Chapter 6
"So, since you're okay with the idea. Please inform Shreyasi and tell her to book a table for 2- that is Sasha and me, tomorrow at Hyatt- 7:30pm", he said.
She turned back angrily and walked close to him, "Mr. Khurana, Shreyasi is your secretary, not mine. Therefore, you call and inform her. On the other hand, why even inform Shreyasi- just call Sasha and tell her about the idea she might book the entire Hyatt for you instead of a table".
She turned to walk away in a huff and stopped again. He knew she would come back. He waited patiently.
She did come back. "And by the way- I am your wife- not your servant or your secretary or your most trusted and valuable employee".
This was the line Maan waited for. This was what he wanted her to remember. She is his wife and not his employee or servant.
Maan was stuck in traffic the next day morning- he hated it. Luckily, that day he wasn't driving the car. He was in the back seat of the car and had just finished reading a business newspaper.
"Goddamn this traffic", he thought, putting the paper aside and looking out to see, if there was any progress. For the last one hour his car would have barely moved 2 kilometers and he was actually thinking of telling his driver to make the next U-turn and head home- so that he could work from home itself, instead of wasting time in this pointless traffic. Dev, was out of town, so he did not have anyone to talk business and save some time.
He picked up his phone to call Shreyasi and tell her about being stuck in traffic when his Daadima called.
"Ah just what I needed", he thought.
"Haan daadima", he said.
"Maan, where are you?", she asked.
"In the middle of nowhere", he said, staring at the rear of the red car that was in front of his car.
"Oh I see- in traffic. Good! ", she said, smirking.
"Yeah I know. Isn't it just awesome to be in traffic?", he said, sarcastically.
"Ofcourse- You actually enjoy it more when you drive- instead of being driven you know", she said, knowing Maan would erupt anyway. But who cares- she loved teasing him and he only allowed her to tease him.
"Yeah, I regret not driving the car today", he said, carrying forward the sarcasm.
"Anyways, what's your plan for the weekend?", she asked.
"Nothing much- I have a couple of meetings I guess", he said. "Why do you ask?", he asked.
"Ah, how boring Maan. Meetings on weekends too", she said, deliberately avoiding his question.
"Well, do I have to remind you every time that this responsibility that I carry was yours once- and it is called Khurana Empire? You take your responsibility back and I'll spend all weekdays and weekends at home", he said, rolling his eyes.
"Oh c'mon Maan. You're not the only businessman in this country. There are quite a few. I'm sure none of their lives are as boring and lifeless as yours", she said.
"Well, that's their choice", he said. "Anyways getting back to the question you refused to answer, Why do you ask about my weekend plans, Daadima?", he asked.
"Ahaan. You noticed. I thought you missed the question and wouldn't ask", she said, smirking.
"Maan Singh'", he was about to tell his name when she said, "Maan Singh Khurana is your name. Stop chanting your name so many times Maan. You're so obsessed with it", she said, laughing.
Maan took a deep breath controlling his anger, "Daadima, aap batayenge ki baat kya hain?", he asked, seriously in a low tone.
"Hmmm, okay okay! I'm planning to go out of town this weekend", she said.
"Are you asking me or telling me?", he asked.
"I'm telling you Son! Why would I ask you? If you're Maan Singh Khurana- I'm Savitri Singh Khurana", she said, proudly.
"Hmmm. Okay Good!", he said, "Ab main rakhu phone?", he asked.
"You don't want to know where I'm going and who's going with me and why we're going?", she asked.
"You'll have to tell me anyway", he said, "So why ask?"
She rolled her eyes, "Well well then Mr. Khurana- have fun over the weekend. And I'm not telling you where I'm going and with whom I'm going and why I'm going", she said.
"Okay!", he said, "Take care wherever you are and with whomever you are and for whatever reason you're travelling", he said, knowing very well that this will anger her now.
"You are ridiculous", she said and hung-up. Maan smirked and put the phone aside, forgetting to call Shreyasi.
He blankly looked outside thinking of how in less than 12 hours the two most important women in his life were angry with him- his daadima and his wife Geet. Did he regret it? No, he loved to make them angry and irritate them- cos they did the same to him. After the previous night's argument with Geet over dinner with Sasha= Geet looked extremely serious and sounded sarcastic both at night and morning.
She pulled the quilt away to her side while Maan sat on the bed to lie down. He smiled without saying anything. He knew her insides were burning with anger and jealousy. She had turned red and her eyes were spitting anger and dislike. He was using his I-pad to read an e-book, when she turned off the lights, without asking him- indirectly also hinting him to sleep and get some rest. He put the I-pad on the side table and turned to look at her. Her back faced him. He noticed she was still in the sari and had not changed.
