Tears of Insecurity

Chapter Sixty Eight

Previously -

"Sorry sir der ho gayi. Wo aapke liye best se best necklaces dhundne gaya tha. Ye dekhiye sir.", The man came from behind the counter where he had vanished a while back. He was panting as he kept a few boxes on the table while his staff circled around him with different set of necklaces in their hands.

"Chalo, ye bhi kar hi lete hai.", Lily said sighing. Oh how much she hated shopping!

"Yes, here we go!", Pramod said and keenly listened to the man in front of him go on and on about how gorgeous the first set was. He was explaining each and every minute detail, but to Pramod each and every set looked alike, no difference.
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"Sir, this is the most beautiful set of diamonds we have positioned in this beautiful set. I'm sure this should be perfect for whoever you are gifting this to!", The shopkeeper clasped his hands together with a wide smile. Pramod looked at the necklace, it was a very pretty necklace with raw uncut diamonds shinning beautifully. The design was intricate and the little minute details were gorgeous. The necklace truly stood out of all the other collections that he the man had showed him and Lily.

"Alright! Let's finalize this one.", Pramod said eager to get out of this shop. No doubt he loved shopping a lot but not jwellery shopping, and definitely not for somebody else's wife.

"That's great sir! We'll pack this right away-", Lily cut off the shopkeeper as she turned towards her bestfriend.

"Pagal ho gaya hai kya? 25 lakhs ka heero ka haar tu Ritu ko gift mein dega? Abhi tere paise ped pe lag rahe kya hai jo tujhe unhe waste karna hai? Agar tu ye Mini aunty yaa Susheela ke liye le raha hota toh chalo deal acchi thi, but Ritu ke liye? No way!", Lily scolded her friend.

"Abhi thode der pehle tune hi toh kaha tha na ki kyu kitna kanjoos ban raha hai? Ab main dil khol ke gift le raha hu toh ismein bhi tujhe problem hai? Nahi, matlab main karu toh kya karu?", Pramod asked his bestfriend, irritation clearly visible on his face.

"Itna bhi dil fek banne ko nahi bola hai mere bhai. Ye sab apni biwi ke liye bacha ke rakh. Aur aap ye wala necklace pack kar dijiye.", Lily said choosing a red Ruby set which was worth 5.7 lakhs. Expensive, pretty and classy for a gift.

The shopkeeper made a face at Lily and looked hopefully towards Pramod, but when even Pramod nodded his head in an 'yes' the shopkeeper then gave a disappointed and sad sigh and moved towards the billing area.

"Aaj ek NRI ko lutne ka sapna cheen gaya mujhse. Hey bhagwan kaha hai tu? Kyu mujh jaise gareeb aur bechare ke sapne pure nahi hone deta tu?", The shopkeeper whined and sniffed as he completed the billing process.

"Sir, aap aur wo bhi bachare aur gareeb?, The salesman asked with a roll of his eyes.

"Haa! Kyu koi shak hai tumhe?", The manager raised his eyebrows challenging his salesman to say something against him.

"No no sir, main toh bas ye keh raha tha ki unhone ki toh shopping pure 5.7 lakhs ki, ab aur kya chahiye aapko?", The salesman asked his managerial head.

"Lekin 25 lakhs bhi toh mil sakte the na? Mera dukh kisi ko nahi dikhta!", The manager/shopkeeper said sniffing as he packed the necklace set.

Pramod and Lily got up from where they were sitting and went towards the counter to get their bag. Pramod quickly did a cheque payment and took the bag from a sulking manger who gave them a forced smile.

"Do come again sir!", The manager called out after them.

"Bhagwan, next time kisi NRI ko chuna lagane mein meri madat jarur karna. Aur next time budget ekdum 50 lakh ke aage wala dena.", The manager prayed to the heavens above.