry on top, came the cynical laugh. God how I hated corporate offices!

"Are you drunk or just dramatic?" I might have had a Freudian slip. But, I was glad I did. The woman had man stealer written all over her shmuck face.

"No honey, I am not drunk. I am just...intimidating".

Intimidating my loafers! You are a pathetic @#$%^&*(.

"My client is deposing you for wrongful termination".

"Are you joking?"

Did I look like I was joking? This @#$%^&*!

The sane person flare finally entered her throat. "A man CANNOT claim severance based on gender inequality".

"I am afraid the constitution is not exclusive to females, Miss Zaidi".

"I am afraid Parle-G's chief is. He likes pretty gals. Gals like me. This one, your client, has a double chin. Let's face it, no one wants him not even the gays".

I wish James would have been there. He would have taught this moron left, right and center of what a gay wants. "Bitch, even if I were straight, I wouldn't give your silicon valley a second look". I could picture him saying that.

"You come to settlement or we go to trial, Miss Zaidi. Either way, I will win". I slapped the notice on her desk and a dramatic exit.

"I am a paralegal, you know", her pitch rose with every syllable as Zaidi struggled to convey her message to me. But, something stopped in my tracks. "Mr. Kundra will hunt you down", she added.

What? Kundra? The one time that I did not research an umbrella company, down came the grenade. Parle-G was owned by Kundra Inc. & she could be kissing up to Rishabh this whole time. More importantly, I had a conflict of interest. I couldn't beat her even though I wanted to so bad.

"Hello, Mr. Jain? I regret to inform you that I cannot take on your case against Kundra Inc. The CEO is my father in law and I am legally obliged to inform you of the conflict of interest".

"I don't care. You have taken the case and you cannot back down now. You have fulfilled your legal minimum. Now, it is up to me to decide. Besides, my grudge is against that Zaidi. I couldn't care less if Kundra goes down or not".

"I will send another lawyer Mr. Jain".

"What if I file the suit against Zaidi not Kundra?"
"You are the man, Mr. Jain".

This old man made my day. I could easily kill two birds with one arrow. I had to get even with this imbecile.

__________________________________________________

"Deposition starts in ten minutes Miss Ziadi", I supplied pertinent information as the paralegal approached me in inappropriate clothing.

"Your husband, whoops, my boss is here. The same one who likes pretty girls".

I folded my fingers into a fist ready for a sucker punch. Nobody messes with Madhubala in her own den.

"I bet he never told you this but, he screwed this tight little ass multiple times".

This was the limit of my patience. I knew exactly what game she was playing; trying to provoke me and charge me for assault. And, I would have given in until Rishabh showed up.

"Zaidi, time for the settlement. Madhu, why are you here?"

Zaidi purposely brushed her skimpy outfit against Rishabh and walked away swaying like a drunk sailor.

"I am representing Mr. Jain".

I took in a deep breath. I could see he was not pleased but, he tried his damnedest not to vocalize his anger. He smiled half heartedly and escorted me to the conference room.

Now was the time for my game face. I just wished Rishabh had not been there to witness it all.

A famous psychiatrist once said men dwell on principle; women dwell on practicality. His words never held more truth than in that conference room.

Female lawyers are cunning creatures, myself included. While men bicker over voting left versus right wing, I have seen many a ladies use their kids as cards to win over judges, get out of meetings and turn a ruling in their favour. Alas, I did not have a baby or a bump. In that moment, I regretted not paying attention to mama Kundra. Then, it hit me! The master trick of them all: dyskinesia. I could fake the symptoms with ease. I strategically planted props across the room making sure Zaidi was always the target.

The camera began recording. It was time for action!

"Miss Zaidi, please state you name and your job title for the record". My fingers began flinching slowly at first then, uncontrollably.

"My name is Shajia Zaidi. I work as the Parle-G personnel in charge of hiring secretaries. Are you okay?" She had noticed the fingers. The act was working.

"The statistics show that Parle-G has 60 secretaries and all 60 are female under the age of 40. Do have reason for the hiring pattern Miss Zaidi".

"Most nurses are female. You don't sue them".

"Answer the question Miss Zaidi".

"Well, competent men do not apply to be a secretary".

"So, let me get this straight. You are saying A) Women who are secretaries are incompetent or incapable of holding another job. B) A man has to be out of options to become a secretary. Is that your reasoning for male nurses as well Miss Zaidi?"

