A Tryst With Love

Mr. Ajay Raichand, Chief Operative Administrator of ‘Raichand and Raichand’ firm, jerked forth his seat, as he woke up from his unconventional slumber. It was quite uncommon for a man of his competence and calibre, to doze off, but this day was different. Mr. Raichand was preoccupied in something that now meant much more than his Project Reports. His secretary scorned, as he yawned for the fifth time in a row.

Mr. Raichand had fallen in love.

It was a roadside pedestrian he had fallen for. She had flaxen hair, a broad forehead, and a fixed gaze. It was just a second of interaction – no, not even a second – a moment of interaction. He could not move his eyes away from her, and mechanically picked up her things after that brisk collision.

But she had forgotten something.

Raichand took out an earring from his bag. It was the only memory of her existence. Her charm had hypnotised him to an infinite extent. He longed to see her again.

After another uneventful day at his firm, Raichand drove out of the headquarters, expecting something interesting to happen at home.

It did, but rather on the streets. As he was driving his A-60 model down the Right Lane, he noticed a familiar face on the by-road. His face lightened up to no measures. He was watching her for the second time.

“Can I give you a lift?” he asked, with a shining face.

She stood aside, and fixed her characteristic stare, as is she knew of such flirtatious men.

“No, thanks. I’ll go alone,” she responded in the sweetest of voices Raichand had heard.

“Very well,” Raichand drove off with an elated feeling.

He had heard her voice for the first time, and the few words she had spoken added feeling to his life. He had experiences of beautiful lasses and delicate darlings dying to date him in his college, but this was different. “Shut up your mind, Ajay! You are ridiculously in love with a girl you don’t even know,” he tried to divert himself from all movie philosophies, romanticism, ‘love-at-first-sight’ syndromes and ‘Love Is Blind’ ideas, but ended up seeking solace in them.

Her gleaming eyes, stunning eyebrows, and breathtaking looks brought down a man from the highest realms of position and luxury, to a world where fantasy dominated over other lively things.

“Just once more, and I’d never see her again,” thought Raichand. Few could not imagine that this ‘once more’ would repeat itself after every meeting.

As every day prolonged itself to twice its size in Raichand’s soul, he found out that the girl worked in the nearby grocery store. He would watch her effortlessly pick up a dozen cabbages, or cheerfully communicate with her customers. He would even occasionally try to stop his car and peep through the shop window.

One afternoon, as Raichand passed by what had become his place of eternal comfort, he found that the store was closed down. His disappointment and uncanny shock knew no bounds. He enquired about the store, and found out that the girl had left her job to support her parents in Virajgaon.

“Virajgaon? Oh! That’s the place suffering from intense drought conditions,” he recollected a news article from Saturday’s newspaper.

That night, Raichand did not lose leave his quarters. He was in no mood to go home. His mind was perturbed. His melancholies had now grown ten-fold. He had a headache, but didn’t notice it. He took out the earring which had now become an embodiment of his emotions. The immense pain of drifting away from someone so beloved had drowned him in a state of loneliness and shock. Of course, the girl was unaware of his daily routine near the store. But had his love actually grown so profound, that it would separate him from her completely? Is this what love is all about? Is love so blind, that it does not notice the confinement of a lover’s soul? Is love nothing but separation, remorse, sadness and pain? The excruciating agony had conquered his heart, but he was helpless against Fate…

The following day, as Raichand was twitching his fingers, with a blank face, in front of his computer, the Senior Executive entered in his room. Raichand had not expected such a visit. He rose up, momentarily forgetting his thoughts.

“Sir, uh… Good morning.”

“Good morning Ajay. Well, what do you think of our property deals?”

“It’s great sir. We are on course to becoming the third largest private provisions firm in the state.”

“That’s great. Do you know what I’ve planned? Some charity for the drought.”

Raichand’s heart skipped a beat.

“The drought? Oh yes! The drought.”

“I know it’s a short notice, but I’ve shortlisted you for a visit to these places; you know, for donation purposes. You are to skim and scan the conditions there, and determine the value of money to be donated to the people”-

“Uh… Sir, could you list the names of places?”

“Sure! Well, you have Khejad, Ramgaon, Sushilkhand, Virajgaon, Jaunpet…”

Virajgaon… Raichand’s face lit up. He had heard this word a day before. “Oh yes!” he recalled the conversation with the owner of the shop neighbouring the grocery store.

Raichand cut in the conversation.

“I’ll go sir!”

“I know it’s quite abrupt and sudden…”

“I’ll go sir. Tomorrow.”

For the first time in his life, Raichand was restless as a result of happiness. His face was illuminated, as if a gust of merriment had spread all around his life. Destiny had given him another chance to bond with what he had longed for his entire life. His blind love had finally found an eye; his flightless wish had eventually discovered a feather. His tryst with love had ultimately found a new dimension.

The next day, Mr. Ajay Raichand, COA of ‘Raichand and Raichand’ packed up for a train to Virajgaon.