All one needs is an encounter with an animal to realize the importance of unconditional love

’Passengers traveling on A-456 for Mumbai, please proceed towards gate no. 1 for boarding.’

This announcement broke Anita’s concentration. She closed her book, got up, and approached the required gate. 20 minutes later, she settled inside the flight.

She resumed reading when she heard a voice, ''Excuse me. 12B is my seat. Do you mind shifting a bit so that I can sit down?’’

Her eyes went away from the book towards the voice. Her gaze was hooked on the guy; he had an average height, was probably the same age as her, and was dressed in a black shirt with blue denim.

‘Good looks with mannerisms, strange!’ she thought.

‘’Sure’’, she said while shifting in her seat to make way for the handsome guy to settle down.

Soon, the plane was in the air.  A few minutes later, the cabin crew approached them and enquired if they wanted any refreshments.

‘’Orange juice’’, they both said in unison.

Their eyes met and were staring right at each other when the cabin crew broke off their moment by handing them over the juice bottles.

‘’You two make a wonderful couple’’, she smiled at them while passing on the compliment.

On hearing this, they were embarrassed yet they were blushing. Before they could clarify, she was already out of sight.  

‘’Hi, I am Raj Sharma. Nice to meet you.’’, he said while extending his hand and attempted to break the ice. 

‘’Hi, I am Anita Arora. A pleasure to meet you too,'' she replied while shaking hands with him. 

‘’So, what makes you go to Mumbai? Solo trip, visiting a friend or business trip?’’, Raj enquired.  

’’I am going there for a job. I had an online interview and then I got selected. So here, I am on my way to start a new life in a new city. What about you?’’, Anita replied.

‘’Oh, wow. This is great. Well, I am a Mumbaikar. So it is my home. Parents are settled in the US. I preferred coming back and living where I grew up. Honestly, I got bored in the US. ‘’, Raj explained for his reason to come to India.

‘’Really? Bored in the US? It is probably the first time I am hearing this.’’, she chuckled.

‘’Well, I know it sounds absurd. I went there for studies. I completed my graduation and worked for a while. But then I felt like coming back to India. So now, I am pursuing an MBA and handling my dad's business in India. What about your family?’’, Raj filled in.

‘’Now this is different. Well, I was born and brought up in Delhi. Parents are working in government jobs. I am a single child and they have always supported me in whatever I wanted to do. ‘’, Anita told briefly about her parents.

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And their conversation continued for a good two hours.

The flight landed and they were on their way to take their luggage. They were waiting around the conveyor belt.

A few seconds had passed, when Anita saw her bags approaching towards their direction. Noticing this, Raj helped her out.

‘’Thanks a ton, Raj. It was great meeting you. I would love to wait with you for your luggage but I am actually in a hurry. I just have a day to set up my place and I have to join from the day after. ‘’

‘’Oh, Anita, no formalities, please. I am glad, we bumped into each other. I had an amazing time. Probably we can exchange numbers, I can show you around Mumbai sometime.’’

They exchanged their phones to feed their respective numbers. Anita bid goodbye and just when she started walking towards the exit, she heard Raj’s phone ringing.  

She turned back, saw him being busy on the call, and started walking towards the exit in search of a cab. Luckily, she found one soon but it took her two hours to reach her place.

She unlocked the house and was mesmerized that she got a spacious two-bedroom flat in a good area in Mumbai at probably half the rent people pay. However, her smile faded away when she saw the messed up condition of the place.

Though, she was mentally prepared for it as the broker had already informed her earlier about this.

‘A lot of work to do my darling’ she talked to herself.

She changed her clothes into something comfy and started on her cleaning mission. She broomed, dusted, and mopped the entire house.

It took her five hours to clean up the mess. Thankfully, she carried all the essentials for immediate use from Delhi.

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A week passed and she was trying to adjust in her new home and workplace. However, she hadn’t got a chance to interact with any of her neighbors yet. She had no clue if anyone lived there or if the houses were empty.  

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It was a Saturday night. The first weekend at home after a chaotic five days at work. She was scrolling through her phone when suddenly; she realized that neither she nor Raj had contacted each other.

 ‘Did he not like me? Should I call him? What if he thinks I did not like him? That I am conservative as I did not make the first move of calling him when he initiated the number exchanging bit?'

