And one important thing... This story is purely fictional... Any Resemblance to any character, living or dead, places, events or whatsoever is Purely Coincidental...And the images are all from Google Images Search... And the first image is from the movie ‘The Other Man’.. It kinda suited my story... Hence, I fitted it in there... Anyway, my story is not an inch similar to the movie... Most of the other images and both the videos are from the movie Slumdog Millionaire... Do watch the video before proceeding to the next paragraph.. Just to make it a little gempak.. Haha...The author is not responsible for any damages.... And all rights reserved... This story should not be published in any forms using any kind of medias... And yeah... This story has been written in its own way... You gotta understand this first in order to understand the story...
The ones in an ordinary writing without bold or slanting roman italic- Akshaya’s perspective
The ones in a bolded writing – Jaafar’s perspective
Well yeah, this story is written in 2 different perspectives of 2 different people...
The title of my story this time around is The Other Man... The setting of this story is in India... Have fun!!! :)
The Other Man
I was lying on the bed aimlessly... I felt so empty. Life has been very tough these days. Baby Nikki, my daughter, was sleeping peacefully. She turned 4 last week. Young, cute and innocent...
All of a sudden, he popped in my mind. Out of the blue... It has been years I must say. Almost 15 years... The effect aging had on me was kinda clear to myself. Not as active as what I used to be... I am 35 now... And it feels like everything happened just yesterday... I’ve heard many times before that love begins with a smile, grows with a kiss, and ends in teardrops... That was true enough in my life... Even until today, I am not sure whether he was my friend, lover or whatsoever... All I know is that he came into my life like a thunder without warning... And left the same way... But one thing, he changed me completely... My name is Akshaya. Before, I was the ‘modern’ type of girl... How do I define modern?? Well, like most teenagers living in the year 2011... I had a social networking account. I spent most time in it. Then yeah, parties with friends... I was status conscious. I was from a rich background.. My father, Mr Gupta was a big shot at that time... I wore revealing clothes and I never gave a damn of what people think of me and so on... I was just living my life... I was just being myself.. But yeah, as what most teenagers would agree these days, life was boring enough... Studies and so on... Hated it so much... I would spend most of my time in front of my dear lappy...
I could still remember the very first time I saw him... It was in my college... Back then, I was 19... And he was one year older... I was walking out of my college and all of a sudden, in front of a sundry shop, I got a glimpse of him... He was tall and slim... 5ft6... He looked more like the Jamal Malik character in the movie Slumdog Millionaire... He was wearing a round collared t shirt inside a checkered shirt... The shirt looked kinda old and a little sandy... He had a book in his hand... I was kinda curious... Hence, I took a better look and got to know that it is a book by the famous writer, Chetan Bhagat... I was confused... Because, to be honest, he looked like a coolie, not like a student.. I was wondering why a coolie would wanna read a book...Then, all of a sudden, I heard the shop owner calling his name out... ‘Appu!!! Take these goods away!!!’ I was like... ‘What kind of a name is that?? Appu?? Haha...‘ That sounded so funny... Anyway, being status conscious, I knew I would never mix with these kinda guys... He was not even a student... He was working at young age itself... Hence, I kinda ignored his existence or almost forgot him for days... Days passed until one sunny day, everything changed... I was driving my car out of my campus.. I was listening to songs while driving... Headphone plugged in... All of a sudden, a young boy ran across a road... I could do nothing at the eleventh hour.. I rammed into him.. And he was bleeding profusely..
I was kinda panic.. I thought of just driving away when Appu came from nowhere and asked me to stop my car... He was very quick and things happened very fast... He carried the boy and asked me to send them to the hospital... I said no... Eeuww.. He was bleeding.. And my car is new... ‘No way’, I replied... He looked at my eyes.... He took a stone and threw it on the head light... It broke into pieces.. He asked, ‘now, it’s not new... is it okay now? Look here, you are responsible for it.. Don’t try to run away...’ Then, I replied arrogantly, ‘do you know who my father is??’ He replied calmly, ‘Ask your mother’... I was like what the hell is going on... To be honest, his reply was kinda made me speechless... When I think back, it sounds a little funny... He made his way into my car and took the
boy to the hospital... I was a little afraid that he might force me to donate my organs if they boy needed any.. Haha... With God’s grace, the boy was alright... I left the scene giving him an angry kinda look... That night, I couldn’t sleep.. No one has been so rude to me... People often looked high upon me because I was rich... Appu was the first one... I saw him the next day... He approached me.. I tried to move away.. But somehow, he made his way...
He said, ‘ I am sorry for what I did yesterday.. I had to. He is innocent.. It was your fault to listen to loud music while driving’... Again, arrogantly, I replied, it’s my wish and it’s none of your business’.. He smiled and gave me a sum of money for the light he damaged the day before.. I looked at him and laughed... Know what? Do you think I need your disgusting money?.. If I want, I can even buy a brand new car with the money I have... I am not like you.. poor boy... He smiled at me and told me ‘The rich would have to eat money if the poor did not provide food...’ I was speechless for the second time in my life... He left... This time around, my feelings for him changed... I felt like he criticized me twice.. And everything he said had a strong base... I decided to apologize... I didn’t know the reason but I felt like doing it... yeah.. that’s how I felt... I approached him and apologized... He looked at me and moved away carrying some stuffs from a shop... He replied nothing... A shop owner was looking at both of us... Once Appu left, he asked me what had happened.. His name was Mr Malek... I told him and he said, “Well, Appu is not like what you think girl.. You should not have been too harsh on him... His real name is Jaafar... People here call him Appu.. We love him so much... He makes us happy during hard times.. Most of the times actually... And he is a like a son to all of us.. I asked him, so what does Appu do... Does he attend college or anything like that? The man replied, ‘No Appu does odd jobs...
