IGNORANCE
Swara was staring at the black screen with hopeful eyes .. hoping for just one notification ..
In this 23 years of her life she always struggled to keep contact with others ..
In her earlier years she met with misunderstandings and troubles which hurts her and now she has trust issues and never comfortable around people .. a lonely person this what she became ..
She never got in relationships no true friends and no boyfriends ..
She did tried to befriended people in school, college and work but once that phase ends they will disappear like nothing happened at all ..
Been her true self people will always take her in wrong way .. so she choose to stay away ..
Her family is the best thing happened to her if not for her family you can easily call her a truly isolated person .. her mom , dad , sister and brother all of them they do share a strong relation .. but she wonders what if they are not her family would they ever share this relation with me ??!!
She is terrible at phone conversation people stopped calling her .. she uses her smart phone for everything except calls .. unless there is some emergency ..
In social networks , she has accounts in most of them Facebook , WhatsApp , Instagram , Twitter , Skype ...etc With hundreds of friends and followers .. but if she is regular or irregular in posting pictures , status ...etc
She never got any attention .. maximum she would get 15-20 likes , 5-10 comments or most of the times nothing at all .. even if she commented on someone else post she/he would usually not reply back to her ..
In WhatsApp people talk to her when they just want something or just on occasions , in groups in is a very normal thing of other to ignore her ..
She got used to it .. she often think may be it better for her to be alone , it makes no difference if she exist or not ..
But her heart is yearning for attention for some understanding ..
She only found her solace in studying hard and working , something to occupy her empty world and mind not drown in any depressing thoughts ..
There is a person who she hoped for his attention since she met him for the first time .. Sanskar her senior in college and in work field ..
She tried to change herself to open up a little but old habits die hard ..
He know her she exist in his world but he ignore her like any other person .. they only share a professional relation nothing else , they would talk , texts just for work or special occasions .. the normal for him is to ignore her ..
She is afraid of rejection and heart break if she approaches him first .. so she did every idea came to her mind to get closer to him .. but alas nothing changed ..
So she stopped trying and now just waiting with hope for the day when he will notice her ..
So she is here waiting for one notification about her new post ..
" May Be One Day The World Will Stop Ignoring Me ... "
*****
Sanskar was leaning on the railing of the mezzanine that viewing the whole office area , with a cup of steaming coffee in this hand
All his focus was on the girl sitting at her desk all her attention was towards the computer screen in front of her ..
" This girl what does she think herself ?? A MACHINE ?!!!!!! "
It was Sunday evening , no one was in the office except them ..
He came here to take some files that he needs for his meeting on Monday morning .. he was surprised to find her here but what stunned him that she is doing this every Sunday ..
" What ??!! she doesn't have a life ? " that was his reaction ..
Since he came here she is working continuously never took a break for a minute ..
And on top of that she dared to ignore him completely , AGAIN
[ Coughing sound ]
He frowned and fisted his free hand " this girl is completely out of her mind "
Swara is the a very confusing personality since he met her he always thought that she is the only one of her kind ..
They met for the first time at college trip when he was one the seniors that are responsible for the junior students ..
When they met he immediately notice her loneliness .. his first impression was " she is different from other girls " and he felt it deep in his bones ..
In his college days he didn't care about the girls and he hated the way the girls tried to draw attention , so he ignore them all ..
Swara was a simple girl yet a very mysterious one .. most of males tried to hit on her and why not she is beauty with brain .. but she turned down all of them ..
She was intelligent and topped her batch all the years .. so it didn't surprised him the she gets a job after a short time from her graduation ..
When she start working with him , he was impressed she is smart , intelligent and a very fast learner .. she became used to work pressure in a short time .. it amazed him the number of hours she spend in working ..
They were only sharing a professional relation and all their talking was about work .. nothing special
He wished one day to know her better and share a good friendship she was a very interesting person
he felt she need time to be comfortable around him and open up to him so he never rushed it .. and behaved normally
He enjoyed her simple sweet messages that she used to send to him ..
