BLOG FICTION
Story No. 7
INFIDELITY
Short Fiction - A Romance
By
VIKRAM KARVE
From My Creative Writing Archives:
A Story to cheer you up on Monday Morning.
One of my recent lighthearted love stories - I wrote this around three years ago, I think.
“I want to marry your husband.”
“What? Are you mad or something?”
“No. I am not mad. Can’t you see? I am perfectly okay. I want to marry your husband. So I have come to ask you to please let him free…”
“I don’t want to talk to you. Please leave my office.”
“Come on Anu…”
“Anu? Listen Madam, my name is…”
“Anamika – Mrs. Anamika Prem Kumar, Senior Project Manager, IT whiz kid, ambitious, ruthless, careerist… I know everything about you…and don’t ‘madam’ me…call me Priti…that’s my name...Prem must have told you about me.”
“Priti?...never heard of you…I don’t know who you are…Prem’s told me nothing about you…he’s never even mentioned your name.”
“Funny, isn’t it? Think about it. I know everything about you but you know nothing about me. You see, your husband Prem tells me everything about you – each and every detail, yes, with me he even shares your intimate secrets, but he does not tell you about me – your darling husband hides his relationship with me from you!”
“Relationship? Intimate secrets? What nonsense…”
“Shall I tell you about your honeymoon…Things only you and Prem should know?”
“Who the hell do you think you are? Barging into my office unannounced…”
“Hey, I didn’t barge in. I sent you my visiting card, and you called me in, isn’t it? It’s all there on my card, my name, designation, the company I work for…Let’s say I am your husband’s colleague, his work-mate, his teammate, we almost share the same desk...”
Anamika looks at the card, picks up her cell-phone, but before she can dial Priti interrupts her, “You’re calling Prem? Don’t disturb him, Anu. Prem must be sleeping.”
“Sleeping? At eleven in the morning? He should be in office…”
“See, you don’t even know…”
“What?”
“Prem had his wisdom tooth extracted last evening…it was very very painful…Poor Prem…He was in such excruciating agony that I had to sit at his bedside the whole night…First thing in the morning I gave him a sedative and drove straight down to Pune to meet you.”
“You were with him the whole night?”
“No. No. It’s not what you think. We’re not having a physical affair – it’s purely platonic – maybe you can call it an emotional affair – at least till now – but it’s still a love affair, isn’t it?”
“Love? How can he love you? I am his wife!”
“Wife? Oh yes, you’re his legally wedded wife! But tell me Anu, where are you when he needs you..?”
“Needs me…?”
“See, you’re so busy out here in Pune chasing your career dreams that you don’t even know what suffering your husband is going through staying alone in Mumbai.”
“Of course I know. I speak to him on the mobile every day…”
“I know. Prem tells me all about it…and he also tells me how you bore him sick during your weekend rendezvous with your nauseating mask of fake love, he is fed up of your sugary sweet talk, your pretence, your phony ‘caring and sharing’ act...”
“That’s not true…we spend ‘Quality Time’ together…”
“Ha, Ha... ‘Quality Time’ indeed…once a week…it’s once a month now isn’t it…since you have started working on weekends to meet your deadlines…and long gaps when you go globetrotting on your projects…well you may be having your rare moments of ‘Quality Time’ with Prem, but me and Prem are spending plenty of ‘Quantity Time’ together…and that’s what really matters…”
“Listen Miss Priti…I’ve tolerated you long enough…I think it’s time you go now…I’ve work to do…And I am warning you…don’t try to steal my husband from me…”
“Steal your husband? There is no need for me to steal your husband…he is already mine…it is you who have thrown Prem into my arms then I am quite willing to have him remain there…and hold onto him tightly...”
The woman called Anu gets up and says, “I think it is time for you to go now.”
“I’ll tell Prem to get the papers ready. I think it’s best to get this over with as fast as possible.”
“Papers? What papers? I am not going to sign any papers. And I am warning you Miss - whatever your name is - you just stay away from my husband. Now just go away. Good Bye!”
“Be reasonable, Anu. We are three persons in this marriage. That’s not good. There should be only two persons in a marriage, not a threesome. You are his paper wife but I am his office wife. Between the two of us I think I am more in tune with him. So I think it is you who will have to leave the threesome. Think about it. Take your time. I am sure you will understand,” Priti says.
Then Priti walks out of Anu’s office.
Priti does not take the lift.
She deliberately walks down the staircase.
She reflects on her tête-à-tête with Anu.
Priti feels happy and congratulates herself on a job well done.
She returns her visitor’s pass at the reception, walks past the foyer, crosses the road and reaches her car.
The moment Priti sits in her car she calls up her “office husband” Prem in Mumbai from her mobile.
“I spoke to her,” Priti says to Prem, the moment comes on line.
“I know. Anu rang me up just now,” Prem says.
“What? Your wife rang you up? So fast?”
“You really seem to have really rattled her. Anu is coming down to Mumbai this evening after work. She has taken a week’s leave. She wants to stay with me in Mumbai and talk things over. She was even asking about the pain in my wisdom tooth. She said she wanted to look after me!”
“Really?”
“Thanks, Priti. I think you have saved my marriage.”
“Come on Prem. There is no ‘thank you’ and ‘sorry’ between friends.”
“Yes, Priti, you’re really my true friend, my best friend in the world!”
“Hey, don’t get sentimental. And by the way, if she doesn’t turn up and gives you a ditch - if Anu ever dumps you - just remember I am always there for you. But I’m sure she’ll come and everything will work out fine for you two.”
“I hope so.”
