Orderly Chaos

Colliding Worlds

"Excuse me? Are you okay? Hello?"

Ram stared at the woman lying unconscious on the floor. He summoned a few members of his female staff and politely requested them to place her on the couch.

"Tarun, bring me a bottle of water and a bar of chocolate. You'll find them in the second drawer in my cabin," Ram ordered. Tarun rushed to Ram's cabin and grabbed the bar of Lindt and a bottle of water.

Ram splashed a few droplets of water on the unconscious woman but she didn't even flinch. "Lower the temperature of the air conditioner and call a damn doctor," Ram commanded. Tarun immediately lowered the temperature to sixteen degrees. The doctor arrived and got to work quickly. He checked her pulse and then proceeded to measure her blood pressure using a sphygmomanometer. He took out a syringe from his suitcase, filled it with a bright red liquid, and injected the woman with it.

Minutes later, the doctor turned to Ram. "She will regain consciousness in a while. Her blood pressure had skyrocketed. I've injected her with Hydralazine - her blood pressure should lower in a minute or two. Meanwhile, I'd suggest a few days of complete bed rest. It seems she has been missing out on a lot of sleep and taking a lot of stress as well." The doctor handed the prescription to Ram, took his fees, and was escorted out by Tarun.

"Ram, we're getting late. You know Mr Khan dislikes tardiness. Why don't you appoint one of your female staff members to look after her instead?" Rishabh suggested. Ram nodded at his suggestion and gestured to Tarun to do the needful. He took one last glance at her - she was still unconscious - and made his way to Mehra Industries.

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Katha didn't know how long she had been out but she was mad at herself. Her meeting with the CEO had been cancelled because firstly, she didn't make it on time, and secondly, he had left for a business meeting. She decided to stick around in the lobby, awaiting him. She seated herself on the couch and fiddled with her phone for a while. She texted Pramila to check up on Aarav - he was busy with his school homework. She responded to a few emails and texts. In no time, sleep overtook her entire being and she passed out on the couch.

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Ram was on cloud nine. The deal with Mr Khan - the one on which he'd been working for months - had finally come through. On the way back, he made a pit stop at his favourite bakery. The aroma of coffee and croissants wafted through his nostrils. Ram cherished this place the most, not because of the food but because of the memories attached to it. He'd met Vedika here for the very first time. Her wavy, chocolate-brown hair was the first thing he'd noticed. They cascaded down her shoulders and ended at her waist. The moment she turned around, Ram was a goner. He was smitten beyond imagination. Her striking, hazel eyes invoked a desire in him he did not know even existed. Her serene smile made his insides tingle. But what made Ram fall in love with her was her kind heart. She was purchasing all kinds of baked goods and beverages for the homeless kids. The kids had surrounded her in a circle. One of the smaller kids was tugging at her kurta. She'd grinned at them and requested them to be patient. Once the orders had arrived, Ram saw her escort the kids to the nearest table. She distributed the croissants, pastries, and cookies among them. She'd also bought them each, a beverage of their choice. She also made them wash their hands properly before digging in. Ram was entranced by her beauty and kindness. He immediately knew he was irrevocably in love with her.

The ringing of his phone brought him out of his reverie. Ram blinked away his tears. He took out his phone which flashed his stepmom's number. He sighed sadly. "Hey, mom. Is everything all right?" he enquired, receiving the call. "Ram! Thank goodness you attended the call. Listen, Shivi, Shubhu and I have to attend a dinner party tonight, so we might return home late. Make sure you have your dinner on time. Okay? And don't forget your medicines." "Yes ma'am," Ram chuckled through the phone. "Don't forget to take the driver along. I don't want y'all worried over returning home." "Will do. I gotta go now, will talk later. Bye." He bid her goodbye and disconnected the call.

Ram went up to the counter and ordered three chocolate croissants, a red velvet pastry, a pineapple pastry, two flavours of muffins and his favourite cold coffee. He placed the boxes in his car and drove to his office.

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It was nearing 11 pm - way past Aarav's bedtime. Her boss - Ram Kapoor still hadn't made an entrance. Katha decided to get a hold of him tomorrow instead. It was too late anyway. He must've decided to go home, she thought. Katha grabbed her handbag and waited for the elevator to arrive. She got into the elevator and called Pramila. Pramila assured her that she had put Aarav to bed without any fuss. Katha thanked her profusely.

As soon as the elevator doors opened, Katha rushed out only to collide with a man carrying an insane amount of boxes. The boxes came tumbling down and Katha landed on her backside. "Ow." The sound made her look up into a sea of blue. There was something familiar about his face, Katha thought. She expected him to be angry but instead, he was whining. "Oh, man! Now how am I supposed to know in which boxes the croissants are and in which boxes the muffins and pastries are?" Katha stared at him in shock. She couldn't believe her eyes. The man had dropped all his baked goods because of her and he was worried about the precise location of each croissant, pastry and muffin. She was definitely going crazy.

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It took Ram a minute to realise that the woman he had crashed with was still on the floor. So was he. He scampered around and gathered all his confectionery and handed it to Tarun. He then turned to her and asked, "Are you okay? Did I run into you too hard?" Katha looked up at him and Ram recognised her immediately from earlier in the day. "Oh, it's you," he exclaimed. Katha raised her eyebrow at him. "Have we met before?" she asked. "Just this morning. I doubt you remember me though. You were unconscious, after all," Ram replied. Katha felt the colour rise in her cheeks due to the embarrassment. "My assistant must've handed over the prescription to you. Make sure you take your meds on time," he smiled at her. "Tarun, take those boxes to my cabin. And ring up Adi and let him know the architect didn't make it today. Just inform him to call her tomorrow, first thing in the morning."

He turned towards Katha who still stared at him in shock. He forwarded his hand. "Ram Kapoor. Nice to collide with you," he grinned.