He has had the interest to learn since young but poverty stopped him all this while... He does all kind of odd jobs just to make ends meet... He spends most of the time on this street.. Everyone here knows Appu.. A happy go lucky child with a hardworking nature... He is a helping hand too... If he finds any job interesting, he would just pursue it.. Like for example, he washes clothes with the women, he plays with the kids and he breaks stones in the quarry to get some side income... That night... my respect for Appu or Jaafar grew even stronger... A young man with a different quality... I decided that I want him as my friend... However, I felt that his name transformation was kinda weird.. Haha... From Jaafar to Appu... Haha... ‘Cute Appu’, I thought to myself... The next day, after class, I approached him again and apologized for the second time... He tried to move away but I blocked him saying that please listen to me... I said, “ I am sorry, I am sorry, I am sorry... What else do you want me to say or do... I am really very sorry... I didn’t know that was wrong... How could I? No one was there to correct me all this while like what you did... He tried to move away again.. This time I pushed him and he fell on the bench beside... I shouted at him, ‘You want me to accept your money right... Give!!! I’ll take!!! And please forgive me!!! I kneeled down’ He couldn’t stand it anymore... He laughed as loud as he can...
That scene was kinda cute when I think back... A girl kneeling down to a guy like a love proposal.. Haha.. Total opposite... He gave me the money and I accepted... And I asked him softly, ‘can we be friends?’ He said ‘no’... I asked him why... And he said... “it’s better not to make friends with rich people... You guys are arrogant and choosy...’ I told him ‘I admit I was status conscious before but now I’ve changed a little... I believe I can change myself more if you are with me... Pleaseeeee.... ‘Do you want me to kneel again?’, I asked.. he laughed again and said ‘no’.. He continued, ‘ okay but there are certain terms and conditions to be my friend’.. I asked ‘what??’ He said, ‘First, you should respect and be polite to everyone... Don’t look at their status or whatsoever... Second, you should not talk arrogantly... Third, you should not use headphone while driving... I laughed at the third condition but I agreed.. he smiled... Well, ‘I am Appu, he said... I told him I know... Mr Malik had told me... He sighed, ‘Haizz.. Malek can never keep things to himself... ‘ I laughed and told him, ‘I am Akshaya’... He said, ‘you have a sweet name buddy’... I kinda blushed a bit and left the scene...
Days passed and we became closer... Things went on very well for both of us... We had so many arguments, yet they were all not that serious and I loved it... Finally, a new world opened to me, I thought... Appu, my best friend... He taught me a lot of things that most teenagers nowadays don’t get to experience.. He was like living in his own world... He was a step backwards, generation wise... I can see that clearly... The way he talks and does stuffs.. And that was quite different for me or at least for our generation... Once I could remember, we went for shopping... I chose a nice shirt for him.. he tried it out but he didn’t want me to buy it for him... I asked him, ‘why so? I am your friend right...’ He replied, yes you are... But how would the others on my street feel seeing me wearing new clothes and so on.. They will yearn for it too.. Am I right... They wanna look smart too.. That’s in each and every kid out there.. So, I wanna be the same as them... Please don’t take me away from them..’ I respected him more... He understands and considers the feelings of others... That night, during dinner, I asked him, ‘Hey Appu, I’ve been seeing u on the street all this while... Don’t you have a family to look after.. I am sorry if I shouldn’t ask but i thought of asking’...
Without hesitation, he took out his wallet and showed me a photo.. “This is my family.. Look at how pretty my mum is... That’s my dad, sis and brother’ he told... I was curious by now.. I asked him.. ‘where are they know’? He looked at me for a moment and tears dropped out of his eyes.. He wiped them immediately and told me with a smile.. ‘Akshaya, sometimes, in life, we love something so intensely that we tend to lose them easily.. Yes.. That’s the reason I am afraid of loving someone and building up too much expectations in me.. ‘ He stumbled in his speech when he said, ‘my father and brother were killed in a civil war during my childhood days in the place I was born... It happened in a blink of an eye... Three men, heavily armed broke into our wooden house..’ At this point, he couldn’t help it anymore.. He cried... I was shocked.. This is the first time I am seeing a grown up guy crying like a baby... He continued, ‘I didn’t even know what was happening.. I was seven at that time... They shot my father and my brother who was 12 at that time tried to fight them off but they slashed him into pieces...
I witnessed it.. and my mum covered both me and my sister’s eyes... We were hiding in a box.... All three of us were save but life changed a lot then after.. Being traumatised was one part... The only source of income, my dad was gone and we had our terrible days in our lives... We lived in poverty... One day, I saw my sister lying on the table without a word and I got to know she was no more due to some disease caused by lack of a proper diet... I stopped schooling and did odd jobs then after to make ends meet.. My mother is ill now back in my hometown... I send her money every month for her treatment... He rested his head on the table while telling me... He couldn’t stand it anymore... He broke down into tears that night.. I looked at him... I could feel what he was going through.. I never knew a man who looked so complete from the outside had been going through something like this all this while... I learnt something very important that day... Do not judge a book by its cover... He might look so complete from outside, but inside he is dying... His smiles were fake just to make others happy...
