Serendipity

4

"Mr Kapadia," a huffing Mr Patel ran after Anuj before the latter could step out of the building.

He stopped, his demeanour polite, not letting show that he was irked with the uninvited intrusion.

"I'm sorry to impose," said Mr Patel catching his breath, but the teachers have thrown a small party in your honour. It would be lovely if you could..."

Anuj looked at his wristwatch. Before he could politely decline, Mr Patel continued: "The school kids have specially made these dishes. There's dhokla, thepla, fafda, khandvi, handvo and our famous masala chai, all under the supervision of our very talented Home Science teacher." He thought of GK who would have relished the feast. The principal sensing some hesitation on Anuj's side tried once more. "They googled your favourite foods and came up with the menu."

He sighed. He could spare another half an hour. He nodded and Mr Patel, beaming, once again led him back into the school.

*****

The staff room at the S.G.V.P International School resembled the board room of a rather prestigious international firm. A kitchenette stocked with the most up to date appliances including a refrigerator, a Keurig and a Sodastream. The room was panelled in a light birch wood along the walls, the panelling cleverly hiding the teacher's cubbies used for storing their teaching books and props. A huge glass table graced the centre of the room, with all teachers having their own ergonomic push back chairs. Veined vitrified tiles lined the floor. The space was liberally decorated using colourful paintings, lots of plants and a few odd pieces of decoration - all of which worked extremely well together to create a calming and soothing environment. 

Yet, it was in this very same room that right at this very moment Anupama was close to hyperventilating.

"Alka, arrange the dhokla right next to the fafda," Anupama told her colleague, while she quickened her pace to fetch the disposable plates, cups and forks from the farthest corner of the kitchenette. The colleague who'd kindly volunteered to help her set up the food for Anuj Kapadia's reception in the staff room simply smiled. In all her time working with Anupama, she had never seen her this flustered.

"Is everything okay?"

"Yes. I hope so."

Alka stopped what she was doing and made her way to Anupama. "Don't worry, the food tastes great. Isn't that what matters the most?"

But the frown marring Anupama's forehead indicated another train of thought.

"Fresh fruits, we're missing fresh fruits!"

"Relax Anupama, there is already so much to choose from, I'm sure Mr Kapadia will find something that he likes."

"No he won't," she muttered under her breath.

"Excuse me?"

"Nothing," she shook her head. Then she opened the fridge and quickly started cutting and peeling the apples, pears, plums, tossing them into a bowl and laid out the bananas right next to them.

Alka felt a pang of sympathy for Anupama. Ever since she'd started working at the school, she'd made a place for herself in everyone's hearts. They all felt bad about what had happened to her and had sympathized with her situation. Sadly all this sympathy made Anupama feel more worthless.

When she'd started teaching at the school, she'd requested that she be excused from teaching her daughter's class. The Principal understood. Along with her husband, Anupama had also left behind her three grown children. It wasn't that she didn't want to have anything to do with them. It was more that they seemed to fault her for whatever went wrong. At least her oldest son and her daughter did. They blamed her for not fighting hard enough to save her marriage, they blamed her for breaking the family, they even blamed her for the fact that her husband had an extra-marital affair. Even her mother-in-law blamed Anupama for whatever happened. She apparently didn't know how to keep her husband in check. She simply wasn't good enough.

Her head hurt. But she'd learnt long ago to focus on the silver lining - her special boy Samar, the apple of her eyes, who'd stood by her. Her father-in-law and daughter-in-law who'd supported her decision to divorce, and her brother-in-law and sister-in-law who had helped her move out of the Shah household and start a new life for herself. She'd been blessed with good people too. Sadly she'd always focused her energy on the wrong ones.

"Anupama?" Alka's gentle touched broke her reverie. "Is everything okay?"

She nodded, glancing one more time at the arrangements before sitting down and gulping an entire bottle of water. She honestly didn't know why she was feeling so nervous. She tried to convince herself that Anuj Kapadia would not remember her; he was too important of a person to remember someone he'd barely known during his college days.

And yet, as she processed these facts, her heart hoped. Hoped that he would remember her, that she still mattered to someone. Why? And why Anuj? She didn't have an answer. Perhaps because she remembered him as someone very charming and dazzling. Perhaps because he was part of her memories and life that still made her smile. Perhaps because he was one of the few who'd seen Anupama for who she was and not what she could do for them.

Anuj Kapadia was an integral part of her memories that she didn't want to, didn't need to, didn't choose to share with anyone. She didn't know why, but thinking about him made her smile. Not that he had treated her any different to all the other girls in college and yet it was this nonchalant attitude of his that had endeared him the most to her. He didn't judge her and she felt safe in that knowledge.

Just as she'd finished screwing the cap onto her water bottle, Mr Patel walked into the staff room with the guest of honour, Anuj Kapadia. And five seconds later, Anuj realized he wasn't hallucinating. He was standing in front of Anupama Shah, his unrequited love, his muse for the last 26 years.