“And thus you made the biggest mistake of your life. You shall regret it till the end. Mark my words!”
She sighed. This one was for relief.
***
“Can you keep away the phone for once? I am talking to you”, she complained. He did not respond. “Shiv are you listening to me?”. This time her voice was a notch louder.
“Yes yes yes, temme.”
“Shift your eyes from your stupid smartphone and look at me.”
He looked at her and his eyes were fixed at the board kept in front of her. “Wow! It is so so so so so beautiful Bristi! It’s mesmerizing! Give me your hands”.
“What? Why?”
He took her hands into his and asked her, “Bristi, how can you quill so well with these tiny hands!”
“Tiny?” She arched her eyebrow.
He laughed out loud and kissed her.
***
Her parents were concerned about her income.
“When are you going to search for a stable job which shall fetch a constant amount every month? How many days are you going to struggle with this craft?”
“One day Maa, one day I shall earn more than an ordinary safe job with this craft of mine. It’s a new venture. It shall take some more time. And btw, it’s called quilling.”
“You are very talented Mum, but you need to earn good enough. You are 23. Why don’t you do both the things together?”. Her mother didn’t want to dampen her spirit.
“Yes, am trying.”
***
“Jain, this is the first time I quilled a logo this big! I am a bit skeptical “, she said in a soft voice fidgeting with the wrapped wall hanging.
“Bristi, I love your work. Just show it to me. Please.”
She silently obeyed and unwrapped the wall hanging.
His jaws dropped. Literally.
“Girl, I never knew my logo can look this fantastic! I am speechless! Love the quilled guitar. Exactly looks like the one I use!”
She blushed and looked at the floor. “I can’t deal with compliments. It’s better you find a fault with it. I shall improve it the next time.”
“Shut up ya! You are an absolute genius! Now tell me how much to pay for this beauty!”
She sighed. A smile of peace.
Another happy Customer. A happy wallet.
***
“I am so tired Shiv. Please pack my lunch. I am at home.”
She disconnected the call. Then Bristi remembered she forgot to tell what to pack for lunch. He shall bring biriyani only. She chuckled.
*The door bell rang*
“I missed you Shiv. A lot”
“Yeah? Well I dint! “
“That was rude. Of course you dint miss me. You were so busy with those girl friends or female fans; whatever you call them!”
He laughed and suddenly brought her close to him. She could almost hear his heartbeat. ‘He is going to kiss me’ she thought. But he did not. He picked her up instead and took her to the bed. He looked into her eyes. She had never seen him so serious.
“How was the interview Bristi? “he asked in a low voice.
“It went very good actually. I dint expect it to be this nice. You know Shiv they might hire me!”, her eyes glowed.
His eyes dint show a hint of a sparkle.
“I want you to promise me something. “
“What Shiv?” Her silly heart skipped a bit. ‘Maybe he is going to make me promise not to leave him ever. Or maybe he is going to ask me out. No no. That’s not a promise! Stupid me. Maybe he is going to tell me something important.’
She took exact 2 seconds to think all these situations!
His voice broke her trance. She didn’t hear what he said.
“Bristi, are you listening to me? “
“Yes yes”
“What yes yes? Promise me Bristi, that you shall never ever stop quilling in your life. Promise me now. You are not born for this job. You are here to quill. To show people your talent. To quill people’s dreams and ideas! I want to see your wall hangings in every awesome café, restaurant and hotel I walk in. I want to show everyone that my Bristi is gifted! Now you, promise me.”
A trickle of warm water rolled down her cheeks.
“First you promise me that you shall never stop inspiring me and you shall always nudge me to quill even if am busy with other things. Promise me that you shall help me to setup my studio!”
“Your turn first”, he said.
“I forgot how stubborn you are!”, she smiled. “Okay I promise that I shall never stop quilling if my hands and eyes are functioning properly! “
He smiled. “I already got your promise, I don’t need to promise now!”, he teased her.
“What if I die early Bristi, that too in your arms; how am I going to see your wonderful quills? But yes even if anything happens to me, your parents, or anyone dear; you shall never stop quilling as promised.”
“I shall die before you Shiv. They say if you are in crazy love with someone so much that you can’t stay without them, then you die before the other person dies.”
She just opened her mouth to say something but felt a warm tongue instead. He had always been a passionate kisser. That afternoon they made love. A wild sultry afternoon sex was what she always yearned for years.
***
“You told him that you love him? Why Bristi? Why did you propose?”, Ankita was furious.
“I did not propose. It was merely a statement. It wasn’t a question or a proposal”, Bristi said with a very calm voice.
“And thus you made the biggest mistake of your life. You shall regret it till the end. Mark my words!”
She sighed. This one was for relief. She had no regrets.
***
Her phone lit up. Wiping her tears she opened the WhatsApp. Shiv wished her a happy 6 months of meeting. She replied with just a same to you and smiley and switched off her phone. Bristi woke up late the next morning. She had to meet her client in an hour. After a shower she practiced all her fake smiles in front of the mirror. She felt drained. What if she cannot convince her client to take her quilled wall hangings? She pushed out the negative thoughts and tried to trick the brain to happiness thinking of a tasty lunch!
Her phone rang. It was Shiv.
“Say”.
“Meet me up. It’s urgent”.
“Are you alright? I have a meeting with a client in half an hour.”
“Meet me asap. Ping me once you are done with your meeting and all the best.”
“Thank you. See you”.
***
Bristi could not believe her eyes. It all looked like a dream. He was there, right in front of her wearing a black Punjabi. She always wanted to see him in ethnic wear. He looked so handsome. Though the white horse was missing!
There were many mutual friends behind him. She could see Ankita, Shreya, Priyanka, Mandy, and Anisha behind him holding a slate in their hands. She looked a bit confused.
Then he kneeled down and they turned their slates. Ankita’s board read, “Will”, Shreya’s “You”, Priyanka’s “Marry” and then she could see anymore. Her eyes were flooded with salty water!
Bristi dropped her bag and ran towards Shiv.
And then everything changed. That was the last time he kissed her.
***
The studio was flooded with golden lights. An expensive chandelier was hanging from the centre of the ceiling. The walls were of dark red colour, her favourite. She always felt that her quilled wall hangings looked best on dark red walls with golden lights in the room. Everyone was served cappuccino. Her favourite drink.
The visitors were treated with a warm smile. Continuous clicks of the cameras created a trance music in the room. Shiv was more than happy that evening. After all her dream came true then. Suddenly he excused himself and went to the balcony.
***
Shiv lit his 11th cigarette of the day. Only if she didn’t cross the road that day. Only if the truck did not lose its control. Only if he could hear her say YES to his proposal that day. Only if he could watch her jump with happiness. Only if he could offer the ring to her! Only if he could touch her once right now. Only if she was here tonight. Only ifs….
Shiv smiled. He kept his promise. Realizing that he was alone for a long time now, he walked back to attend his guests with a bright smile!