I brushed his hair and told me everything is gonna be fine... I made him stand and wiped his tears... I’ve never done that to anyone... But I felt I had to do it at that time... He needed someone so badly that moment.. All of a sudden, he rested his head on my shoulders and I never said a word... I kept hugging him... There was a moment of silence between us... Suddenly, he took his head away and told me, I am sorry Akshaya... I made you cry listening to my story... He tried to sound as if everything was alright... ‘Look it’s raining!!! He said... Know what...My mum often tells me not to cry because when I cry, the whole world cries with me and it rains... Haha.. Look, it’s true!!!’ Have you tried dancing in the rain, he asked me... I said no... My father would kill me... He said, ‘Oh my God, you are missing things then!! It’s fun!!! Let’s dance... Have you ever come across this quote, ‘Anyone who says sunshine brings happiness has never danced in the rain... Dont miss the fun!!! Let’s go..’ And yeah, we did dance under the rain that day... It was a different experience for me... It was like a bird kept in a cage for so long has been released... finally...
I felt sick but falling sick wasn’t the thing now.. I had fun and that’s important... That is what Appu taught me.. Live like there is no tomorrow and you wouldn’t regret even if you were to die today... Make a choice and don’t regret... That night, my feelings for him changed a little... But I did not want to think about it too much... I am afraid of things.. So, I just ignored those changes... But I seriously liked Appu more... and his boyish kinda look... Hahaha... He emphasized on many things that our generation don’t even think of doing... We spent time together after class... I even introduced him to my mum... I told her what happened in his life and she treated him like her own son... He would come to my house once in a while... We would do stuffs together and so on.. He changed me in a lot of ways.. He criticized me for the way I lived... For example, he dragged me away from the world of social networking.. He was at my place once and I was logging in my account... He asked me what it was all about.. I explained it.. And he said... ‘Know what, you people these days are funny... You have a nice family and yet you don’t wanna appreciate it... You guys opt to chat and have fun with people who are out of your sight.. You don’t even know them as much as you know your family members and yet you wanna give them a higher priority than your family members... And to add things, you guys poke them... Haha.... That’s funny..
He paused and continued in a wishing tone... How nice if we could switch places... I want my family... I wanna live with them, talk to them and play with them... If I am you, I would not be spending my time on this.. Anyway, it’s just my personal opinion... I replied without hesitation, ‘well, you don’t know about my family.. Daddy is always busy and spends a little time with the family... Mum is busy doing the house chores... He replied, ‘Well you can’t make time, you have to find time... It’s not necessary that you should only talk to them when they are doing nothing... Know what Akshaya... The world is getting busier and so do the people... So, no reasons.. Shut down your lappy now.. And go talk to your mum... I did as he said... I went willingly to talk to my mum for the first time in my life... ‘Mummy, what r u cooking?’, I asked intensely... “Don’t you have eyes ? I’ve been cooking these for years and yet you wanna ask’, she kinda yelled at me.. That’s what she does when she is busy... I went back to my room and told Appu. “Look! I told you!! Nothing is gonna happen... I was happy with my lappy, you made my mum scold me! Hate you!!! I said like a little girl with a red face. He looked at me and said, “hey i’ve got an idea... I’ll write you something and you say it to your mum’... I said, NO WAY!! Not gonna receive any more scolding because of you!!! He asked, ‘do you trust Appu??’ ... I nodded...’ Then do as what I say.. Will you??’ I nodded once again... He took a piece of paper and wrote something... He passed it to me... I went to the kitchen again..I was kinda nervous but Appu assured that everything will be fine.. I started in a soft voice... She yelled at first but then she slowly started to listen...
Mummy, you are the God I bow to as soon I as I wake up every morning...
You are the epitome of love, there is no one like my mummy...
Mummy, you protected me every day and night like the eyelids...
The sky and earth are so small before your love...
A woman becomes complete only when she becomes a mother...
And you are the woman whom I completed as you completed me in this world...
Without you, I am nothing...
Cause you are my everything...
My love, my pearl, my flower and my first love...
Yes mummy,
You are my everything....
She was dumbstruck for a moment... She hugged me immediately... She said, ‘I am sorry dear.. I haven’t spent much time with you for the past few years. My bad... Will you forgive me?? I said, ‘No mum, it’s okay.. It’s just me who isolated myself from all of you’.. She dropped the spoon she was holding and quickly asked me,’ Do you wanna go out dear??’ I was like, ‘ oh my God... How could mum change in a second....’ Happily, with a broad smile on face, I replied, yes mum!!! And we went out that day and had a great day together... As we left the doorway, I looked at Appu who was hiding behind my room door... He showed me the thumbs up sign... We met the next day.. I was on ecstasy.. ‘Thanks Appu.. I’ve never been so happy in my life... How could you do it?? I got back my mum after years.. This is the life I used to live in my childhood days... Where did you get the script?? He replied, ‘haha.. Glad to hear that... I got it from a movie’s song.. Well Akshaya, it’s not important to just watch a movie or to listen to a song.. It’s important to take the message in it... At least for me.. Because I don’t read much movies or read much books.. Never had enough money for these stuffs... So, I try to scrap off all that I can from those few I’ve read and watched... This is one of them... Sometimes, in life you gotta tell how much a person means to you.. You can’t expect them to know.. After all, they are not mind readers...
Then, the Chetan Bhagat book he was reading during the first time I saw him came to my mind.. Hence, I asked, do you love books by Chetan Bhagat?? He nodded.. and continued, ‘Well yeah.. He gives me a lot of inspiration.. I love his books... Well, everyone needs inspiration.. No one can be inspired by themselves.. I am sure Mr Chetan had his inspiration from another person as well.. So, all we can do is the pass the inspiration and the messages around... From that day onwards, he changed my lifestyle.. A lifestyle hardly teenagers nowadays can get... I travelled a lot.. I didn’t lock myself up in the room... Went to my relatives house often.. Helped mum and dad... Relationship was the main thing for me... My social networking account was full of messages and stuffs but I ignored them... I admired everything around me... Kids, nature, flowers, bumble bee, raindrops, and so on... and yeah of course my parents... My dull life became colourful...
