Too cold!

The cheerful room was a shrine to golden sunshine! The silky yellow curtains framed the  view from the living room of the chalet overlooking the mighty peak towering into the azure blue sky, with the pine forests scattered all around. Sheela looked out sipping her aromatic hot coffee, biting  into her cinnamon roll, waiting for Prakash. The heady aroma of the soulful food quickly took over every corner of the room, driving the chill of the outdoors stuck to her skin and some that seeped into her bones. As she watched the mesmerizing view, she drifted off to their first meeting.

Running to catch the Andheri local, from Churchgate station, she barely made it to the last coach, lunging forward to place one foot in the doorway, trusting others to haul her in! That’s what happened! A strong grip caught her hand and hauled her in as the train started snaking out. ‘Phew! That was close!’ said he. She looked up to see a boyish face, eyes twinkling, laughter barely concealed! ‘Not bad!’ she thought. Thanking him, she extricated her delicate hand from the firm, reliable grip. They stood standing in the aisle, fanned by the cool sea breeze. As the sun nestled for the day, covering the world in a blanket of darkness, the bright neon lights were quick to spring up to banish the gloom.

Polite conversation brewed up, “Hi I am Prakash!” “ I am Sheela!” “ You seem like quite an adventurous person!” “ Footballer! Never stop diving, do we?” And they soon found themselves in the midst of an engaging conversation. In a blink of an eye, they had reached their destination, reluctantly parting ways.

She could not forget the warm smile, the laughing eyes, nor the strong hands! ‘Hey Dreamer, snap out of your daydream,’ said Jyoti her office associate, as she heard Sheela sigh for the hundredth time, lost in a faraway world. ‘I am in love!’ she said and pulling Jyoti up she tangoed around the room. Laughter filled bursting out as she narrated the incident.

Next step, where to find him? She kept taking the same train for the next few days to no avail. Listlessly  she was walking her dog in the backroads of Lokhandwala, she missed a pothole and found herself flying to the ground, closing her eyes she just shrieked! Instead of striking the hard ground, she found Newton’s laws of physics halted in midair. Opening her eyes just enough she caught sight of the man of her dreams, holding her close, holding her safe.

‘What are you doing here?’                                                                                                 ‘Lending you a helping hand …. Seems to have become my nature these days!’ As they both burst into laughter, Cleo jumped all over Prakash, wagging her tail adding to Sheela’s joy. As he walked with her, they exchanged addresses, phone numbers and maybe their hearts. Correction, their hearts were already exchanged.

So began a series of meetings; for walks with Cleo, then coffee without Cleo and finally to dinner dates just by the two of them with candlelight and soft music. To cut a long story short, they had got engaged, much to the surprise of their parents, whose joy  seemed to know no bounds.

Their first holiday together was in the cool environs of Switzerland, far from the sweltering heat of Mumbai, to get to know each other a little better, before taking the final plunge.

The world seemed perfect!

 ‘Save some coffee for me too!’ shouted Prakash as he walked in, dusting the snow from his boots and great coat.

There was no answering laughter. Perplexed, he walked into the room only to see Sheela clutching her stomach as the sweater was turning scarlet from the blood oozing out. Jumping over the sofa, to reach her he shouted –

 ‘Sheela! What happened? Don’t worry, I am here now, and you will be fine!’

Before she could say anything more… she fell into the strong arms she loved and slipped away. Prakash was a raging mess. Who could have killed her? Who could have snuffed out the light of his life? Why?

The Police soon arrived and took him away…. ‘Cold murder!’

Picture courtesy the Internet, for representation purpose.