All love lost.

Face down, twiddling thumbs, sweaty, clammy palms clasping each other, legs shaking in symphony with a pneumatic drill. Yes, Nilesh was a nervous wreck. He hadn’t rehearsed it, he didn’t believe in it. Nor was he someone who could come up with the most Shakespearean of lines in a flash to make her melt right in the corridor. He believed impromptu was the best and most truthful way to go about it. “What the fuck are you nervous for then, dumbass?”, Nilesh wondered, as he kept glancing down the hallway.

“ You’ve known her for a few months now. What’s with the hesitancy?”

“ Yea dude, but still.”

“ To hell with your But Stills. Just go and tell her already.”

“ Mmm Yea, I guess I should”

“ No guessing, do it man. You fancy her, you love her. Unless you say it out loud, you will be caught in that dark, desolate, distracting web of unrequited love. “

“ Mmm. Such fancy terms. But, What if?”

“ Oh Fuck your But Stills, and What Ifs”

“ Let me finish, dude”

“ Oh, there she is. Yes. Go ahead. Do it. DO It, DO IT. “

Nilesh, sweating like a pig and shivering inside, looked up. Piyali was indeed there, at the end of the corridor, walking towards him, with a couple of her friends in tow. There was a glint in his eyes, but an insurmountable jumpiness was taking him over.

“Oh Shit, This is happening. No, I’m not going to do this”

“ You fucking Idiot, you waited for this long. GO tell her”

“ No, No. No way. I can’t do this. Let’s get back to our den”

Just as he turned around to move his ass out of the place,

“No. You’re telling her today. It’s simple. Just ask her out. Just tell her that you fancy her, and would love to know more about her. It isn’t difficult”

“Oh, It is. It is. Just look at her man. She is perfect. I don’t stand a chance. She’ll probably laugh me off”

“ Don’t make stupid, pathetic conclusions. Tell her what u feel. For god sake, you are annoying me now”

“ Cmon dude, you can’t be serious. Look at her, she looks so fucking beautiful. And I, I look like a chipmunk that got run over by a herd of Migrating American Bisons.”

“ For the last time man, it doesn’t matter. You’re a nice guy, just tell her, man. You’ve got nothing to lose.”

“You know what. You might be right. I have nothing to lose. Thanks man. Let’s do it.”

So, Nilesh putting up a brave front, plastered his most confident face, took a deep breath, and turned around.

4 years later

“Hey Nilesh, what are you doing here?”, asked Piyali, with a dazzling smile.

Man, she is pretty, and perfect. Pretty perfect.

“Piyali. Good to see you. Nothing, just wafting.”, there was the same glint in his eyes. Things don’t change sometimes, do they?

“So good to see you, Piyali”, said Nilesh.

“Did you just say the same thing twice? You can be a hopeless idiot at times.”

“I know it, Nilesh. It’s always good to see me. Hey, I came to know that you have changed jobs a month back? Congrats man, I know how much you were brooding about it”, said Piyali, with that same bright, dazzling, genuine smile.

Wow. She remembers. She does give a damn about me. That feels good.

“ Hey thanks, Piyali. Yea, finally got a way around it. In a much better place now.”, said the “Caught in Piyali’s infectious smile” Nilesh.

“ Awesome. Alright then, I got to get moving. Work to tend to. I’ll see you around”, Piyali gave Nilesh a hug, and started walking away.

“ Tell her, man. At least now.”

“ Piyali !!”, Nilesh called out.

“ Yes?”

“Phew, finally. Good for him”

“ Nothing. It was good to see you today. Drive safe. Cya”, blurted Nilesh with a vain, little smile.

Piyali nodded, smiled back, waved her hand, and kept walking; oblivious to the unspoken, unvoiced, boxed love that Nilesh had in his heart for her.

Nilesh kept looking at Piyali walking away, till her shadows disappeared into the horizon. Then he stared into the emptiness some more. He gave himself a wry smile, shook his head and pinched himself on his insides, for yet another opportunity was squandered to let her know of his love. 

Yes. Things don’t change sometimes. And sometimes, they’re for the worse. 

Randy loved Candies !!

There once lived a little 5 year old kid, Randy, and he loved candies. He loved them in all shapes, sizes and colours. He was fixated on its texture and its perceived taste. Yes, perceived as he had actually never had a candy till date. But yes, Randy loved candies.