“I am sure of it. Anyway now I am going to make myself scarce for a few days and spend some time with my sister in Pune. We’ll meet at the office next week and talk. Bye. Take Care.”
“Bye,” Prem says and he feels a flood of love, a unique kind of affection, a sort of warm gratitude for Priti.
Meanwhile, in Pune, Prem’s wife Anu aka Mrs. Anamika Prem Kumar leaves her office and walks across to the cabin of her “office husband”.
She enters and closes the door.
“You won’t believe it,” she laughs, “dodo is having an affair!”
“Your husband is having an affair? I cannot believe it!” the man says.
“The female was here. Her name is Priti. She works in my husband Prem’s office in Mumbai. She came here all the way from Mumbai,” Anu says.
Then Anu tells everything to her “office husband”. Yes, she tell him each and every thing.
(Well the man I call “office husband” is quite a common phenomenon nowadays, especially in long distance marriages. In Anu’s case the man is much more than a mere “office husband” - he is her companion, her soul-mate, her paramour, her lover - call him what you like - and by the way this phenomenon is quite common in the modern urban world too).
“Just imagine, Anu! You were almost going to tell your husband about us...and you were feeling so guilty...now what are you going to do?” the man asks.
“I’m going to Mumbai to meet my husband. I’ll throw a real tantrum…I will create a ruckus, tell him he is a cheat...I will accuse him of infidelity, of being disloyal, of betraying me...I will tell him I want out...I think it is better that he has the guilt conscience, isn't it?”
“Yes,” the man says, “it is much better that your husband has the guilty conscience.”
VIKRAM KARVE
Copyright © Vikram Karve 2013
Vikram Karve has asserted his right under the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988 to be identified as the author of this work.
© vikram karve., all rights reserved.
I am sure you will like all the 27 stories in my recently published book of short stories COCKTAIL
To order your COCKTAIL please click any of the links below:
http://www.flipkart.com/cocktail-vikram-karve-short-stories-book-81910
http://www.indiaplaza.in/cocktail-vikram-karve/books/9788191091847.htm
http://www.apkpublishers.com/books/short-stories/cocktail-by-vikram-ka
COCKTAIL ebook
If you prefer reading ebooks on Kindle or your ebook reader, please order Cocktail E-book by clicking the links below:
AMAZON
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B005MGERZ6
SMASHWORDS
http://www.smashwords.com/books/view/87925
Foodie Book: Appetite for a Stroll
http://www.flipkart.com/appetite-stroll-vikram-karve/8190690094-gw23f9
About Vikram Karve
A creative person with a zest for life, Vikram Karve is a retired Naval Officer turned full time writer and blogger. Educated at IIT Delhi, IIT (BHU) Varanasi, The Lawrence School Lovedale and Bishops School Pune, Vikram has published two books: COCKTAIL a collection of fiction short stories about relationships (2011) and APPETITE FOR A STROLL a book of Foodie Adventures (2008) and is currently working on his novel and a book of vignettes and short fiction. An avid blogger, he has written a large number of fiction short stories, creative non-fiction articles on a variety of topics including food, travel, philosophy, academics, technology, management, health, pet parenting, teaching stories and self help in magazines and published a large number of professional research papers in journals and edited in-house journals and magazines for many years, before the advent of blogging. Vikram has taught at a University as a Professor for 15 years and now teaches as a visiting faculty and devotes most of his time to creative writing and blogging. Vikram Karve lives in Pune India with his family and muse - his pet dog Sherry with whom he takes long walks thinking creative thoughts.
Vikram Karve Academic and Creative Writing Journal: http://karvediat.blogspot.com
Professional Profile Vikram Karve: http://www.linkedin.com/in/karve
Vikram Karve Facebook Page: https://www.facebook.com/vikramkarve
Vikram Karve Creative Writing Blog: http://vikramkarve.sulekha.com/blog/posts.htm
Email: vikramwamankarve@gmail.com
© vikram karve., all rights reserved.
4 comments:
I thought you would end it at Priti going to her sister's, but no, you had to throw the twist in there!!! Rocking twist though!
Thanks Deepa. I am glad you liked the twist in the tail
Loved it with a nice twist at the end!
By the way, I would also like to ask you about a site which enables writers to build up a fanbase and market their books online, ReadWave.com.
You see, I help out on there and we've just launched a "reading widget" (a tool which allows you to embed a story on your website in a very compact form) which is aimed at bloggers who love short stories. Since you like both and because you seem like a nice person, I was hoping I could ask you to check it out and let me know what you think of it? Here's a link to our Blogspot (readwave.blogspot.co.uk) where you can see a demonstration of how to do so. For the site page, it’s here (http://readwave.com)
At the moment we're still looking for feedback on how easy it is to use the feature, and how useful you think it would be, so if you are able to test it out on your blog I would be eternally grateful. Please do get in touch.
All the best,
Nyasha
By the way, I would also like to ask you about a site which enables writers to build up a fanbase and market their books online, ReadWave.com.
You see, I help out on there and we've just launched a "reading widget" (a tool which allows you to embed a story on your website in a very compact form) which is aimed at bloggers who love short stories. Since you like both and because you seem like a nice person, I was hoping I could ask you to check it out and let me know what you think of it? Here's a link to our Blogspot (readwave.blogspot.co.uk) where you can see a demonstration of how to do so. For the site page, it’s here (http://readwave.com)
At the moment we're still looking for feedback on how easy it is to use the feature, and how useful you think it would be, so if you are able to test it out on your blog I would be eternally grateful. Please do get in touch.
All the best,
Nyasha
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