Doubts and disappointments

3 years ago

BurakZeynep

@BurakZeynep

"Ummm, actually kakimoni",Prerna replied,"Kal se mera office start ho raha hai to main nahi aa paungi.". Anurag glanced at her surprised,"Office?",he asked confused. Mohini and Nivi exchanged surprised glances. Then Mohini spoke,"Oh haan, Nivi ne bataya tha Moloy ke job offer ke baare mein. Honestly(smiling) I think it's great ke tum wapas Moloy ke liye kaam karogi. Office tum unko assist bhi kar logi aur unka khayal bhi rakh logi.". "Nahi, kakimoni",Prerna said shaking her head,"Main Basu Publications nahi join kar rahi. Kal se main Mr.Bajaj ka office join karne waali hu".

Prerna's words were met with a stunned silence in the room. Anurag was the first to recover,"Cong-congratulations! That's great!",he said. He forced a smile,"Tumne mujhe bataya kyu nahi?". Prerna replied,"Mujhe mauka hi nahi mila...abhi zyada waqt nahi hua hai. Bas kal hi offer letter aaya hai.". Anurag got up and said,"In that case, main abhi jaakar tumhara kamra ready karta hu. Tum jaldi se dinner karke so jao. Kal pehla din hai tumhe late nahi hona chahiye.". Saying this, Anurag got up and said,"Main jaake tumhara kamra taiyaar karta hu. Tum yaha baitho.". Anurag quickly headed upstairs towards his room. There was an awkward silence between Prerna, Mohini and Nivedita. Sipping her tea Prerna closely watched her mother in law and daughter in law, both of them were unusually well behaved tonight. When she made her announcement she was expecting them to express their shock even tell her that Basu's don't work for others and that she should work at Basu Publications. But here they were, the mother and daughter duo quietly sipping their tea. Mohini loudly cleared her throat and addressed Prerna saying,"Prerna, are you sure tum yeh Mr.Bajaj ke saath kaam karke comfortable feel karogi?". "Kyu?",Prerna asked curiously. Mohini replied,"Woh tumhe personally nahi jaante hai. Tum unke liye Basu family ki bahu ho. Aur woh Moloy ki bohot respect karte hai, in fact woh to Moloy se uss din apne behaviour ke liye maafi bhi maang rahe the- hai na Nivi? Iss liye shayad jab tum unke paas job ke liye gayi woh tumhe manaa nahi kar paaye, aur unhone tumhe yeh job offer kar diya. Don't mind, but Mr.Bajaj ne tumhe tumhare capabilities ke liye nahi unhone tumhe iss liye yeh job diya kyuki tum ek Basu ho.". Prerna smiled. Finally, Prerna thought to herself. Before she answered Nivedita interjected,"How does it matter Ma?",she said,"Yeh ek bohot achchi opportunity hai I don't think Prerna should miss it.". Nivedita's statement surprised both Prerna and Mohini. Mohini raised her eyebrows rarely did her daughter openly disagree with her. Prerna was surprised too. Her relationship with Nivedita can be described as indifferent at best. Why was she supporting her all of a sudden? Nonetheless, Prerna addressed Mohini saying,"Kakimoni, pehli baat to main Mr.Bajaj ke paas kaam maangne nahi gayi thi. Woh mere paas aaye the job offer ke leke. Aur unhone mujse saaf saaf keh diya tha ke woh mujhe yeh job iss liye nahi offer kar rahe hai kyuki main  Basu parivar ki bahu hu. Unhone mujhe yeh job iss liye offer kiya kyuki unhe ek loyal and bharosemand employee ki zaroorat hai. Aur kakimoni(smiling sweetly)....loyal aur bharosemand hone ke liye kissi college degree ki zarorat nahi hai.". This shut Mohini up. Anurag descended from the stairs and said,"Prerna, tumhara kamra ekdum ready kar diya hai maine. Debu da se tumhara saaman bhi rakhwa diya hai tum aa jao.". Placing the cup on the coffee table, Prerna got up and Anurag and her headed towards the stairs. Once her son and daughter in law were out of earshot Mohini turned to her daughter and fumed,"What was that?". Nivedita looked surprised and said,"What, Ma?". Mohini replied,"Tum isse kaise support kar sakti ho, Nivi? Basu parivaar ki bahu kisiki mamuli secretary bankar kaam karegi?!!How can you support this?". Nivedita chuckled at this. Rolling her eyes she said,"Seriously Ma, you are the limit. Aaj kal yeh sab cheezein matter nahi karti. Zamaana badal gaya hai Ma. Aur rahi baat Prerna ke Mr.Bajaj ke liye kaam  karne ki….(smirking) ab hume finally Mr.Bajaj tak pohochne ka raasta mil gaya Ma.". Mohini scoffed at her and said,"I know tu kya soch rahi hai hai Nivi, bhoolja! Yeh Prerna humari koi madad nahi karne waali. Uske liye uski apne usool, uske middle class values zyada mayine rakhte hai, woh humari hokar Mr.Bajaj se nahi kehne waali ke woh Basu Publications mein invest kar de!". Nivedita said,"Of course woh nahi kahegi aur agar usne keh bhi diya Ma, do you think Mr.Bajaj maan jayenge? Sirf uske kehne se? Mr.Bajaj Onu nahi hai jo Prerna ki bhole chehre aur meethi baaton se influence hokar kuch bhi karde. Woh Rishabh Bajaj hai, he's a hardcore businessman. Unhe sirf unki profit se matlab hai. Aur main unhe unhi ki bhasha mein samjhana chahti hu, Prerna bas ek zariya banegi unn tak pohochne ka. That's it.". Mohini sighed and said,"I really hope ke jaise tu chahe waisa hi ho Nivi just be careful. Main nahi chahti ki yeh Prerna phir se koi bakheda khara kare aur phirse mere bete ka dil toote.". Nivedita smiled,"Don't worry Ma main sab handle kar lungi.Basu Publications humari company hai aur isse humse koi nahi chheen sakta. I promise you."