But I had zero interest one thing.. studying.. haha.. I was basically trying my best at it but I couldn’t succeed... I started staying back after classes in a shop beside the street to study with Appu... He often told me, ‘One day, I wanna be a successful person and own this street and change the fate of people here’... He had great interest in business studies... unlike me... He would take my books and flip through the pages... He sparked my interest on books too... He often told me... ‘My hero, Aamir Khan has always told that don’t run behind success.. Go for excellence and success will come after you... Yeah, he was an avid Aamir Khan fan.. Study for efficiency.. Be sincere in whatever you do... These were his words... Appu was just an ordinary boy next door but the changes he brought in me were magical... Of course he had great looks.. Cute and handsome boyish kinda look as I mentioned earlier... We did a lot of craziest thing that you can’t even imagine... Once, I could remember, I had an exam.. A public exam and I registered for it in a centre near to my house... Not in my college... And I could not complete my revision for it... I was lazy... But Appu was different... He took my books and read as much as he could.. After finishing up all his odd jobs.. That would be really tiring but yeah... Appu could handle them..
Back to the exam.. I wasn’t prepared at all... I told Appu... I was crying... Appu told me not to give up... ‘There is no point being scared or whatsoever...,’he continued... In life, you gotta face no matter how many challenges you face... Without obstacles, you can’t feel being alive... I continued studying but seriously. I am not a robot to end up my revision in one day before the exam... I’ve never shared all this with a guy.. But I did with Appu.. I told him, ‘Im scared my dad would kill me if I failed in these papers.. He has a good reputation in the society.. among his friends.. I don’t wanna bring his name down.. Oh God... Please help me!!!’ Appu replied, ‘ you should have thought of this when you were making fun of my advices when we were studying... I’ve told you 1000 times, don’t study for the sake of doing it.. just because you are suppose to do it... do it for efficiency and you would be ever ready.. just like me... I read your books but I am far much prepared than you are.’ I told him, “ Appu... Don’t make fun of me...
Think of a solution instead... Please.. I promise I would be a good girl after this.. I’ll study diligently.. Just help me this one time...’ Appu asked me, ‘Will you study after this??’ I nodded... “just once, please Appu.. help me...’ Appu continued, ‘I have an idea but it is very risky and I am doing it for you...’ I was curious by then, What is it Appu?? He asked me, ‘Does anyone knows you in this exam centre.. “Hell no’, I replied.. Never been there before...He continued, what if I sit for the exam using your identity?? I said, ‘That’s so lame of you Appu.. That can never happen... I am a girl for heaven’s sake..’ He replied, ‘no problem, change me into a girl...’ I burst into laughter... Hahaha... That sounded like a stupid idea but that was the only option left.. I decided to take the risk... It wasn’t that hard transforming Appu’s boyish kinda look into a girl’s look... All we needed was a wig and some other stuffs.. And yeah... We made it!!! Appu went into the exam hall as Akshaya..
No one suspected!! Even some guys gave him some love letters and teased him... That shows how pretty Appu looked being a girl... Hahaha... That day was a day to remember... Since then, I studied hard as I promised to Appu.. not for grades... for my self-efficiency.. And that’s the reason I have a Masters in Business Administration today...I still have the photo of Appu dressed up as a girl... Hahaha.. That was funny.. In a nutshell, I could say that he changed my life... I could see that he cared for me not for who I am but just because of me.. That’s exactly what I’ve been finding for all these years... He has never asked for financial assistance even though he knew that I was a rich businessman’s daughter... Once I had an acute throat pain... I told him about it and he was kinda worried the whole day.. He suggested me a way which I’ve never tried before.. He asked me to guggle with salt water.. I was like, ‘that’s kinda new for me.. I think it’s okay... I’ll drink the medicine’... He forced me into doing it and guess what, ‘ It healed the next day!!’ He said his granny taught that when he was young... But yes, scientifically, it is true that guggling with salt water is a cure... Months passed and we became closer... I tried not to think to much about stuffs such as I like him and so on... But I knew my feelings were betraying me.. Expectations start building up in me.. Maybe it’s because Appu was different from many guys I’ve met in my life...
He never took advantage of me... A very decent guy I would say... We have been alone many times but he would take care of me like a little girl... I respected him a lot for that... He has even commented on the way I dress up once... I told him, ‘it’s my wish and rights to dress up as I want.. I asked him, ‘why are you so shallow minded??’ He replied, ‘Yes you are right, it’s okay for you to dress up as you want but please change your nationality at least.. It hurts for me to see an Indian girl born in India to wear clothes like this... Don’t forget we are from a land where culture plays a major part..
Andre Malraux once said, ‘Culture is the sum of all the forms of art, of love, and of thought, which, in the coarse or centuries, have enabled man to be less enslaved’..
Mahatma Gandhi once reflected our nature of being patient by not using violence through his own principle of Ahimsa.. That showed our Indian culture as a positive culture to the world... What will the world think when they see Indian women wearing like what you are wearing now..’ I asked him back,’But I am not the only one wearing like this.. A lot of girls do wear like this’... He replied, ‘If you can’t change all of them, at least change yourself... If you can’t do great things, at least do small things with love.. Will ya?’ I was dumbstruck.. I couldn’t say a word against his statement... For the first time in my life, I felt the responsibility for my country.. Never felt patriotic before... Even after so many efforts by people around me... But that day... I felt my responsibility as an Indian woman to reflect my culture to the world... It’s not that I started wearing saree all the time then after.. It’s just that I wore proper, decent clothes then after...
