RoShti Book Of One Shots

Estranged Yet Loved

The rain poured down with full intensity as Mishti ran to take shelter under one of the nearest bus stops. Her car had broken down and now she was stranded in the middle of the road with little to no help. Her phone was almost as good as dead and she cursed herself for not keeping it on charge. She was drenched and irritated and the titter-pitter of the rain did nothing much to lighten up her spirits

"Its too dark and its raining.. I don't think anyone will even arrive for help. It'll take a lot of time." she thought and sighed. She was on her way in the morning to work in the brightest of spirits not really expecting a downpour on such a bright day. It was Ethnic Day at her office and she had gotten ready so perfectly by painstakingly making sure she got all the makeup right on spot. Even her eyeliner that usually went haywire was perfect today. She cursed her luck "Shit !! Shit !! Shit !!" Her saree was fully drenched and she growled at the injustice that had to happen on that particular day.

"I wish the rain would atleast slow down a bit. I can atleast put myself up in a hotel or something." she sighed

A few minutes passed and and then Mishti decided that the God of Rain wasn't going to show any mercy on her and it was a better option to try and find a roof over her head rather than wait here and fall sick. She took small steps out and treaded carefully on the wet and slippery road, lest she fell down and broke something. Her phone started to ring at that particular moment and she cursed whoever took the painstaking action of calling her. She took out the phone using the pallu of the saree she was wearing and saw that it was from her mother. She pursed her lips and cut it. She started walking again, the rain making it difficult for her to see anything. Few minutes later, she gave up. She wasn't going to reach anywhere if she kept walking along in the rain. She would need to be taken to the hospital instead of a hotel and she didn't want that. She looked sideways to her left and then to her right to see if there were any passing vehicles that could possibly give her a lift to one of the nearest hotels. But then there was this fear too.. What if the driver turns out be a creep..

"Shut up, Mishti !! You overthink.." she scolded herself.

Ten minutes had passed and there was no sign of any vehicle. She sighed. Her legs pained from all the standing and she brought her hands to either side of her hips and bent down to get some rest. The chill of the rain was seeping through the inside of her arms.. It was a chilly November day in Kolkata and rains were usually unexpected during that month. She started shivering and her lips trembled due to the cold. She wondered if she would even get any help or would she freeze to death in the rain. At last as if her prayers were heard, she saw a blur of light approaching her way and her eyes opened clearly to see if it was a vehicle.. Indeed, it was. She folded her hands and thanked the Gods above for listening to her prayer. She let out a trembling hand infront to stop the moving vehicle, fervently hoping that it did stop. Thankfully, the car did stop and the driver let down the windows to see who the stranger was. Mishti took one good look at the person at the person in the front and her eyes widened "Ronobir Chatterjee.."

Ronobir Chatterjee started from his office a good deal later. He was busy in wrapping up the final advertisement campaigns for his new venture in New Zealand. He was a budding entrepreneur who has had a successful start in the hotel business. He started off with cafes and gradually built his way into starting hotels. His branches were now in India and UK.. He was starting a new branch in New Zealand and hence he was busy wrapping up the final touches to that. He sighed when he noticed the weather. The orange hues of the sky were making way for the dull grey and he knew there was going to be a downpour. He didn't want to make it late. He wanted to reach his hotel as soon as possible. He was there for some conference with his Kolkata branch people and he was leaving tomorrow. He got into the car and hoped that he reached his hotel before the downpour decided to rash against the land. But to his luck, it started pouring sometime after his departure and he slowed down his car, not wanting to take risk of skidding away on the slippery roads. The path seemed quite deserted. He snorted. Ofcourse it would be. It was raining. People would be in the confines of their homes, warm and comfortable in their beds. He envied those people.. He envied those that had simple lives and could live it with content. Ronobir couldn't do the same for himself. There was no warm home nor comfort. That didn't mean he didn't have a roof over his head. Oh no.. Ronbir Chatterjee had an sprawling house in Delhi with all the best comfortable things. But a house and a home was different.. Comfort with all the luxury in the world and comfort in the arms of a loved one were quite different. He switched on the wiper to the extreme mode and watched as the wipers went "Swish.. Swish" clearing the glass for better view. He squinted his eyes to see a figure.. A woman, in particular waving her hand in a motion asking for a lift.