BUT
Out of nowhere 4 months ago everything stopped .. no more calls no messages and she stopped following him at the office just to ask some questions regarding work ..
Her behavior and ignorance irked him very much and didn't know why it affected him that much ..
Why it disturbed his world, his sleep ??
And now while he is standing here watching her .. he was wondering what so special about her
He was lost in that thought when a sound of his phone cut it ..
He took it out reading the message .. then he took a sip of the coffee and almost spit it out , it was cold ...
He sighed and looked at her again , he need to talk to that girl if he wants his life to be back to normal and maybe he can sleep properly at nights ..
Sanskar went down directly toward the girl who was now standing collecting her stuff ,,
She start Coughing
He harried to her with a glass of water .. he was worried , her cough was bad
After a minute the cough stopped and her breathing become normal ..
" you Ok ??" he asked
She cleared her throat " yes I am .. it seem I caught a cold .. thank you " and continued her arranging the things on her desk ..
" are you done with your work ? "
Not looking at him " no , there is some and I will finish it today at home " collecting some files " it wi..."
" NO " almost shouting and snatched the files from her hands
She looked at him wide eyes
" you are not going to take any work with home , it is not that urgent .. "
" do you understand ??" in a strict voice
" yes .. but why ? I can finish it today and..."
He took steps closer to her " I said you are not going to do that .. am I clear Swara ??"
She took steps back till she hit the desk and gulped before saying in whisper " Yes .."
She looked up to him and open her mouth to say something when her phone start ringing ..
He took steps back giving her space and she harried in answering the call " Hello Di ..."
He start to observe her closely , she look beautiful in her simple long sleeves white red dress with her hair tied in a ponytail ,but she look tired very tired
" No Di ... yeah I will be back soon ... don't worry I will be careful I am not child any more ... Di it is not my first time ... yes I am sure ... please don't tell mom you know what she will do ... ok Bye see you .. you too "
She took her bag and the car keys from the desk and start walking ,when he took the keys from her hand ..
" what are you doing ?? give it back "
" no I am not going let you drive in this weather it is raining heavily outside .. it is dangerous "
She was trying to take the keys from his hand so he raised his hand over his head out of her reach ..
" Sanskar give me my keys .. "
" no .. "
She was moving from side to side to catch the keys but couldn't ..
" Sanskar please give it back .. "
" I said NO Swara .. "
She start jumping to reach the keys but in one of her jumps she lost balance and almost fell
He got hold of her waist to prevent her from falling and got hold of the desk from behind trying to gain balance .. she was clutching his shoulders ..
He look at her and the chocolate brown eyes met the hazel one ...
There is something shift inside him and a shiver run through this body ..
Her wide eyes held so much emotions he was ready to drown in them forever ... but she look away cutting the eye contact and bring him back to real world ..
He stood up and made her stand properly .. and once he let go of her , she took many steps away from him ..
[Awkward silence]
Both are standing still ..
Then she start moving towards the exist " you can keep the keys .. I will take a Taxi "
Sanskar jerked and rushed to her " No Swara wait .. Don't " and got hold of her elbow
Swara turned to him " what do you want from me Sanskar ?? why you don't want me to go home ?? I am tired ... please let me go " she was annoyed
" Swara it is not like that , but the weather is really bad and I don't want you to go home in such a weather .. I am just concerned about you "
She shot him I_Don't_Believe_you look and moved her arm indicating him to leave her elbow which he did ..
After few seconds
" Swara I am sorry .. I didn't mean to upset you .. "
" It is Ok .. I am not upset " then mumbled something under her breath seems to him like " no need to fake concern " but he was not sure
" Swara .. We can wait for the rain to stop .. at the cafe in the ground floor .. I promise once it is stops I will give you the keys back "
She nodded her head
" I truly need a Coffee and you can get something warm for your throat .. " she nodded again
" and I need to talk to you , it is very important " she shot him a surprise look then " Ok .. let's go "
*****
At the cafe
They were sitting at a table at the corner near the window , waiting for the waitress to come and get their orders , the cafe was full of customers seems like a lot of people was taking it as a shelter from the heavy rain ..