Slowly, I was about to complete my degree..... I confirmed my love for Appu one night.. It was my birthday.. We had a grand celebration in my house.. Dad arranged everything... I called Appu too... He came and stood at one corner... After the celebration, we went to a disco... All my friends including Appu.. But Appu isolated himself a lot that night.. I approached him and asked him... “What’s wrong Appu?? Why are you isolating yourself? Come and dance...’ With a terrified face, he replied, “I am not used to these kinda wild dances.. They are very violent... This place is not safe Akshaya.. Dark and full of drunk people.. Can we just go somewhere else??’
I was like, ‘ oh God, please Appu, don;t humiliate me.. My friends are here.. Just come and dance...’ I told him several times... But he refused... He said, ‘Can we go somewhere else and dance?? I mean a safer place??’ I got angry by now... I yelled at him, ‘Appu, what’s wrong with you?? Why are you so stubborn?? Can’t you even dance for a day?? You irritate me a lot.. Where else do you wanna dance??! ‘ He was quiet.. He said softly, ‘If you are willing to follow me, I’ll bring you to a better place and we can dance there. Don’t worry, I’ll make sure you friends don’t know that you left the disco.. Will you??’ I asked him, ‘Where else then??’ He said, ‘just follow, don’t ask a word...’ I nodded and he kidnapped me out of the disco... There was a bicycle outside... He placed me in front and started riding it... He covered my eyes and took me to... Well, I didn’t know at first... My eyes were covered but I trusted Appu so much... We reached our destination... He remove the blind fold and I realised that I was on the street beside my college.. Street where Appu lives... Everyone was holding a candle and they sang birthday wishes loudly for me irrespective of gender, age, races and so on... I was on cloud nine.. No one has ever celebrated in such a way.. They were all there just for me unlike my previous celebrations where most guests attend to maintain a good rapport with my father.. His business partners mostly... They couldn’t afford a big cake but a small cake was very meaningful... Appu came out of nowhere giving me a birthday present.. It was a smiling Barbie doll... Appu said, Happy birthday Akshaya... No matter how old you get, never forget Appu and whenever you are in sadness, look at this doll.. This doll must always remind you that you haven’t grown up, so there is no need for you to take things seriously... And there is no need for you to be sad.. Never... okay?’.. I nodded...
The street was brightly lit... They celebrated for me... They danced for a couple of songs.. It was very vibrant and colourful I must say.. On top of all, it was far much different from what would have been in a disco...People of all ages were dancing unlike disco where people get drunk and dance wildly... They were all cheering for me... I realised how much Appu has changed my life at that point.. From a status conscious, arrogant girl to the present Akshaya... I danced as well... The dance sequence was more like a scene from the movie Slumdog Millionaire.. The song Jai Ho... It was as if Appu was Jamal Malik and I was Latika... I enjoyed that night... I tell this from the bottom of my heart...
After the celebrations, Appu was riding me back home... On our way back home, I asked him, why did you prepare so much for me Appu? I am just an ordinary girl...’ He smiled and said... ‘No Akshaya... You are not even close to ordinary... You are my destiny’... We were speechless after that.. Upon return, I couldn’t sleep that night.. I was in love with Appu.. I knew he was in love with me too.. I decided not to hesitate any longer and just tell him the next day... I knew there were differences between us.. Example religion and status but I was pretty sure that I wanted him in my life...by hook or crook... I was even imagining both of as couples that night itself... “Jaafar weds Akshaya’, that sounds terrible I thought to myself... Hmmmm.... Yeah, “Appu weds Akshaya” sounds nicer!!! :) Appu+Akshaya=Appuya!! Hahaha
The sun shined... Next day... The day which was about to change a lot of things... I called him out for dinner... It was suppose to be a ‘meet my friend’ dinner.. My friends followed.. But I knew my main agenda was to tell him that I loved him... After dinner, we were all talking... All of a sudden, out of the blue, I said, ‘Appu, have you ever wondered how would it be if we were couples??’ He replied, ‘You must be kidding Akshaya... Hahaha’. I was kinda confused.. I decided to be open... ‘Appu, I love you... Not yesterday or today but for 3 years that I’ve known you... I’ve never been brave enough to even think about it fearing that I might lose control of myself.. But seriously, yes Appu.. Everything changed last night... I admit, I love you’...
Then came the words from him which I wished he never uttered, ‘Look Akshaya, I’ve never liked you in that way... I was just your friend... What can I do if you misunderstand me...’ I felt like my whole world came crashing down... I shouted at him in front of my friends out of frustration, ‘What the hell are you saying... Then why on earth, did you say I am your destiny and so on?’ He asked me in return, ‘Is it wrong to tell a friend she is my destiny? You got the wrong message Akshaya.. Don’t put the blame on me’. I couldn’t stand it anymore.. Out of anger and frustration, I slapped him... I shouted, ‘you are fake Appu!! You made me feel so complete, so special, yet you broke me into pieces in just one day... I regret knowing you!! You fooled me with your words... You are the worst mistake I’ve done in my life and this is the worst day of my life!!! I told him everything that came out my mouth and he was just standing like a statue.. Finally I shouted at him, Now, I know why God took away your family members at every stage of your life’... Upon ending my sentence, it rained and I could see tears dropping out of his eyes... I remembered him saying once that his mum told him, when he is sad, the whole world becomes sad and it rains... Anyway, anger exploded in me and particularly hatred... I told him, ‘I don’t wanna see your face ever again in my life!!! Get lost!!!’... It was raining heavily and I left him under the rain...