Why? Randy had heard all sorts of deadly stories about candies. Tooth decay, bowel misbehavior; people who eat candies are bad people; eat too much candies and boogeyman will come and get you, etc. The list could go on. His dad, his elder sister, his aunt, uncle, just about everyone warned him not to eat candies. But most importantly, his mom had cautioned him against it. Randy loved his mom the most and would listen to anything she said. But then, he loved candies too.

One fine day, Randy’s mom announced “I am heading to the supermarket, anyone wants anything?” Randy wanted candies. But he couldn’t explicitly say it out loud. So, he hatched a devious little plan, walked up to his mom and said “Mom, Can I come with you to the supermarket”. “Of course, my darling”, said his mom. Randy’s eyes alighted. He could imagine himself sitting on a little red table, with a bowl full of candies, carefully unwrapping each one of them, placing them ever so smoothly onto his tongue and savouring the succulent, delectable, assortment of tastes the candies had in them. Randy was almost in a psychedelic trance. His eyes were closed, he had a subconscious smile on his face, and his mouth was watering. “Randy? Let’s go”, called out his mom. Randy exited from the trance, but the smile was firmly plastered on his face. Today was going to be a good day. After all, Randy loved candies.

Enroute the Supermarket, Randy was sitting in the backseat of the car and going through the nitty-gritties of his master plan in his head. He was convinced it was foolproof, and even his mom wouldn’t be able to see through it. He thought to himself, “Why hasn’t this idea passed through my brain before?”. But then probably, the wait was worth it. He was picturing Candy headed minions welcoming him with open arms. Boy, weren't they inviting. This was it. Randy's love for candies was going to be realized, pretty soon. His little heart was pumping with joy, anxiety and restlessness. After all, Randy loved candies.

After what seemed like an eternity but was just about 15 minutes, Randy's mom parked the car and made her way to the supermarket along with her little boy. Randy made his final mental preparations, ran through all his rehearsed dialogues and the facial expressions he had to adapt. He wanted to be sure he wouldn't make of mess of it. As mom was fiddling around in the grocery section, Randy got ready to put his plan to action. He summoned his best puppy dog face, tilted his neck ever so slightly, and held his mom's hand, “ Mom, Can I go check out the toys section?”. “Pleeaaaaseeeee?”, he added in the most adorable of voices. “No Sweetie, you shouldn't be going there alone. Stick around with me”, said his mom. Wait, what? This was not what he had imagined. He couldn't believe his plan got screwed up this easily. He closed his eyes in despair. But then, he saw the candy minion beaming at him and urging him to give another shot. Afterall, Randy loved candies.

Randy opened his eyes and “Please mom, I promise I won't do anything naughty. I will be a good boy and just play in the toys section. Pleaaasee?” The puppy dog eyes were in full force now. “Awwww. Okay sweetheart. But don't wander around. You remember Boogeyman right? I will be with you in 15 minutes sweetie”, said his mom. Randy brought forward his most charming face and went “Thanks Mom”. The first part of the plan was successful. Now was the time for deceit. Who wanted to go to the toys section, when it was the confectionery section that was beckoning him. His masterful plan had worked. He had conned and misled his mom with his incredibly slick acting finesse. His love was going to be realized. He double checked if his mom was still in detectable distance, and slyly made his way to the confectionery, No, Candy section. Oh yes, Did I say that Randy loved candies?

As he set out on his expedition, he was being guided by the Candy Minion. It was almost like he just knew where exactly the section was. And there it was. He could see it now. About 3 shelves in front, his precious was lying there in all its glory. It was glistening, it was inviting, it was enticing, It was seductive. It was beckoning him .A few paces away from him was lying the one thing that Randy would have made a horcrux of, if he were “You Know Who”. It was tantalizing, alluring. It was his crown jewel. It was one big packet of candies. Candies. CANDIES. One Big red packet of Candies. He began the slow walk towards it. He didn't want to rush it. He wanted to savour every bit of this monumental experience. He wanted to live the moment, while it was. Yes, you got it. Randy loved candies.

