-S H R E E   P R A S A D-  

"Good!" Madhav Sir remarks as he sips the coffee in his Styrofoam cup as he turning the pages. I'm happy he likes it. I let out a sigh of satisfaction. "Tell the peon to get one dozen photocopies of this by Monday. Do you have the soft copy of this?"

I nod.

"Keep it safe!" he orders "Do not lose it by any chance."

* * * * *

The clouds cover the sky and the sky begins to rumble. Thunder roars somewhere in the distance and lightning cracks the sky. Thunder once more rumbles and it all seems like it's happening right infront of my eyes. From the fifteenth floor, everything below me looks incredibly small. I gaze out through the window as I watch the rain drops drizzle from the sky.

The clock strikes six. Time to go home. I make a quick grab for my hand bag and brisk my way to the elevator.

I press the button summoning the elevator and wait till the doors slide open. I tap one foot impatiently waiting, when I hear a familiar pair of feet walk towards me.

It's him, again. He's busy typing something on his smartphone, and that's the only thing he has in his hand. He isn't carrying those dull coloured suitcases or those laptop bags the CEOs from movies would carry around to work. His eyes are basically glued to the phone. As the doors slide open, he puts his phone into his pocket and walks inside with me. His long finger presses on the button to the Lobby as the doors close.

"Ms. Prasad!" he exclaims seeing me "I didn't know you were-" I vaguely smile at him. "Lobby?" he asks promptly as he crosses his arms.

I nod.

* * * * *

I grope through the contents of my handbag, shuffling through my purse, my Nokia 2200, sanitary napkins, lipstick, the last letter Nanna wrote and the pepper spray searching for my umbrella. I can't find it. I'm standing at the entrance and it's a severe downpour of rain. God! I should have brought my umbrella! I wonder how I'm going to reach the railway station and then back home! I'll be fully soaked by the time I reach home! It should be somewhere! "Accio Umbrella!" I whispered but it didn't come to me. "Fhat the wuck! Where are you?"

I close my bag and cross my arms as someone rans past me and out into the open. His green shirt gets drenched in the rain as he makes a mad dash towards the gates and towards the bus halt near the gate.

A bus arrives at the halt within a few minutes and more than a dozen, who were standing in the halt squeeze their way inside the bus, pushing and shoving through the small and narrow entrance. Another stout man runs past me as fast as his legs can carry him hoping to catch the bus, and he does.

It's almost half past six and God only knows when the next bus will be coming. The sun has already set and the darkness is starting to sink in slowly. It'll be darker soon and I'm getting late. Awfully late. It's a long journey back home and I want to reach home just in time for dinner and before Ishqbaaaz starts at 10.

It's only a few drops- I convince myself, all for Shivaay Singh Oberoi. 

If Shraddha Kapoor can dance for so many rain themed songs and shoot for many romantic scenes in the rain and not-die, then I will be fine too. In the worst case scenario, I'll be catching a cold that'll stick around for two to four days. I breathe and muster all the courage I can gather.

"What the fuck are you trying to do Ms. Prasad?" I hear a familiar voice yell at me from behind and a firm and familiar grip around my arm.

I notice Madhav Sir give his car keys to the security and he scurries away towards the car park, running like a timid little church mouse being chased by a cat. The rain is falling on my head and poor chirota, his clothes are getting wet too.

"I was trying to run towards the bus-"

"In this god damned weather? It's a bloody downpour Ms. Prasad! You can fall sick if you get wet in this rain! Which way are you headed?"

"Chembur." I mutter.

"I have to go past Chembur to run a few urgent errands. Say what, I'll drop you on my way." he offers, and I turn to look at him.

Did my boss just offer to drop me at home? "It's alright sir! I can manage!"

He smirked. The security guard arrived moments later driving sir's car. He got off and handed over the keys to Madhav Sir.

"Get inside Ms. Prasad," he beckons as he combs his hair back with his fingers. I stand there. Okay! He really means it! "Get inside for God's sake Ms. Prasad!"