Thousands of questions ran through her mind. Just when she was engrossed in her thoughts, she heard the utensils rattling in the kitchen. She probably felt she was imagining. But then the sound came again. She got scared as there was no one in the house other than her.

She got up and tiptoed towards the kitchen to resolve the mystery behind the noise of the utensils.

When she peeped through she had the shock of her life. A huge rat was strolling over utensils!

She got scared and hurriedly ran towards the main door of the house. She stepped out and in panic, started ringing the bell of her neighbor who was just opposite to her place, the neighbor whom she had not met till now.

A few seconds later, someone opened the door, and just as she turned around, she was shocked again.

‘’Raj, how come you are here?’’, she questioned.

‘’Hi. Well, I live here. And technically, you rang my bell, so I should be the one asking you this question. Are you following me?’’, he smiled while playfully teasing her.

‘’ You wish. I live here, just opposite you. And I am sorry to disturb you but there is an emergency. ‘’, Anita replied.

‘’What happened? Is everything okay?’’, Raj was concerned.

‘’Nothing serious. But, Ummm, there is a mouse in my kitchen. And I damn scared of rats.’’ She said innocently, fear visible in her voice.

‘’ This is your emergency. You are crazy.’’ He burst out laughing.

‘’No, I am not. I am just scared. I have been bitten by rats before so I have a fear. Stop laughing and please help me out.’’, Anita was a bit embarrassed.

‘’Okay hang on, I think I have a rat killer with me maybe.’’, Raj offered the solution.

No, no rat killer. I wouldn't want to kill them. I will probably buy a mousetrap from the market. Thanks anyways. ‘’, Anita was adamant about not killing the rat.

‘’Happy to help. In fact, why don’t we get ready and go to the market together? We can even stroll a bit; I can take you to someplace nice. We do have loads to catch up on. And, I wanted to apologize actually. You must be wondering why I didn’t call you. Just when you left the airport, I got a call from the US. My dad had a heart attack. So instead of coming back here, I immediately boarded the next flight to be with him. It's been two hours since I came back. Was trying to catch up on some sleep when you came with your emergency’’, Raj winked at her.

‘’Well, we do have a lot to talk. Let’s meet in half an hour’’. She ignored his wink and was relieved to know the actual reason for him not calling was a genuine reason and not him disliking her.

However, she was upset about the heart attack and thought to support him and be with him as much as she can.  

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They ended up spending the evening together. They talked, dined at a nice restaurant, shopped, and came back at night.

Anita offered Raj for midnight cuppa. While the tea was brewing, she placed a piece of leftover roti in the mousetrap. They both continued chattering and dozed off while talking.

The next morning, being a Sunday, Anita got up to do the chores silently as to not to wake him up. Suddenly, she heard a sound, ‘thud’.

She knew where it came from. She immediately went to check the mousetrap. The rat was there. She thought to complete her chores first and then she would go to a place far away to free the rat.

An hour later, she was all set to take the mouse out. When she reached towards the trap, she realized the rat had given birth to babies.

‘’Great, now there are so many of them. What should I do? They are newborns and too small.’’ She was talking to herself in panic.  

Raj woke up ate the same time and saw the rat with her new born kids.

‘’Now, we have got a situation. What do we do now?’’, he questioned Anita.

She was in a dilemma now. Freeing them would mean them getting killed or separated from their mother. Besides, they looked weirdly cute to her, their small feet, small bodies.

She knew she had to do something. She was not sure about abandoning them but was also not sure about keeping them either.

She agitatedly started typing on her laptop keyboard. She Googled DIY videos to create a house for pet rats.

Raj chose to sit and wait patiently for her to utter something.

Once done with her research, she turned the laptop screen towards him. He understood her plan.

And they spent the entire day and the night to prepare a house for the rats.

The next morning, she shifted the family to their new home and fed them.

In a new city, they had become her pals, her extended family. She used to feed them before leaving for office and would come back straight home as she knew they would be hungry. She regularly took them to the vet to get them vaccinated and cleansed. She used to talk to them every day, sharing about her office and her equation with Raj.

Even Raj helped her to take care of them. They would accordingly manage their schedule and it almost felt as if the rats were their kids.

