Finally got 'the' call !!!

Yesterday was the best day of my life!!!! It was just past 9A.M and I was sleeping blissfully unaware of how beautiful and rainy outside the window was when suddenly my phone buzzed to the life and jolted me out of the sleep. Mumbling and grumbling I got hold of my blackberry from the night stand and jabbed the green button without bothering to open my eyes.

"Hello?”

"Hmmmmm….”

“Am I talking to..er… Aadhya Oberoi?” a posh voice came from the other side.

“Yes!” Okay. So this is not a call from some telemarketing weirdo because no one absolutely no one had ever called me by my full name. That too in such a posh voice. Quickly I scrambled in the sitting position.

“This is Maria Janes calling from Glamour!” and my mouth hung open in a very unattractive way.

“Morning!” was all I could manage to croak.

“Morning” she beamed. “I was wondering can you drop by the Glamour’s office so that we could talk about your salary and most importantly the joining date”?

“Yeah sure! Shall I see you in an hour?”

“Actually I am going to fly out of the city in couple of hours. I shall see you day after tomorrow, Monday that is”.

“Of Course. So Monday it is!”

“Purrrrrrrfect!” she said and the phone went dead. I flipped the phone on the night stand and plopped down on the pillow. I was wondering did I just dream or did it really happen? Was it actually the call? Am I actually employed? When I was going through my wondering process I drifted back to the sleep and then it was only at 11:37 A.M when I finally woke up, rewind the call in my mind and realized that I didn’t dream.

After that call yesterday, I was in my best mood and spent rest of the day in my Pjs and in cleaning the apartment, vacuuming the sofa, stacking the glossies, preparing the grocery list and watching back to back best of Hollywood classics with chardonnay by my side.

Today is yet another beautiful day. It’s still raining outside and clouds are still dark. I am sitting in the wicker chair by the window of my apartment, tucking in my scrumptious Sunday breakfast of French toasts and reading the online New York Times (okay I am not all that smart, I just read fashion column or browse through the travel column to read about all the exotic places which I would probably never visit).    

Signing off:

Girl in the big city!!

                                                                                                                                                                               

Awful Day!!!

“No no noooooooooooooooooooooooooo……how cou…… this can’t b……..holy fu…..” I couldn’t believe my eyes. How the hell could I let it happen? How the hell I overslept? How the bloody hell I was still under my duvet when I should have been sitting and waiting for my interview in Glamour’s office? Holly shit!

Jumping out of the bed, I ran towards my wardrobe and changed in the first thing I managed to grab. I picked up my bag, throw in all the things which could make me look like at least not lunatic, grabbed my resume from the coffee table and dashed out of the apartment with my shoes in other hand. Rushing down the stairs I forgot to put my shoes on and as I step out of my building, hoping to get a cab without much waiting all I say was “bullocks!”, the concert street under my naked foot was burning. Quickly I put on the shoes and without caring how awful I might have been looking standing in the middle of the buzzing road with my bird-nest hair on the clear and bright day, I screamed for cab again and again. And for once, I got the cab with in ten minutes.

Once in a cab, I hauled my phone and call the Glamour to let the receptionist know that I would be tiny bit late and when she says no issues, finally I took my first breath of this awesomely screwed up day. Finally I combed my hair, wiped my face with wet wipes, put on a bit of make-up, adjusted my dress, popped in few mint pills to kill that horse breath, went through my resume and when once again I reached in my bag for the zillionth time, I realized I forgot to carry my notes. The notes on which I have spent hours in preparing and which actually is a mini encyclopaedia of Glamour…I forgot to bring them with me. Without going through those notes I can’t answer a single question, I can’t get my job and no one absolutely no one on this earth can help me getting through this interview.

I was already horribly late which means I practically had no time to go back to the apartment and search for those notes. What will I do now?

Signing off:
Girl in trouble in a big city!

Why it happened?

When Priya told me that she couldn’t have dinner with me because she was going out with Him for a cocktail party, I won’t lie but I didn’t feel good…Nah it’s not about her but about me. I loved Priya like a sister, a soul mate since the day I met her and I was beyond happy when she got engaged with Him but between all the time I spent with her in talking, eating, drinking, bitching and shopping, I knew that the day she will be married I would be alone once again and now that time was approaching near at the supersonic speed. But never in my dream I wished or thought that something this awful could happen to her at this moment.

Next day I woke up and decided to pamper myself rather than sitting in my apartment feeling miserable and making unsuccessful plans. Hence I quickly ran the hot bath and headed for Juice and felt immediately better after getting chopped and then couldn’t help but stopped by every mirror I passed and admire my new layered look for the entire day. I was actually feeling much better and after so many days have managed to look quite decent.