It was now just a couple of strides away. His lips went from a smile, to a grin, and then to a beam. This was it. In a few seconds from now, a candy would find its way onto Randy’s tongue, where it shall unwind and blend with his saliva and spread the succinct , delectable, exquisite tastes n colours all around his mouth, sending shivers down his spine, giving orgasmic pleasures to his brain cells and tingling each and every nerve in his body. Boi, Randy was enjoying every bit of it. Amidst the glut of thoughts, he had reached the shelf wherein lay the love of his 5 year life. “Randy loves candies”, he thought to himself.

Randy was on his toes, he stretched his tiny arms trying to reach THAT packet. Time seemed to have frozen around him, everything was moving in slow motion. He stretched, stretched and then stretched some more. His little hands had almost reached the packet of candies. He could touch the tip of the packet now. “Just a little more, Randy. just a little more”, the candy minion urged him. With all his might and ability, he pushed himself further than he ever had. The candies that Randy so dearly loved were going to be his, soon.

But then, “Mummy, Look. Candies. These will be perfect for my Birthday party”, a bigger, outstretched arm overtook Randy’s arm to the finish line, and grabbed that packet of candies. The tip of the packet escaped from Randy’s grasp, and the bigger arm had it in its grasp, as Randy looked on with utter dismay, and trepidation. He followed the projectile path that the packet followed all the way to the trolley, where it landed with a rather softening thud, as it was released off the grip of the bigger arm. Life had unfrozen, everything was back to normal. From a wide beam, Randy’s face now looked gloomy, morose and heartbroken. That was the only candy packet in that section, and to make things worse “Randy, What are you doing here”, bellowed his mom, as she caught him in his failed endeavor. His wily, masterful plan had failed. He was near, just a couple of fingertips away, but his destiny was stolen from him. The bigger arm guy had stolen it from him. “Nothing mom, I lost my way”, said Randy, as he ran and hugged his mom. Why was life so unfair to him, why couldn’t he ever get his peace of mind, why was the world conspiring against him? Candies were like Road Runner to Randy’s Wile.E.Coyote. No matter how hard he tried, he never was able to get a hold of them.

Randy still hadn’t tasted a candy. But then, Randy loved candies.       

Sports Fiction - The Redemption That wasn't

 Year 2008 – India vs Australia, 5^th ODI, Mumbai. Series Decider

*This match is going down to the wire. 9 required now of the last over. Sachin Tendulkar has played a lone hand for India, yet again. Can he finish things off? It will be Shiv though facing up to Brett Lee, Here we go* rung Ravi Shastri’s voice

Shiv was sweating and nervous. The manic crowd atmosphere wasn't of much help either. *Sachin, Sachin clap clap clap* echoed around the stadium. The pressure was on him to take an all important single and give Sachin, his God the strike. To make matters worse, it was his debut. He was 27 years old. A late debut for an Indian Cricketer, but he had finally made it to the big league. He had given a decent bowling performance picking up 2 wickets for 45 runs. But this was much more than he had bargained for. He had hoped the batsmen would finish the job, but no. Shiv checked on his gloves, adjusted his helmet, took a deep breath, tried to calm his anxiety and took guard.

Brett Lee was charging in. Shiv had seen this on TV before. He was used to sitting with his friends and watching in awe as Lee charged in towards the batsmen. But now, he was facing THE Brett Lee himself. No, there was no way he could do this. He backed off from the delivery at the last instance. *Sachin, Sachin* had now changed to *Booooooooo*. Shiv wasn’t sure what was going on. Sachin walked up to him, kept a hand on his shoulder and said “Don’t worry man, You will be alright. Just put bat on ball, and run. Go for it, Let’s do it for our team”. Shiv nodded meekly.

Sachin walked back to the non-striker’s end. It was only then something struck Shiv. Sachin had just told him it will be alright. SACHIN had told him. Everything had to be alright then. With a new found confidence, Shiv took guard. A charging Brett Lee now looked like a Mozart's piece in motion. It could do no harm. With each of Lee’s steps, Shiv’s confidence bolstered. Lee unleashed one of his lethal bouncers. Shiv closed his eyes, semi-ducked and semi-swayed away from the incoming ball, lifted his bat above his head, shouted “jai mata di” and wafted his bat in the air. And ran. In spite of all his theatrics, the ball had dropped just behind the stumps. He ran, Sachin ran, Lee ran, Wade dropped his keeping gloves and ran, David Warner, from point, ran.

