The classmate – part 2

Narrated till now …

Jyothika tells Pramod that she got in touch with their classmate after two decades. Pramod is eager to meet Apoorva. He and Jyothika plan to go to Apoorva’s house on Sunday morning.

Narration continues…

“I have arrived” Pramod shouted sitting in his car. Jyothika came out of her house and sat in the car.

“Are you happy that we will be meeting Apoorva in few minutes time?” Jyothika asked.

“I am getting excited. Imagine meeting her after close to two decades. Hope she is more outgoing type now. What about her family? How is her husband and how many kids they have?”

Jyothika smiled and said “Have patience dear. You will come to know very soon”.

Pramod drove for about 15 minutes and as they were passing a supermarket Jyothika said “Please stop the car in the parking area opposite the supermarket. I have to meet a relative of mine. I will take about 15 minutes. Let us both go to their house. It is next to the supermarket”.

Pramod nodded and parked the car in the parking area.

He started walking with Jyothika. As they were entering the house a young lady came out and said “Hello Jyothika please come in”.

Jyothika told her “He is my friend Pramod”.

The lady shook hands with Pramod and escorted both of them to the front hall of the house. Pramod sat down on the chair.

Jyothika said “Give me ten minutes Pramod. I will talk to my relative and then we both shall proceed”. Saying so she walked into a room adjoining the main hall.

The young lady gave water to Pramod. He thanked her and started drinking water. He looked around and it was a simple lower middle class house with less expensive furniture and items in it.

He looked into the room in which Jyothika was sitting. She was talking to a lady and in between looking at Pramod and smiling. 

After about ten minutes she came out of the room and told Pramod “Shall we leave?”

He nodded and walked out of the house towards the car. 

He drove for another ten minutes and Jyothika said “Shall we stop at the coffee shop. I feel like having hot coffee”.

“That’s fine in its place but we are supposed to meet Apoorva. We shall meet her and have coffee” he said. Jyothika requested him and told him that she was having a mild headache and a cup of hot coffee would help her.

He agreed and parked the car in front of the coffee shop.Both of them went inside and ordered coffee.

The coffee was served and they started drinking it.

Pramod observed that Jyothika was silent since the time they entered the coffee shop and was looking down at her knees.

He found it strange and said “Hope we will have no more stops in between and head straight to meet Apoorva”.

At this juncture Jyothika spoke and said “We have already met her”.

He was shocked to hear that and said “Are you kidding?”

Jyothika looked up at Pramod. Her eyes were red and filled with tears. She looked in deep pain. Pramod could not understand and said “What happened dear and why are you crying?”

Jyothika continued “Pramod the house we visited was not my relative’s house and the young lady is not my relative but my colleague. She is relative of Apoorva. The woman with whom I was speaking inside the room was Apoorva”.

He could not comprehend what Jyothika was saying. He sat with a surprised  expression for couple of minutes and said “Please tell me in the way I can understand”.

Jyothika continued “The lady whom I met in the room was Apoorva.I was asking her to come out to meet you. She was looking at me with a blank face at the mention of your name”.

“Why so?” A shocked and confused Pramod asked.

She added “Apoorva has lost her mental stability since couple of years. She is in no position to recollect her past properly.

I thought you would make a difference as she was fond of you. But today I realized that no one can bring back the innocent smile on her face again” saying so she started sobbing profusely. 

Pramod consoled her and asked “How did she get into this position?”

Jyothika replied “Soon after she completed her post graduation she got a placement in a finance company. Before she could join the company her father died and that event plunged the family into series of problems. Within months her mother died and she stayed back in her house along with her two brothers. After a year her elder brother got married and unfortunately his marriage ended in a divorce. Apoorva did not get married and her younger brother tried his best to find a match for her but in vain. She did not pursue her career and went into depression and gradually lost her mental balance and now she is no position to identify us or relate to us”.

Pramod looked at Jyothika and said “I still do not understand why you did not tell me there”.

She continued “Despite me mentioning that you were waiting outside to meet her, she did not show any eagerness to meet you. I did not want you to see her in this state and so I came out of the house with you”.

Tears started trickling from Pramod’s eyes and he said “You are such an empathetic lady. You tried your best to bring happiness in her life. You also ensured that I did not get disappointed seeing her in this state.

Life is very strange Jyothika. We do not know what is in store for each one of us and the best we can do is to perform our duties to the best of our capacities and lead a life which can be of use to others”.

Jyothika nodded in agreement and wiped her tears.