Here it is. You might claim that I am good with words but when it comes to expressing my feelings, I am a total failure. So I will just shut up and let the words do the talking. I know its not up to the mark, and its anything but an OS...but this is the best I could come up with. Hope it brings a smile to your face.
SHRILLS AND THRILLS
The shrill sound penetrated the air. In the near silence of the night it sounded as loud as a fog horn of a ship, or the honking of a railway engine. She stopped midway, unable to believe her ears, and abruptly turned on her feet. She looked around tried to place the culprit, and finally located him near the entrance to her offices. The gall, the disgusting guts of the man. She looked carefully, he seemed a decent sort. What the heck, he actually seemed the good sort, the very good sort. Okay, the too good to be true sort. He was tall, quite tall, his height impressive even from the distance. She could see that he was a looker even from far. And tastefully dressed too. In short the kind that comes from a good background, a good family as her family would say. And still...he had done this? An apparently decent sort and such uncouth behavior. Shame on him. Arohi glared with all her pent up fury. If looks could kill, he would have been in hell several times over. He was pretending indifference, acting totally unaware of her presence. For some reason, his avoiding her, angered her further. Without realizing where she was headed, without giving a thought to her safety, she marched across the wet road, headed straight towards him. And there she stood, wet n wild, her tiny frame bursting with un controllable rage. He was startled, sorry, pretended to be startled, she mentally amended. "You..You...Cheapo!" "Huh??!!" he looked totally lost. "You Road Side Romeo!" He turned around then, acting more confused. "You..I am talking to you!" Arohi yelled. He looked more bewildered, if it were possible. "Lately, it seems that sick guys like you have taken over this city, heck, this country. Wherever and whenever the women turn around, your kind is ready to act sleazy." She was ready to battle, the recent shocking news hitting the headlines every day, adding fuel to her justified anger. She was ready to battle for all the wronged women, who had to suffer this sick torture at the hands of such psycho males all the time. "And don't pretend that you didn't do it, you coward." She finally saw a spark in those brown depths, the beginnings of something. "Excuse me miss, is it me you are talking to?" he asked quietly. "No, I am talking to the wind, the rain, the air! Can you see anyone else? Who do you think I am talking to?" she fumed. " Don't play the innocent, you sicko!" "Before you shoot off again, dare I ask, what are you talking about?" he asked. "Don't you dare deny it. There is no one else here, you did it!" Arohi retorted. "But, what did I do?" the gall of the man. The sheer shamelessness. "You..you whistled. You Roadside jerk. You sick male. YOU WHISTLED!" He stood there momentarily transfixed. "So? I am not denying it. Why in God's name should I deny it. Yes, I whistled. Never knew it was a crime!" he retorted with some heat. Arohi was dumbstruck by the guy's audacity. "How dare you whistle..wolf whistle at me..at any girl..you..you wolf!" she roared. "I...I whistle at you..at any girl??" He paused, looking dumbstruck and then, "Are you mad?" he wondered aloud. She surely looked the part. She seemed to be unhinged at some level, the tiny spitfire. Granted, she looked like a doll, standing there in all her furious glory, a vision of anger and beauty, but..definitely wacko! "Oh, so any girl who puts up a fight against the likes of you is mad, huh? Is that how your species thinks?" "I am the same species as you are, technically. But that's neither here nor there. There seems to be some confusion here." "I doubt that. I heard the whistle loud n clear, couldn't help it, it practically shattered my eardrums. And as you and me, seem to be the only humans present here, not counting the passers by, it was obviously meant for me. You bloody eve teaser!" "Hah...look madam you might be Eve but I am in no mood to play Adam. I did whistle but it was not meant for you, err...not for you...not aimed at you. I have better things to do. I was trying to stop a taxi, which is a herculean task in the Mumbai rains and flagging down didn't seem to work at all. So, in desperation I tried whistling." "That's such a flimsy excuse! Men like you should be jailed! I should call in the cops and have you arrested for eve teasing!" "Let me do the honour, I can summon them way faster than you can imagine!" he smirked. Arohi was already checking out her cell phone, but it seemed the blasted phone had died on her, thanks to a very very long work day, that had exhausted not only her phone's but her batteries too. Both were ready to call it quits, damn! She looked around at noticed the police jeep in the background. Her eyes lighted up with relief cause upfront she had realized that the guy was not only tall, but quite well built and strong. Arohi might have given in to her impulsive rage, but the passage of time had had made her aware of her vulnerable situation. Curse her boss and his demanding ways, that had had her working so late, and the leech was one of the reasons why she had responded so unthinkingly to the man's actions. She had her fill of men hitting on her on some pretext or the other. "The pleasure is all mine. For once I would love to see a man like you, get his due." She looked around, well if the vehicle was there, someone had to be around, right? He noticed her gaze, and quietly stated, "It broke down." Oh, so he was keeping tabs. The opportunist sleaze ball. "With men like you, we women can never be safe. It's such a shame. And at the precise moment, her prayers were answered. A couple of policemen appeared, on the run. Before she could open her mouth, they saluted. Salute??? Mumbai Police saluting victims?? Idiot, you really need to hit the bed. They were addressing him. Huh?? They were addressing him? "Sir, we have finally managed to contact the headquarters. They are sending us the car that was on duty nearby, should be here any minute, Sir." And finally her exhausted brain clicked, kicking her in the face in the process. He..he was a cop?? And a highly placed one, from the looks of it. "Not needed, I will manage. Just make sure this lady here reaches home safely. Please drop her off wherever she wants." He instructed quietly yet firmly. "Yes, Sir!" He turned around then, facing her. "Miss, about your last statement about women's safety, just wanted to point out a couple of things. You, me, in fact every single citizen of this country, is now aware of the risks and hazards women face every day. Me, more so than you will ever know. I applaud your guts in taking the bull by the horn, it was the right thing to do, but the wrong time and place. First and foremost, it's really late, it's been raining heavily, this is a commercial area and so practically deserted and to top it all, your phone battery is dead. I have nothing more to add. We wish, but the bitter fact is, we can't be everywhere. Have a good night and learn to stay
safe." With that he embarked the taxi, his subordinates had finally hailed for him.
