VED MAYA...A Love Story

CHAPTER 1

"MAYA!"

Ved woke up with a start. He looked around, confused...disoriented. He let out a frustrated yet relieved sigh. That dream...Maya's dream...again! He had no idea when he would stop having these weird dreams. His and Maya's story wasn't even that dramatic. He saw her everyday...they spoke to each other everyday. Yes, there was a distance between them and he knew they would probably never end up together, but still...the dream was way more exaggerated than reality was.

"I need to see lesser Hindi movies!" he murmured to himself as he got off his bed and freshened up, made his bed and went to the kitchen to prepare a cup of tea for himself. As he worked around the kitchen, his 24-hour house help, who was paid for by his company, came to him and offered to make tea for him. But like everyday, he refused to let him do it. He preferred doing certain things himself. They kept him closer to reality and to his roots.

He lived alone in a huge apartment in one of the best residential complexes on Golf Course Road, Gurugram. The complex housed many of the hotshots of the corporate world. He had some very famous people for his neighbours, but he couldn't care less about mingling with any one of them. This house was another one of the luxuries bestowed upon him for slogging his ass off all year round in office. He was the COO of MUSAFIR, a company that was considered as one of the best online travel portal in India. He had worked long and hard to reach where he was today.

He had to make many sacrifices along the way; staying away from his parents and siblings was one...and staying single was the second. Seeing Maya everyday of the week was just another co-lateral damage, thanks to his work. Sometimes, though, he thought it was a good idea to stay single; with crazy work hours, he wondered how the CEOs and COOs around the world ever got any time for their families?

He knew people envied him. He was, after all, one of the youngest COOs of the country at 30 years of age. The son of the company's owner used to be his classmate, and best friend, at IIM. Ved had left his previous, well-paying job to join this company 3 years back. At that time, he didn't know if it would be the best or the worst decision of his life; but he decided to trust his instincts...they had never let him down in the past. Thankfully this decision turned out in his favour, yet again.

Although he didn't enjoy staying alone, he couldn't deny that his house was stunningly done up. Huge, open balconies surrounded the apartment from three sides, the plush interiors and the contemporary décor in tones of white, beige, and grey gave it a very modern and sophisticated look. Over the years, he had added some touches to it that made it scream of him. This was now his home, his abode...his sanctuary.

He liked to enjoy his tea overlooking the green pastures surrounding his society, although there were very few left in Gurugram, which had lately started resembling a concrete jungle, especially with newer office and residential complexes coming up every second month. As he sipped his tea, he was reminded of his mother- the person he was closest to and the only other person in the world who could make tea according to his taste, apart from himself.

Supriya, his mother, was one of the most jovial and fun-loving people he had ever come across in his life. She was a homemaker who had contributed immensely in bringing up her children. As he grew up, he realised how underrated housewives were. He still remembered how his house had practically stopped functioning once when his mother was down with jaundice.

Ved was the eldest of the three Mehra siblings. His father, Anand Mehra, owned a small cloth house in Aminabad market that sold uniforms of local schools. His business wasn't extravagant, but still decent enough to keep their household running comfortably. His brother, Arjun, was two years younger to him and his sister, Kanika, was five years younger to him. They were a simple, close-knit family with their regular share of highs and lows.