*A Nasty bouncer from Lee, Shiv gets his bat on ball. The ball drops just behind the stumps. This could be a tight run*    

Shiv saw nothing but the non-striker’s end. He had never run this fast. For that instant, he looked like an Indian Olympic hopeful. As soon as he neared the crease, he put in an almighty dive and made it. He felt relieved, kind of elated. Sachin was going to be on strike now. 8 required of 5. Easy that. But the relief was only for a wee bit. The crowd was hushed. There were a few celebratory calls, but they sounded foreign. He checked the stumps at his end, the bails were intact. "Oh Damn, don’t tell me what I think has happened",

*That is a massive blow*

Shiv got up and turned back ever so slowly.

*Shiv, on debut, might have just cost India the match here*

The Australians were mobbing Wade and ruffling his hair.

*Sachin is gone for 97. India in deep trouble. The Australians will think this is in their hatchet. But as they always say, It aint’ over till the fat lady sings*

Yes, That man with Jersey No.10 was walking back to the pavilion. The crowd was stunned. Sachin Tendulkar was run out trying to attempt a non-existent single. Shiv, on debut, had run the Little Master out.  In Mumbai. Sachin’s home ground. He hung his head in shame. Shame was too soft a word. He was standing there at the non-striker’s end feeling like digging a ditch right beside the pitch and burying his face in it. The fat lady had sung for him. 

Year 2018- India vs Australia, Bengaluru. T20 World Cup Final

*The crowd is electric here as the match has come down to the wire. 10 required of the last over for India to lift the T20 trophy. Shiv in his final match, will it be a fairytale ending for him?*

Shiv was standing in the non-striker’s end. This was his final match. He had called it quits. He had quite an accomplished career. His batting had improved drastically since his horrific debut match and had a decent bowling record to go with it. He was India’s long impending answer to the “Who after Kapil Dev” question.

In spite of having a career which included a T20 WC win in 2016, overseas test series victories in South Africa and Australia, and 10 test match tons, It was his debut which flashed in his mind as the match approached the last over. It was 10 required of the last over again. He was donning the role of a senior batsman now. No, he was most certainly not thinking of himself as Sachin Tendulkar. That would have been criminal. Nor was the person batting along with him exactly a debutant. He had 10 matches behind him. But, somehow he felt this was similar. He felt a sense of deja vu.

India had lost that match by 7 runs due to his ineptness, and hence had lost a home ODI series. The situation was quite similar today. India needed 9 runs to get of the last over with just 2 wickets remaining. Shiv was on 32 and couldn't take a single of the last ball of the penultimate over.  Prashant was going to be on strike. He had to ensure that Prashant didn't make the same mistake. The single had to be taken first ball. Period.

The stakes were much higher here. It was the finals of a world tournament. Shiv wanted to make his exit in the grandest style possible. He wanted to hit the winning shot. He was probably being selfish, but for all that he had done for Indian Cricket he felt this was pardonable. On second thoughts, he wasn't really being selfish. Shiv facing 5 balls would win the match for India. Where is the selfish here? But this was about redemption. His debut performance had always been hurting him. He could change everything with this match, or so he felt. His mind was clouded with all these random thoughts.

The stadium was buzzing. The final was in Bengaluru. Not in his hometown. Phew! At least one thing that is not similar. He looked back at who was being given the ball. James Pattinson it was. AH! There goes another similarity. A fast bowler. Why can’t it be Glen Maxwell? Shiv met Prashant in a mid-pitch conference. “I am not gonna tell anything different. Just take a single. First 5 rounds is on me tonight”. Prashant just smiled and nodded. Shiv was confident that Prashant will do a much better job of this than he had done in THAT fateful match. He smiled to himself and went back to the non-striker’s end. Edgy, smiling and somewhat confident.

*So, here we go. Pattinson Charging in. It’s the rookie Prashant on strike. Can he sneak in a single from somewhere*

As Ravi Shastri’s voice was rumbling the television sets at home, the Bengaluru crowd was buzzing with excitement and nervousness.  Shastri with his clichés was right for once. Pattinson was actually charging in. Prashant looked confident, but his heart must have been thumping.

It was a bouncer. Another similarity. Prashant brought out his best hook shot. But it was only as good as getting a top-edge. Shiv bellowed “Ruuuunnnnnnnnnnn”. Prashant ran. Shiv ran. The ball flew. Wade ran. Starc ran from Deep Fine Leg and Steve Smith ran from Mid-Wicket.

