Forever Is True

by Novoneel Chakraborty

  Prisha saw the students getting up and realized that the lecture was over. She was glad. After their break-up even the most random, unrelated thing would lead her into wondering about Saveer. Nobody talks about how long the postmortem of a relationship takes place within us, Prisha thought while collecting her belongings. And what do the findings lead us to? If you are still in love with the person, then the discovery will lead you to believe that a perfect love story was compromised with the break-up. And if you hated the person, then you will conclude that whatever happens, happens for the best. Prisha knew that it would take a long, lonesome, tedious and an emotionally wrecking postmortem of her relationship with Saveer to get back to being normal.

  She joined Gauri outside the classroom.

  ‘Are you going to attend the next lecture?’ Gauri asked.

  ‘No. I need to go to office and collect a few things,’ Prisha said. ‘Aren’t you coming?’ she asked.

  ‘No. I don’t have anything left there. I emailed Krishna my resignation,’ Gauri said, tapping furiously on her phone.

  I do have a few things there, Prisha thought and said, ‘Still, you can come with me.’

  ‘Actually,’ Gauri looked up at her, ‘Karthik is also free now. We were thinking of having coffee.’

  For a moment, something poked Prisha.

  ‘Yeah, sure,’ she said, smiling weakly.

  ‘See you later.’

  Suddenly, Prisha was all alone. It was clear that Gauri and Karthik were into each other. Diggy was gone. What does that leave me with? A cold nothingness within and outside.

  Prisha drove Diggy’s scooty to office. She was about to park at the usual spot when she saw some other two-wheeler parked there. Would this happen to what she had cultivated within Saveer as well? Someone will come by sooner or later. Like she had, after Ishanvi’s death. Prisha parked her scooty elsewhere and went inside.

  There was a girl sitting at her desk. She excused herself and picked up the coffee mug that had Saveer and her picture on it, a few family photographs that she had pinned on the board in front of her desk and some other stuff that she had kept in the drawer. Once she was done, Prisha took a deep breath. Now was the time to do what she had come here for. She went ahead and knocked on Saveer’s office before entering.

  For a moment, Saveer looked speechless upon seeing her. He couldn’t think of anything.

  ‘Relax,’ Prisha said. ‘I’m not here to ask you to patch up or anything. I respect your decision. I came here to collect my stuff. I have sent Krishna my resignation via email.’

  Saveer remained quiet.

  ‘I wanted to thank you. Your decision to break up with me has helped me grow up. I won’t say I like this feeling but I’m glad that I encountered it through the person I love. I know few people can say that. So yeah, thanks. Take care,’ Prisha said and turned to leave. Then she stopped.

  ‘One more thing.’ She walked up to him. Saveer remained seated on his chair. Before he knew what had happened, Prisha had had her last kiss.

  ‘I thought we owed each other that,’ she said and immediately left, not waiting for an answer. Once she was out of the room, Saveer wondered when the time would come when he would scoop her up in his arms and tell her that they were in it for life. Sighing, he checked his watch. It was time to go home.

  Saveer entered his own house suspiciously. What if the woman was already there? Though the camera feed told him that the house was empty, Saveer was alert as he crossed the living room and went to the kitchen first and then to the bedroom. He checked the washroom and the store room, after which he relaxed. The next thing on his mind was what he couldn’t decipher from the footage. He went to the wall clock in the living room and checked the time and then glanced at his wrist watch. Both read: 6.50 p.m. Saveer frowned. He immediately scooted to his bedroom. The digital clock on his bedside table showed the same time. He remembered clearly that the woman had picked up the digital clock in her hands. Saveer too picked it up. Something struck him. He kept the digital clock back on the table and sat on the bed with his phone. He googled the exact time. The search result flashed the exact Indian Standard Time: 6.49.37. One minute and thirty odd seconds ahead. Was this the change the woman had made to the clock? He wasn’t sure but there was something about the time that bothered him. Like it had some strange significance. He started pacing up and down the room, thinking hard. Minutes passed. Then he suddenly muttered, ‘Shit!’ He remembered exactly why. It was around seven years ago. It had happened three or four times. Ishanvi was particular about everything—almost as if she had OCD, especially regarding time. She was always punctual and hated those who weren’t. There were many instances when Saveer had got late in meeting her and she had got angry. She was in the bedroom when she had pointed out to him that his clocks were always a minute and a half ahead. She would diligently wind them back to the right time. It wasn’t out of the ordinary back then, but now it seemed significant. Saveer was lost in deep thought when his phone rang. It was Shetty.

  ‘Hello, Mr Rathod. I called to inform you that we have watched the footage meticulously. Unfortunately, the identity of the woman isn’t clear. Anyway, we are deploying few plain-clothed policemen around your house to keep a tab. Especially tonight.’

  ‘Great. Thanks for the cooperation, officer,’ Saveer said.

  ‘We put on uniforms to serve people. So no thanks, Mr Rathod.’ Saveer was all charged up. It’s just a matter of time now, he thought. A mystery which had engulfed his entire life and cost him all his dear ones would finally be unravelled once the woman was caught.