Since then, I decided not to trust guys anymore... I lost hope in love and I decided that I would just marry the guy that my dad finds for me... I never saw him again.. I told bad stuffs about him to all my friends in order to forget things as fast as possible... My friends would scold him in front of me... But I knew he deserved those scolding.. He ruined my life... One of my friends told me, ‘love can always be trusted...it’s just the people we love that can make us to lose hope in love’... She was very true... Sometimes people are just too good with their words and I hate it when I fall for it.. ‘I got my lesson now’, I thought...Tears did flow when I think about him and everything that happened between us...
I can’t say he is completely bad now because he changed my life in many ways and made me a stronger person.. I knew I gained a lot from him... But why did he behave like that?? I couldn’t accept it.. I don’t even know where or what is he doing now... He came like a thunder and vanished just like one... I loved him not for what he is but for who I am when I am with him... You know you are in love when you can't fall asleep because reality is finally better than your dreams.. But reality changes at times and that hurts the most... One thing I’ve learnt is that if we are to judge of love by its consequences, it more nearly resembles hatred than friendship.. I’ve heard of all these before but now I realise how true all these were..All of a sudden, the door bell ring and baby Nikki was crying...
I rushed to the door and opened it... To my surprise, it was Appu... or in his real names, Jaafar... He looked very different, a small soul patch beard under his lips and he looked very smart with a briefcase and full formal attire... I was in a deep state of shock... “How on earth did he find me?? Why is he here??’.. My shock was doubled when I saw Karthik behind Appu... Oh yeah, I didn’t mention about Karthik right... Well, Karthik is a successful businessman and Mr Gupta’s son-in-law and baby Nikki’s father... Yes, you are right.. He is my husband... I married him couples of years after the day everything ended between me and Jaafar... We started off nicely but after a few years, our relationship strained.. I did everything perfectly as I’ve transformed into a traditional girl long ago even when I was with Jaafar... However, Karthik was the one who sparked problems in our home... He comes home late... and to be honest, he is an abusive husband... He consumes alcohol a lot and treats me like an animal... He behaves like a savage animal... And his words were terrible... I’ve regretted marrying him a lot of times... If I was happy with him, I am sure Jaafar would not have made it into my mind... at least once again... I would have forgotten who Jaafar is... Few days back, Karthik brought a woman back home... When I asked, he slapped me and left home... Baby Nikki and I were alone until this very day... I was basically lying on the bed with bruises and grief... To my horror, he came back with a guy I used to love... I felt a chill running down my spine fearing that Jaafar might have told Karthik about my past...
All of a sudden, something that I did not expect happened... Karthik hugged me and apologized for his behaviour all this while.. Now, my shock tripled... I was speechless... Jaafar was speechless too... Karthik has never behaved like this... However, I was happy that my man has changed... Finally.. After 2 years of misery, he has changed... Then, he explained everything... It seemed that being angry with me, Karthik flew to the United States of America... That’s where he met Jaafar or Mr Jaafar as what Karthik addresses him, the famous Indian businessman... Jaafar was there to give a motivational talk... After the talk, they met and Karthik shared his problems... Jaafar has told him his past life including my part with him... In fact, that was the major part... However, Karthik didn’t know that it was me who Jaafar mentioned... Same goes to Jaafar.. He didn’t know that it was me that Karthik mentioned... He thought it would be some Indian girl... He was in a shock too... However, both of us pretended as if we didn’t know each other quite well.... Karthik kept telling stuffs about Jaafar... And most of it, to be honest, I knew... That night... all 3 of us watched an interview with Jaafar, the Indian businessman on a tv channel... Apparently, it was an exclusive interview on the famous programme called Meet The Millionaire....
The Interviewer asked Jaafar, ‘sir, what’s the secret behind your success? Jaafar replied, “Going back to my roots, I could still remember my childhood days... Those were the terrible days... I had a tough time growing up and I came to Chennai with a slight hope that things might change... I did not even have a single penny at that time... My secret of success, I would say... A girl... As all of us know, a woman stands behind every man’s success.. But back then, when I was younger, I had a strong opinion that girls find for successful men and cling onto them.. Well yeah... haha.. That was sarcastic but that was what I believed in till I met this girl.. I would not reveal her name.. But she proved me wrong.. She was rich and yet she liked me so much... Without her, I would not have been who I am today.. She provided me with books to study... I never had a degree in anything... But she gave me an informal education without realising it.. I had never been to a college and I never had any business books for my own revision and so on... Interviewer continued, ‘So sir, I believe that she is Mrs Jaafar now...’ Jaafar continued, ‘No, she is not.. I had to leave her at that time and I did... It ended up just like that.. She disappeared just like that... We never met again...’