*The ball has taken the top edge and this has gone really high. Three people converging. Who is going to take it?*

Shiv knew there would be no problem completing the run, but he wanted Prashant to stay with him till the end. Playing 5 balls with just 1 wicket remaining was going to be risky. Keeping one eye on the ball, Shiv ambled on to the striker’s end.

*Would you believe it? The ball has bisected the three fielders perfectly. Superb placement by Prashant. More importantly, that brings Shiv on strike. India would now feel they have one hand on the trophy already*

Yes. Prashant was safe. Somehow, none of the 3 fielder had managed to grab the ball. The run was completed quite safely in the end. 5 balls, 9 runs, 2 wickets, Shiv on strike. Shastri had got it right again; India now had one hand on the trophy. Or at least that’s what Shiv felt.

….

…..

…….

*Shiv finishes off in style. India retains the T-20 trophy. After a humdinger of a contest, India have got the better of Australia. And it is that man Shiv again. Doing it for his team in his final match*

Shiv had done it. If there was ever a fairy-tale ending, this was it. He had slogged the 4^th ball of the final over, through the mid-wicket region for 4. The match was in the kitty. The trophy was India’s. India was now the No.1 team in the world in all 3 formats. Personally, Shiv had just accomplished a perfect retirement. His career was pretty short by Indian standards. Little less than 10 years. But he had a cricketing resume that anyone would have been proud of. Hitting the winning runs in the finals of a global tournament in his retirement match was now going to be the highlight.

Shiv was letting the moment sink into him .His team-mates had mobbed him and the celebrations were on. Shiv was struck between being emotional and elated. It was a wonderful place to be in. “Not just the first five rounds, the entire party will be on me today”, Shiv thought to himself.

…….

…..

….

"Man, why do I think so much. Shut down your freaking mind. Yes, this match is ours. Just finish it off dammit”, Shiv muttered to himself.

The Australians were taking a bit too much time to get their field right. This was the only trophy that had never adorned their extensive cabinet. They couldn't let this one slip.

Shiv took a few deep breaths. He had done this before. He had won matches for India on his own. But somehow this felt different. One, he had never done it in this kind of a tournament. Secondly, he had put himself in an undue pressure of this being his final match and all the redemption thoughts. 

*The Australians have finally managed to get their fields right. Here we go, Pattinson to Shiv. Where is Shiv gonna make this one land?”, Shastri was in his element that night. This kind of a situation was made for him*

Shiv dug his bat on the pitch. His mind was still cluttered, but he knew what he had to do here.  The fine leg was up, and he was going to scoop this. Regardless of where the ball was pitched, the ball was going up, over and between the keeper and short fine leg.

Pattinson looked menacing as he began his run-up . Prashant was in all readiness to take a cheeky single or convert the single to two. But Shiv had made up his mind; he was not going to run. The ball was going to the boundary. Pattinson in his delivery stride, Shiv made his initial movement and crouched a little. 

The ball was delivered.  145kmph. By the looks of it, It was going to be on a good length, just around the line of off-stump. Shiv made his moves, the bat now resembled a ramp and he was just waiting for the right moment to direct the ball to the boundary. The ball kissed the bat, as Shiv tried to hoick it over the keeper’s head.

*What has Shiv done here? This is disaster for India. The middle stump has gone for a walk*

The ball did not hit the meat of the bat. It did not get the elevation that it needed to. It just followed the path it was destined for and hit the middle stump at the top. The bails flew and the stump cartwheeled.

*Shiv let the pressure get to him. You got to question the shot selection here. India are now 9 down. With 9 required of 4 and the main batsman back in the hut, this should now be Australia’s game to lose*

Shiv had screwed it up again. This was everything that he feared. He had messed it up for India yet again, albeit in a completely different way. He stared away at the cartwheeling stump and sensed an elated Pattinson pass him to celebrate with the keeper. The crowd was hushed. The Indian dugout had their heads in their hands, visibly stunned. Shiv began the longest 70m walk he had ever taken/will ever take in his life. Fairy-tale endings are not as frequent as they should be. Shiv finished his career just the way he started it. Redemption was not his solace.

*But as they say, It isn't over till the fat lady sings*

Yes, few things don’t change. India had lost the match by 7 runs.  Australia had lifted the 2018 T20 World Cup.