  Saveer went to the washroom, stripped off his T-shirt and turned his back to the mirror, then craned his neck to read:

  I will fuck your every happiness.

  ‘Who are you, damn it!’ Saveer yelled.

  Since his shirt wasn’t close to his mouth, his voice sounded far off through the earphones. But the woman figured out just what he had said.

  ‘Well,’ she said, ‘I’m Saveer Rathod. It’s you who has conveniently forgotten who you are.’ She looked deadpan serious in her reflection in a mirror.

  22

  It was around eleven in the night when a man singing a Kannada song stumbled into the lane where Saveer’s house was. While crossing his house, he suddenly collapsed on the ground. He sounded like a drunk. But in reality he wasn’t. He was instructed to lie down next to Saveer’s house. He was an incognito policeman. As the man collapsed on the ground, he glanced at another man standing at a distant cigarette shop. He was smoking and talking to someone over the phone. He was a cop as well. He, in turn, kept glancing at the window of a house from time to time. The lights were off and the curtains were drawn but there was a team of two men with loaded revolvers, waiting to jump into action if the need arose. Saveer’s house was under police supervision as promised by Shetty. All of them were waiting for the woman.

  Inside his house, Saveer was restless. He avoided dinner that night. He had seen the woman spike the vegetables and the chicken earlier that day. Who knows what else had been tampered with. He had carried a few bottles of Bisleri from office and finished them one at a time while waiting for the woman. He didn’t know when he fell asleep. When he woke up in the morning, his first thought was that he had been drugged. Seconds later, he realized that he had fallen asleep on his own. He looked around. Everything seemed normal. He took his phone and called up Shetty.

  ‘Good morning, Mr Rathod.’ Shetty sounded as if he his mouth was stuffed with food.

  ‘Good morning, officer. Any leads?’

  ‘Nothing. My men kept waiting. Didn’t sleep at all. But nobody came. Don’t worry. You keep the camera on when you leave the house. My men will be keeping an eye on visitors.’

  ‘Sure, I’ll do that. Thanks.’

  Saveer went to office and kept the live feed of his phone on at all times. He kept glancing at it in between work but every time the footage showed an empty house, he felt frustrated.

  Nobody came that n
ight. Or on the next two nights. A week passed and nothing happened except Saveer developing a habit of checking his phone’s live feed every few minutes. Nine days after the police deployed its men to supervise his house, Shetty called up Saveer.

  ‘Hello, Mr Rathod.’

  ‘Hi, officer,’ Saveer said. He was in his office. When his phone flashed Shetty’s name, Saveer felt thrilled. He was hoping there was some good news.

  ‘It has been some time and absolutely nothing has happened,’ Shetty said instead.

  ‘Yes. I know.’ Saveer’s hopes were immediately dashed.

  ‘So I had a suggestion.’

  ‘Please, tell me.’ Don’t tell me you are taking those policemen off, he thought.

  ‘I was thinking about whatever you told me about this case. The woman who you think is related to this case has killed, according to you, people who were close to you. And then you told me you have broken up with your girlfriend. Correct?’

  ‘Hmm, that’s correct.’ Saveer had an idea as to where Shetty was steering the conversation to.

  ‘In that case, do you think it leaves the woman, we have been waiting for, any reason to visit your house?’

  Saveer thought for some time before responding. It was something which had not struck him.

  ‘I get your point. So what do you suggest?’

  ‘I suggest you patch up with your girlfriend.’ Shetty sounded convinced of what he said.

  ‘We have broken off. I don’t think it will be possible.’

  ‘Are you sure?’

  ‘Pretty much.’

  ‘Then there’s nothing much that we can do. One man will suffice to keep a watch over your house for a few more days. If nothing happens, then we will need to stop the supervision. Please let us know if you come across anything suspicious.’

  ‘For sure.’

  Saveer disconnected the call and stood up. He walked towards the big window in his room and pulled the blinds up. He looked outside. Officer Shetty had made a valid point, Saveer thought. There is indeed no reason why the woman should visit me again, considering she knows Prisha and I have broken up. Even the tattoo hints at the same. ‘I will fuck your every happiness’. So if there’s no happiness, the woman is out of her job. Saveer turned around. He couldn’t believe that he had missed such a vital point. The woman will be there if I am happy. But how could he be happy? Not by sleeping around with random women. He never had any hiccup during his Mean Monster phase because he wasn’t really happy back then. He was happy when he felt as if he had made a soulful connect with Prisha. It had become a vicious cycle of sorts: if they didn’t catch the woman, Saveer would never be able to patch up with Prisha and give their relationship another chance. But to nab her, he would have to seek true happiness, which lay with Prisha. His only option now was to convince Prisha to give themselves another chance, even if it meant pretending to be together, so that they inched closer to nabbing the woman. Saveer ran his fingers through his hair realizing how messy it sounded. But what other choice do I have?

  He sauntered to his table, picked up his phone and messaged Shetty: I’ll try to reconnect with Prisha.

  ‘Great. Keep me posted,’ was the response.

  23

  Saveer first decided to send Prisha a message.

  Hi, can we talk?

  He waited, but the message was not delivered even after office hours. Has she blocked me or something? He wondered and called her up.