He cleared his throat and got no reaction from her.
"Geet", he said, slowly. She did not respond.
"Geet, honey, you didn't change?", he asked.
Geet tried hard to not speak. It was the world's most difficult task to do. Not talk. She always wondered how Maan could keep quiet for hours together. IF she kept quiet for even a few minutes, she would get a feeling of suffocation and nausea.
He waited patiently for her to respond and called her again, "Geet", raising his tone a little. But Geet did not want to succumb. Maan hated it when he asked someone a question or called someone and did not get an answer or response in return. He took a deep breath and said, "Geet, I'm talking to you".
Geet knew she was overdoing it- but did not respond deliberately. He lost his cool, moved towards her on bed, held her tightly by her waist, and pulled her towards him, hurting her in the process. He forcefully turned her towards him, when she gasped in pain, "What are you doing Maan, you are hurting me?"
"Chup Geet, bilkul chup. Ek baat kaan khol kar sun lo. When I ask you something, I want a response. Mind you Geet. I am not the one- to meddle with", he said, angrily, still holding her tight.
"I don't have to answer all your questions Mr. Khurana", she said, trying to release herself from his hold.
"You don't have a choice there Ms. Geet Handa", he said, with his nose and eyes turning red in anger.
Geet was angry too, to correct him- she was no longer a Handa. She did not bother to correct him.
"How should it matter to you, whether I change or not? Do you even bother to see what I wear, how I am, what I want?", she asked, taking a pause, trying to control her tears. Maan's grip on her automatically loosened. He did not like to see her in tears- no matter what.
"Just because I don't express it doesn't mean- everything goes unnoticed", he told her. "As far as how you are and what you want is concerned, Geet, whatever is happening is whatever you wanted Geet- this is not what I wanted- remember that", he told her.
Geet pushed him away and went away to her bathroom. Maan waited for her to come but she took quite a bit of time- changing and removing her make-up. By the time she returned Maan was asleep. Geet had slept on the couch that night and the next morning, she was awake even before Maan. She had quickly dressed up after a shower and walked away downstairs without talking a word to him. He did not want to talk to her either and hence waited for breakfast.
Surprisingly at breakfast, he sat beside her- much to everyone's surprise. Geet always sat with Daadi and Maan somehow always took the chair that belonged to the head of the family. Daadi preferred him sit in that chair too, because he took responsibility of the family business and also everyone in the family.
Daadima was late for breakfast and wondered why Maan had taken her seat. She did not argue about it anyway and simply took his seat at the dining table.
He irritated Geet to the extent possible. Maan usually never preferred oily breakfast. He preferred oats, fruits, 2 slices of brown bread and a cup of coffee, not taking even a bite or sip more than this- no matter how much people begged him or irrespective of how tasty and tempting a paratha or any of the south Indian breakfasts such as dosas and idlis were. Lately, Daadima had a fascination for dosas and idlis so she ensured that one south Indian item was surely present for breakfast.
That day, he told the helper not to give him oats or bread. He turned to Geet and asked her, "honey can you make me parathas for breakfast?"
Geet almost choked and looked at him, as though he had asked for a dish that was never served on the planet before.
"You're joking", said Dev.
"Absolutely not!", said Maan. He turned back to Geet and said, "Hurry Geet, I'm getting late".
"What's with you Son?", asked Daadima,.
"Arey what's wrong in having something else for breakfast? Why is it such a big thing?", he asked, getting angry now.
"Right! Veerji's right. I'll make some for you", said Naintara, getting up from her seat.
"No Naintara, sit down. Geet will make me some. You take care of Dev and Daadima", he said. "Geet's anyway done with breakfast", he said.
Geet quietly got up and walked into the kitchen still wondering how crazy and unpredictable her husband can be.
She quickly made parathas for him and came back with a plate full of them. He expected her to say something while atleast giving him the plate, but she dint. He took a deep breath and quietly ate the parathas. She waited while he ate- looking up from the newspaper every now and then at what he was doing. once he was done, she got up to clear the table when he uttered the word, she had never heard him say, "Thanks!".
She turned to look at him surprised and he understood that and smiled. She thought she'd faint. First he says a thank you and then smiles- "Tabiyat theek hain aapke?", she asked, confused and still angry.
"Hmmm, ab tak to theek thaak hain, aage ka pata nahin- tumhare parathas khaya maine breakfast mein- tum batao- theek rahunga na?", he said, winking and smirking now.
"Aap sudhren'" and stopped, when he started laughing.