Swara was the first on to cut the silence "Do you want me to go to the meeting with you tomorrow ?? "
Sanskar who was looking outside , give her a surprised look " What ??!! No "
" No ?!! .. then May be to help Neha in her new project ?? or Sam .. May be ... "
" STOP , Shut up .. it is not about work " in frustration
" then what is the important matter if not about work ??!! " said in confusion
He sighed and thought " God , is there anything else besides work in her brain ?? "
" Swara why are you working on Sundays ?? as far as I know the work is not that urgent "
She smiled " I know that but I love working "
" but Swara Sunday is your vacation , you must spend it at home with family not at office working "
She sighed " Family ?? let me see .. my parents are out the country since 7 weeks , my brother is at hostel and my sister is a doctor who is working on weekends .. so why should I stay at home all alone ? .. and I really love my work " with a bright smile
" what about friends ?? " her face fell but answered " I don't have any "
" Boyfriend ?? " she shifted in her seat uncomfortably and answered " I Don't have one , ever actually "
He released the breath he was holding in relive " Wow .. that is a surprise to know that a girl like you don't have ... " he got hold of his tongue when he notice her uncomfortable with this subject ..
He decide to go to the question he wanted to ask " Swara .. " in a Calm voice she turned to him
" is every things ok between us ?? " she was wide eyes " yes Sanskar .. why are you asking ?? !! "
" Swara I notice a change in your behavior towards me months back , you start to avoid me sometime ignore ...did I do anything wrong ?? please tell me I can fix it "
" No Sanskar , I am not avoiding you .. NOTHING you did .. and there no need to fix anything " she said in calm voice but he notice some sadness in it ..
Before he say anything else " please excuse me .. "
He sat there watching her rushing inside the washroom ,the feeling that she meant more than what she said was nagging him and his heart was trying to tell him something .. he was lost in that thought when
" excuse me sir .." he raised his head and saw the waitress with her warm smile " may I take your order ? "
He ordered a coffee for himself and .. " your girlfriend .. what does she want ? "
" a cup of tea please .. and she is not my girlfriend "
" Oh , I am sorry sir .. I thought ... " she stammered
" It is Ok .. you can go "
She start to go then stopped " If you allow me sir .. for my opinion you two would make a very cute couple .. you are just made for each other " and then she gone
Her words kept on rolling inside his head when bang it hit him
" Sanskar you are an idiot .. you have a feeling for her .. YOU LIKE HER .. stupid " his heart was beating with happiness due to his new discovery .. and suddenly he felt light .. he come to know why her behavior disturbed him that much ..
He saw her coming back toward the table with her hair left open , his heart beat rising .. he deiced to tell her what he feel , he don't like to delay things and what is better than the straight forward way ?!! ...
*****
Swara was in washroom trying to compose herself before going out to face him ..
When she rushed in moments ago she was crying and she didn't want to break down in front of him ..
She is helplessly in love with him .. and it is really hurts that he don't notice her ever .. she kept waiting with hope for years but nothing change at all .. so she decide to stop waiting , 7 years is enough wait ..
His concern for her today is making her weak , she know tomorrow he will ignore her like any other day ..
And How dare he ask her if anything had happened .. " what is wrong ??! what is the matter ??! " she laughed then start crying " the matter that I love you Sanskar and you don't know , don't care and you did nothing .. NOTHING AT ALL "
After crying her heart out .. she stood up in front of the mirror , her eyes and nose are red from crying .. she washed her face multiple of times , then released her hair from the band that hold it in a ponytail ..
She was tired emotionally and physically .. she has a headache , her body hurts , her throat and she has signs of a fever ..
All she want is to go home .. fell on her bed and sleep and never to wake up ..
