aurore - an unusual love story √

part nine

The woman stared reassuringly.

Kanta. Sonara had known her name soon after joining. Some women held a kind of authority, a kind of dependability. She was one.

Kanta headed the women workers' union. The men workers had a separate union but they looked upto Kanta as well. Sunil Chhetri hardly ever raised his voice over Kanta.

Henceforth getting a reassuring look from Kanta meant the world to Sonara suddenly.

A Saturday, hence the factory was open for half a day. Didn't matter though, 'cause Sonara had decided to unjoin. She hadn't come to work after the obscene incident yesterday, remaining locked within, sitting beside Humaira throughout dusk and dawn.

She had finally come to the point, that the first thing she would do stepping into the factory was to walk out of the job.

Accordingly, she stood before the supervisor's desk, a table kept in the middle of the working area unlike Reddy Chacha's separate small dusty room. And yeah, Sonara did not make a single call to chacha before taking the final decision, because she was more than heartbroken at his gesture of almost treading her past to get her a job. She had never fallen on his feet for one. Had she?

Sunil Chhetri sat down at the desk and looked at her from the corner of his eyes. Much against her expectation, his face featured nothing abnormal.

" Got something to say? "

" Yes, sir, I... I think I cannot carry on this job any further. "

Sunil Chhetri now looked straight for sometime.

" Why? "

'Why'? As in? Though Sonara knew quite well, she would be irked this way by the magisterial supervisor, evidently a failed father, knowing much what the reason could be. Hence she was all ready with a fabricated answer.

" Errm... The job is tougher than I had counted. Plus I have a baby... "

" Bring the baby along. There are two other newly mothers who work, and their babies are kept in a room at the corner of the factory, very much within their sights. "

Sonara was never aware of this. But nothing possibly mattered now. Because it was not the very reason.

" Sir, I just don't want to work here anymore. "

Sunil Chhetri nodded.

" You cannot leave this way, without presenting to us some proper reason. Plus I'm bound by words to my long time friend. I cannot just let you go without a fault on your part. "

Sonara kept staring. Did this man really know a thing about what his son was going around doing? She suddenly doubted.

" Exactly sir. Don't let her go. Rather I've a request to make on her part. "

Startled, Sonara found Kanta standing by her side.

" Shift her back to the insides of the chawl. The room just before mine where Bhooja used to stay in, is empty now. Kindly arrange for a shift as quickly as possible, sir."

Sonara couldn't say a thing, because Kanta glanced at her and smiled, shutting her eyes tight. 

Sunil Chhetri went through a register for sometime, and then looked at Sonara.

" Fine, I can shift your dwelling but won't let you go until you yourself commit something that causes the company's loss. Got it? Now go and work. "

Sonara didn't know how to react. Before she could, she was grabbed by Kanta and taken to a deserted corner.

" Sit. "