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Prerna lay on her bed thinking about the events of the day. Wakayi, she thought sighing, kitni ajeeb hai meri zindagi. Aaj subah jab main uthiti tab maine socha tha ke aaj mere aur Anurag ke beech sab khatam ho jayega. Main wapas iss ghar mein rehne aungi aisa maine sapne mein bhi nahi socha tha. Touching her belly, Prerna addressed her child, "Tumhe kya lagta hai?Kya mumma ne sahi kiya papa ki baat maanke?Iske liye hume baad mein pachtaana to nahi parega na? Actually tumhari mumma na aaj-". Just then her phone rang. Prerna groaned in annoyance. Its been ages since she and her baby spent quality time together. To have someone disturb that now. Annoyed she picked up her to check her caller ID. "Arre! Yeh to aapke Ved mama hai(chuckling). Inka phone to mujhe uthaana hi parega. Waise bhi kal aapki mumma ne inhe kal kuch zyada hi daant diya tha.". Picking up her phone she said,"Hello…". Ved spoke from the other end,"Toh Anurag finally tujhe apne saath wapas le hi gaya. I must say maine uss Mama's Boy ko kaafi underestimate kiya tha.". Prerna rolled her eyes and said,"Tu kabhi nahi badalne waala….". Ved replied cheekily,"Absolutely not! Aur tu bhi nahi badlegi iss liye shayad hum dono dost hai.". Prerna chuckled at this and said,"Tu ghar kaise pohocha?". "Aur kaise?",Ved said laughing,"Mishka hai na meri personal taxi service uss hi se kaha mujhe le jaane ke liye. By the way aaj mujhe ek job offer mila hai Mr. Bajaj ke taraf se.". "What?!",Prerna exclaimed,"Seriously?". 

"Hmmm",Ved replied,"Aisa pehli baar hua hai maine jisko leke investigation kiya woh mujhpe case nahi kar raha hai, mujhe threat nahi kar rahi hai(chuckling) balki mujhe job offer kar raha hai! I swear bohot hi ajeeb aadmi hai!". "To tune kya kaha?",Prerna asked hopefully. "Of course no, Prerna. Chahe mujhe jitna bhi paisa offer karo main apni freedom kisi ke wajah se nahi khone waala.". "Oh",Prerna replied crestfallen. Detecting disappointment in her voice Ved asked,"Kya baat hai tu upset lag rahi hai?Uss ghar mein kuch hua kya? Teri saas ne-". "Nahi Ved!",Prerna exclaimed,"Kakimoni ne kuch nahi kaha, actually kal se main Mr.Bajaj ka office join kar rahi hu. Main unki nayi assistant hu….nayi jaga hai..naya job hai main thodi nervous hu...tu hota to main thoda comfortable hoti.". Ved replied,"Congratulations yaar!!!Finally! Tujhe ek achchi job mil gayi. All the best!Waise….yeh Mr.Bajaj bhi character hai haan ekdum! Main unhe jitna kamina samajta tha woh utne bhi kamine nahi hai. Haan, thode terhe zaroor hai.". Confused, Prerna asked,"Matlab?". Ved scoffed,"Please! Tujhe samaj mein nahi aa raha hai kya? Jin do logo ko unka secret pata hai woh unhe job deke apne taraf karna chahte hai. Taaki job paakar hum unke favour mein rahe aur woh humpar nazar bhi rakh sake.". Prerna felt uneasy hearing this.There was silence on the line. Ved spoke up,"Hello? Prerna?". "Umm-Ved actually main bohot tired hu, kal subah uthkar office bhi jana hai..toh abhi main phone rakh rahi hu. Good night.".Without waiting for his reply Prerna hung up the call. Was Ved right?She thought. Was this the motive behind Mr.Bajaj's job offer? Prerna had been looking forward to this chance of proving herself and to everyone else that she or her baby didn't need Anurag's status or money to survive. And Mr.Bajaj? Prerna thought of the reasons he gave her for the job offer. He had said that it was her honesty and loyalty that made her fit for the job. This was what made her accept his offer. Had he told her that he offered her the job because he was impressed by her degree then she would've called him out on his lie. Prerna Sharma might be a dreamer but she was definitely not delusional. Prerna's eyes went to the wall decorated with different photographs and prestigious certificates. She got up from her bed and walked up to it. Staring at her was Anurag's graduation degree. First Class with Distinction it read. Prerna thought of her own graduation marks: 50% and that too after having to sit for supple exams. After everything Mohini said about her job credentials, after multiple rejections, after the kind of humiliation she faced at the Daily Blitz office Mr.Bajaj's job offer meant a lot to her. He was the first person to show faith in her. His faith had motivated Prerna not to doubt herself, to have a little faith in her own abilities. But now….was this all just a ruse? His way of keeping an eye on her, ensuring that she never revealed his secret?Prerna was sure, by now even Mr.Bajaj knew that blackmail and bribe won't work on her. Was this his new game? Prerna would be so indebted to him for this job that she will never reveal anything……

