Wordless Love

What do joy and happiness feel like?

It was long past midnight, and yet both Piya and Aarti were wide awake.

"I wish you had agreed to spend the night here", Aarti keyed in. She was in bed while her husband slept with his back towards her.

Piya's response was quick. Unlike Aarti, she was still sitting on her rickety desk and her old and trusted laptop. "Does not make a difference. Besides, you and your darling husband need a little space before the little one comes."

Aarti responded with a rolled eye emoji. A picture or an emoji is worth a thousand words.

"Rolled eyes- you know you will soon be telling the little one that it is rude. I think it is time you start practising what you will preach."

“ To many clichés Piya – too many. Anyway, the meeting was good – wasn't it"

"The coffee was bad – hot water and some bitter coffee powder. Who in their right mind drinks that. No wonder both of us are awake. I christen that coffee as the devil's drink."

"Piya – the meeting?"

"It went well. I think we will get the project. That man, what was his name?"

"??" Piya was the one who remembered the names and the designations. Aarti was the face of and Piya the brains.

"Never mind – he was right – we have to get more people if we get the project. I think we factored for that in our calculations, did we?"

"Yes- two people. We can cross the bridge when we come to it. What is the hurry? More importantly, do you think we will get the project?"

"So, I was looking at the numbers, even with two people there is a lot to do – I can put in longer hours – not as if I have anything else to do. Do you think your dear husband would like a side gig?" Piya smiled as she typed. It would be nice to be up working late in the night, rather than thinking where the next month's rent would come from.

"Piya? Did you eat dinner?" Aarti knew it would be Piya who rolled her eyes this time.

"Whoa !! That is a sudden change of topic – yeah! I did"

"What?"

"A three-course meal complete with two desserts. Happy?"

"You skipped dinner tonight." Aarti regretted not bringing Piya home with her. At least she could have fed her and ensured that she was warm.

"Hey!! It was that coffee- seriously it is a devil's drink. It kills your hunger. As if I need that, right?" Piya was not smiling this time. She looked at the lone packet of Maggi sitting near the small stove she had. That was the only thing left to eat. The hunger she felt would subside once she fell asleep, and the packet of Maggi could help her last the entire day tomorrow. The silence from Aarti was deafening. Piya knew what she was thinking.

"I will have a big breakfast tomorrow – I bought some bread today and there must be some leftover butter somewhere here."

"Okay" It was a long time before the laptop chimed. "Good night" It was clear Aarti was not in a mood to talk.

Piya switched off her laptop and warmed some water. The warm water helped fool her stomach into thinking that it was full, and lay down on the couch. It was warm inside the shack that she called her home – office. She would have opened the window and the door if she was in a safer neighbourhood. The door and the window were locked and secured. The fewer people knew she spent the night here alone, the better it was. She lay staring at the ceiling, listening to the stray dogs barking and the occasional drunk falling on his way back home for a long time. She wore her headphone and put on some music. The radio station played more advertisements than actual music. Till the payment from the last gig she did came through, she had no option. Besides, when one struggled to keep food on the table and a roof over the head, one did not have a taste in music!

"This too shall pass," she told herself.

"Piya beti" It was the vegetable seller from the shop. She was a nice and helpful lady. She opened the door. Staying in the office overnight was not safe. This was a neighbourhood filled with theft, drunk men and young men who had way too much time on their hands. The lady insisted that she would lock Piya in each night and open the office in the morning. She also let Piya use the tiny bathroom at the back of her vegetable shop for a small amount of money.

It was a schedule that suited Piya. Each morning the kind lady woke her up, and Piya took a shower and get ready before the market woke up. If the weather was pleasant, Piya walked around the empty lanes daydreaming.

"I will pay you by the end of this week," Piya told the lady.

"The money is not going anywhere. You should pay that landlord of yours first. He was here yesterday – showing the place to another vegetable vendor. He mentioned that you were a week late in paying rent." The lady was indeed kind and looked out for Piya and Aarti.

Piya could feel blood rushing to her neck and her ears getting warm. She was expecting payment for a small gig she did the previous month. The payment was delayed for some reason. Piya wanted to explain this to the vegetable lady, but as always, the lady was more interested in talking than in listening.

"He is a money-grubbing man. A week or even two weeks' delayed rent does not mean a thing here. This is a poor neighbourhood, all of us struggle with money. The swine is getting more rent and needs an excuse to throw you out" The lady gestured Piya to sit on the tiny bench. She opened a small tin on the space between them. "I made some halwa- puri today."

