Her Mr. Right

Hi, Nice to meet you, Sneha 😜

As the birds chirped in the birdhouse she had placed in the balcony of her apartment and the clock struck at five in the morning, Neha woke up groggily. Rubbing her eyes, she pandiculated before her feet hit the hard floor.

Heading towards the bathroom, she finished her morning business and changed into pink joggers and a white T-shirt. She frowned when she disentangled the entangled knots of her hair and tied them into a sleek ponytail. Pairing it with her favorite pair of peach sneakers she headed towards the community park near her locality.

Neha was an avid fan of morning walks. Last year when she had come to Delhi, she was glad to find the huge park near the accommodation bank had provided to her. Later she had moved to her own apartment in same locality and she was happy to continue her running routine in the same park.

The cool breeze hit her nerves refreshing her soul as she took a deep breath trying not just to inhale the fresh air but to cherish her me-time which was spent just with herself. Neha was busy at work during her days while she slept like a log at nights but she preferred to spend one and half hour early in the morning just with herself without any intrusion in her privacy. She used to keep all her negative thoughts aside and began her day with a bright smile.

The vast community park with a running track of three kilometres offered a perfect detox solution to Neha for getting rid of her unpleasant thoughts. She smiled looking at the old people enjoying enthralling laughing session while some fitness freaks like her did the yoga exercises. She took three laps of the complete running track thereby, covering nine kilometres daily. Since she had a sedentary lifestyle, morning jogs kept her fit.

On the other hand, Arjun had been cuddled to his pet dog Bruno when his alarm rang at five thirty in the morning. A fitness freak by nature, Arjun preferred rigorous physical exercises back in Mumbai. Since he had recently arrived in Delhi, he was yet to take the gym membership. In the mornings, he preferred running with his dog to keep Bruno fit.

Bruno, an obedient and faithful Labrador was the close to Arjun’s heart. With pale brown furs that glowed like golden fleece and hazel eyes, Bruno was a charmer. Arjun had a smile on his lips as he gently rubbed Bruno's belly waking him up. Finishing his morning business, Arjun tidied up his bedroom, he made his bed neatly while Bruno growled and wagged his tail, barking at Arjun for waking him up. Perhaps, Bruno needed time to adjust in the new house and he also needed some more sleep.

Arjun chuckled looking his confused pet as he blinked at the cute dog and patted his back. He grabbed the leash of Bruno and both of them were off to their morning walk in the community park that was just behind his apartment. He was yet to see the beauty of the park. As the cool breeze hit Bruno’s pale brown fur , he wagged his tail rejoicing in the new surroundings.

“Let’s do two laps, buddy”, Arjun instructed Bruno who woofed in affirmation. Maintaining his pace, Arjun walked briskly with Bruno making sure his pet did not feel exhausted at any point of time.

Arjun was overwhelmed to see people of all ages and from all walks of life enjoying the cool breeze in the morning. He felt rejuvenated upon smelling the fragrance of young mango leaves and thousands of roses planted on both the sides of the running track.
After the two laps with Bruno, Arjun took him to the lawns of the community park where he could see some people practicing yoga while others doing cardio exercises. He wanted to run two more laps by himself but before that, he wanted to play with his buddy. Arjun rubbed Bruno’s back and hugged him while the cute dog woofed while licking him.

Arjun threw a ball in other direction while Bruno jumped off him and ran to get the ball. They played for a while and when Arjun was assured that Bruno was quite accustomed to the new surroundings, he instructed, “Bruno, I want you to sit beside this bench till the time I will be back”.

Bruno was one of the most sophisticatedly trained dog and hence, Arjun was assured of his safety. He knew that Bruno would never interact with strangers or bark at them without any reason. He had taught Bruno well to never bite anyone even if he was agitated so he could leave his dog in the lawns to bask in the lap of nature.

