CHAPTER THREE : IDENTITY

I head home to break the news to my parents. I had never been this happy to tell them anything, not even when my board results came out. I skipped my way to the kitchen where I knew my mother would be there preparing lunch. I stood there with a goofy grin on my face waiting for her to notice me, but she was too immersed in whatever she was doing to notice my presence there. 

And this mischievous thought crept to that tiny brain of mine.

I curled down my smile with a downcast look, maybe with a tear or two, I approached my mother. Now was the time to display my Oscar level acting skills.

I put my hands on the counter to which she looked up to see me. 

"Oh you're back! How did it-" Her once eager expression morphed to one of a blank one, 

"You didn't get the job did you?"

Now, what would everyone expect a parent to do in this kind of situation? Console and tell everything is going to be alright. Maybe give some extra pocket money to put things out of your mind. Right? But we are talking about my mother here. An Indian mother to be precise.

"I knew it! Why was I even expecting so much, we are talking about you here. All that waking up before dawn and doing those poojas down the drain. If I knew you'd be this useless, I would've considered giving birth to you. Oh God, Now I have to search a preferable groom for you, so much work." She kept rambling on.

Oh my mother, she never changes does she.

I couldn't help but form a smile on my face just looking at her moving all over the place shouting how useless I am and how she is going to find a groom for me.

"Smiling!? Why on earth are you smiling you buffoon!?" She asked completely annoyed that I would smile in such a situation.

"The thought of you getting all worked up for no reason, when I got the job." I ever so casually replied leaning beside the counter, small smirk playing on my lips. I knew it wouldl take a few seconds to sink in for her.

"Worked up!? Of course I'll get up! Why wont I when you got the jo-" Her sentence hung mid air, her entire body frozen.

"What did you just say?" She plainly questioned, not sure if she heard right.

"You heard me." That smirk growing larger every minute.

Oh victory is sweet! The look on her face! 

After being frozen for another minute or so, she came running, squeezing the life out of me.

"Oh thank goodness, Thank God!" All those poojas didn't go to waste after all! You actually did it! I'm so proud of you!!" Sometimes I wonder if my mother had multiple personality disorder.

"Why are you so overwhelmed? I thought you wanted to marry me off?" I questioned in a teasing way though I knew the answer.

"I only told that so you would get a job. Now that you've gotten one, I don't have to worry about that anytime soon." She told as she kissed my forehead in loving way. 

As much as my mother could be scary, she will always be there for me when I need her.

She then calls and informs my dad who was overwhelmed and bought me a watch to start anew. My dad first didn't believe what my mom told and only after I showed the contract did he believe. His eyes held such happiness that I couldn't explain by words.

My mom too overjoyed, making sweets and informing my relatives and friends. In that joy she forgot to notice the absence of my scooter.

After long, when I thought my mom completely forgot about it, "Where is your scooter? I didn't see it outside." She suspiciously asked me.

I gulp. 

I didn't want her know what exactly happened. How am I supposed to tell her I crashed my scooter with the interviewer and then bribed his driver by lying. She would slap me to death.

So I cleared my throat to give her a satisfying reply, "Ma, I crashed it earlier today. So I have given it to the mechanic for repair." I mean I wasn't lying. I just partially hid the truth.

This wasn't the first time I did such thing. This has been almost a weekly event to which my mom had enough. We pay more money for my scooter's repair than the food on the table.

In short the scooter is banned for now. 

That means I had to take bus hereafter to reach office and back home. I wasn't ready to give a part of my salary for transportation but,I had to cause my mom was too stubborn. She made it crystal clear that I wont be using my scooter anytime soon and I knew better than to go against her.

Ruhi came back from school and before I could even say anything. "DID YOU GET IT? DID YOU!?" her eyes showed desperation because now she would have an informal bank account from me. So when I told that I indeed did, she squealed, jumping up and down going on about how I will be her ATM from now on. 

To celebrate my victory, we ordered pizza that night and I couldn't be more happy. I stuffed everything into my mouth leaving little for my family. My family was used to this. They knew they can never fix my eating habits so left me be. Ruhi complains once in a while but nothing that I cant handle. A duct tape and a rope will do the job.

