Nobody Likes An Outsider
Page 18
“I like this one,” Ila said and took out one of the newspapers that had the headline “Nobody Likes an Outsider.” “It's apt for our case. Ashraf was a true outsider who pierced into the strongholds of others and made an impact.”
Yohan nodded enthusiastically to agree with Ila. “In just four words, the reporter captured the essence of it. Very smart.” Immediately after he finished the sentence, his investigative mind led him to think if Ila felt like an outsider in the team. While thinking about it, he kept looking at Ila. It must be the bonding over the days and the impeccable chemistry but Ila was quick to respond before Yohan uttered a single word. “Not everyone. Some people make outsiders feel welcome and quickly turn them into insiders.”
She said it with a warm and content smile on her face. It was good enough for Yohan to believe that she was happy being a part of the team. He looked at Ila and passed a gentle smile to acknowledge her well-put thoughts.
“Oh my God. Look who is there.” Sukumar pointed to the table at a distance from them. Before Yohan said anything, Sukumar started waving to the person who acknowledged and walked toward them.
“Oh man. Anna, seriously,” Yohan’s eyes became smaller as he had a pointed stare at Sukumar.
“Hello Superstars, did you read my article about you?” She was already in front of them.
“Oh, hello Shweta. What a pleasant surprise!” Among the three of them, Ila (who didn’ know Shweta as well as the others) was the first one to respond to her.
Yohan was surprised seeing Ila’s reaction and then turned and looked at Shweta. “We meet again, Shweta. Looking forward to reading the article you mentioned.”
“It’s right in front of you, Yohan.” Shweta pointed at the headline: Nobody Likes an Outsider.
Sukumar giggled at this, cross-checked the byline, and added, “Yohan sir, weren’t you just saying that whoever wrote this did a smart work? Captured essence and all you said.”
Shweta did blush on hearing that and looked at Yohan. Despite being a confident guy, Yohan didn’t exhibit his regular swag. However, he did blush a little too. On seeing it, Ila figured that her senior might actually like the woman standing next to him.
“Well, looks like your senior is still not ready to talk to me. Here’s my card though. I would love to grab that coffee you offered the last time we met. Perhaps in Delhi?” Shweta’s face had a mix of a blush and a confident smile that attracted Yohan a lot. He was impressed with just the title of her story and looked forward to reading it. Yohan knew they were having a moment but Sukumar and Ila’s presence didn’t really help. Finally, he said, “Well, I think it should be more than just one coffee.” Yohan was blushing but Sukumar blushed more than him on hearing this. Shweta joined the table and their conversations.
Suddenly, Yohan’s phone rang. He could see Director Verma’s name flashing on the screen.
“Guys, I need to pick this call.” Yohan excused himself and moved to a corner near an ATM and picked up the call.
“Hello, sir. We are at the airport and you are already calling. At least wait till we get to Delhi.” Yohan had a good relationship with Verma to make these casual remarks and the director didn’t mind either.
“Yohan, this is a conference call and I have the Home Minister on the line too.” Verma’s voice exhibited enough seriousness for Yohan to realize that he may have spoken too early.
“Hello sir. I am sorry I didn’t know that you were on the call,” Yohan said, addressing the Home Minister.
“That’s okay. I agree with you. Verma should have waited but he just hurried things because the Home Minister called him.” The minister was anything but angry and showed his lighter side. “Now, congratulations on solving the Ashraf murder case. You brought to light a larger social issue that my government and I should work on. Convey my regards to your team too.”
Yohan was elated on hearing this. He wished Sukumar and Ila were there to hear this. It was an honor to receive a recognition from a senior minister.
“But I didn’t call you just for this. Actually, there is a case I want you to investigate.” The Home Minister’s words pumped up Yohan as this was a direct order. He eagerly waited for the minister to continue.
“You will report to Verma and I. The investigation needs to be done in a very sensitive manner as there are multiple powerful people in the suspects list.”
