Serendipity

24

"I'm so sorry," Kavya purred as she picked up some tissue paper to wipe the spill off Anuj's shirt. Anuj had been walking around talking on his phone when Kavya had "accidentally" bumped into him, spilling some of her coffee on his shirt in the process.

"It's okay, I have a spare shirt, I'll change," Anuj responded trying his best to distance himself from Kavya. Anupama's decision to remain friends hadn't elevated his mood in any way and now Mrs. Shah, as usual, was trying to create a scene in a place where Anuj couldn't respond without lack of restraint. This woman seemed to have a knack for bumping into him always at the wrong time.

"No, no, please let me help," Kavya stepped closer to him, her lips, a breath away from his face, and began wiping the stain off his shirt while sensuously rubbing her other hand on his chest.

Anuj raised his head, uncomfortable with the way he could feel Kavya's breath on his neck. "Mrs. Shah," he tried to reason, bringing her attention to the gaping media that was clearly having a good time at his expense. He pulled a handkerchief out and wiped his forehead. He was sweating in an air-conditioned environment. If only it had not been about Anupama's future.

All of the media had stopped doing what they were and had begun to look at the two. A few had their camera reels running recording this very gossip-worthy footage. He could hear loud whispers and interesting speculations.

The sniggering sounds and snide remarks only added fuel to the fire. Kavya Shah was embarrassing him publicly. If she thought she could get away with this cheap act of hers, she had another thing coming. Taking a deep breath, he was about to push her away, damn the media, when he spotted Anupama walking into the Conference Room.

*****

Anupama was not surprised by what she saw. This wasn't the first time she was seeing and experiencing something like this. After all, she had caught Kavya and Vanraj red-handed on their bed, in their bedroom on her wedding anniversary. She'd fainted then because she hadn't anticipated deceit to this degree.

But today...

She walked up to Kavya and plucked the tissues from her hand.

"I believe I can help my fiancé. Thank you."

Ignoring the look of anger on Kavya's face at being snubbed by Anupama, she turned to Anuj and handed him the spare bag that was lying at the foot of the podium.

"Your spare clothes are here. Please go change. I'll check what else is needed before the press conference begins."

Anuj gladly took the bag, mouthed a thank you to Anupama before disappearing into one of the side rooms. The look of relief and gratefulness on his face as he disappeared further irked Kavya.

Although irritated and disappointed, she nevertheless decided to put it all behind her and soldier on. After all, Rome wasn't built in a day.

She walked up to Anupama and extended her hands to shake hers.

"What a pleasant surprise Anupama, it's so nice to see you here."

Anupama smirked. "What did you expect Kavya? This press conference has been organized by my fiancé to talk about US. Of course, I was going to be here."

Before Kavya had a chance to retort, Anupama spotted GK and excused herself.

*****

Anuj's head of PR had announced the commencement of the press conference. A short disclaimer followed that the press conference would be conducted in Hindi. English news channels would have to separately reach out to the AK Group for bytes in English.