The Lion and the Rose

Chapter 25

Siva

The doorbell rings and Aneesha goes to receive a bag from the delivery boy. "Ashwika ku dress" she says and knocks on the door of the guest bedroom before entering the room. She returns after a short while and says that she will get medicines and prescription for Ashwika.

I stop her to ask the cost of the dress, "Aneesha, evlo da aachu?"

She crosses her arms against her chest and gives me a stern look, "Ashwika vum neengalum kaasu vishayathula ore maathiri irukeenga. En unga girlfriend ku naanga vaangi koduka koodatha?" (Ashwika and you are pretty much the same in this case of money. Why aren't we allowed to buy something for your girlfriend?)

"Appadi ellam onnum illa, da. Ethuku neenga theva illa ma ..." (Nothing like that, da. Why unnecessarily..). I stop myself before continuing.

Did Aneesha just say Ashwika as my girlfriend? Why does everyone look upon us as a couple?

I corrected her, "and Ashwika is not my girlfriend."

"Ohh, sorry. Sanjeet said that you are bringing a friend to get checked, since it was a girl I thought she is your girlfriend. Also she was keen on your likes and dislikes."

"She is my secretary, so obviously she'll know what I like and what I don't," I try to reason with her.

"Ohh, but it's from my sister Meenu's boutique, so it's fine." She reasons to avoid getting the money.

"Please, treat us like how you treat other patients." Before she could say something else to avoid me paying, Sanjeet calls her close to him and whispers something to her. Then she agrees and says the spent amount which I immediately transfer to her before she leaves for her clinic to get medicines and prescription for Ashwika.

Ashwika is yet to come out of the room. Gratefully, Aneesha found out the cause sooner before that chemical caused more effect on Ashwika. That douchebag not only had the guts to enter my office but also harm Ashwika.

I called Samarth and asked him how the situation there was. When he said everything was normal I asked him to check the CCTV footage of the day when the sale happened and send me the image of the salesperson whom we directed to the washroom and the one who sold saree to Ashwika. For the first time in history, Samarth agrees to do without questioning me.

As I disconnect the call with Samarth, the door of the guest bedroom opens and Ashwika walks out. I just stay there in my spot as if I was being spelled to be immobile. She exits the guest bedroom in a white colour jumpsuit style dress with golden freckles on it and a transparent floor length jacket with embroidery works.

Though the darkness on her skin has not completely gone, this dress elevates her natural beauty. She has let her hair fall free on her shoulder and when they wave in the breeze, I feel like a bomb of fresh air hit me. My focus is completely zoomed on to her as she speaks to someone and gives them one of the paper bags she was holding as I hear music from a faraway distance.