  The number you are trying to reach is switched off, an automated voice responded.

  Saveer drove straight to Prisha’s apartment. He parked his car and went up. He had to only ring once before the door was opened. It was a young boy.

  ‘Yes?’ Karthik asked.

  Saveer wasn’t expecting a boy. Had Prisha already moved on? he wondered. She has all the right to, he thought, before saying, ‘I wanted to see Prisha.’

  ‘She isn’t here right now,’ Karthik said.

  Saveer was itching to ask who he was. ‘Her number is switched off. I need to meet her,’ he said instead.

  ‘You are . . . ?’

  That should be my question. ‘I’m Saveer. A friend of hers.’

  ‘All right. Prisha’s phone will be off till tomorrow. She is in the Art Of Living ashram.’

  ‘Alone?’

  ‘No. Her batch from college is there,’ Karthik said. Saveer realized there was no point asking the boy anything else. Somehow he was making him uncomfortable. Did he move in with Prisha? Saveer left. He googled the ashram’s address, put it on his GPS and then headed in that direction. It was around 10 p.m. when he reached there.

  There was an air of tranquillity in the ashram. It was as if the peaceful aura had muted the hustle and bustle of city life. He went inside and inquired about the Cross University team. The ashram superintendent put Saveer in touch with the professor who was in charge of the students. The trip was organized so that the students could enjoy two stress-free days from college.

  ‘I don’t think I recognize you,’ the professor said.

  ‘I’m Saveer Rathod. I’m here to meet an acquaintance. It’s urgent.’

  ‘What’s his or her name?’

  ‘Prisha Srivastav.’

  ‘Oh, all right. Let me call her.’ The professor went inside while Saveer waited. He felt an unlikely nervousness. Some time later, he heard a voice.

  ‘Here.’ It was the professor. He was followed by an unsure-looking Prisha. When the professor had mentioned that someone named Saveer Rathod had come to meet her, she had thought that she had officially lost her mind. But now, when she realized that it was indeed Saveer who was standing in front of her, she felt like laughing. She’d jumped at the opportunity to accompany her batch mates to the Art of Living ashram only because she wanted to get a grip on herself. After the break-up, all that she could think of was the separation. As if there was nothing more left to life than that. As the break-up slowly sank in, Prisha tried to remember the relationship for the wonderful things that she had experienced with Saveer. And that was the only reason why she was in the ashram. Now the man responsible for rescuing her from an emotional crisis, helping her discover herself and changing her for ever was standing right in front of her, challenging the very reason why she was in the ashram. Life has some shitty sense of humour, she thought and said, ‘Yes, sir, he is an acquaintance.’

  ‘All right,’ the professor said and excused himself. There was silence as their eyes met.

  ‘How did you know I’m here?’ Prisha asked.

  ‘I went to your flat. A guy told me you were here. Who is he?’

  Really? You came here to know who the guy in my flat was? ‘I don’t know,’ Prisha said.

  ‘You can tell me if he is your boyfriend. I won’t mind,’ Saveer said. He’d carried the face of the boy in his mind till he reached the ashram.

  ‘How will I know which guy you saw? Most probably it was Karthik. And no, he isn’t my boyfriend. He is Gauri’s boyfriend.’

  Saveer relaxed. Now it was time to tell her why he had come to the ashram.

  ‘I need to tell you something.’

  ‘Of course. Otherwise two people who swore not to meet again, don’t just meet a few days after such a conversation. What is it, Saveer?’

  ‘We are close to nabbing the woman,’ Saveer said.

  ‘We?’

  ‘The police and I.’

  ‘Care to explain, please?’

  Saveer told the developments in the case.

  ‘So, the police suggested that you and I play the relationship game again. Only this time, it will be a pretence?’

  ‘Kind of.’

  ‘Are you okay with it?’

  ‘I have a request. Can we do it without asking questions?’ Saveer said, knowing well that he didn’t have answers to anything right now.

  ‘Sure. I’ll need one more day in the ashram,’ Prisha said and thought, I’ll come back here after our pretence is over. I’m sure till then my mind would be even more fucked tha
n what it is right now.

  ‘That’s not an issue. All we need to do is meet once or twice outside like we used to.’

  ‘Like we used to?’

  ‘Almost . . . like we used to.’

  ‘Almost . . . one of the two saddest words we had discussed once.’

  ‘And then you stay with me for a few nights.’ Saveer stuck to the point.

  A few more nights with you? Wow! Get ready for a royal mind-fuck, Prisha.

  ‘Until the woman visits,’ he said.

  ‘And we catch her.’

  ‘Yes.’

  ‘I’ll see you the day after then?’

  ‘See me where?’

  ‘I’ll pick you up. We’ll go to some cafe first and then to my house.’

  ‘Hmm.’

  ‘Take care,’ he said and was about to leave when Prisha stopped him.

  ‘Saveer!’

  ‘Suppose the woman gets caught, comes out clean about those killings. The police arrests her. What about us then?’

  Saveer took his time before replying, ‘Right now, I don’t know.’ However, in his eyes there was a flicker of hope.

  ‘I get it. See you the day after,’ Prisha said.

  Saveer left.