Silence is the only punishment you can give to someone who broke you... Maybe Indu choose it right.
Several days passed by. Indu didn't cry or she did not feel pathetic for what had happened.
" so class, we will conclude with this last topic. I know you guys are hungry and it's time for me to leave, but coming to management of genital ulcers..."
Indu was seriously listening to his class, when prithu disturbed her, " what??" she hissed.
" I think you should talk to him in person," prithu whispered.
" keep you thoughts for you," after a brief pause she said, " maybe I should."
After the class, Indu rushed behind krishna, but he already walked down the stairs. She sighed looking down. But to her surprise she saw someone looking her with a warm smile.
" sir actually, I want to talk to you," she mumbled under her breath.
She felt cold skin on her hands which were holding the iron bar firmly. Krishna touched her hands," maybe I can call you," he said.
" okay sure," her face was as red as tomato.
Sliding his hand on hers, Krishna turned back to leave. The warm smile on his face turned into a sudden fear.
Fear of seeing tears in her bright eyes.
Fear of breaking her trust she had built.
" hey indu, what about conference?" vibhav came running towards Indu.
" conference, what? " Indu made a puzzled expression.
" you don't know, we are going to Bangalore for a national conference," he said panting.
" oh nice, I'm on then," Indu was so excited.
Vibhav waved at her and left the place. Indu turned to see that prithu was standing there motioning her eyebrows upwards. Indu chuckled.
Indu talked to Krishna that night and she was so happy but there was some unknown hurt. she was feeling that this was gonna be over. Obviously he was engaged with other girl and those conversations were not right.
" so what have you decided? " prithu demanded.
" well this is a difficult decision but I want him to be happy, let him marry that girl and live a life, why should I interfere? I have more respect for him and his private space. Maybe I should release him from this hook, but.." Indu bitter her lips.
" I want to meet him in person. I want to know what's my place in his life. Is he just flirting with me or.... " she paused.
" how could you say that? Flirting?? Why will a man in that position do that? He has got some discipline, so that he is in that place," prithu was breathing heavily.
" OK, I won't say that," Indu felt guilty for that.
" I think you should take this proposal of meeting to him," prithu said. Indu nodded.
Actually the idea of meeting him in person was not so bad. It was about settling things up. It just gives peace of mind.
The following month was busy for the students because they were arranging for the conference, booking train tickets, making presentations, getting on duty attendance and stuff. Frequently the girls used to go to the department, see if they could work out something.
Finally they boarded the train and set off for the conference, when prithu said, " I hate trains, I thought we will go by plane."
" we will have a different kind of fun in train," Vibhav said smiling and handed over water bottles to both of them. Prithu smiled.
As Vibhav said train journeys have always a different fun and this particular one was great with budding new relationships.
Indu took upper berth to sleep, when her phone buzzed. It was krishna
" hi sir, " she said.
A gentle smile took it's place on Krishna's face. They talked from the general stuff to what she was going to do in that conference.
" Vibhav stop!! that hurts," prithu screamed.
" come on, then just do the dare," Vibhav demanded.
" OK, if only Indu plays along with me," prithu was adamant.
" Indu you should come and play with us," Vibhav pleaded.
She gestured prithu that she can't come right now. Prithu put her arm around Vibhav and said playfully ," I will do the dare, if only you will be come along with me to that lady, ok."
" are you playing truth or dare?" Krishna asked seriously.
" im not playing, but my friends are," she chuckled.
" OK then, you told you want to talk," he asked.
" sir, I just wanna ask if I could meet you in person, I mean, somewhere in a cafe... " she paused.
" ohh, maybe," after this little expression, remained silence.
Indu was very silent for the whole journey, swimming in deep thoughts.
People search for reasons, for everything. As asked already, why is reason so important? People's mind always need something to think. Even Buddha couldn't resist the question why, so he got the most powerful mind.
When she told this whole thing to prithu, she got the atmost surprise. Prithu thought he would accept the invitation or he would react like he had the same feeling but no. He didn't reject but he didn't accept though. Prithu always believed that her sir was one of the gentlemen. She actually respected him a lot. But this rouse a suspicion in her mind.
" maybe Indu, we should go to the department and appear before him. By the sight of you, he would fix the meeting ..." paused prithu, "or we will do something, I will fake a leg hurt, what say?"
Indu's look widened, " shut up," she smiled a bit.
But in reality it happened. Prithu 's leg got some ulcers and infected. Krishna treated them. But this time, Indu got one of the coldest look from him .
The look she suddenly felt like a stranger. Hurt over came her insecurities. She was broken, but she thought why?
That night she got a message from Krishna
' hey I think we should meet.. Maybe in '22 cafe, next Saturday, by 7pm '
Indu has got mixed feelings then. Sudden excitement, nervousness, anxiety, fear. She called prithu, " I have got a invitation for meeting from sir," she said breathing heavily.
" OMG, then you should gift him something, maybe a tie," prithu said with excitement.
The girls were quite excited by this. So they bought a gift for him, a tie with cuff pins and tie pins.
That Saturday night, Indu was in her best outfit and she waited in the cafe. It was 7:30, a couple were celebrating a B-Day. She thought it was cute. It was 8:00, when the waiter came for the third time, she ordered a cappuccino and she waited. It was 9:00, she received a message card from Krishna, a marriage invitation, she felt a tear drop roll on her cheeks, she called
" prithu, can you pick me up from the cafe."
" I hate him," she cried endlessly, hugging her friend. She felt so dejected at that time.
The unanswered question was why didnt he come? What is indu to him? If that was the matter, why did he send a invitation card?
" you are an idiot," prithu mumbled
Maybe that was written to end in that way.....
At present day, after three years, Krishna was working as a neurosurgeon in the one of the most efficient hospitals, when his friend karthik called him
" hey man, how's you doing? "
" yeah, I'm great."
" hey I saw Indu at a national conference, she did present very well. I was wondering what stopped you to meet her that day? "
" Indu, by remembering her name, my memories have gotten freshen. Yeah I did leave her alone, and I did hurt her a lot but you know I have my own responsibility, I have a wife now and she believes in me. If I would have acted like a 18yr old in that situation, things would have been a mess. For Indu, it came out of a attraction and it should remain like that, if I went there and met her in person and things went right, she would have now regretted the relationship with me. I don't want that. let the unanswered question be like that in her mind. Sometimes why? is also good..."