*****
She stood transfixed, rooted to the spot. No, it was not wishful thinking, and neither were her ears ringing. She had indeed heard that shrill sound again. That shrill, strong whistle penetrating the mists of rain, again. She had a strange feeling of dj vu. She slowly turned around, and there he stood, exactly where he had a few nights back. You need to stop working late, Arohi, its affecting your brain cells. You are day dreaming again. It's night stupid, some one or something argued back. She wished she could move, break the spell, but her legs refused to budge. It was same, the night, the rains, the road, the man, yet something was different. This time he crossed the road. "Hi" he said casually. "Oh..hi" she managed to articulate after a few moments. "I whistled!" he stated. "I...I ..heard. Hailing a taxi again, I suppose." She was basically talking to herself. "Hell..no!" he grinned impishly. OMG...he had dimples. A policeman with dimples, flashing dimples! The government better not give him any weapons, this man was already lethal. She just stood there dumbstruck. "I was trying to hail you. Just trying to tease the eve. Actually Arohi Ahluwalia." He said a bit uncertainly. He looked so cute, so endearing, the big strong yet vulnerable man, she spilled into a smile. Then stopped abruptly. "I am sorry...I" "Forgiven. Although my pride did take a beating. Do I really look like a road side romeo?" he asked. "A total loafer!" she grinned mischievously. That had him stunned. "Just don't call the cops! The last thing I want is to be arrested for this, just imagine how it would look on my record. Caught and apprehended while whistling wolfishly at a girl." "Serves you right, you have been misusing your powers. Arohi Ahluwalia and all." She said wonderingly. "In the interests of public safety, we have to identify and destroy all dangerous and lethal weapons." "Dangerous and Lethal..." His walkie talkie buzzed. His brow furrowing in concentration, he seemed to be lost in another world. The mischievous fun loving man she had glimpsed, disappearing in a moment. The ever on the edge cop taking over. "Arohi, I gotta go. And you need to stop working so late. It worries me." "That's the policeman in you talking." She tried to respond as he walked away in a hurry. "No, that's the man in me talking." And the look in his eyes as he said those words, promised to haunt Arohi for nights.
She had to stop him, she really had to get his attention. But the man, as always seemed to be in a tearing rush. And she didn't even know his name. Funny, she felt she knew him in and out, yet she didn't know his name. Now, how in the world was she supposed to stop this super cop express. "Hey!!" She yelled and cringed at how rude it sounded. "Excuse Me!" several male heads turned hopefully in her direction, but the one she wanted to, kept walking stubbornly away. "Oh..Hello!" she tried again. What, was the guy deaf?!! But then, with his looks and personality, even if he was, who would have cared, least of all her. He was walking out the door. It seemed she didn't have an option. She had to..she just had to. NO...are you mad, you just can't . Well, if he can, so can I. With that defiant declaration of equality, Arohi mustered up all her courage, took her shy diffidence in her hands, closed her eyes...and let go. With both the fingers in her mouth, like her brother had taught her. The result was quite satisfactory, even to her ears. She opened her eyes to face the world. It felt like hundreds of eyes were staring at her, boring in her. Arohi could have sworn that there were millions in the room and they all were staring shell shocked at her. She colored all shades of crimson, wishing the earth would open up and swallow her. What was she thinking? What in the world had possessed her to act so un ladylike? She couldn't even look up. Then she saw a pair of shoes in her line of vision. She looked up and saw him grinning from ear to ear. The laughter brimming in his brown eyes. "I guess you were trying to grab my attention. Err...quite a novel way of doing so. This is probably the first time in history that a girl has whistled at me...that too at a cop in a public place...that too..." "Your...your wallet!" she stammered, as she fumbled and handed him his wallet, the one he had forgotten at the table. And with that she just made a run for the door, making a beeline for the exit, totally embarrassed and mortified. She could hear his laughter, loud n clear, dogging and taunting her heels.
*****
She colored, blushing furiously. Damn the man. Not today, not now and not here. Arohi Ahluwalia could barely lift her eyes and peek out of her ghunghat, but, she knew with all her love filled heart and her crazy mind, who the culprit was. It had to be him. Arjun Singhnia. The DCP of Mumbai Police. The eve teaser, more aptly, the Arohi Teaser. After the momentary silence, there was loud laughter, cat calls and guffaws everywhere. The teasing comments, the knowing glances, she had to face it all. And all because of that crazy insufferable man, the man she was soon going to marry. Who in the world whistles, a honest to the core loud n shrill wolf whistle, total mawaali ishtyle, when they see their bride on their wedding day? wondered the future Mrs. Arohi Arjun Singhania!"
Edited by eveline - 10 years ago