I couldn't feel but happy that we weren't talking about my marriage during dinner. The random topics we talked about, laughing and joking around. I felt at home, peaceful.

After dinner all of us retires to our rooms, Ruhi and I on my bed doing our stuff. She asked me about the details of the day and how I got the job. I explained everything and she was not surprised by what I did.

"Anyways the Tiwari Groups is not an easy deal. My friend's brother had applied almost 5 times but still got rejected though he graduated from America." She told while scrolling through her phone.

Ruhi clears her throat and starts reading an article about it. "The Tiwari groups is one of the biggest Multi National Company growing worldwide. It was started by Aadhwik Tiwari, one of the youngest businessman in India who has grown it to what it is now. They have expanded and still expanding their business to many parts of the world gaining huge success."

She stops as she sees the picture attached next to the information she was reading from.

A long sigh escaped her lips and she admired the man. "He looks so handsome Esha" She told while pouting. "But as good looking as he is, his character is not that great."

"Huh why do you say that?" I asked curious.

"Well apparently his anger issues are not normal. He never gives people second chances, No one has ever as far seen him give a smile. He gives an aura that no one wants to mess with him. Basically in short, he is not the person you would want to work with."

"Hmm" I didn't say much. I was simply glad that I didn't work with someone like him. Though my employer seems to be cranky and behaves as if his head had been run over by a truck, I should be thankful, I don't get to work under his boss.

"The fact that I don't work under that guy puts me to ease but that doesn't change the fact that the person I work with isn't crazy." I replied slightly annoyed.

"What is this guy's name?" She asked, curiosity all over her face.

"I don't know, but he looked good." I say remembering his mesmerizing grey eyes.

My reply only disappointed her. She glares at me mumbling how useless I can be. I don't deny.

"How does he look? Atleast tell me that?" She asked me.

"He looked handsome though. He had this light grey eyes-" Ruhi sat up straight immediately giving me quite scare. "What did you just say!? Grey eyes!!??" 

"Is everyone in this family deaf?"

"Yes, I told he had grey eyes." Her eyes widened so large I thought it would pop. 

"AADHVIK HAS GREY EYES!!" I guess we did have hearing problem in our family cause I could not believe what she just said.

"Eyy, he is not the only person with grey eyes you know." I told in a way to reassure myself.

Ruhi showed me the picture and I froze. I secretly hoped it wasn't him. "Maybe its his identical twin" A girl can hope.

Ruhi gave me blank stare silently telling how dumb I am.

"What!? What if he does? And this Adhvik guy turns out to be my boss's evil twin." I wouldn't be surprised if my sister choked me with her dupatta. 

"AADHVIK DOESNT HAVE A TWIN YOU IDIOT!" She yelled at me in an attempt to make me come back to my senses. 

"He doesn't have one, huh. I thought so." I told my face sulking.

I am too shocked to tell anything. I wanted to jump off my balcony for being so stupid. Everything happening around me sounded so unreal. 

Ruhi frowns, "Let's google him." She takes out her laptop, typing his name to which countless images of him popped up - most of them was him being caught off guard. He never actually looked at the camera and most of the pictures looked like the paparazzi. In most of the pictures he wore a suit, as though he was going for a meeting or somewhere important. 

How can I miss this!? How could I not know any of this!?

"I don't know wheather I should be happy or sad for you." Ruhi added, "But all I can tell you is to be really careful with him." 

She too was worried about me. But she chose not to make it obvious."Don't think of anything now. Just go have a good sleep. Good night Esha." She yawned and went to bed.

She turned off the lights, tired as she and Sabah had their exams the next day.

The word sleep can be my surname. I would sleep whenever, wherever there hasn't been any particular time that I can't fall asleep. But today I couldn't even close my eyes, worry all over my face. I tried shoving all the thought to the back of my head, but the images of events kept replaying making me lose sleep altogether.

My sleep schedule has been disrupted so I decided to call Dua and Inaaya and ask their opinion on this serious matter.

We have been best friends for almost 12years. Dua is a dentist and Inaaya is a practicing gynocologist. Look at me now! A useless Engineer. I had no regrets doing engineering but I wasn't happy at the same time. 

