Part 91

Worli Sea Face

Her hands trembled as she tried to hold the phone… her sweaty thumb wouldn’t scroll to the home page…

She went to the last text and stared at it “Jpeg” she had said

Are you OK?” she asked

And waited…

She dialed and it went to voice mail…

Called home, Dadi answered… she didn’t know…

K:Bus yoon hi call kiya

D:Ghar aane ka iraada nahi hai?

K:Abhi…

D:Usne Rishi aur uske parents ko khaane par bulaya, aur abhi tak aaya nahi

K:Oh?

D: Tujhe nahi kaha?

K:Umm..mmm

D:Get over here fast… you sound tired… lunch khaaya? Your fave sokhi paneer and moong dal was in it…

K:Abhi nahi…

D:WHY? Are you OK?

K:Hmmm.. Dadi

D:Khanak…

K:Dadi did you hear from Shaan?

D:No beta kyon?

K:I..

K:I am heading home

D:Khanak?

K:Bye Dadi..

She called Shaan again… he did not answer

Texted him “Are you OK?”

Walked up and down her cubicle

Called Pradeep “Sir ke driver ka number maloom hai aapko?”

Pradeep: Bhabhiji who sabko lekar Ulwe IG ke daftar gaya hai

Khanak is tearful

K:KYON?

P:Aap chinta mat karo… koi baat hui nahi

K:Police station?

P:Usne kaat diya, abhi foon karke aapko call karta hoon

K calls and texts Shaan, impatient… beginning to lose it

“Ritu ko karoon?” “Prolly not”

“Dad?”

Her phone beeps “I am”

He says

She dials his number, he doesn’t pick up

“WHERE are you?”she asks

“Relax Khanak” is his response!

She is FURIOUS……….

Ram walks by smiling, worried and pauses…

K:I am OK … husbands

Ram:You just have one I thought (grinning)

K:He is plenty

Her phone rings, its Dadi

Ram:Head home Mrs Gujral

K:Jee (after I find Mr Gujral” she tells herself)

K:Jee Dadi?

D:Ulwe mein kya hua? Tujhe kuch pata hai? Sunil ne phone kiya…

K:No Dadi, he is OK (sulking) kaha RELAX

Dadi laughs

K:Not funny Dadi

D:He is a brat… what can I say… I am worried how its going to unfold though

Khanak stares out the window….

D:Tu ghar nahi aayegi jab tak who lautkar nahi aata

K: Umm.. nah… I..

D:Aaja puttar

Dadi hangs up…

She texts him Where are you?”

He calls her!

S:Khanak!

K:WHERE are you? (ticked)

S:At the Navi Mumbai Commissioner’s

K:You are  DESIGN ENGINEER, why are YOU getting involved (shrill)

S:Shhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh Khanak!

K:I mean… Sha

S:Khanak I was a… I cant talk in detail…

K:GHAR kab aayenge aap?

S is answering someone at the precinct

K:Shant

S:Khanak… can I call you back?

K:I know you wont! (tearful)

S:If I tell you I am OK, does that help?

K:NAHI! (tearing up)

S:Then I am in pain… happy?

K:You are MEAN! Main phone rakhti hoon…

S:Kha… don’t stay up..

K:Never… for you..

He laughs out loud…

She hangs up…

Packs her things and heads home…

11:07 pm

Sunil, Akshay and the rest of the crew are chatting downstairs…

Khanak is in his room… sulking and unwilling to go… she sketched… worked… changed her nail polish on three fingers… and sulked….

Her head ache had gone down since she ate…

There was loud chatter, she opened the door to look

Shantanu was home, he looked up and their eyes met

She shut the door back…

Sunil:What the hell isgoing on?

Shaan: Business as usual

A:You need to come work with us…

S:Construction is not for the faint hearted.. (laughing)

Sunil:Construction in India sounds no less dangerous than crime fighting

Dadi:Shhhh Sunil (shushing him)

Shaan:You are close! Rahat was almost arrested for getting aggressive…

Dadi:Aur tumne kya kiya?

Shaan:I would’ve punched the guy… but showed restraint

Sunil:Think about it Shaan… not tonite… but soon

Madz:Let him do what he wants

Dadi:Have you eaten?

Shaan: Nope! Whats for dinner

Dadi:Vegetarian… teri biiwi ne khaana nahi khaaya lunch waala

Shaan:WHY?

Dadi:Biwi teri hai usko pooch

Sunil:Is she OK Ma?

Dadi: Yeh usko itna pagal karta hai (in Punjabi)

Shaan:Jee asudhi saara main kitta siga (its all my fault) Where is she?

Dadi: tujhe nahi pata?

Shaan: Not home yet? (worried)

Madz:Oopar hai… she is sulking…

Sunil: She is a swthrt… she never sulks… she wanted to sketch…

Dadi: Ja… khaana bhijwati hoon

Akshay:Think abt it Shaan… there is a lot we can do together

Sunil: Rahat aur who inseperable hain… he wont

HL refills their drink

Shaan doubles up on the steps….