RK managed to maintain a neutral look, a bit concerned seeing my hand. But, otherwise collected.

"Do not twist my words", Zaidi had grown nervous over the course of the questioning. This was sure to work in my favour.

"Okay, if I take your word and assume you do not receive competent applications from men. Then, how do you explain this".

Had it been a reasonable meeting, I would have swiftly slipped the documents to the opposing counsel. But, this little lady had messed with the wrong Kundra. I fumbled with the pages and slapped them in her face.

"Sorry, dyskinesia", I was joyous inside.

"Madhu, you do not have dyskinesia", RK's raised tone expressed anger. This is why I would have liked for him not to be present for the con.

"Rishabh, I have medical records to prove if the court may please. For now, we are in a settlement meeting. So, Miss Zaidi give me a settlement number. Remember, personal account".

"B.bb.b.bb", she stuttered and looked intently at Rishabh. Oh no, she was not going to charm my man under my watch.

"I am thirsty", my handy dandy coke can mixed with shaking hands gave Zaidi the spray of her life. I kept going until the can was empty.

"Sorry dyskinesia". You have no idea how elated I was. Now that her dress was spoiled, the deposition was postponed. This meant I would have enough time to convince Rishabh to lay off her seductive ways. But, how could I leave with serving the taunt back on her plate.

"Miss Zaidi, remember our pretty boy talk?"
"Honey, you dwell too much".

"They may sleep with the paralegals but, they marry the lawyers. Remember that".

I walked away feeling content and hoping to convince Rishabh on my side. He did not look happy. Did I go too far?

---------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Yes you went too far Madhu. You were nasty out there. Ruthless to a friend". He shook me hard, like nothing I have ever seen him do. Did he feel humiliated?

"RK, listen to me".

"There is nothing to talk about", he shrugged my arm off his shoulder.

"I am in the wrong but".

"There is always a but". His eyes had turned red. What exactly did I do? I suppose because he was unaware of the rest of the story. "You brought up my past affair. It was before I... Jesus, this discussion is over. You were mean".

"Yes, I was. I am sorry for bringing up your past but".

"But. Another but?"

"How can I make this right?"

"Sleep on the couch tonight, will ya? Thank you for ruining my spring break!"

Rishabh was the one person who had never gone to bed angry. All that changed when I weighed my pride above his honour. I realized I should not have done any of the usual tricks in front of him. Life is better when compartmentalized. Damn you, Madhu!

This was it. I couldn't take the repressed sentiments anymore. He was giving me the silent treatment and I was left staring at the ceiling. I burst into tears. They came out like a river dam opening with a hard pounding of the chest. This deep feeling of regret and disappointment took over. My brain had a million reasons to prove I was right but, I overlooked them all tonight because my heart hurt. This unfamiliar feeling was too overwhelming for sanity. I pressed my head between my legs and made a squealing noise, the kind I had forgotten for years.

Must have been around 4 in the morning when he came downstairs. I was looking into emptiness when his shadow blocked my view.

"I couldn't sleep", we both whispered at the same time. He squeezed into the love chair with me like always. I guess had calmed down.

"Have you been crying?" He asked.

"Insomnia". He touched the dried up tears on my cheek but, decided not to pester me about those.

"She said she had sex with you many times".

"Zaidi? And you went haywire? That explains a lot".

"I am sorry. I should not have done that in front of you. I had to save the deposition. She was conning you into writing the cheque".

"Madhubala Rishabh Kundra, you were so jealous you got into a catfight?"

"You won't even listen to what I have to say. I was going to do dyskinesia and get her to settle until you showed up. She was playing me. So, I played her back".

"Why don't you tell me next time?"
"You won't hear me out".

"I am sorry. I am such an asshat".

"I agree".

"You were supposed to disagree Madhu!"

"A lawyer stands for the truth".

"That is the funniest joke you have managed to come up with in a long time".

Our laughter gave way to a stronger bond as we recovered from our first fight. I realized that I was allowed to be human once in a while. Rishabh realized his Madhu needed him sometime. He probably still thinks I need him all the time. Not true, only sometimes😆

A/N: I had informed you chaps in advance that this FF will be ending soon. The time has come. The open possibilities leave room for future additions if I ever wish for some. This is it with Set Fire to the Rain! It was a wonderful journey. Make sure to check out Exotic, Personal Property and The Fault in Our Stars. I look forward to joining you in other fiction threads :)