Games of Deception

Chapter 9 - The Proposition

Saturday May 9th, 2015

She covers her eyes with one hand as she fishes out her sunglass from her purse with the other hand. Though it is only 9 am, the vengeful nature of the heat from the scorching sun is making Madhu sweat profusely. She cranks up the AC but like everything else in her old, rustic car, it does not provide sufficient cool air. Sweating profusely, she arrives in front of her apartment building, fighting through an hour of bustling traffic, in a 5 mile stretch. Even on weekends, the day long congestion starts bright and early in the morning.

Parking in her usual place, the narrow alley next to the building, Madhu steps out and glances warily up at the building. After the hasty exit she made from Aer for her humiliating, desperado, sex maniac level act in front of Rishabh Kundra, she spent the night at a friend's place, drinking herself into oblivion. Even after taking an aspirin in the morning, her head is pounding, ready to implode. This her punishment, Madhu supposes, for losing control with Rishabh only to be rejected and even more so for foolishly drinking way past her tolerable limit.

But the hangover is not the reason why she is uncomfortable of going up to her apartment and possibly being confronted by her wayward, absent-minded father who may decide today of all days to act concerned. Madhu's intuition is screaming at her, that something major is about to take place and it may be beyond her control. Shaking her head off the bad premonition, she warily walks into the building. Madhu presses the button for one of the elevators and waits patiently for one of them to come back down to the lobby. Facing the elevator that has come down and is poised to open, she steps forward, ready to step in as soon as everyone exits.

As the door opens, she is confronted by an agitated Maleeha, her mini me as Madhu liked to always tease her, who immediately upon noticing Madhu, glares ferociously. Sighing inwardly, Madhu politely waits for her younger sister to step out of the elevator, knowing that she is about to be read a stern lecture. Though she is dreading the confrontation, she schools her features to look calm and composed. Maleeha comes out and grabs Madhu's elbow and drags her to a relatively quiet corner.

Maleeha moves her hand away and places her hands on her hips, standing akimbo. She glares at Madhu and snaps, "Seriously Di? You were out all night and you couldn't even bother to inform me? If you had the sense to let me know, I could have handled dad. But now he knows and let me tell you, sister dearest, he is hopping mad!"

Madhu shakes her head and sighs tiredly. She explains, "I am sorry. I should have called to let you know that I was going to hang out with a friend at a bar than sleep over at her place too." She adds on with conviction, "I'll just tell dad that I got stuck on an emergency, overnight project and I didn't have access to my phone because it had died."

Shamsher Malik is a conundrum. He is an art history professor and given his profession, one would expect him to be more liberal. Especially since his late wife was a renowned artist. But in reality, for all his classic, absent-minded, professorial traits, Madhu reflects, her father is as conservative as they come. He had allowed her mother to exhibit and occasionally sell her artworks but only under a pseudonym.

Her parents shared diametrically opposing viewpoints about life; influenced by their upbringing. Madhu thinks she and her sister turned out to be more like their mother; free spirits with a liberal point of view. It was interesting, for lack of better words, to grow up in their household. Despite his liberal arts education, her father is still stuck with the backwards, olden ways from his grandfather's time. Though Shamsher Malik retained the traditional value system from his land-rich ancestors, he did not inherit their shrewd skills in making money. A total shame, in Madhu's opinion.