I think for a moment about the amount of money I'll be saving instead of spending it for the bus and the train tickets. That's almost 3 plates of chaat! I look at him! He looks like a decent guy, above all he's my boss! He doesn't look like those cheap men who would kidnap me.

I have my pepper spray in my handbag in case he tries to become too funny with me, and I know self-defense as well, to some extent! You can't mess with the eldest daughter of the brave Colonel Venkat Prasad.

As I try to open the door to the back seat, I hear him, "Front seat Ms. Prasad."  I open the door to the front seat and settle inside, beside his driving seat and close the door.

* * * * *

We are stuck in the traffic for more than half an hour and it's raining heavily! We have barely moved an inch ever since we entered the main road. I turn to look at Madhav Sir. He's highly irritated, anyone can figure out that seeing the way he's punching the horn with his fist. Why is he always in a bad mood? His irritation is so contagious!

I look out and notice the raindrops that race down the windows of sir's car, there is a thin layer of mist formed above the window. I smile to myself as I trace the letters clearly, wiping the mist as my fingers form clear letters that read "KHIDKITHOD SHREE WAS HERE :)' I start to draw a comical version of myself. I draw a girl wearing a knee length frock, a round face, big almond sized eyes, a pair of skinny limbs and long straight hair. As I finish I place my palm near the image of myself.

"Erase it Ms. Prasad." I hear the maddened Madhav sir say, "I don't fancy any form of such childish and ridiculous doodles on my car's window."

Childish and ridiculous? How dare he call my drawing that way! Will it kill him if someone doodles on his car's window! And by the way I didn't doodle on his car's window, it was on the layer of mist that hard formed on the window. I half-heartedly wipe the window, erasing everything I drew.

I decide to put on the radio and I see half a dozen devotional CD cases with bright illustrations of Gods and Goddesses and the name, all of them are by the same singer. I pick up the CD case and the title 'Lord Krishna melodies by Ms. R.V.Sharma'. Perhaps sir is a fan of this singer. Madhav Sir snatches the CD case from my hand and makes a quick grab for the rest of the CDs. He stretches and keeps the CDs in the back seat. "Don't touch my personal things, Ms. Prasad. I don't like it!"

"Sorry sir!" he adjusts himself in his seat "Can I at least put on the radio?"

As he gives a silent nod I turn the radio on and an 80's romantic song is being played. I sink back on my seat, hands creeping inside my handbag as I tighten my grip on that pepper spray.

I hum to the melody with eyes closed, and amidst the tune I hear Madhav sir swear and the next moment I realize he has offed the radio. He punches the horn again, even more furiously this time with his balled fist.

"Bloody traffic!" he mutters under his breath.

"Sir, do you know something? Had this been Shivaay Singh Oberoi or Christian Grey they would have got off their cars and would have continued on their choppers. Why don't you sell this car and buy a chopper instead! You'll be saving time, petrol and-"

"Don't tell me what to do Ms. Prasad! I bloody well know what to do!" he exclaims annoyed. He peers through the windshield and notices the vehicles infront of us moving. "Which way do I turn?"

I direct him towards the apartment I live in and within half an hour I am at home. Luckily it had stopped raining a few minutes ago.

He pulls up the car at the dimly lit curb next to the apartment I live. I live in a ten storied residential apartment in Chembur with my sister and my Amma. We have been living here ever since we moved into Mumbai after my sister Devi was born. Nanna never stayed with us as he was away serving in the Army. He would visit us at least for a fortnight in a year, and the house would feel complete, since the missing piece of the puzzle finally came back.

"Ms. Prasad, I want to ask you something..." and I nod. "Are you Tamil by any chance?"

"No. I'm Telugu."

He nods understandingly. "Give me a missed call when you go inside." Madhav sir instructs as I step out of his car. I nod closing the door and walk towards the building. He presses the horn again. I turn, "Tell your mother, that the man who splashed mud on her sari, this morning, is extremely sorry. No one intentionally splashes mud on someone and since you said the sari was a memorable one, I really feel guilty for ruining it."

I nod.

"Ms. Prasad, you better take that pepper spray to your hand. I hope it might come to use at least now."

I feel a slow blush spread throughout my face. When did he notice? Does this man has super powers or something? "See you Tomorrow sir!" I smile and walk towards the apartment.

