How to Woo Your Bride

2| Ancient Woes

"When I do good, I feel good. When I do bad, I feel bad. That's my religion." 

― Abraham Lincoln 

Madhan's POV

   "Look, Jack, I need to get this unit up and running in a couple of hours. Can you do this for me? " I asked, quite sternly. Interns, I thought, inwardly. We had inexperienced engineers on our team. To top that off, we have overly excited interns who are willing to do anything but end up messing stuff instead.

   "Er oka-," Jack started, but a ringtone cut him off. 

   "What have I told you about keeping your cell phone on silent," I scolded.

   "It's not mine, Mr. Roy," Jack stammered.

   Oh. Ohhhhh. How could I have mistaken that ringtone for someone else's phone? It was the ringtone I kept for my mother. 

   "Okay, you are dismissed," I said, rather distractedly, as I took out my phone from my back pocket.

   "Khanna, how are you," my mother screeched.

   I inwardly groaned. My mom loved to call me with endearments. "Mom! I'm doing fine. Why haven't you slept yet?" I asked, rather concerned. It was probably two a.m in India. Living in Salt Lake City, there was a nine and a half hour time difference. 

   "I've got some rather important news. Remember I mentioned some girl I really liked?"

   "Yes," I said, rolling my eyes. I honestly don't remember her mentioning that, but if I say no, she'll launch into a huge story about how it all started and I'll be like why did I ever ask. "Go on," I said.

   "Beta, the girl's family has given us the go ahead to ask for her hand in marriage. I've sent an email to you, attaching the girl's picture. I want you on the next flight tomorrow, and you are going to ask for a month and a half vacation. Am I clear?"

   I gulped. One and a half? She knows I'm not living in India. "Mother! I can't take one and a half!"

   "Yes, you can. I know you've overworked, and haven't taken a single day off. I'm sure your boss will allow you. Just tell him you'll return a married man. He'll let you go," my mother said, casually.

   "A MARRIED MAN? ARE YOU KIDDING ME?" I all but shouted.

   "Shoo, beta. I'm an old woman. Don't shout like that in my ear."

   "Sorry ma, but marriage? Isn't it so soon?"

   "Nonsense. You are already twenty-eight. It's high time you get married. Babu is twenty-six and he's already engaged."

   "No ma. I meant meeting the girl and getting married to her within a month is just too quick isn't it?"

   "I got married when I was twenty-one, and I didn't see your papa until the day I got married. You should be grateful you're seeing her a month before getting married."

   I felt like punching the desk in front of me. "Ma, you are ancient! That was thirty years ago," I cry, in frustration. 

   "Okay dearie, never mind. Just hop on to the next flight, and come home to mama as soon  as possible. You are meeting her on Monday, getting engaged on Friday, and getting married to her four weeks later. I'm going to go sleep now. Good night." 

   And my mother hung up on me. But I was too dumbstruck to even notice.

   I clutched my hair, not knowing what to do. After contemplating, I decided to check my email. If I'm going to get married, I might as well know whom I'm marrying. 

   I opened my email and waited for the picture to download, in anticipation.

Aakash's POV

  I reread Riya's mail for the hundredth time. For some reason, her last email affected me more than usual. It was probably because she wished that we would become friends again, instead of patching up. 

   Has she moved on already?

   Ever since I moved to London, I've been reading and rereading her emails. They were the only things that got me going. Pathetic, I know, seeing that I had no future with her anymore, but still. I loved her so deeply, and this was the only way to move on. Moving to another country. 

   I definitely would have lost all my resolve had I still been in India. 

   Chennai. 

   The city I've grown up in, all my life. The place was bubbling with activity during any time of the day. It was of course, noisy and polluted, but once you've grown up in that kind of an enviroment, living in a countryside city was a definite no, since it had way too much nature, and was too eerily silent. 

   I was getting too homesick. Trying to distract my mind, I started working on my laptop. Even though I'd just been transferred, I was dumped with too much work.

   I'd almost fallen asleep when I was awoken by a phone call.

   It was 12 am. Who would be calling at this hour, I thought.

   "Hello?" I answered.

   "Mr. Kapoor, a certain Mrs. Sharma would like to talk to you. Shall I forward her call?"

   Mrs. Sharma? Oh my god! Is she calling to take me as her son in law?

   "Yes please," I said, a bit too eagerly.

   My happiness knew no bounds. "Hello, Mrs. Sharma," I all but squeaked. Girly, but I couldn't help it.

   "Hold your horses, Aakash, " Mrs. Sharma said.

   And as she kept talking, my happiness disappeared, bit by bit.