She named the mother rat, Gannu after Ganesha (a Hindu god who has the head of an elephant and whose carrier is a rat or a mouse.) Since she had a firm belief in Lord Ganesha; she thought Gannu would be the best name. Ironically, she had always been troubled by the rats; however, she always looked at the bright side that maybe this was Lord Ganesha’s way of showering his blessings on her. She also felt that may be nurturing the rats was a sign from the god himself and he chose her to do this task. 

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4 weeks passed.

One Sunday, Raj and Anita were brunching at her place.

‘’Raj, I think it’s time to set them free. They have grown up and my OCD streak is shouting from the inside seeing the mess they have created. Plus, I don't want any infections to arise. Will, you help me?’’, Anita asked Raj, anxiety was visible in her voice.

‘’Of course, I understand your concern. And you have done a great job. I know it’s tough for you to leave them, you have an emotional connection with them. And I have a solution. It might sound weird but a friend of mine loves to pet animals of all kinds. He is financially well off, so he has the staff, a bungalow especially for his pets, the money to manage everything. I have already had a word with him and he is happy to keep them. So this way, we can meet them whenever we want to.’’

‘’That sounds great Raj. And I did not do this all by myself. You have been a great help. You are a sweetheart, seriously’’, Anita complimented him.

‘’Am I your sweetheart?’’ he questioned while chuckling.

‘’Shut up’’, she said while feeding him dal rice.

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They did as decided. But it left her feeling lonely and upset. She felt as if she was giving up her babies. In a new place, they had been her only constant along with Raj. And they were the reason, they both got to meet.  She struggled to live without them as now she had no one to take care of.

However, spending time with them changed her attitude towards animals. She started working in her free time for the protection of animals. Raj joined her for this cause. They formed a group and started saving the street animals, took up their responsibility, got them vaccinated and cleansed by the professionals, and fed them till the time they weren't adopted by a good family.

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A week later, on a Saturday noon, Anita had dozed off while working.

‘Hi. Meet me at 5 P.M. at my place. Wear Indian. Have a surprise. No questions asked.’

She read Raj’s text as soon as she woke up from her nap and checked her phone.

She went for a bath and started searching for her cupboard to pick up traditional attire. How could she not fulfill his small wish?

She entered his place at the exact time wearing an orange suit with a dupatta but was shocked to find the drawing-room all decorated with a Ganesha idol in the center of the room.

‘’Surprise!’’, Raj shouted while hugging her. ‘’You were missing our rats right. I thought since it is Ganesh Chaturthi (a 10 day Hindu festival where Ganesha idols are brought at homes by the public or in public spaces, prayed to every day and later bid goodbye by dipping the idols in the ocean or a water body), why not bring your favorite God at our place. For a few days at least but the memories will last forever. I thought this might cheer you up. This way your desire to witness the festivities will also be fulfilled.‘’  

‘’Oh, my god. This is amazing Raj. You are stupid. You are already tied up with work and studies. You didn’t have to go through all the pain and efforts. I can’t express how happy and emotional I am by this gesture.’’, Anita was short of words on seeing his efforts. 

Just when she was trying to express her thoughts, Raj went down on his knees with a modak (an Indian sweet offered to Ganesha) in his hand and said, ‘’ I know it’s been a short time we met, but since, the time we have, my life has become better. You have brought stability in my life. I am glad I have someone who is with me for me, and not because of my money and stature. I just want you by my side. I know you want to take it slow and I am ready for it. We started spending time because of an animal, our rat Gannu. Raising her and her kids with you made me realize my feelings for you. Your initiative of helping animals, handling home with job, and me, I am just crazy about you. I am great for rats to exist because they gave me my someone special. So, Ms. Anita will you be my girlfriend for now and forever so that we can have Ganpati Bappa (Ganesha) at our place each year? ‘’

This was the sweetest proposal and the best so far Anita. She was ecstatic at his romantic gesture. Since it was Ganesh Chaturthi, she again took it as a sign from God.

‘’Raj, you know my answer silly. Thousand times yes! I guess we have so much to talk to. Let’s wrap up the pooja(prayer) and then we will talk over candlelight dinner. '', Anita planned the evening.

And thus, started a love story with the help of a rodent, a rat, Gannu!

Presently, they still visit Gannu and their babies at Raj’s friend’s place. They named the five babies as Taaj, Betty, James, Anwar, and Smiley.