* * * * *

I open the door to our apartment and as I walk in I hear someone coo into my ears, "Who was that who dropped you?"

It's Devi. My sister. She's a twenty year law student who's way more talkative than me. She has a fair complexion like me, and pretty much is a lookalike of me. She has many unfulfilled dreams and the potential to fulfill them with her dedication, hard work and her positive approach to life. She's a highly spirited little Minion and with her, you'll never know loneliness or boredom.

What sets us apart would be our eyes and her oval fairy-like facial features and the fact that she wears spectacles. I have brown eyes, like Nanna, and she has a pair of deep black eyes, and wavy hair of the same shade. She's wearing a red shirt and denims. "Is he your new boyfriend?"

"Stupid chiraiya!" I answer rolling my eyes as I throw my handbag on top of the sofa, "He's my new boss and he was just offering me a ride home!"

"How old is he?" she asks raising a brow at me. I ignore her and walk ahead to our bedroom, and she follows me in.

"I don't know!" I reply as I flop down onto our queen sized bed, untying my hair.

"You know something, I'd ask Mr. Google if I were you." Devi says picking up her Law Movk papers from her desk, walking out of the room.

I switch on the big desktop computer in our room. Within a few minutes and a few kicks on the system unit, we start stalking him. I gasp.

"Blimey! They have a Wikipedia page for him!"

'Madhav Ganapathi Radhakrishna Ramakrishna (born June 22, 1983) is the current deputy CEO of Ramakrishna Group of Companies. He was born in West Bandra, Mumbai to Radhakrishna Ramakrishna, famously known as RK Ramakrishna (1950- present), the current CEO of Ramakrishna Group of Companies and the famous devotional playback singer Rukmini Vasu Sharma (1953-1987)'

Does that mean she's dead? I click on her name, and another page opens in a new tab. Yes she is!

'Rukmini Vasu Sharma (December 18 1953- July 15 1987) is a famous devotional playback singer who releases devotional songs under her stage name R.V.S....'

Oh My Mata! So those CDs in the car were by his mother and if she died in 1989 and Sir was born in 1985, he have been four years old when his mother died.

I go back to the Wikipedia page about Madhav Sir.

'Madhav also finished his Masters and PhD at the Oxford University, London. He then served as an external auditor for a renowned telecommunications company in Mumbai until 2012. In July 2012 he joined Ramakrishna Group of Companies as the deputy CEO. He is the founder and Managing Director of Blue Flame (2013) and Demure (2012). He has been winning the Businessman of the Year award for three consecutive years. He is also recognised as India's most-'

I hear my phone ring. I run to the living room as I fish out my phone from my bag the ringing stops. There are four missed calls from an unknown number. Some dictionary head must be trying to mess with me.

Two days ago I got a call from an unknown man who wanted me to settle the bill for all the alcohol he drank at a local tavern. Surely it must be him or someone else who's caught for something like drunken driving and needs a random stranger to bail him out at this odd hour.

My phone rings again and it's from the same unknown number. I pick up the call. "Who the funky fish are you? And why are you calling me again and again? Will you stop calling me or should I come over and perform your final rites? Shameless bloody-"

"Whoa whoa!" I hear a calm and familiar voice. "Is this Ms. Prasad speaking?"

I want to smash my head on the wall. It's him! Madhav Sir! "Yes sir! This is Ms. Prasad speaking."

"You were supposed to give me a call when you reached home!" he says. I mumble a quick apology. "Never mind! I know you're safely at home, now. Goodnight Ms. Prasad!"

"Goodnight Sir!"

To be continued...

Glossary
Nanna- Father ( in Telugu)
Ishqbaaaz- A popular Indian TV show
Chirota- boy
Chembur- a place in Mumbai
Chaat- a roadside food items
KHIDKITHOD- a word equivalent to "AWESOME"
Amma- Mother
Chiraiya- girl
Oh My Mata- a word equivalent to "Oh My God"

-How was this chapter?

-Which part of the story did you like?

-Let me know your reviews and comments through your valuable comments and votes!