Vignettes of Divelish : The IT guy next door.

“Ah it’s only Tuesday. Not yet a weekend. In fact, far away from it”, thought Laksh as his body clock gave him a shakeup at 7 in the morning. Quite unwillingly, he dragged himself to the Office. The cluck struck 10  and the daily chores began. Another ordinary day at work. Few Calls made, few emails sent, few gossips spouted. Things were as mundane as watching a turtle race. And then, Divelish made his presence felt.

Divelish was the latest addition to Laksh’s team in office, increasing the count to 8. Divelish was a mousy, bespectacled man in his early thirties and had an air about him that screamed that he was one of those guys who were socially awkward since birth, who somehow got into one of the gazillion engineering colleges that plague the country, somehow scraped his way through the 4 years, got placed in one of the big IT firms, went on-site for an assignment and since then has had a put-on persona of a cool, composed, hippy know-it-all. Put-on being the key word here.

So, it was Divelish’s first day at the office. Laksh being an effervescent guy, was the person assigned to be his “buddy” and was supposed to make him feel at home in the Office. Like that ever happened. Heh.

“Hey guys. This is divelish. He is a new joinee and will be a part of your team,” said the forcedly amiable HR lady.

So, the entire team, including Laksh, got up and exchanged mandatory pleasantries.

“Hey Divelish, welcome aboard”

“Great to meet you finally”

“I’m sure you will be a great fit in the team”

It all sounded rehearsed. Well, It was rehearsed.

“Thanks a lot people. Great seeing you all,” Divelish answered.

“So Divelish, Laksh will be your buddy. He will make you feel comfortable. If you want anything else, please feel free to contact me,” said Ms.HR with a smile. The smile was put-on as well, but that is a part of their job. HR's always smile, don't they?

“I'd like a large coke without ice and a cheese burger with extra cheese. Just kidding! That's all, Cheers! Thanks for all your help,” beamed Divelish.

Divelish was shown his seat and his system. A few nervous and unpleasant moments later, Laksh spoke up “So, wassup Divelish. Welcome aboard man. I heard you were working with HTS for 5 years before joining here, Tell me more about it”

“Oh yes mate, I was working with HTS for 5 years and 4 months to be precise. Was working on a project for TesMart, and guess what. I was working in the client’s location in UK for 3 months. How cool is that?” blurted out Divelish. His excitement was evident when he said “UK for 3 months”.

“Wonderful man. So, what exactly was your role in the UK? I mean 3 months, that’s just a short term visit. I believe you went as a consultant there if I am not wrong,” questioned Laksh trying to look as interested as possible.

“Yes. I was there as a SAP consultant. And you won’t believe when I say this, everything is so damn expensive there man. I mean the tube charges nearly 3 pounds for a ticket to the next station. Vaaarryy Expensive,” an accented Divelish exclaimed. Where did that accent come from?

“Oh Ok, I have heard of that. You were a SAP consultant right. I heard UK is the place to be for SAP consultants. You didn't try to extend your stay there?” enquired Laksh.

“I wanted to, mate, but as I said UK is soo expensive man. Would you believe when I say that water is more expensive than beer?” Divelish said with complete disbelief in his eyes and an on-off accent on the tip of this tongue.

“Okay, but common man. A year in UK, it could have done wonders for your career. I mean our company is big when it comes to SAP solutions, but still.”

“Yes, That was the reason I joined here man. Speaking of big, do you know how big the Heathrow Airport is? Huge, man. It took me almost an hour to drag myself from one gate to another when I had to catch a flight back to Chennai. Beautiful airport man.” Proclaimed Divelish, excitement dancing in his eyes.

Laksh sort of understood where this was going.

“Oh Ok, Good for you buddy. Anyway, let’s grab some lunch man. I am sure you will be feeling hungry too.” Said Laksh, hoping that might lead to some less “UK is expensive” talk.

“Umm ..”

*Yes I know food is most certainly expensive in the UK*

“Sure man.”

*Phew*

Laksh walked Divelish a bit around the Office campus and showed him places while on the way to the canteen. There were a few “UK” references ever so often, but Laksh was getting used to the pattern.
“And finally, this is our office canteen man. The food isn't great, but it is free,”

“Oh great man. You know what …”

*Oh Damn, Not again*

“ … In TesMart’s Office, they had a huge canteen man. And they offered a huge spread daily. Huge buffet man. You name it, and you got it,”

Laksh wore a look that was half resigned and half incredulous, and nodded.