She is in the balcony

Hears the click and doesn’t turn…

S:Hey

K wishes she had her phone… she cud have pretended to talk… she wishes to look at him to see if he is OK

S walks up and stands by her…

S:Sulking?

K is quiet…

He laughs silently… heartily.. it enrages her…

She moves… he places one hand on rail… both sides… “Iam back now”

“A lil early don’t you think?” she asks

“Khanak” he protests…

There is a knock on the door just as she reaches for his hand……….

S:Hl?

He gets the door, HL wheels the dinner into the lounge area… sets it and leaves

K stares at the bobbing fishing vessels… HE eats ravenously… finishes his SOR

S:Khanak…(calls out from the lounge)

K:I am not hungry (she yells back)

S:There is strawberries… and choc truffle

K:Mujhe to bataya nahi Dadi ne (upset)

She walked inside to the lounge

S:Saved it for her battered grandson….

K:BATTERED? (shocked)

S: You know… (pause)

She walks up to him…

K:You think its funny…

S:It is… (not)

He drags her by her hand…

K: Nahi…

S:What do you mean nahi?

K: I said No…

He holds her close…

K:What happened…

S:Later…

He bends down scoops up some choc truffle and feeds her….

Gently kisses the drizzle…….as it soaks her chin and cleft, drips down moist and sticky between her b----

K:You think you are clever…

S:Ofcourse I am… provoking you and feeding you chocolate… I have to get l---

She pushes him angrily…

Shaan laughs heartily

K:Abhi… I want to know.. what

S:Khanak… (holding her as she wrestled…)

K: Its all over the news…Rahat’s in jail isn’t he? (gleeful)

S is serious… holds her tight… “We made design changes, announced it in the weekly meeting the Construction crew supervisor… declined to incorporate… we have a hard stop on getting them in…

K: What changes?

S: Khanak…

K: Did you negotiate a raise with them for changed plans?

S: Its not black and white like that (ofcourse we wont pay them more)(condescending)

K:They threaten u with picketing and you don’t raise the wages?

S:Rahat has the best legal team on the planet…

K:That’s wrong…(shocked)

S:Ajmera can get rid of them (arrogant)

K stared at her husband… shades of his orginal nature were beginning to unravel… her heart skipped a beat… she hated him then… she was married to him now…she fantasized about him making love to her with such a look in his eyes……..she knew what it felt like now… for real….

The haughtiness and raw sexuality came as a package……..

K: Are they militant? (looking down at her bowl of choc….hiding her thoughts from him)

S: we have been using this new contract crew for the basement job at the club house…on hindsight… may be a bad idea…

K:Sha (afraid)

S: Things quickly got out of hand… Rahat was there for the walk through… so they made a bigger deal…

K:Is the site still sealed?

S:Ofcourse not! (smug)

K:Can you take some (off?)

Chowing down on the chocolate mousse truffle thing…

S:Are you serious?!  Nope! This is not the movies Khanak…(smirked)

K is ashamed… for suggesting it… followed  by disappointment at being laughed at……….

S:Its OK… we are all good now…(dismissive)

K:you always under play every crisis…(discovery)

S:I have good training (firm, looking at her pointedly)

She is hurt………and guilty……..

S:Look… we all know how this business is…(pacifying)

K:Ajmera plays dirty… (lashing back)

S:Excuse me?

K: Esteem is working on getting Lower Parel… Rahat is too I am told…

S:Its called competition… NOT playing dirty (defensive)

K: In Rahat’s books… and (yours)

S:Esteem is trying to get out of Bangalore… they have a public interest litigation (PIL)happening at the Hebbal project (shrewd), he is out of Bangalore for good…

K:Rahat is (stops)

S: Are we taking sides now? (furious)

they fought all the time… about themselves or Ajmera or Esteem… or unionized labor……….corrupt business practices

She moves away surreptiously… from him… his khakhi Dockers are soiled at the bottom… the olive green and yellow check shirt is undone to the 3^rd button… sude shoes intact as he wore boots at the site…

Tousled and soiled and conceited…  yet reeked of wealth…class

K:You…

S: No I am not taking a shower or shaving…(mad)

K turned crimson… “Good” “Coz I am sleepy too”

S:I don’t recall saying anything about not wanting sex though(savagely)

His hand busy undoing her strap at the back, while hers trying to pull her tee down….. fighting his hungry mouth…

K:Stop it! You j…(“You hate Esteem Builders so we have to call it quits”)

S chuckled reading her mind…He pushed her back on the couch… rubbing his face all over… before he inhaled… and kissed… hungrily.. sucking every morsel of chocolate from her body… sharing the tang of SOR…

K: Beard burn (she moans as his face connects with bare skin on her chest)

He heatedly  arouses her… loosening her clothing…

K:You smell like construction dirt… and gasoline

S continues his onslaught…….

K:Shantanu…

His lips close on hers… knocking her breath out… she holds his face… not letting go of the lock………

He picks her up…. Takes her to bed….