Interviewer proceeded, “I am really sorry sir.. I thought the other way... Anyway, do you wish to meet her again? And yeah, you said things ended... so, did you feel it was all useless?” Jaafar said, “well no, I’ve never felt that way... She brought a lot of changes in me and I brought a lot of changes in her... She thought I was the one changing her but she did not realise how much she has helped me...education wise, made me a better person, and provided me with love and so on... She changed me too... On top of everything, she gave me a loving family which I needed at that time... I was like part of her family... I can proudly say that our relationship was two ways rather than one way... We both earned something unlike most broken relationships where only one party earns the benefit and the other suffer terrible depression... Regarding your first question, yes I would like to meet her again if she is not married... I wanna marry her and tell her how much I loved her... Know what? The hardest thing in love is not when you get rejected in love, it is when you never get a chance to tell that person you love him or her... That happened in my life... But if she is married, I hope I’ll never get to see her again... I don’t wanna make a mess in her life again‘... Interviewer finished the interview giving me another shock,’ thanks a lot sir.. so, that’s our exclusive interview with Mr Jaafar, the man who recently changed the fate of millions through his Appuya Street Project... He has developed the street and people there are living a better life now.. Thank you sir.. “
As I watched that interview, tears fell from my eyes but I covered it... However, Karthik saw tears flowing out from my eyes... He told Jaafar, ‘Look Mr Jaafar, your story made my wife end up in tears... Don’t worry, you’ll somehow find your queen back... Karthik had no idea that I was the one whom Jaafar mentioned.. That night, I was very confused, ‘If he had loved me, why did leave me? What did I do? Should I ask him without Karthik’s knowledge? Is it appropriate?? I was puzzled up with Karthik and Baby Nikki beside me.. One part of my heart was very happy that Karthik has changed... The other part was very confused...
I never expected this... God has pulled me back into a situation I’ve never imagined... I met Karthik on the plane and upon listening to his story, I felt the need to share my story and change him.. But I never knew the girl that endured everything was my little girl, Akshaya... The first thing that came up to my mind was to get out of the house as soon as possible... I had promised Karthik that I’ll stay for a day in his house... I hope this day ends as fast as possible... The next day arrived.. I was about to leave. I was packing my things intensely.. I heard the door behind me open... I knew it was Akshaya.. I pretended as if everything was okay... She closed the door and said,’Appu, why did you do that??’ I pretended everything was normal and replied, ‘What did i do Mrs Karthik? I am sorry if I had mistakenly done something I shouldn’t in your house’ She replied, ‘Stop pretending Appu.. Don’t worry Karthik is not at home.. he went out for a short while... Tell me.. Please.. Don’t let me live with a question mark for the rest of my life... Why did you say no the other day...??? I couldn’t take it anymore.. I decided to tell her...
Tears came out of my eyes... I am sorry Akshaya... I had to do that... We met through an accident and we became friends... But I slowly found out that you are my destiny.. Yes, I loved you very much Akshaya... Still remember the night I told you that you are my destiny.. I meant it when I said it... But when I went back... that night... my thoughts changed me... My sister whom I lost through poverty came up to my mind... You thought I hurt you by leaving you, but no.. the truth is I was hurt more when I realised I can’t tell you how much I loved you... I couldn’t admit it that time.. If I did, then you would wanna be with me.. I wanted you to marry someone else... Know why? Because I knew I can’t provide you with a rich or a comfortable life... If you loved and married me, of course we would be strong and we can against no matter how many people try to stop us.. Even your father would be one of them... But do you think I’d be happy seeing you suffer in front of me just because of following me... Maybe you would say no, we would be alright.. Yes we will but if at all we live for hundred years and even one day you regret, I would feel like I’ve caused all this to my little girl... I wanted you to be happy, that’s all.. I have given you enough strength and showed you the right path in life... I am pretty sure you won’t have any problems in living a life in the proper way.. Hence, I decided to leave you...
Know what? I liked you entirely for what you were... Your name, your character and everything about you... I just loved you to an extent which I can’t describe... Everything about you... I knew we had other differences as well like religion and so on but they didn’t stop me from loving you... In the end, I had to walk away for your own good... I wanted you to live a happy life with the guy your father chooses for you.. In order to make them come true, I had to make you hate me and I succeeded in that... The only thing was that the words you used on me was too harsh that day... They pierced my heart like broken pieces of glasses... You did not understand me.. Your words were sharp.. But I had to stand it... I can still remember you telling me that God took my family members away with a reason... Yeah... I am stupid, I admit... That’s the reason I cared to much for you in a situation in which others would just marry you willingly.. I am stupid... I endured the toughest thing in love... I loved you but I was never able to tell you about it... Until you witnessed it in an interview... When I got to know you were Karthik’s wife in the doorstep yesterday, my heart was sad and happy... Happy for saving your marriage life and sad for losing you...After the incident in which you scolded me, I couldn’t sleep or eat for days.. I was very disturbed...
That is when Uncle Malek called me to follow him on a shipping cruise for a change... We went to foreign countries to deliver goods.. I needed that trip badly to come back to normal once again... We made some business dealings and I used all the knowledge I got from your books.. Eventhough, I had no degree, some American companies were interested in my efficiency that they hired me... That’s how I grew into a successful businessman... In a way, you raised me to the next level in my life... But look at how life plays on me.. At that time I loved you and you were there but I had no money to provide a nice life for you... Now it is all opposite.. I have money but I don’t have the right to love you anymore... You are the only girl I’ve been close to in my entire life..
She was crying by now... I was helpless... I told her, ‘Look here Akshaya.. Don’t worry.. Certain things in life are fated to be in the way they are... All we have to do is just move on... No matter what happens, life has to go on... Now you are a mother for a cute baby girl and a wife for a man... I am sure everything I’ve taught you will be useful in your life... Even though I am sad that I never get the chance to leave with you, I am happy that God gave me a second chance to correct your life and make things up for my dear Akshaya... I wiped her tears... Don’t worry of me.. I’ll somehow live a life... I don’t know whether I’ll marry another girl or not but let fate decide it... If at all I feel the same way you made me feel last time again, and then yes I would marry.. Don’t worry...