“Hey Laksh, you are finally here dude. Was waiting for you. Who is this new dude?” exclaimed Aadil.

Aadil was Laksh’s close friend, a college mate and lunch partner. He was the ideal example of an IT guy. If ever there was a factory which churned out IT employees by the dozens, Aadil would have made a perfect prototype model.

“Hey Aadil. This is Divelish. Joined my team today. He is a SAP guy. Divelish, this is Aadil. One of my closest friends,” said Laksh.

“Hello mate. Yes, I have joined today as an SAP consultant. Was working in UK for 3 months as a consultant for my client TesMart,” said an even more excited Divelish.

“Oh ya, that too. He was working in the UK for 3 months,” muttered Laksh with a nudge to Aadil.

Being close friends, they understood each other very well. That nudge was enough for Aadil to know everything he needed to know about Divelish.

“Oh I see, Awesome man. Welcome to our company. I am sure you will be a great asset here,” said Aadil, laced with undetectable sarcasm to the ears of Mr Divlesh and extended his hand to Divelish.

So, the initial exchanges were done with, the three collected their lunch and found a table to sit. A few unpleasantly quiet moments later,

“Dude, there is a new subway down the road, man. We should so check it out,” Aadil looking at Laksh.

“Oh is it? Awesome, man. That should take care of our lunch if the food out here turns out to be shit,” replied Laksh.

“Wow! Subway! You won’t believe when I say this. The place where I stayed in London, there was a subway just besides my house man. It was soo huge. It was always crowded. Every morning, before going to office I used to grab a sub. But again, vaary expensive man.” Said Divelish glowing with enthusiasm.

“And near my Office, there was a Starbucks. It was greaaat man. Perfect place to have a coffee. Really nice man. It should come to India soon, don’t you think so?” questioned Divelish to the two “listeners”.

“ Of course, It should,” Rang a chorus.

A few more quite moments followed. Laksh and Aadil were not willing to risk starting a topic and giving Divelish a push to start with yet another chapter of “The Escapades of Divelish – UK edition”.

 “Aadil Dude…” exclaimed Laksh

 “… Remember the presentation I was talking about last week, I am finally done with it. Finished it the day before. Need your inputs on the technical part of it. The client has asked for something very specific. Will forward you the ppt. Help me out buddy. By this weekend will be great”

“Oh ya. I was going to ask about it. Forward it, dude. Will help you with it,” replied Aadil.

“ Oh is that presentation on SAP? I can be of help man. When in UK, I used to do lots of presentations for my client. And u know what the best part was?” asked Divelish.

*Were they expensive as well?*

“ Oh, tell me about it dude. I am all ears,” blurted Laksh.

“ Sometimes, I used to sit in Starbucks and do my presentations man. They used to give free wifi man. Greaaat Service man. “.

“Wow. Free wifi. That is unreal,” chortled. Aadil.

Lunch never felt this long for Laksh as there were a couple more chapters of the Escapades of Divelish told with increasing excitement every time. What made it more irritating was that they sprang out of nowhere, like a stealthy, old cat which lies in wait for its prey. All Divelish needed was a word, and he found a way to connect it with some random happening in the UK. Almost always, there was no relevance or sense in it. But then, HE LIVED IN THE UK FOR 3 MONTHS.

So, lunch went by. Aadil had a meeting and had to “unfortunately” bid adieu to Divelish. Laksh had a few more hours to pass with his “buddy”. His teammates were not helping him much, as they took the safer way out by staring at their computer screens and pretending to be busy.

Finally it was 6p.m. Laksh thanked the heavens.

“Alright Divelish, Its time for me to leave. It was great knowing you. See you tomorrow then *Oh God Why* “

“Oh! you are leaving, is it? I have to meet the SAP head so I will be a bit late. No problem, man. See ya tomorrow then. How do you travel btw?” asked Divelish.

“Office bus, man. It’s free. Not expensive at all. I guess you should use it too,” said Laksh with a smirk.

Divelish, oblivious to the sarcasm, beamed and said “Oh bus! Great,man. I did the same in the UK. We had wonderful buses, man. But vaaary expensive. You know what the best part was? ………… “.