Heed your mom

"Listen to me for once, will you?", he asked, while she packed her bags. For once he had forgotten.

"Why did you? For once, why didn't you heed me?", She was crying, she was screaming, while she packed her bags. Her tears drowned his voice.

That's not good, he thought. He was thinking of ways to console her. Probably a good dinner at her favourite place and nice wine.

He knew it was about him going for the commitment she never wanted him to go. “Someone had to”, is what he said. Plus he was going to surprise her on their anniversary. Surprises were his thing, and she loved it. But now he was here and she was apoplectic.

 He looked at her, her silky long black hair, her smooth face like a moon on a dark night, her eyes twinkled like the brightest stars. Day in, day out he was with her, but today somehow, she was all the more gorgeous. It was falling in love with her all over again.

He was still wearing his overall, he didn’t have time to change. He felt for the box inside left breast pocket. Although she was not into trinkets, but these pearls were special, original, pure just like her. Perfect anniversary present, he had given it a lot of thought and money. Man, it wasn’t easy procuring those. If it wasn’t for him and his good deeds and excellent connections amongst the locals, he wouldn’t have got it. In fact, it wasn’t for the pearls but the story behind it that would mesmerize her.

She loved listening to his anecdotes and he was an excellent orator.

“But xyz, hear me out, see what I have for you”, before he could present her the box, she stormed to the bathroom, whilst sobbing and crying.

He waited, but then decided he will change first. He looked outside the window, his car wasn’t here. Somebody had dropped him, but he couldn’t remember who. Then he saw a cab rolling out in. Before he could realize, she barged out, picked up her bag and rushed downstairs into the cab. He followed her, almost tripping on the stairs.

“Xyz, XYZ!!!”, no reply. She just got into the cab and it rolled. Wow, she is pissed off.

They have had their share of fights, this was completely normal. But he has always managed to woo her back. Him serenading in the middle of the night or cooking the delicacies. He never thought those were good enough, but she always rewarded him with sweet kisses and the fight used to always end with passionate love making on their bed. He always appreciated her on the mattresses she chose, with those and her it was always warm and fuzzy.

He was looking at the cab, as it went away leaving trail of dust. Before he could settle in with his thoughts, a black sedan rolled by his side. A man in black suit and a perfect hat popped his head out of window. He was expressionless, but his dressing and the car was immaculate.

“You still have 3 hours left”, he said in his deep baritone as he tapped his watch. He looked at him and remembered cutting a deal with him. Eureka! He was the chauffeur, he booked him for the anniversary. He didn’t know how much he spent, but by the looks of it, it was definitely expensive.

“Can we follow the cab, my wife is in it”, he said frantically while he opened the rear door.

“Certainly, i know where she might be off to”, he almost smiled.

“Yea, to her mother’s house”, he tried to crack a joke, but Mr. Expressionless found it least amusing.

The car rolled and started following the cab. It was nice, interiors all black, soft music. He almost felt like those business tycoons who have no time at all and this is the only time they could relax.

His mother-in-law was a sindhi and far from it. If only devil wore saree. She was a social worker by profession but actually wanted to join the politics. She never wanted xyz to marry him. Infact she was so pedantic when their parents met that at one instance he just wanted to call off the wedding. She wanted her to marry to some politician’s son or any civilian, but not him. You can reason with death for once, but not his mother-in-law. The only thing that kept him afloat was his father-in-law. He is awesome, although he was born and brought up in Kerela he spoke fluent hindi. They enjoyed listening to Kishore da, Manna Dey and Rafi together. He was an absolute pacifier. How he settled down with that devil, god only knows. If it wasn’t for his blessings, he and xyz would not have been together.

The path seemed quite familiar, she was going to his squadron. Now he understood. “Bastards”, he murmured under his breath. His colleagues, his friends, his brothers in arms. Last time they had planned surprise party at home, this time squadron. They ruined his surprise, to say the least. But probably they will be able to appease her better and they would be back together, happy again, in bed, he thought mischievously.

“You stop near the gate, I don’t think they will let you in”, he said patting Mr expressionless' back. He thrusted out of the rear door, even before the car had come to a halt. He ran through the gate, no one checked his ID. After all he was in his overall. He entered the huge hangar and saw everyone was there. Even his CO. Quite the arrangement, everyone in their spotless whites. He squinted his eyes, trying to fit in his green while everyone was looking at him.

He tried looking for his wife, his love, his world, while humming N.I.B.

“Your love for me has just got to be real”, he sang under his breathe. He didn’t want to embarrass her singing it aloud. But where is she, damn it.

Anger, she found it really cute when he was angry. And before he could vent out, her touch would vanish all the fury concocting within him and he would sit there like a happy baby with his head on her lap. Her face could launch thousands ships into the sea, and calm all the storms that seek.

There she is, her eyes still red, she is still sobbing. Now that’s absurd. She is crying a river. He was getting irritated now. She has been overreacting. It was such a small sortie, no one was there so he went. What’s the big fuss. He had already told her, it’s his profession that came first. And he was going to be their before sunset as promised.

“Why him?”, she shrieked as she started the fresh burst of tears. It was then he saw, his coursemate handing her the box of pearls.

“What the..”, he felt his left breast pocket, the box wasn’t there.

“Alright, that does it”, he started running across to her when he heard a command at distance and marching sound. He saw all his comrades at distance carrying a something atop their shoulders, while she cried to crescendo. And suddenly the whole world came crashing down on him.

“May day may day may day, ace 1-3-niner engine failure abeam hill top, force landing straight ahead”

He could hear nothing but the garble, he was tad bit scared. After all it was solo. What forfeited his only engine, that the board shall find out. But for now he avoided the village and forced himself into forest. He could have survived the crash, but it was just his time. It was inevitable.

“You still have an hour to go”, the voice whispered in his ear. He turned and it was him, standing straight. Expressionless. “They let me in after all, everyone does, eventually”.

Death is a dignitary who when he comes announced is to be received with formal manifestations of respect, even by those who are most familiar with it.

He remembered reading this somewhere. He remembered, how he pleaded to see her for one last time. He was a good man, even death granted him his last wish. But now he had to go. All good things do come to an end.

“No thanks, I have seen enough”, he said as he slowly treaded towards the black sedan.

She should have heeded her mother, and left him alone.