He consoled me... I was surrounded with guilt, sadness and so on... I should not have scolded him blindly that day or told bad things about him to my friends... I made a mistake.. I was wrong when I thought that he played the fool out of me through his words... I was wrong when I agreed with a friend who told me.. Love can be trusted but the people we love make us lose hope in love... She was wrong... When it comes to love, there is nothing as you can trust or cannot.. You have to trust every single thing.. Loving someone is like giving him a gun.. It’s just whether he shoots you or not... The trust that he won’t will make love true and alive... That’s love when put into a sentence... There was a moment of silence between us... It’s very unfortunate that sometimes... we expect and love a person so much to an extent which fate decides to separate us... We can never predict what would happen the next moment... All we can do is say things we wanna say to the person when we have the opportunity itself... There is no point regretting once he or she is gone...
However, I knew I had to move on in life.. I have a kid and a husband to think of.. Anyway, as I promised to him, I’ll make sure I pass down everything he has taught me to my baby girl... I’ll raise her up in a proper way... Karthik came back and we went to the airport to send Jaffar off to the United States... I knew I will never get to meet Jaafar again... Because I asked him moments ago, ‘can we be good friends at least?’ He said no.. He said ‘being friends will just affect our lives and worsen it... Even a simple act of passing down the knowledge he gave me to my kid would be sufficient enough to prove our friendship, he said.... As he was about to leave, he told Karthik, ‘take good care of your wife and make sure things are alright after this... Be a man... A real man doesn’t beat his wife... Got it??’ Karthik nodded... The next time I come to India, I want to see four of yall as a happy family... Karthik corrected Jaafar, ‘well, it’s just three of us’... Jaafar said smiling, “I know... Just add one more member to your family? Okay? We need a Karthik Jr... ‘ Haha... Karthik laughed out loud... Okay I will, he said... Before leaving Jaafar said, ‘hug her and kiss her Karthik...’ Karthik did as what Jaafar said... and Jaafar smiled at both of us... He bid farewell and he left.......
I knew what I did was the only option left... I wanted Akshaya to be happy... And I am glad God has given me a second chance to beautify Akshaya’s life... As for my life, I would just let things happen according to what is fated for me.. Anyway, i told Akshaya that we should not even be friends again because I don’t wanna mess up her life again... The truth is I loved her but I should not love her any longer... Why did I make friends with Akshaya? Why did I like her? Why did I love her forgetting her status? Why did I learn things and become rich now? Why do I have to meet Akshaya again even after she is married? Why should I meet her husband and correct him? Why should I tell Akshaya what happened earlier? Why should I give up on Akshaya? Why should I be happy seeing them together now? The answer for all these questions lies on one word... Destiny...
That was the last time I saw him.. He left my life for the second time.. He saved my life for the second time.. Without him, I would have been an ordinary teenager.. He made me extraordinary... And without him, my life as an adult would have been ruined... He saved it again... Now, I am passing down everything he has taught me in life to my Nikki and Naresh, my son... Yes, he was born last month..... Exactly 2 years after Jaafar left us... Karthik has changed into a very loving husband since then and we lived happily ever after... But no matter what, I have to admit that if Karthik is my man in my life, Jaafar or my Appu was The Other Man in my life.....
-THE END-
Well yeah, that’s all about my story, The Other Man... Hope you enjoyed reading it... But the most important thing is to get the hidden message... The crucial part of this story is the proposal part...
It can be reviewed from 2 different angles when we look at it from two different perspectives... Akshaya and Jamal... Akshaya slapped Jamal without knowing the truth... Most of us are like Akshaya.. We don’t really understand the situation of a person even after knowing him or her for such a long period of time.. Why can’t we fit ourselves in their shoes when they need us the most? All we do is burst out in anger and make things worse... Not to forget is the words and actions that come out when a person is angry... We tend to say things without knowing words can hurt 1000 times than physical wounds if they are used in the wrong way... All we do when we frustrated with him or her to yell stuffs at him or her and make that party weak... To add things, we go around saying bad things about him like what Akshaya did...
In another perspective, we can even consider Jaffar being on the wrong side... He should have explained stuffs to Akshaya... Well Akshaya is just a human being... She is not a mind reader or whatsoever... How would she know what’s running on Jaafar’s mind.. He should have made it clear to her... Most of us fail to give enough explanations in time of need... So, whose fault was it? Jaafar or Akshaya?? You choose...
The other messages include the current lifestyle.. Social Networking and so on... We tend to immerse ourselves into this world that we forget the existence of something called reality... Spending time with family is like a rare stuff in most families these days... In the effort of collecting stones, we tend to miss out diamonds... Hence, don’t allow your life to be controlled my technology... You should learn to use it wisely... Then, life would be even colourful...
Apart from that, we should appreciate Jaafar for being caring.. It is not important to just love someone and marry that person... it is important to love someone in a way that you would even sacrifice your happiness for that particular person... That’s when you know you truly love that particular person.. Love makes the world go round...
Even after all this time,
The sun never says to the earth,
"You owe me."
Look what happens with
A love like that....
It lights the whole sky....
~Hafiz of Persia~
Hence, love people around you and try not to break human relationships, culture and so on with a hammer called modernity... And most importantly, don’t say things without knowing a person well... That’s all for now... Thanks for reading guys!!! I hope that everyone would improve his or her relationship with people around him or her after reading this story... Especially with our loved ones!!! And yeah... I don’t know when I’ll post my next blog post but I am sure it would take a long time as I will be busy in the coming months... Some important exams on the run!!!
Wish me luck and pray for my success!!!
Peace out ;-)
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