***
For the one who has conquered the mind, it becomes the best of friends but for the one who has failed to do so his very mind will be his greatest enemy.
***
Madam,
There is an important deal that must be signed personally by you. The party has asked us to fix a meeting in Allahabad since they are foreign citizens and are currently stationed there. We request you to abide by their wishes as this deal is very important for our company’s growth. Your departure time will be at 6:00pm. A company agent will accompany you and give you further information. In case of any doubt, you are free to ask me.
Yours sincerely,
Mr Kashyap.
***
Business trip. Just the escape that I wanted but why does Mr Kashyap send me such formal messages when in reality he is like a father to me? He has helped me a lot to understand business after I lost my father a year ago, he doesn’t need to be so formal.
I packed up my essentials and made coffee for myself. It was almost 5: 45pm and thus the agent could be here any moment. I put on a formal blue shirt and a black skirt, coupled with high heels. As soon as I finished dressing up I heard the sound of a horn outside my house. Surely it was time to leave. Walking down the stairs I halted just in front of the door. My gaze turned towards the statue of Shiva. Old habits don’t easily die do they? I used to pray every time I went out but not anymore and trust me, it doesn’t matter at all. I closed the door, leaving the dusty statue behind.
As soon as he saw me coming, the agent got down from the car and held the door for me, “Welcome Madam.” He was very tall, well-built and fair. He had perfect features and to add to that all, beautiful blue eyes. What was peculiar about him though was the fact that he was wearing jeans on a business trip. I accepted his gesture and got inside the car that he had brought which obviously was the company’s property.
“Nitya…call me Nitya.” I said.
“Oh alright Nitya, I am Amar and I am pleased to meet you.” He said grinning
“And are you going to meet the clients like this?” I hinted towards his attire.
“Yes, no doubt about that.” He said nonchalantly.
“Are you serious? “Something was wrong with this guy.
“Haha…no. I was kidding. I thought why not travel a little comfortably, I’ll change later.” He replied.
I rolled my eyes.
“So, it’s going to take us one day to reach there.”
“One day! Couldn’t you book a flight? Are we so doomed in finance?” I asked him astonished.
“Yes I could but then I thought you deserve a break from all this.” He said.
That was a sweet thing to do but it was strange yet pleasing that he understood my needs better than even my friends did.
***
We spent the next few hours discussing about what the clients have offered and how it will help our company flourish. We discussed about the presentation and I did a rehearsal too. I didn’t even realise when I fell asleep.
The rays of the sun burned onto my skin thus waking me up. Amar was still driving. I checked the clock, it was 9:00am.
“I am so sorry Amar, I don’t know when I fell asleep. I should have shared the night time driving with you. Here now let me drive.” I felt guilty and panicked.
A slight smile played on his lips. “Don’t worry, I don’t need sleep.” I couldn’t make out if he was serious or simply being sarcastic but before I could comment he continued, “Let’s have something to eat. You didn’t eat anything yesterday.”
As if my stomach understood his words, it made a grumbling noise.
He pulled up outside a dhaba. With my roots in Mumbai, I loved the typical desi food but expecting that on a business trip was just not possible for me and yet Amar could somehow read my mind.
“So, Pav bhaji with extra makkhan?” He asked.
“Yes please.” It was the first time I smiled at him.
***
“That was just what I needed…thanks a lot.” I said satisfied with the food. He just looked at me, the angles of his lip turning up to form a slight smile.
“I need to show you something.” He said.
I followed him, he led me to a big temple. It was made of marble and had intricate carvings done on it. The compound was flooded with devotees.
“This is the speciality of this place. The well-known Shiva temple, let’s go inside.” He said.
No way was I going to visit a Shiva temple or even any other temple. A knot formed inside my stomach.
“No, I am not going in.” I said.
He looked at me a little disturbed with this, “But why?”
I didn’t answer his question, instead started walking towards the car. He stood there for a while and later started following me. He got inside the car after me. After a long and painful silence I spoke up.
“I am an atheist.” I said.
He didn’t say anything, only trained his gaze on the road. After some time he asked,
“But why?”
I had told him the truth but I wasn’t comfortable to share the reason with him.
“I don’t want to talk about it, please.” I said. He simply nodded. It took us about half an hour and some cute songs on the player to get back to being ourselves. He chattered on and on about everything from the nature’s beauty to the Indian politics and its filthy ways. The day went well and I felt like I made a new friend.
At around 7:30pm we reached Allahabad and checked into the hotel we were going to stay in.
“So I have ordered the food, it will be delivered to your room. If you need anything than you can call me up or visit me, my room no. is 205.” He informed.
I laughed, “You said that like a salesman.”
He just shook his head, smiling. “Goodnight.” He said.
“Goodnight.” I replied.
YOU ARE READING
The Forgotten Faith
Short Story(highest rank #111 in short story.) Nitya is going through some of the toughest days of her life. Losing her father just a year ago, she is still struggling to cope with the loss and find a way to deal with the responsibilities that he has left beh...