It was comparatively a pleasant day and bit windy as well so I decided to go for a walk after take away dinner. After walking few blocks I stopped at Marine Drive and sat on the side wall of the Indian Ocean. It was looking heart stopping in the night with all the lights of the city reflecting in the ocean. Water was stretched over the thousands of kilometers in front of me and it was surprisingly very quite. It was site to behold. If you stay in this city and don’t remember sitting by the Ocean in the night, than you haven’t lived a life in the pure Mumbai way. I was here for good few hours so I bought a cup of coffee from a nearby street vendor and as I was about to take a sip of the aromatic coffee, my blackberry buzzed in my pocket.

It was Priya. I didn’t hear from her the entire day.

“Hey” she said in a low voice and in that moment I knew something was wrong.

“Hey what’s wrong sweetheart?”

“Everything is over” she managed to say before bursting into most painful sobs I have ever heard and before I could say another word, I realized that my phone had gone dead. Panicked I called her zillion times but she didn’t pick up. Throwing the coffee cup away, I rose on my feet, rushed towards the main road and dashed in a first cab which pulled by my side.

Fifteen minutes drive to her and Him’s flat seemed like hours. Finally when cab pulled by her building, I thrust money in cab driver’s hand (I didn’t know how much it was) and ran towards her flat. After ringing her door bell several times, door finally clicked open and I saw Priya looking sick standing in front of me. From her swollen eyes I could tell that she didn’t sleep from quite a good measure of time and was crying more than couple of dozen hours.

“What…” Priya flung her arms around me, dragged me inside and then buried her flustered face in my neck and sobbed uncontrollably. I was numb, didn’t know what happen and why. I came back into my senses only when I heard myself sobbing.

“What happen?” I asked in a trembling low voice and Priya told me everything about Him’s girlfriend who met her last night in a cocktail party and how much time Him and that bitch was spending together whenever he is off the work which he practically is never as told to Priya. All of his business trips were not more than fucking lusty trips with that bitch girlfriend of him. Priya and Him had a particularly nasty row last night and he wasn’t a bit sorry about his act of shame rather was trying to defend himself.  

I packed all her stuff and dragged her out of the flat. We waited few minutes outside her building in a total silence and then hailed a cab to my flat.

It’s been a week since then and we stayed in my flat for the entire time. We cried, ate, drink and watched endless movies. Every day Priya ate more than 4000 calories which are allowed as per the post break up rule and I pour as much Vodka as available in my stock for us. In the last week I tried never to bring my own no-job-issue between us rather heard everything she had to say.

Today it’s Christmas and I and Priya are in full mood to let the misery go out of our life and celebrate this gorgeous day. We have made cookies, decorated tree yesterday and today we are going to make mince pie and cake, I mean of course Priya is going to bake but heyyy I will decorate.

P.S: our issues are still unsolved but they can wait. Let the holy spirit of Christmas take toll on us and let the Santa take all the troubles away.  

Merry Christmas! xxx

Signing off:

Two girls with each other in the big city!!

I am hurt!

When I left the office at Tuesday evening, it was still raining outside. Stepping out on the pavement I yank opened my aqua-blue umbrella which was hiding somewhere deep down in my hand bag. When you live in the city like Mumbai you can’t step out of your house without handy umbrella because you never know when the scorching sun will be shoved back by the grey clouds and when the harmful UV rays would be replaced by horrendous thunderstorm.

Nevertheless, after waiting for good twenty minutes and waving my hands frantically in the middle of the road for several times I finally managed to hail the cab at almost the double rent. By the time driver pulled the cab outside the Hard Rock Café I was 200 INR down. Bloody mugger! As I climbed out of the cab I saw Vikrant walking towards the café entrance.

“Oui!” I waved as he stopped and turned to face me. He was looking heart-stopping gorgeous in blue Levi’s and black shirt. How on earth he always managed to look this amazing. Gosh! I couldn’t remember when was the last time when I looked stunning, let alone effortlessly stunning. HA!

“Hey!” he gave me quick peck on the cheeks. Well, I didn’t think it was a quick peck because he lingered on my left cheek a bit longer. He smelt David Off. Together we ventured inside the café and housed on the table at the extreme right just few meters away from the live performance area.

“Sorry. I couldn’t come to pick you up!” he said.

“It’s all right. Nothing big. Trust me.” I waved my hand nonchalantly. “I am sure whatever occupied you must had been very important”.

“No. Not really.” Was it only I who think or did he really flinch? After ordering beer for himself and orange juice for me, he asked me about my day and I told him how humanly Natasha talked to me today much to my surprise.

“Enough about me. How was your day?” I asked as our order arrived.

“It was ok. It could be bad but somehow I managed to keep it ok” he flinched again. What was it? What was the problem with this drop-dead handsome hunk?

“Sorry. I didn’t really understand how it could bad! Is everything all right?” I asked gingerly.

