Falling In Love With You

Chapter -14

" No matter what the situation might be , no matter what you are going through , always do right by whatever you're doing Vasudha . Millions of obstacles , problems , difficulties may come your way but conquering them paves the path to your success ..." Were the words that drifted into her mind as Vasudha stood near her cubicle with her hands gripping the headrest of the black ergonomic chair . Ever since her mother's demise it was her mother's words that kept her company in her darkest times , it was her mother's words that gave her the strength to go on with her life . Now her mother's words made her see the path before her clearly. She realised that no matter what might happen she should tread on to seize what she had desperately wanted all these years , and for which she took up this job in the first place.
Vasudha's mind was now limpid , she exhaled audibly and came around the chair. She sat in her chair carefully while holding on to the armrest tightly so that it wouldn't slide away on the tiled floor because of her heaviness. The chair was comfortable albeit an awkwardness in Vasudha's mind. She reduced the chair height and settled in in her working space . She logged into her desktop , while the server started loading she gave a quick glance around her , by now Nandini's desktop was set up as she too started typing away in her computer while Shyam was still setting up Harish's monitor.
Vasudha turned to her other side to a giggling sound and saw it was Shreya who was still laughing at what Rahul had said earlier to her . When Shreya realised Vasudha was looking at her , a slight flush tinted Shreya's cheeks , she flashed Vasudha an embarassed smile " Oh! I'm sorry Vasudha... didn't mean to be so loud but Rahul , he is the one who is making me laugh with his stupid jokes. It happens all the time Vasudha, don't mind us , just carry on with your work !" . " It's alright Shreya. Just laugh your heart out , it's good for health you know..." Vasudha told Shreya with a smile. " Oh ! Don't encourage her ,Vasudha , then she would be laughing the whole day like a maniac." Rahul chimed in . " Hmm... Shreya seems to be a nice girl , a hoyden who likes to keep the people around her happy and Rahul strikes me as a person who is fun loving and a cheerful kinda guy. They seem pretty close to each other but definitely not in a romantic way ...may be they must have known each other for quite sometime..." .These thoughts flitted in Vasudha's mind and she saw the two of them bickering with each other. A smile curved up her lips as it made her to, remember the days when she and Sathish would quarrel with each other over mundane things. Vasudha shook away those memories and concentrated on the work at hand.
Vasudha went through the requirements of the module in her e-mail and started to plan on it's foundation. After shaping up a vague outline in her mind she started coding. Vasudha was one of those people who is always dedicated to her work , she is someone who always gives the absolute hundred percent concentration to anything she does.
A few minutes passed by and something nagged at her concentration and it bothered her , for few seconds she couldn't focus on her work . There was a constant noise that came from quite some feet away , at first Vasudha couldn't appreciate what was it but as the sound came closer it became clear, she realised it was the clicking of stilletos against the tiled floor. Vasudha thought it was only her who got disturbed by that sound but when she turned around she noticed that a few people from the other side of the aisle were also looking in the direction from where the sound came. As soon as they realised who it was they turned away and resumed their work , but a few men kept on looking in the same direction with a dazed look in their eyes. This piqued Vasudha's interest so she turned and saw the owner of the noise. She saw a petite woman in a lilac coloured kurta paired with ankle length leggings. By now the woman was closer to their station and Vasudha could make out the person's face. She had beautifully large expressive eyes , a delicate button nose and full pouty lips. She was a stereotypical beauty with a hourglass shaped body and a gorgeous face , only now it hit Vasudha why the men were so dazed by her arrival ; the woman was drop-dead beautiful.
The woman reached the other side of the station and took the seat next to Rithika. The room was quiet except for a mild buzzing of the air conditioner and the typing sounds. Vasudha resumed her work but she heard two people talking in hushed tones on the other side. " Why didn't you pick your phone Thara? . Why the heck don't you call me and update me on your whereabouts huh? I left you dozens of messages and all my phone calls went straight to voicemail. Do you have any idea how difficult it was for me to cover up for you ? Thank God Saravana didn't hound me about you. " Rithika whisper yelled at the woman whom Vasudha realised was Thara. " I'm really sorry Rithu ! You know it was entirely my alarm's fault , that damn thing didn't go off when it should have. So I slept in and woke up really late. I'm sorry ... But thank you Rithu! I really don't know what I would have done without you." Vasudha heard Thara say this.
" Hmm...it's alright don't do this again Thara. Better yet change the damn alarm . Now get started with your work Thara." She heard Rithika say . After that Vasudha didn't hear anything except for the shuffling sounds from the other side.
Although Vasudha didn't like to hear their conversation , it floated in the air and made their way into her ears , however her fingers never stopped their dance over the keyboard. But what she heard next from Thara's mouth made her to pause for a minute with her hands suspended in the air , a few millimetres over the keyboard of her computer.
" Hey Rithu ...Rithuuu...listen to me .." Vasudha heard Thara call out Rithika.
" Hmm...what is it Thara?" Rithika asked her friend in a slightly irritated tone.
" I just wanted to ask you why there are strange people here and why are they occupying those empty stations? And... hey Rithu..? " Thara urged Rithika to answer her. "Hmm...?" " Why is there a large sized pumpkin stuffed into our office chair that too a blue coloured one on the other side?" Thara asked Rithika and laughed at her own comment. This must have caught Rithika's attention, for she giggled and said " Ohoo , hush it Thara ...she might hear you . Well you can't be more right but she has just joined our team , she came in this morning and so are the other strangers. Your man Pallavan has been busy since morning. He went into his cabin as soon as the meeting with the Vice President ended and he hasn't stepped out since then. It's all because of this new Australian project that we've to work alongside these people."
Vasudha heard their verbal exchange , she thought it was only her who heard their conversation but a hand grasped her fingers in a comforting way and when Vasudha looked up, it was Shreya who was looking at her with a compassion , concern like a lifelong friend but her eyes showed the anger that boiled in the depths of her brown eyes. Shreya started to rise from her chair but Vasudha held on to her fingers firmly and stopped her. She signalled Shreya that that was not the right time , especially not the right thing to do. Shreya huffed out her frustration but she nodded her assent and sat in her chair.
However, Vasudha realised that the conversation on the other side was not finished yet. " You know Thara it has been more than two years. There is no one as beautiful , poised , and elegant as you in this entire office and someone who is capable of loving a grumpy man like Pallavan in this whole world. You have been following Pallavan like a lost puppy , this can't go on forever Thara . You should make a move. You should do something to make him fall for you. Even if anything goes south I'm always there for you." Vasudha heard Rithika speak these words.
" Hmm...your absolutely right Rithu ! Ummm... I promise you Rithika ! this diwali will be mine and Pallavan's 'Thala Deepavali'" Vasudha heard Thara say in a triumphant tone . With that last being spoken, Vasudha didn't hear anything more from the girls.
Vasudha carried on with her work , although it enraged her to hear them comment about her size and how she looked, it even made her to think of thrashing them harshly but something else kept on repeating in her mind . It was the way Thara said Pallavan's name in an ownness , an ownness that Vasudha never even dared to let it take root in her heart in all these years she had known him.