Part 4:
One of my most embarrassing moments of life happened when Ms Faroouqui, ill-mannered girl that she is, walked into my bathroom while I was enjoying one of my morning baths. My bathroom is the only place where I can be myself. These days, because of my busy work schedule, I have no time for riyaaz, so I often hum and sing in the bathtub. Besides my meetings with Ayaan, it's one of the most relaxing things for me. To my horror, I saw her standing next to the bathtub with her jaw to her knees and an equally flustered expression. I don't know how she had managed to walk into the bathroom. I guess it was my fault-I had forgotten to bolt my door. Never before had a woman been so close to my bare self. Even though she had her palms covering her eyes- at least she was equally abashed- otherwise women of the west are known to check out men like they were meat. Both of us were in a fix; she had the presence of mind to throw a towel at me. As she left, she gave me a discerning look and commented on my 'six packs.' I felt like drowning in the bathtub water. No woman had ever made a pass at me. I had heard of people talk about my perfect physique and conventional good looks but I had never noticed anyone scrutinize me the way she did in those few seconds. How would I face her again? What if she made this news public? What would Ammi and Najma think? Ms New York would probably boast about how she had found me with my pants- oops my clothes off. Cautiously, I walked in for breakfast, trying my best to be nonchalant about the whole incident. She smiled surreptitiously as Najma talked about her weight issues and my fitness. The mischievous smile in her eyes made me shuffle uncomfortably in my seat. Thankfully, Ammi and Najma did not notice much but I almost fell off my chair when she hummed my bathtub song as she walked away with Najma. "Jaane log kyun pyaar karte hain…" She is a bad singer, I thought but silently thanked her for not making a big deal of the morning incident. She was not as immature as I had thought.
The incident in the bathroom not withstanding, Ms Farooqui was getting on my nerves. I am very private person and very possessive about my belongings. Just like my desk and my books in my school days, my cellphone, computer and other essentials are sacrosanct for me. Even Najma and Ammi know not to touch or use my phone or computer. Ms Farooqui crossed all lines when she messed around with my mobile phone. I was unhappy with her growing friendship with Najma. Najma, my little 'tamatar' who had never lied or hidden anything from me, had learnt some bad habits from Ms Spoiltbrat. I knew they were hiding something from me, when Najma fumbled and Ms Farooqui knocked my precious phone on the floor. I was livid. How dare anyone knock my precious Blackberry down? That was my life- all my contacts, addresses, messages, calendars were all shattered because of one foolish woman. I think she sensed my fury and to make amends tried to 'fix' my phone. Maybe she wasn't as bratty as I thought; like most of us well-bred people, perhaps she had a remorse button too.
Alas, I was wrong! Each time I have tried to give her the benefit of doubt, I have been proven wrong. At the pretext of fixing the phone, she had managed to insert a voice password in my beloved Blackberry- I am sorry Zoya- I wanted to strangle her when I found what she had done. It was one of the most embarrassing moments at work for me. Not only did I lose a business deal, my employees probably had a field day behind my back. Ammi and Najma gave me weird looks on the dining table when I refused to answer my phone. Across the table, her teasing smile reaffirmed my belief that she was the most irresponsible and inconsiderate woman I had met. No woman- Ammi, Najma, my women employees had ever challenged my patience like this woman had.
She had this abominable habit of talking back and arguing with me. For a woman, I found this very detestable. She argued I belonged to the 17th century and did not understand women's rights and their dressing sense. I am glad I don't because I would rather stay away from such so-called modern women! For me a modern woman understands her limits and respects others. However, I must say that she did promise to keep my house clean and not treat her surroundings like a garbage can. Of course, like every time, her promise lasted a few nano seconds. I cringed as I stepped onto a cracker and empty coke can when I walked into her room. I really wanted to make peace and have her remove that voice password but her irritating shayari put me off completely. I cursed myself for giving her the benefit of doubt time and again- she didn't deserve it- then why did I keep trying?
My patience went for a toss when I lost the business deal at work. I still remember how furious I was and in my fit of rage, I pinned her down against the wall after grabbing her by her shoulders. I had no right to touch a woman like that, be so forceful with her. I have utmost respect for women and I would never cross my limits with anyone but with Zoya, I couldn't control my impulsive rage. Even if she had managed to bring out the beast in me, I felt angry with myself afterwards. I had no right to hold her like that; I would have to keep my impulses under control. I tried to reason that it was all her fault, but that didn't absolve me for being a jerk. Angry with myself, I threw the phone against the wall till it was shattered into pieces. I had crossed my limits and that's how I punished myself- broke my precious Blackberry.
Zoya's presence in my house has changed the landscape of my emotions- has made me more volatile. I feel my emotions swing like a pendulum between anger, hostility, bemused and sympathy.
Ghum Hai Kisikey Pyaar Meiin
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