"Thanks," Had her stomach not growled at the sight of food, she would have said that she was not hungry. Accepting favours, even tiny ones, made Piya uncomfortable.

"My son passed grade 5. All thanks to you. You worked so hard with my stupid boy."

Piya wished the lady had brought more halwa. It was just the way she liked it – very, very sweet. The lady had even put a couple of raisins.

"He failed last year. My husband had made up his mind to get the boy working in the shop. Your kindness saved him from a lifetime of selling onions and potatoes."

The payment Piya was waiting for had come through in a while. The first thing she did was transfer some money to her mobile wallet and buy some bread and butter. She did not want to be caught in the lie. The payment was barely enough to pay the rent or food, or a new battery for her laptop. She was weighing her options when Aarti walked in with a small lunch box.

"Husband dear tried his hand at cooking today," she said in the way of an explanation.

"Something sweet?" It could be a lucky day today

"I wish" Aarti smiled. "He calls it a sandwich. Two slices of bread with some butter and a slice of cucumber. Hardly a sandwich."

"The baby is making you mean. He did something nice for you."

"You don't feel grateful after cleaning the kitchen for 30 minutes. He even managed to get the gas stove dirty, without switching it on. He plans to cook dinner for me next week" Aarti moved the chair from Aati's desk and settled on the workstation.

"The thought of cleaning the kitchen after the said dinner is cooked!!"

Both girls burst into laughter. Life could be better for both of them. There was so much they wanted and needed, and yet at this moment, in their little cocoon, they were happy.

"The landlord called," Aarti said. He did not like to communicate with Piya. She was the one who paid the rent each month, yet he ignored her every time they met or had an opportunity to interact.

"I will transfer the money now" Guess the laptop battery would have to wait. She needed a battery to be able to work, but she needed a roof over her head more.

"It is not that." Aarti paused. She knew Piya would not like the news she was to deliver. "He wants us to vacate by the end of this week."

Piya reached over the picked up the sandwich. She was planning to eat it for lunch or late in the evening. The choice right now was simple, she could either stuff her face or cry, and Piya did not cry, ever.

"Hmm" She broke the uncomfortable silence with a message. "The chef made a bold choice with by leaving the crusts on"

"The chef was worried about his delicate fingers!" The bad news was delivered and received. Crying or fretting over it would not solve anything. Anita got that message loud and clear.

"I guess I can buy that battery now." Piya texted.

"Yes, let us do that today evening. This is a temporary set back Piya." Anita turned on her chair and tapped on Piya's shoulder. "You can stay with us for a while. I know we have a small one-bedroom apartment, but we have big hearts. I am sure we will get Tara's project and things will be much easier then."

"Then let us see what can we do to get that project" It was difficult to type the message on account of the tears. Piya did not turn back. Instead, held Aarti's hand for a bit. "I think a thank you mail would be nice."

"Yes- Step 1 – find the name of the handsome stranger."

"Stop Aarti. You are a married woman."

"I was looking out for you. It is high time you got a boyfriend. I digress. Back to our mystery. The handsome man was definitely not an employee."

"True" Piya agreed with this statement. Jai was too authoritative to be an employee.

"A partner"

"Nope. Tara is the sole owner. I did my research before we sent our proposal."

"Yes," Aarti did not hold back her laughter. "You could be a detective in another life. Or maybe a stalker. There is only a thin line of difference. He was definitely not a brother."

"Yep. Then he must be a boyfriend. Give me ten – we will know everything there is to know about this Mr Mystery."

"And I will get started on the email to Tara."

Piya figures out that Jai was indeed Tara's boyfriend. She quickly found Jai's college and family images and froze at Jai's image with his parents. 'Life was not fair, don't expect it to be', Piya's mother often said. She should have said, "Life will go out of her way to make things difficult for you instead.

"We got it", Aarti squealed. She jumped up from her chair, sending the chair crashing on the floor. She did a crazy little dance, not caring about her condition or the fallen chair. "Why are you not dancing?" She pushed Tara out of the stool she was sitting on and looked at her screen.

"Is he Jai Malhotra? The Jai Malhotra?" Aarti asked. Piya nodded.

Aarti stood there for a minute wanting to hug Piya. Tell her everything will end well. She straightened her chair. Sat on it and said, "I will send Tara an email thanking her for the offer and turning it down." Actions speak louder than words.