The Masquerade

Chapter 3

3

Twelve years is too long a time when spent away from people you care about. Too short, when asked how well you remember them.

'Was he even there? In flesh and blood?' Mrinalini wondered. He could very well be another hallucination of hers. She had been getting them more frequently these days. The frown on his face, the confused look in his eyes, and his pursed lips told her that he might be there. Standing right before her.

'For a long time, he had been...just her...'

'Uh...what?' she asked herself but received no reply. She had no relationship labels to give him. No definition. No appropriate tag for the permanent occupant of her thoughts for most of her life. It was impossible to categorize and name the space in her life that belonged to Rudra. Except for the fact, that almost every deep-seated emotion in her heart, positive or negative, began and ended with him.

If stalking on social media was not counted, then she was looking at him after over a decade. It was only natural to forget to reply to his question. She also forgot about any other welcoming gesture. In fact, she stood like a statue with her eyes fixed at him. He slightly wiggled his brows, made a quick pout, and cleared his throat to distract her. Instead of asking anything else, he repeated her name in a questioning tone. "Doctor? Mrinalini Sengupta?"

"Yeah." The realization finally hit her that he had taken her name twice, thankfully without making it sound like a tongue-twister.

To keep a straight face while going through a mess of countless emotions inside was a difficult task. But Mrinalini was used to it. She aced every instance when her facial expressions had to defy her feelings. She even smiled while replying him.

He turned his head halfway around to look at his staff of two, probably bodyguards, standing right behind him, and dismissed them with a wave of his hand. Once they left, he turned to face Mrinalini before introducing himself in a poised tone. Stretching his hand towards her, he said, "Hello, I'm Rudra Raghuvanshi."

'Yeah? Did he really think that he will have to introduce himself?'

She nodded to acknowledge it and accepted his hand for a handshake. "Dr. Mrinalini Sengupta."

A strange warmth swam across his eyes as he smiled. She returned the smile, absolutely hating the fact that it was already 7 p.m. He was two and a half hours late. Her staff had left, and she was alone in the clinic with only a guard outside. It was a tricky situation. Entertaining a client at this time, even if he was Rudra Raghuvanshi, was reckless. She couldn't take the risk to suggest that she could compromise on timings, schedules, and safety for anyone in the world. It would appear desperate.

If she shunned him away, chances were high that he may never return. Seeking an appointment from her clearly meant that he wanted to talk. 'Why? What did he want to talk about?' she thought. Sending him away would ensure that she may never be able to hear his side of the story.

Rudra craned his neck to look around and noticed the empty clinic. With a subtle shrug of one shoulder, he politely reminded her, "Ma'am, I have an appointment."

The tone, the pitch of his voice was just perfect. Soft and poised.'Of course!' Mrinalini remembered how he was famous for his cultured ways and sophisticated mannerisms, along with an unprofessional attitude. In school, he used to manage green checks in attendance registers using his charming ways. These days, he got through his lack of professionalism, unpunctuality, and erroneous decisions with his polished, suave style. People who knew him vouched for his urbane manners and grounded personality.