“Yeah! It’s just my ex. She stopped by my flat today and we had this huge fight and she really did put me off. That was the reason I text you that I couldn’t come because she was there the whole day, fighting, arguing and strangely defending herself” he tutted and rest of his words fell faintly on my ears after the word ex, his ex. Crap!  

“ummm…”I squawked.

“Anyway, I was so looking forward to meet you. Meeting you always made me feel so relaxed” he smiled and I couldn’t know how to react. I was still trying to process what he just said about his ex.

“What exactly happened between you and….your ex?” I silently patted myself for being so brave to get the words out without stammering. What was wrong with me? Why was I feeling so sad?

“Oh! I didn’t realize you are still thinking about her. Well I usually don’t go in details about my past relations but since you ask…… Well she cheated on me with her best friend’s fiancé in my apartment, in my room when I was away in Thailand for an assignment” he said and I sat there, letting this information sink in.

Somehow I managed to gulp down my orange juice and before he could order the main course I had to pretend I was unwell and literally ran from the café without giving him chance to utter a single word. I couldn’t sit there and look at him!

Sitting in the cab I couldn’t help but let tears rolled out from my eyes. I mean I knew I was only on the second date with this guy whom I didn’t know until one month back  but just the thought that I was the bloody rebound thing for him sent the shiver down my spine. Off course even I was dating him just for the sake of my job and there was just nothing between me and him but I didn’t know why but I couldn’t believe that the entire time when we met or talked, he was just talking or meeting to me to take his mind off, I was simply nobody to him.

I can’t do this. I can’t meet or talk to him again no matter what. Tomorrow first thing in the morning, I will tell Natasha that I can’t do this blog thing. Damn! I don’t know why on earth I am feeling hurt when there was nothing serious between us. And why am I even crying? ‘For fuck sake stop being a weeper and get control of yourself’ I am yelling at me but it seems that my mind has choose not to listen to me and my heart has choose to keep going back to every detail of this awful evening again and again and again.

Signing off:
Girl in tears in the big city!!!

Where will i find him?

Ok. I am back in Mumbai, back in my office.  Priya have chosen the Anjuna beach for night (beach) wedding and Natasha has accepted my article and has pointed out oodles of mistakes just in first ten lines. See I have always told you she is a bitch!

It’s been a week since I have came back but still for some strange reason I have found myself thinking about Vikrant quite a lot than healthier.  Though we had exchanged our numbers and he told me that I could call him anytime or we could meet whenever he is in the city but in last seven days neither I called nor he and I clearly have no idea that where he is or what he is doing. May be dating a super-hot-with-longest-legs model?

This morning when I entered the office I stood frozen in the doorway as I spotted Natasha housed on my chair in my cubicle and spinning it in 360 degree and only when she gave me ouch-look I realized that my mouth was handing open quite unattractively. I pulled it closed and walked up to her mustering my brightest smile ever.

“Hey Natasha. Morning” I beamed.

“Morning” She said. “I was waiting for you only” she smiled at me harshly.

“For me? Ummm…. Anything important?” I asked. Why was she sitting in my chair? I couldn’t remember when she last visited my cubicle or any other employee’s cubicle; it’s only us who marched up in her cabin with our hearts on our sleeves every now and then only to hear long lectures about not-so-valid-points in our articles.

“Yeah! I have heard that you are still single?” she threw a stone on me. What???

“What?” I crock. “I mean yes I am but what’s that to do with you?” I asked not knowing where she was getting to.

“Good. We need a girl like you” she smiled and her eyes brighten.

“What are you talking about Natasha?” I asked.

“Listen. We are going to start a diary kinda column in our magazine from next issue onwards and I want you to date some guy or guys and write about your dates, night outs and some more stuff.” She said nonchalantly. I opened my mouth to say something but she cut me off and continued “You have to write just once in a week, seven hundred words and will get Saturday off to party with your mystery guy.” She finished.

“I can’t do it. I mean you know it would mean that I have to write three columns in a week and all in different genres” I whined.

“I knew you would say that but let me tell you that we have recruited a new more professional travel writer yesterday and you are no more writing it. So take a deep breath.” she waved her solitaire studded hand in front of me and I chose to ignore that dig on me and talk about this not-so-happening news.

“But how? Where will I find this guy?” I whined.

“Darling, that you have to work out. After all we are paying you for this column as well.” She winked at me, turned on her heels and walked back to her cabin.

I plopped down on the chair, not knowing that who the hell will date me. In last one year nobody has even looked at me in that way.  I neither have bunch of cool friends to go out with to the super cool places which are always packed with damn hot crowd nor any social life or club membership. Where will i find him? I can’t even say no to this offer  because I am gonna get paid for this and that means incremental salary which means I can actually dream to afford Prada bag or Gucci belt or Ferragamo ballerinas in next few months and the cherry on pie is two offs every week. Maybe it’s not all that bad! Maybe!

Signing off:

Stuck girl in the City of Dreams!!!