The Home Minister went on to brief Yohan about the case and he was stunned with the number of powerhouses who could be dragged into the case. Yohan carefully listened to the briefing and took quick notes. At the end of the call, the Home Minister cautiously warned him, “Yohan, remember, you are going to be dealing with a lot of politicians including ones from my party. I can help you with access but keeping yourself, your team, and the case out of trouble is your sole responsibility.”
“Yes, sir.” Yohan didn’t say much. After the call ended, he walked to the table where Ila, Sukumar, and Shweta were seated. He looked at the table for a second and called Ila to the side. He figured that calling Sukumar would alert Shweta and thereby news reports and Sukumar was more than capable to handle her on his own.
“Ila, the Home Minister just called. He congratulated our team and handed over the next case.”
“Wow, that’s great. We must have done a decent job. Anyways, what’s the case?” Ila was happy to hear this.
“So, a literary agent was found dead in her apartment in South Delhi.”
“Okay, that sounds like a case for the Delhi police to investigate. Why us?” Ila questioned. “In the past, she had placed books of several corporate tycoons, central and state ministers, and even stories about mafia kingpins.” Yohan’s reply was enough for Ila to gauge the seriousness of the case. He continued, “Not just that, she met the Prime Minister two days before her death to help him fine-tune his book and place it with a leading publisher.”
“So, this just got more serious.” Ila was stunned at the turn of events and tried to prepare her mind to deal with this high-profile case.
“For now ... breathe, Ila. There won’t be much time for that in the coming days.”
Thank You…It’s a Toast
To India—the inspiration for all of my stories and the wonderful home it is to me and a billion others.
To my parents, Jaleel and Naseera, and brother, Isa, FOR EVERYTHING!
To my first four readers—Radhika, Somesh, Philip, and Nitin. Thank you, guys, for the constant feedback and seeing me through the whole process.
To my close and amazing friends who call me by innumerable nicknames. Hostel and college life would have been incomplete without you guys. There are so many of you that I am going to start naming my characters after you people.
To my family, cousins, and relatives who have encouraged me continuously.
To Madras Christian College (MCC) and Azim Premji University—my temples that taught me Life.
To my idols—Rahul Dravid and A. P. J. Abdul Kalam. Thank you for inspiring a billion people, including me.
To Chennai for giving me excitement, to Bangalore for persistence, to Delhi for stability, and to Bombay for letting me go after my dreams.
To Vilakkudy, a small village in Kerala I belong to, for inspiring close-to-the-soil stories and lessons.
To Kottarakkara, a character in my second short story.
To New Indian School—the first independent choice of my life and Asian School for the baby steps. Thank you, teachers and friends. I am glad that I am still connected to some of my close friends.
To my colleagues in Delhi, Mumbai, and Bangalore, who have become friends and more, for patiently listening to my anecdotes and making work life a great experience. I won’t lie...I enjoy work! To MyGov, H&H, UpGrad, InstaReM, Swasti, and TTC.
To everyone who has read my anecdotes and short stories online. Your encouragement means a lot.
FAWAZ JALEEL
Fawaz Jaleel is an Indian Author who has written three short stories- From the land of palaces, The Legend of B
irbal's Bull and Inspiring Indians. His short stories are available on Amazon, Juggernaut and select bookstores in the country. His latest short story - The Legend of Birbal's Bull was featured in the Amazon Top 10 Bestsellers list for several days.
Fawaz is currently working as a Senior Brand Manager with a Hong Kong-based financial technology firm. In the past, he has worked as a consultant to the Government of India with MyGov India. He worked closely with senior bureaucrats and members of the government for several projects including PM Modi’s first Townhall in India. Prior to this, he was involved with companies such as UpGrad, NDTV-Hindu and InstaReM.
Fawaz Jaleel completed his Bachelors in Journalism from Madras Christian College and Masters in Development from Azim Premji University. He completed his schooling from The New Indian School and Asian School, Bahrain.
You can write to him at hello@fawazjaleel.com and fawazjr@gmail.com
Website - https://www.fawazjaleel.com/