If only...

Sakshi was packing her bags for her week long business trip to Germany. Being on the advisory board of a multi-national firm her work involved a lot of travel all over the world. Normally, Ajay was very supportive of Sakshi’s work and the amount of commitment she needed to give it. Somehow, this time, for reasons he could not place a finger on, Ajay was not too keen on her going on this particular trip. 

“Do you have to go? What’s Varun doing? He can go instead.” Ajay argued. Varun was at the same level as Sakshi in the firm and they often collaborated on many projects.

“Oh, come on. He’s busy with the upcoming management event this week. Besides, his wife is expecting and is due to deliver anytime now. She needs him more.” Sakshi reasoned logically. As always she was right. 

They were as different as chalk and cheese. She was the cool-headed logical person and Ajay was the temperamental emotional fool. Yes. Quite contrary to the typical man-wife combination. Even their colour preferences defied the typical sampling but matched their personalities. She loved blue and he preferred red.

 An architect and designer by profession, Ajay too held a high-profile job that left them very little couple time. Their work-assignments always clashed. Yet, they made sure they were there for each other at all times. A quick call during the day, a SMS, or even over Whatsapp, they’d remain connected. 

Ajay loved Sakshi for the strong-headed, independent woman that she was.  Ace at her work, she was well-respected among her colleagues and seniors and had risen to a high position in the company within a short time-frame. He was proud of her and her achievements.

Yet, this time Ajay sulked. Being an emotional person, it was sometimes difficult for Ajay to argue his case with his highly rational wife who’d be amused at how much importance he gave to his gut feelings.

“It’s our anniversary next weekend. What if your trip gets extended? You know that’s a common occurrence with your kind of meetings.” he tried to play the emotional card.

“I’ll be back just in time for that, Honey. You know how much that day means to me too. Plan something.” said Sakshi with a twinkle in her eyes and left with a quick goodbye. 

Ajay ignored the uneasy feeling, putting it down to his own work pressure. He plunged into working on his pending assignments. This worked both ways-a happy client and a mind free from unwanted thoughts.

Despite her logical persona, Sakshi believed in lucky charms. A pair of blue earrings was, she believed, was her lucky mascot and she’d never leave for any business trip without those. However, just a couple of days before she left, she misplaced one of the earrings. 

“Was it a sign? She wondered aloud her pretty face knitted in worry. Of course, she couldn’t have been bothered for too long by things like these and within no time her practical side took over.

A couple of days after she left, her missing pair of earrings emerged magically from underneath a pile of papers when Ajay was looking for his missing file. His face broke into a smile and he felt the signs were good after all.

A week flew by. Ajay wanted to surprise Sakshi the day she arrived. A bunch of sweet-smelling roses were placed in the vase. He’d ordered for her favourite butterscotch cake with a tinge of blue icing-just the way she loved it. The upcoming weekend was to be spent at a lovely quiet beach resort - his anniversary gift to her. 

“We both need the break and time together” he mused thoughtfully.

Ajay checked his phone early that morning for his quota of news feed and any new messages. His twitter feed left him gasping for breath. Nothing in the world could have prepared him for the news that greeted him. The plane on which Sakshi was travelling had gone missing. The aircraft had lost contact with the radar a few hours ago and the fate of the passengers and crew was now hanging in mystery.

“If only I’d trusted my instincts this time. If only I’d managed to convince you to stay back. If only…..” cried out Ajay in deep anguish.

 

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The unfortunate event of the Malaysian airline has had me disturbed and the post is a result of it. Wish and pray for the lives of the innocent passengers aboard.

This post is a part of Write Over the Weekend, an initiative for Indian Bloggers by BlogAdda. It's a picture prompt this time.