Neha, on the other hand, had completed her three rounds. With sweat beads on her forehead, she entered the lawn huffing and panting hard. She was out of breath as she stood in front of one of the empty benches in the lawn. She sat down but a sweet smile played on her lips instinctively as her pitch black ryes traveled to a cute yet, intimidating Labrador sitting on the ground beside a bench.

Her palms itched to touch the cute dog’s shiny, pale brown fur when her mind told her, “No, Neha. It might not like your touch”. She was a dog person since childhood and she always wanted to pet one but initially her parents didn’t allow her while now, she lacked time because of her hectic job.

She was craving to hug that cute dog who was silently sitting near her. Perhaps, the Almighty heard her prayers when Bruno walked up to her and started to sniff her shoes. Neha blinked her eyes several times subtly telling the dog that she meant no threat while Bruno kept on sniffing the area around her.

She smiled at the cute action of the dog when she forwarded her hand as a friendly gesture. Bruno sniffed her hand and began to lick her slender fingers. She was overwhelmed with joy at the friendly dog. She patted his back gently when Bruno rolled on his back displaying his belly, making her day.
Neha crouched on her knees beside the cute dog as she rubbed his belly developing a friendly bond with the dog. She eyed at the stylish, red collar in neck that read, ‘Bruno’.

“Hi, Bruno”, she murmured while the dog woofed in joy. Neha had not seen such a friendly Labrador ever. She was playing with someone’s pet while that ‘someone’ was watching the scene keenly.

Arjun had forgotten to breathe when he saw the same pretty, slim figure from his office, now playing with his dog. No, he was not drowned in her beauty. He was shocked to see his well-trained, disciplined dog getting friendly with a stranger.

“She is your colleague not a stranger", his chided his brain and he was shocked once again at himself, this time.

“What’s her name, Megha or Sneha?”, he whispered trying to remember the conversation with Mr. Sinha on the previous day.

“So, you can’t remember the name of a girl who is not a stranger", his brain mocked him irritating him to the core.
With a dazzling, full-blown smile, Arjun chimed in, “Hi, nice to meet you, Sneha.” Squatting beside Bruno, he tried to contain his laughter looking at the astounded face of Neha who straightened herself up.

Observing her keenly, he realized she had pitch black eyes which were certainly the mirror of her mind. Her cute, little nose was chiseled and contoured naturally and so were her cheekbones. She was surely gifted with naturally sharp and attractive facial features. Her fresh, radiant skin made her look younger when rogue, ebony black strands embellished her face.

“She might be not as old as you, Arjun”, his brain mocked him breaking his reverie while Neha stood up straight. Her cheeks had pinkish hue and Arjun wondered, “Though she is embarrassed right now but she would look cute when she would blush", and he had a cryptic smile on his face.

“Be a gentleman, idiot”, his brain advised as he stood up while Bruno barked in order to attract their attention.

Neha had been utterly shocked to hear a familiar voice when she had been playing with Bruno but she was surprised and embarrassed to find the new manager, Mr. Arjun Verma before herself. She stood up as she wondered, “Why this guy has to be here too?”

Before she could greet him, she heard him calling her Sneha and she lost her cool. “Such a creep”, she thought. Only she knew how much she wanted to punch his face for ruining her beautiful name.

“It's Neha”. She gritted her teeth and Arjun huffed, “Huh?..”

“It’s not Sneha. It’s Neha.” She mumbled angrily and it was Arjun’s turn to feel embarrassed.

“Stupid. You have a PhD in acting weird in front of her." He wondered, face-palming himself. He could sense her anger.

Giving her a stupid smile, he teased, “I know but Sneha suits you, Ms. Neha”.
She glared at him while he laughed heartily at her expense as he piped in, “Bye”. Pulling the leash, he tagged Bruno with him cursing himself for not remembering her name.

Neha stood there irritated at him as mumbled, “Such a pervert”. Though she should have irritated or uncomfortable, she too had an involuntary, stupid smile playing on her rosy lips.