People usually mistook me and Dua for sisters. We usually look similar having certain differences here and there. We both have chocolate brown eyes but mine were a shade darker than hers. Our hair color was almost the same differing in the length. I have brown color hair and hers was more of black. She had short hair up to her neckline while mine were up to my hips. My skin tone was fair enough having freckles on my face, while she had a rosy tone, clear of any freckles of sort. Our height didn't differ much having slight variations, but overall you can say we looked alike.

But only in looks we were similar. Our preferences are completely different. She is more of a chocolate person, which whenever she eats, she always end up in some sort of trouble. But that wouldn't stop her from eating them. She likes dark, vintage colours and can survive in whatever situations she find herself in. She is a pure sadist and extreme savage person with the ability to burn the opposite person with her words alone. 

Me on the other side was never a chocolate person. I was never fascinated much by sweets. I like spice better and would die for roadside pani puris and choco-vanilla ice creams. I'm more of a bright coloured person and get engrossed in something I see. I can be quite savage. I am good at fighting. I can manage to win an argument unless and until the other person isn't too savage. So our personalities might crash here and there but we never let it affect our friendship. We remained as sisters all through these years.

And coming to Inaaya now. She was a different kind. She never liked any fun to be honest. She is too focused into her career that she almost forgets the exisistance of me and dua when her exams are near. 

Not able to cope with my thoughts anymore, I decided to call those two.

I dial a conference video call and after what seemed to be like forever, the call was accepted. Inaaya looked like a zombie, as if not slept for days. I'm not surprised. She must've went on night duty and didn't bother to sleep. Inaaya talked with last two brains in her body, "Hello people." Her voice raspy.

Dua, whom I assume I just woke up from her deep sleep barely managed to get anything out of her mouth. "He--ee-lllo-ooo?" She slurred as she spoke and if anyone else heard this, they would've thought she had an alcohol problem.

I cut straight into the matter. "I've a problem"

Both of them let out a sigh as if they expected this.

"What did you do this time?" Dua asked in a bored tone. 

"Why do you automatically think it was I who did something wrong?" I feigned hurt.

She simply raised an eyebrow challenging me to prove her wrong.

I eventually gave in and narrated the incident from the crash till discovery of his identity. And my two friends gives me a dirty look about me lying and acting like a innocent soul.

"Now this is your problem. Nothing of such would've happened if you didn't act like a rowdy in between the road when it was clearly your mistake".

"Let's just leave this and look into the matter of her boss, threatening her with the job." Inaaya consoles.

"Don't let that man get to you. Make sure the joke he's trying to play upon you is on him."

"But...his eyes are heavenly ya." I teased just to see the look on their faces.

Their look was deadly.

"I'm just kidding" I assured, scared Dua will come hit me through the phone.

I just had to pretend that I didn't admire those eyes in order to avoid their wrath. 

"Just remember this, If he tries to do something to you make sure you unleash your ninja techniques on him. Or just call me, I'll put him in place." Dua told as her eyes glinted dangerously, her thirst for torture evident.

"You should be careful around that guy. I'm pretty sure he is doing this for revenge. So you better watch your back." Inaaya warned.

I just nodded my head for everything that they told me. I know I had to be extra careful with him. He didn't pass for a nice guy indeed.

So after their warnings and consoles we went into the world of canards, giggling and snorting unladylike .By the time the call ended it was 4 in the morning. I felt a bit at ease after talking to them, making me relaxed than before. But I couldn't shrug off the feeling that something bad was going to happen.

So, I closed my eyes trying to relive all the happy memories in life. I remembered the time back in school, before we got our results, Dua, Inaaya and I used to fret so much. We used to do random things to make us feel better. But when our results came out, no matter what the outcome was, we used to smile and laugh It out. All the consoles we did for each other, when we were down, All those teases making fun of each other, those tiny fights to everything I remembered. 

I couldn't help but form a smile. Those golden days could never be brought back. We made as much as memories possible, sad and happy, we lived through it all making the best of everything. I was happy.

For a moment I forgot all my troubles and closed my eyes peacefully. I knew I wouldn't have much to sleep but that small amount was comfort was enough for me to drift off into dreamland.

~ 🥀🖤 ~ 

"When we have each other we have everything that we wanted!" 

~ Esha Varnav ~