To new beginnings.....(part 1)

He checked his reflection for the umpteenth time in the rearview mirror of his newly acquired ford.The sight of this latest acqisition never ceased to fill his heart with pride.” Its my toil and sweat that has given this baby its extra sleek look”, he often mused to himself.

Well,well no time to bask in this glorious sight .Can`t keep ‘her’ waiting.’Her’ as in Ruheen Prakash or is it soon-to-be Mrs Ruheen Mitra.Bull!! Here I go daydreaming again,he thought slamming the car door and fastening his seat belt,as he drove out of the hospital complex.

“Will you be mine,Ruheen?”,”Will you spend the rest of your life with me?” or a straight and simple –“Marry me Ruheen !”----What is it gonna be?? Rohan deliberated over the most crucial line of his life which was to be delivered in less than half an hour.He had googled for the most exquisite solitaire that wouldn’t burn a hole in his pocket(he wanted to surprise Ruheen,a sucker for Yash Chopra movies,with a honeymoon to the swiss alps).He looked over at the lovely bouquet of 14 red roses lying on the backseat .14..The 14 blissful ears of romancing Ruheen (sometimes in his dreams,at other times in his silent,unspoken style) came flooding to his mind.Family-friends,childhood playmates,high school “best-friends”.He always felt that they were made for each other.Rohan & Ruheen…Ruheen & Rohan.And today was the day when he was going to ask his sweetheart to be his forever.God! he could already feel the goosepimples under the sleeves of his carefully ironed silk shirt,at this thought.

Honk!honk!…. Rohan was jolted out of his reverie .Damn! this traffic .when the hell are Bangalore`s roads gonna improve !This was a real dampener for his mood.He checked out the time…”Gosh ! Ruheen must have reached there already.Don’t wanna keep her waiting today …of all days!
His anxiety lasted for 20 minutes more after which nervousness set in as he pulled into the driveway of Barista.”Whats wrong with me?I`ve known her all my life.Bloody hell! Why do I have to sweat at the thought of meeting her today??!!” He tried to assure himself but to no avail.It was then that he spotted her.

There she was, at a corner table.Redolent and resplendent in red.It was now that the thought struck him.”Shouldn’t I have atleast given her a hint earlier?…Atleast have given her a small peek into the feelings I have in store for her…how is she gonna react?His thoughts were broken by the lovely sight of Ruheen flashing that breathtaking smile of hers.But wait a minute that smile was not for him.A wave of jealousy coursed through him as he looked at the object of her attention.He looked familiar…Oh that’s ol` Vicky..as in Dr. Vikram Kapoor…His roommate of 7 yrs..Rohan`s face creased into a broad grin as he remembered those gruelling Med. School days ,of which Vicky was an integral part .He relaxed and joined them at their table,wondering what the hell was he doing here….hope not leaking out his best kept secret to her.

“Hey rohan!! Wassup dude?…Hope dat oldie Mehra isn’t loading u up with those godawful post-mortem cases lately…Vikram laughed n reached out for Ruheen`s hand on the table.She blushed a deep shade of red.It seemed as though her translucent skin reflected the colour of her dress.”What the hell is going on out here…thought a very puzzled Rohan.Nevertheless, he flashed a bright smile “That’s just work guys..I love my work, of whatever nature it may be”,he said as he looked questioningly at Ruheen.She replied by blushing yet again and muttering something like”Where do I start it from” under her breath.”.”Its no use keeping it under wraps any more Rooh,is it? Cmon…”egged on Vicky.

“Okay ...”started Ruheen..”Actually Rohan I`ve been planning to tell you about this since quite sometime now but I myself wasn’t sure about it till about a few minutes ago.Vikram just proposed to me and I..I said yes.”…she said and retrieved her hand from Vikram`s grasp to show him the sinfully huge stone adorning the ring finger of her left hand.Rohan clutched the solitaire in his trouser pocket as he went numb.He could just faintly recollect Ruheen saying..”Thanks so much Rohan, for having introduced me to Vikram.He is such an amazing guy…Keeps me in splits all the time.I just don’t know what would I have done without your help Rohan.You really r my best buddy in the truest sense…Ill always remain indebted to u for giving me the love of my life…".....”