When I met my Ex

6- Raaz

I have all the measures of what she likes or not, from everything to everything but what is the use of it when I can't express anything for my love after having every knowledge of her preferences. I am too messed up with work, or I would have created several surprise dates for her. I could not even ask her in detail of how her workmate's little son is doing in hospital now, whom Zee went along with her workmate to get him admitted to a nearby hospital. As Zee's house is closer to the spot where her son fainted, she called up my girlfriend for help. I am proud of my girl for her kind accompaniments to others. I want to excusively give her something very beautiful as a credit of such a kind help. She did not consider our date more than someone's life. Well, today I will give all my blood into the computer and however late it may be, I will do the best preparations for her. And this should be a bonus one, of her return from Hong Kong and yesterday's great work of help too!

I call up The Crusty's Meal, to book a corner in their grand caféteria for us. I request them for something which they first blabber hundreds of things to be done and their exaggerated cost, but when I say that I have to date my girlfriend, the manager of their café chortles on that and says, "We never forbid lovers here. Anything for mam then, gentleman", to which I add with a polite curt, "And for me, too, Mr. Khanna". His laughs tell me that the people of his restaurant would be very amicable and since I have never changed the ratings of their food ever I visited them, they treated me perfectly. More to it, Zee does not know about this place. We have been to several restaurants but because this restaurant has a small area, I never thought I should take her here. But now I have learnt that happiness is greater in these small things, or you may say now I am quite consious about my budget and this Crusty serves the best muffins and Pomplet dishes that are Zee's favourite forever. That too in low cost. Things are too perfect in my life, no?

It's surprising I have less work today, or may be more thoughts of Ziana in my mind than anything else. The excitement to kiss her after so long is keeping that smile constant on my face. Some are just staring at me and wondering what I might be watching on my screen that is making me smile so much.
"You should now get married", Pravin Jha says from his cubicle, munching on his biscuits. I swivel my chair to him and raise a brow at him.
"Why, any problem with this perfect life of mine?", I smirk. Pravin would obviously take it as a joke. We have been friends since long and he's been helpful in my troubles many times. Once he picked up Ziana from a mall when the idiot cabbie left without telling her and I was stuck in a meeting. Also, on my 25th birthday, he first saw my girlfriend and behaved very well with her, unlike others who flirted all the time. We only have occasional contacts, but here I have a perfect friend too I'd say. I can't tell Pravin that Ziana isn't ready yet to marry me, even after ten years of our live-in, but I understand she always needs time for such huge decisions in life. And though I accept this that I am growing old, I can't proceed until the queen commands me to be her king. Also, I can't ill-repute Ziana in front of my best friend.

"No dude, but I have never seen a boyfriend so obsessed with his love", saying this, he makes me blush a lot but before my thanks, he continues, "Even I left my two years past girlfriend when I was enough fed up of her dramas". I coughed at that and laughed.
"Oh, you had a girlfriend. It never seemed so...", I say and turn around my chair to my desk. He quickly throws a Britania cube at me angrily. I catch it before it could hurt me and tear the packet to have some crunches out of it. We then have a conversation of our whereabouts and the ususal stuff men talk about. Of course, talking about ladies are a part of it. However, I decline my lunch tea with him at our office canteen for I have to go and check out the decoration at Crusty's Meal.

* * *

I have not called Ziana since morning because I want her to feel today that I just don't care about her, when indeed I would give her the best surprise of her return tonight. But more surprising is that even she hasn't called me too, and she is still online on Truecaller. Whom might she be chatting with so late? The first suggestion that comes in my mind is my own self, weird! But who can it be except the workmate whom Zee helped last night? I am sure she is still worried about her kid. Oh love, do you want a kid too? I guess Pravin was suggesting me right. Anyway!
I have been very poor at organizing dates but much that I have learnt from books, sites, Ziana and my own little imagination, I guess I am not that bad a boyfriend. Zee calls me the best boyfriend ever, I don't find that true though. I have literally skipped my lunch this afternoon just to finish my work off and quickly head to the restaurant. I check off with the preparations, select dishes for dinner to be prepared with the toppest ratings, and a lovely fragrant bunch with floating mini-candles on our table. Rest for a present, I don't really consider a beautiful dress for her because she herself has refused for the already stacked up bundle in her wardrobe. So may be a pair of burgundy velvet heels would do. May be the same wine too, as I've heard a lot about it!