CHAPTER 20 | The Normal Day

Disclaimer

Shiv and Maya landed in Delhi after a couple of hours. Shiv had an apartment rented in Delhi for two weeks.  By the end of the second week, they will be leaving for New York. There was a lot of Visa work to be done for Maya. It was around 3 in the morning and a cab was waiting for them outside the Airport. Maya wasn’t so fond of Delhi, but she liked the locality where Shiv’s office was located. They reached the apartment. Maya rummaged through the kitchen to eat something. Shiv took the bags to the bedroom and unpacked his bag.

Maya came to the bedroom and asked him, “Your rented house has nothing to eat?” Shiv smiled and said, “Let’s go to 1440 and have Pasta and Beer???” Maya looked at the time and laughed and said, “No!!! Not Now! Let’s sleep…” Shiv held her hand and said, “Come on! Let’s go we will be back by 5.” Maya smiled and said, “Chalo…” Shiv called for a cab and they reached 1440 in almost 30 minutes.

They reached home by 5:30 in the morning and crashed the bed. They were exhausted and a little tipsy too. Shiv woke Maya when her phone rang. It was around 12. Maya woke up with the realization of the article she had to write on. Maya looked at the phone it was 12:10 in the afternoon and there were around three missed calls from Ganesh. Maya got out of the bed and checked her email, looked at the topic and called Ganesh and apologized. Ganesh told her that he will be taking Pranshu on the conference call and they can start discussing the topic and his expectations. While Maya was on the call, Shiv asked his house-help to get some groceries for them. He made tea along with sausages, eggs and bread for their brunch.

After an hour, Maya got off the phone and opened a word document to start writing. Shiv heated up the brunch and bought it in the living room. He kissed Maya on her forehead and said, “Eat.” Maya took a piece of bread and the mug of tea and kept it aside. She told Shiv, “Today, I will be writing till 4 something. What’s your plan?” Shiv who is busy on his phone, replies, “I have to go to work in one hour and I don’t know when I would be back.” Maya nods and goes through the email sent by Ganesh to look through the product. She started writing her first topic and she got engrossed with it so much that she didn’t realize Shiv was about to leave. She wrote about half a page and craved for some tea. She kept her laptop aside and walked towards the kitchen. She heard the house-help singing some songs. Sheila, the house-help who was in her forties smiled at Maya when she entered the kitchen. Maya gave her a smile and asked her if there’s some tea left. She said, “Madam, you sit I will get some tea for you.” Maya went to the bedroom to check on Shiv. Shiv was on the phone and smiled at Maya when she entered.  Maya smiled back and left him with his business call. Maya went to the living room and Sheila got Tea for her. Maya took a sip of tea and started researching on the product, so that she can complete the next half of it.

Sheila asked Maya if she wants something specific for lunch and Maya said nothing for lunch and asked her to take the day off once she is done with the house cleaning. Shiv came out of the bedroom and Sheila asked him if he wants some tea or coffee, Shiv nodded in a No and Sheila went back to her cleaning work. Shiv sat next to Maya and said, “I will be out and will be very late. Do you think you will be okay, being alone here?” Maya rolled her eyes and said, “I live alone in Pune, come on now, don’t treat me like a little girl…” Shiv smiled and said, “Okay then! I’ll make a move. I have this urgent meeting and a lot of work for your Visa to be done before the end of this week. Next week, we will spend some time shopping and yeah packing for New York.” Maya smiled and said, “I will be at home. If at all I am bored, I will go to the mall or some place.”  Maya got up and followed Shiv to the door, and they both kissed. Shiv left for work and Maya sat with her tea and laptop.

After hours of research and writing, Maya was done with editing and proof-reading. She checked the time; it was almost five in the evening. Maya sent the final draft to Ganesh and kept Pranshu in the CC. Maya checked her phone which was on silent for hours now and there were a few messages and one call from Shiv. She called him back but it was busy. She went to the kitchen and checked if there’s anything to eat. The house-help had left for the day. Maya made tea and had it with bread. She was bored and tired and had to do something to feel good. She decided to go to a Spa and get a pedicure done. She searched for a spa near to the place where they lived. She took a quick shower and wore a black and white striped Pajama with black t-shirt and headed towards the spa. After 3 hours in the spa and a complete treatment with massages, Maya felt awesome. She checked her phone and there were a few calls from Shiv and Ganesh. She called Ganesh while walking towards the apartment. Ganesh informed her that Pranshu is happy with the first post and once the contract is signed, that is by end of this week, they will send 2 articles a day to Maya. Maya reached the apartment and opened the door with her set of keys and found Shiv sitting in the living room. He looked happy. She told him, she was in the spa and he hugged her. She asked him how his day was. They spoke a little about work and Shiv told her he has taken rest of the day off from work, after sending one important email. Maya smiled and told him she is resting in the bedroom for a while.

Maya changed to a pair of pink shorts with a white t-shirt and switched on the A/C and lay on the bed. She closed her eyes and went to sleep. She got up realizing she felt a lot of pressure on her waist. She opened her eyes and found Shiv lay next to her and his hand on her waist. She slowly moved herself out of the embrace and searched for her phone. It was 9 in the night and she realized that she slept a lot.

She went to the kitchen, made herself a cup of green tea, and sat on the couch in the living room and asked herself, “Why are you not the same, Maya?” She repeated her question again and again with every sip of the tea.

What was bothering Maya?