"Gosh, forget it", she said and walked away angrily. Maan loved it when he saw her angry- well may be because she looked even more beautiful than ever.
He smiled recollecting the whole incident and looked to see where he was in the traffic. Maan realized he was just a km away from office.
"Oh, I was so lost in thought, is it?", he thought. "What have you done to me Geet?", he thought, nodding his head off and slightly brushing his forehead with his fingers as though that gesture would brush his thoughts of Geet away.
The entire week passed away busily for Maan. He would come back late, leave early mornings- it was a week that people in his mansion hated- as they hardly saw him. He skipped breakfasts in the mansion and by the time, he returned his family was already preparing to sleep. Geet would only see him occasionally in the bedroom- if she happened to wake up in the night. He had too many meetings lined up that it was getting tough not only for him- but also his secretary and his family to cope with his schedules. Sasha, differed in the thought. She loved the week- breakfast meetings with Maan, then sometimes, lunches and dinners as well, ofcourse with clients- but also with Maan. She has happy to get some lone time with him, while waiting for the clients during their meetings. She thoroughly enjoyed the week and hoped it never came to an end.
Daadima tried reaching him several times- but Shreyasi always had to tell her that he was in a meeting.
"Kya hain yeh beta, whenever I call he's in a meeting. Has he forgotten us? Can you believe it, the last time I saw him was when he ate parathas for breakfast- which was like eight days back?", said Daadima, angrily.
Shreyasi laughed at the thought of Maan going un-conventional for breakfast. "Madam, aap ek minute rukhiye. Main abhi Sir se baat karwaati hoon", she said.
"But he's in a meeting know?", said Daadima.
"Oh I'll still try. I'm sure its not as important as you are", she said, smiling and walking towards him chamber. While talking to Daadi, she knocked on his door and heard him say, "Yes".
She walked in, and threw a dirty look at Sasha, who was trying her level best to impress Maan. She had wore a sari that day to office.
Shreyasi took a deep breath, smiled wickedly at Sasha and gave him the phone.
"Who is it?", he asked.
"Your grandmother", she said.
Maan usually never yelled at Shreyasi. He knew she did her work correct and she was a smart and intelligent girl. She was also a very good person at heart.
He nodded and answered the call. The two women moved to the side when Shreyasi heard Sasha say, "Couldn't this call wait?"
Shreyasi raised her eye-brow and said, "Well, couldn't your meeting pause for a few minutes? I'm sure your jaws need some break too" and laughed.
"Excuse me? My jaws- what are you saying?"
"Oh c'mon- your jaws need a break from all the fake smiling you try to do when boss is around. Waise sari and all huh today?", she said, sarcastically.
"Look you!", said Sasha, pointing her finger at Shreyasi.
Shreyasi pushed the finger away and looked to see what Maan was doing. He was still on phone with his grandmom.
"You look and also listen- he's married. So stop doing all these cheap things. I don't understand why you waste time on a man- who you very well know- will never be yours".
"How dare you tell me, what to do? I'll make sure you get kicked out of office very soon, Shreyasi for all your talk today. I'll make you pay for it".
"Sasha- I am not here because someone's doing me a favor by keeping me in this job.I'm here because I have all the abilities to handle the position I am in and even if you get me kicked out- which for your information is never going to happen, I am not going to die- I can very well walk out- and get a job else where", she said.
She then walked towards Maan to take the phone from him on realizing he had finished the call.
"Sir, I'm sorry I had no choice but to disturb" and Maan immediately said, "Not a problem. You've done a good thing by walking in with the phone. Daadima was already very angry", he said.
She smiled and walked away.
"MK, I don't understand. If someone else were to disturb you- you never forgive them- how come you never say a word to this girl", she asked, fuming.
"Sasha, she knows when to do what. Now lets get back to work", he said, cutting short thew discussion on Shreyasi.
Maan drove back late night on a Friday. He walked in and found the entire mansion quiet. "Strange!", he thought.
He walked upstairs when Nakul came running behind.
"Saab, dinner ready karu?", he asked.
"Haan. Ghar pe koi nahin hain?", he asked.
"Ji nahin saab. Sab HP gaye hain"
"What?", he said, turning back surprised. He quickly recalled his conversation with Daadima over phone when he was stuck in traffic- she was telling him she would go out of town for a few days but also told him- she would not tell him when, where and with whom.
"Dev aur Naintara?", he asked.
"Who bhi gaye hain saab"
"Ok, dinner ready karo", he said and walked to the bedroom. "Ridiculous. So, my daadima refused to actually tell me also", he thought, kicking the door of his bedroom open.
"But HP so suddenly?", he thought while removing his coat and tie.
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