She took a deep breath then step out the washroom ..
Took her way back to their table .. he was staring at her in a way he never did before .. her heart start beating fast " Swara get hold on yourself "
When she reached the table he cast her a smile that turned him more handsome .. her breath hitched .. somehow she took her seat .. when she looked at him his eyes was shining and her heart skipped a beat " Swara Don't hope for anything .. just stop it "
Then the waitress came with their orders .. she got hold on her cup and start sipping her tea " He was right .. my throat feel better "
" Swara .. Can I Ask you something ?? "
" Yes .. " not looking at him
" WILL YOU GO OUT WITH ME ?? "
She almost lost hold on her cup , somehow managed to put it on the table and looked at him wide eyes .. he was in a calm posture ...
" Swara it is a dream .. no no it is not a dream you have a fever you start hallucinating .. get hold on your imagination girl "
After long moments of silence .. Sanskar chuckled and said " Swara I am waiting for an answer "
" What answer ??"
" The answer for the question "
" which question ??! "
Sanskar laughed out loud .. and look at the confused girl in front of him " you shocked her Sanskar " he thought
" Swara I Asked you if you will go out with me ? "
" like on a date ??"
" yes on a date .. will you ?!"
" Sanskar you are not kidding right ??"
He get hold of her hands " no .. I am very much serious .. "
" This is not a dream ?? " she whispered with eyes full of tears
In seconds he was beside her wiping her tears " no .. it is real "
" why ?? " in a whisper
He smiled " because I Like you, and this is the first time ever I have his feeling " and he look in her eyes " really ? " she asked " really "
" so will you go out with me ?? .. swara " he asked again pushing her hair strands behind her ears , cupping her face
" yes .. " answered with a smile and he smile back .. they were lost in each other eyes ..
When Suddenly he jerked up shocking her " God Swara .. You are burning with fever .. why you didn't say anything ?? "
" I am Fine Sanskar "
" No You are not "
He paid their count and took her out .. the rain almost stopped , he made her set in the passenger seat in his car and took the driver seat and turned on the engine ..
" Sanskar .. where are we going ?? "
" Hospital "
" What ..?!!! There is no need , Sanskar it just a COLD "
He just ignore her a continued his driving ..
2 hours later they were coming out from the hospital ..
" see I told you , there is no need , it just a COLD "
" Swara what if it was not a cold .. and thank God your fever went down "
Swara laughed ..
" are you laughing at me because I was concerned about my girlfriend ?? "
She stopped and then she start blushing .. Sanskar smirked
" Come let me take you home "
*****
At the entrance of her house they stood together ..
" Swara .. Take care of yourself .. and don't forget to take you medicine .. "
" OK .. Good night " and start getting inside
" by the way " she turned to him
" Happy Birthday " she blinked her eyes multiple of times
" But my Birthday is in 2 days " he took steps towards her and got hold of her hands
" I know But I want to say it to you .. face to face .. since you are not coming to office in the next 3 days "
She hugged him which he respond by hugging her " Thank you so much " and when she come out from his arms she was in tears ..
He wiped her tears " Swara .. No more tears and Thank you .. please " she smiled at him
" I will be waiting for my gift "
"it will be a surprise .. good night .. sweet dreams "
" good night "
*****
Next morning when she wake up she found a message from him
" a very sweet morning for my beautiful girlfriend .. are you Ok ??
I will miss you today at office ..
p.s : call me after you have your breakfast and medicine
Sanskar "
She smiled and jumped out from the bed and rushed to washroom she need to get ready fast .. she can't wait to hear his voice ..
Now she don't care if the others ignore her or not .. because Sanskar is enough for her .. her empty world is now full ...
THE END
____________________________________________________________________________
so That it ..
I hope you like it ..
I hope Ididn't disappointed you
like and comment
please do share your thoughts .. anything will be appreciated positive or negative ..
P.S
Please Do In English I am not Good With Hindi
khushi
Anupamaa