“How could you have remembered her name when you were busy checking her out or feeling guilty for grabbing her seat in the metro while Mr. Sinha introduced her?” His brain mocked him while he missed her angry glares and cute pouts all the way back home.

Reaching back home, Arjun freshened himself and prepared breakfast for Bruno and himself mentally deciding to appoint a maid soon. Bruno was having his food and Arjun was munching on the sandwiches he had prepared for himself when he mumbled, “You like your new friend, Bruno", while dog woofed in response wagging his tail.

“I will tell you a secret, Bruno, I too like her", he murmured as he hugged his pet.

Arjun got ready for work. He was glad that his car had arrived yesterday and he didn’t have to go through the nasty ordeal of traveling through the metro during the peak hours.

“Take care, Bruno. I will be back soon.” He hugged Bruno telling the dog to stay safe for the day. He was locking the main door of his apartment when his phone rang. He smiled as he walked back inside. His parents were trying to connect him on a video call. Bruno walked towards him and wagged his tail as the video call was finally connected. He was glad to see his parents sitting in the lawn for breakfast amidst the background of exotic flowers.

“So, how is Delhi treating you, my son?” asked Ajay Verma exchanging the pleasantries. The old man in his late sixties was a tall and fit man with grey hair and white moustache. The retired brigadier from the Indian Army, Mr. Ajay Verma still carried the same authoritative aura around him.

“Intriguing”, Arjun answered smiling at his parents as his thoughts traveled to the angry looks of Neha when he had called her Sneha.

His mom, Mrinalini Verma was a retired professor from the University of Mumbai who had her specialization in English literature. “I am proud of you, Arjun. Finally you are learning new words.” She teased Arjun who otherwise preferred using simple words but today, things were actually intriguing to him.

“Mumma”, Arjun whined when his parents enjoyed at his expense.

“Arjun, Radha was asking about your opinion about Meera”, informed Ajay. Meera was Radha’s sister-in-law. A terrific fashion designer and businesswoman, Meera was a perfect example of beauty with brains but for Arjun, she was always Mayank's younger sister whom he enjoyed to tease. Her parents had sent a proposal for Arjun and Meera's marriage.

“Pa, she is Mayank's sister”, Arjun protested.

“So what, Arjun? Radha is your sister too but she had a love marriage with your best friend, Mayank.” Ajay reasoned. He wanted his son to settle down now.

“Mumma, she is like an annoying younger sister to me", Arjun tried to reason with his mom who chuckled.

“Arjun, for now I will politely tell them a ‘No' but promise me, you will find a girlfriend in Delhi”, Ajay piped in.

“Search for a wife", his mom chortled while he was speechless.

“Bye or else I will be late", he mumbled disconnecting the call while his parents laughed in the background.

It was not that he did not want to marry or he was trying to avoid the responsibilities or commitments in his life. It was simply that he had not find ‘the one' yet. All he needed was a companion to hold his hand and gaze at the faraway horizon of their lives with him. He had gone on blind dates and met beautiful girls but he had not found a connection yet. He had been into three relationships in the past but he was still unable to find the ‘special connection’ yet.

His parents had never pressurized him to get married despite, he was thirty-seven because they knew that he would make a wise choice in his life. He was fortunate to have supportive parents who had stood by his choice to take an early retirement from the military or when he had joined in the bank. Pestering for a marriage was out of question!

His thoughts traveled back to the slim figure in pink sari with a gloomy face on the previous morning during the metro ride as he ignited the engine and drove to work.

•••••••••••••••♥️•••••••••••••••

Hi everyone

So, this is the Sunday treat 😂

Arjun has a jovial side too 😉

Arjun’s parents are normal individuals like we see around ourselves, right!!! 😜😜😜😜

So, we have one bad mother and one cool one in this story! 😉

How's Bruno? See, I am not a dog person (I am cyanophobic, actually) but this is the best I could write. I am anxious, do share your views. 🙏🏻🙏🏻🙏🏻

Bruno is waiting for your views anxiously!! 💫

With immense love, I sign off only to be back soon 💜