Prerna ran her fingers through her hair impatiently. Much as she loved Ved sometimes she wished if he wasn't so cynical. His cynicism had managed to kill whatever little excitement and enthusiasm she felt about her first day at work. Giving an exhausted sigh Prerna went to bed.

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~West wing~

Anupam entered the west wing and said,"Congratulations!!!Bhai! Finally!Prerna ko tu ghar le aaya". He gave a tight hug to Anurag. Seeing Anurag's less than cheerful mood he asked,"Kya baat hai Onu?Tera chehra itna utra huwa kyu hai?". Anurag replied,"Kuch nahi hua.....actually...woh kal se Prerna Mr Bajaj ka office join karne waali hai.". "Yeh to achchi news hai na..Prerna ko finally job mil gaya jaisa woh chahti thi..tu isko leke upset kyu hai?",Anupam asked confused. Anurag groaned in annoyance and said,"Kyuki main-Kyuki main chahta tha ke Prerna mere saath Basu Publications mein kaam kare...taaki mujhe uske saath aur time spend karne ka mauka miley par ab woh possible nahi hoga. I know! It's petty! Mujhe Prerna ke liye khush hona chahiye aur main khush bhi hu! Lekin agar woh Basu Publications join karti to main thoda zyada khush hota! And I hate myself aisa sochne ke liye par main kya karu?". Anupam held him by his shoulders and said,"Bhai sabse pehle tu na yeh guilty feel karna bandh kar. Onu jaisa tu feel kar raha hai woh bohot normal hai. Agar main teri jaga hota to main bhi yahi feel karta. I know tujhe achcha nahi lag raha hai but it's ok tu bhi insaan hai tujhe bhi haq hai aise feel karne ka" This comforted Anurag a bit. Anurag said,"Thanks Anupam. You don't know aapne mere mann se kitna bara boj hata diya hai". 

Anupam sat on the bed next to him. The duo sat in silence for the next few moments. Finally Anupam said said,"Waise dont mind but tum dono ka na alag alag kamro mein rehne ka decision bilkul galat tha! Arre agar tum log ek saath rahoge nahi to apne problems kaise sort out karoge?". Anurag disagreed,"Nahi, Anupam Da, yeh alag kamre rehne ka decision lena zaroori tha especially jab Prerna ko yeh lagta hai ke last time maine usse dhoke apne kamre mein theraaya tha- allergy waala bahaana karke.". "Woh sab to theek hai Onu, lekin ab kya?Tere pas bas chhe mahine hai usko manane ke liye. Agar tum dono sara din apne alag alag office mein rahe phir Ghar aake bhi apne alag alag kamre mein chale Gaye then to kya faida uske saath rehne ka?". Anurag replied,"I know....all thanks to Mr. Rishabh Bajaj!.....Ab mujhe extra mehnat karni paregi Prerna ka dil jeetne ke liye....(taking a deep breath) koi baat nahi yeh bhi kar lunga main! Kyuki usko khona is not an option for me!". Anupam smiled, and cheered"Great!That's the spirit Onu!".

Precap: "Mr.Bajaj",Prerna said," I don't think main aapke yaha kaam kar paungi.".