And Mondays were never the same | Short Story Part 2

After an overwhelming response from all you lovely readers on the story below, I had to consider a part 2 to the #RohanandRhea short story. Many of you asked me questions like “So is Rohan married? What happens next? DO they fall for each other?”

I hope Part 2 gives you some answers, and leaves you just as intrigued as Part 1 did. :)

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Rhea was to turn 26 after 2 weeks. While she was supremely excited about the much awaited 3 days road trip that her girlfriends had planned for her birthday, Rhea’s parents were on a whole new dimension.

Staying alone in Mumbai, it was a mandate to make at least 2 calls to her parents back in Delhi. And like most Indian middle class families, her neighbours, uncles and aunts were more desperate than her own parents to get her married. Inevitably, every conversation ended with her mother trying to convince her to make marriage the priority.

Not that Rhea didn’t want to get married. In fact as a kid, the whole idea of marriage excited her to the core. She fancied herself in the Red attire brimming with bangles and necklaces. For her, marriage was all about being given lots of gifts, expensive jewellery and new dresses. But as she grew up, the little girl inside realized that marriage is much more than the definition she knew.

You had to leave your parents, settle in new surroundings and be around people you barely know. She was still trying her best to get comfortable with this conversation and buy herself a year or two before her parents left her with no choice but to settle down.

Now, this was not a very pleasant morning.

After being terribly late for work, her maid calling in sick and missing her regular train by barely 2 seconds, Rhea didn’t need any more excitement for the day.

“The day is going to be a long one”, sighed Rhea as she walked hurriedly towards her workstation at 9:50 am.

An hour into the work, Rhea cleared her mails and got a few things moving. Now relaxed, she rubbed her eyes and leaned back for a moments’ relief. Just as she glanced up from her screen, she saw him.

Wearing a white shirt and black trousers, flexing his arms, Rohan looked just as handsome as he did the first time she saw him. He was engrossed in an animated conversation with his team members. Rhea was happy to see him work from her desk. She wondered if he ever peeked from his side and looked at her.

Rhea noticed his desk. “Waow. How sorted.” she thought. A dairy, laptop, wireless mouse and a bottle of water was neatly kept at measured distances. Some photos were pinned on the soft board above. She wanted to go and get a closer look at the photos. But obviously, she wouldn’t do that. 

Not now at least.

She also noticed that Rohan often tilted his head slightly to his left, a finger carefully placed over his lips and nodded in acknowledgment.

All of these thoughts got interrupted by a phone call. It was her mother. Knowing the flow of conversation, she hesitated for a moment, and then picked up.

“How is my girl doing?” said her mother cheerily.

“I am good mamma. Just got busy at work. Aap bolo.” responded Rhea.

“Listen to me. Ek bohot acha rishta aaya hai. Ladka bhi acha hai. Mumbai me hi job karta hai. Dekhlena.”

“Mummy yar please not today. Bola toh hai apko, abhi nahi karni shaadi!”, exclaimed Rhea.

“Rhea beta photo dekhle bus. Phir decide karna. Mai Whatsapp kar rahi hu.”

“But mumma…”, and before she could protest any further, the call had been disconnected and there was an image sent by her mother on WhatsApp.

Half-heartedly she opened the chat and waited for it to download. This was not the first time her mother had forced her to see a random guys’ photo.

With (more than) half of her attention on looking at Rohan and hoping he looks back at her, she looked at the image. Rohan had gotten so much inside her head that she saw Rohan’s face even in the image that her mother had sent.

Rhea brushed aside all the thoughts and re-opened the image. The guy had sharp features. He wore a blue t-shirt and was looking straight into the lens. She felt the guy looked like Rohan. A lot like Rohan actually.

She cursed her stars. Not knowing if she ever had a future with Rohan, marrying a guy who reminded her of Rohan all the more was the last thing she wanted.

Her phone beeped once again and she opened the Whatsapp sent by her mother.

“Name- Rohan Sharma

Family – Lives in Delhi

Works- as a Vice President with an MNC in Mumbai

Height – 5’11 inch”

Wait what????

She zoomed in the picture and saw the photo wide eyes for the third time. It WAS Rohan indeed. The same Rohan she has a thing for. The one who sat right across the floor! This was crazy! Was this even real or was she day dreaming?

The moment of realization made her shiver with excitement and confusion. 

It was a big deal. She could feel everything change around her. How could the world function normally? The weather should have changed, the birds should have started singing a melodious song, and gravity should have ceased to exist!

Not having any idea on what to do next, she was happy at the sudden turn of events and to finally know that Rohan was not married :)