Scotch

It was the usual evening outside Vanitha’s two room apartment. The roads were jammed with vehicles glaring horns at each other furiously in lieu of reaching their respective home the fastest they could. She could clearly hear the radio screaming the latest songs from cars, but was too distracted to reach for the window panes. Her neighbours Mr. and Mrs. Reddy were already back from God knows where.
She squirmed slightly in her couch, placing her slender body more carefully to fill in the contours of the couch while trying to concentrate on the movie she had decided to watch as she waited for Utsav to come home.

She had been married to Utsav for five years now and it had been a perfect marriage by far. Utsav was a jovial guy with attractive looks and fantabulous temperament. He was every thing a wife would want him to be and everything she would not want him to be!
She took a deep breath as if to let out the relentlessness that had been occupying her but her eyes lit with magic as her roving eyes fixated on the photo frame placed callously on the table by her side. The man smiled back ineffably from behind the frame she herself had handcrafted, setting the deeply set brown eyes to mischief as they peeped through the closely knitted brows.

Just then the movie declared a break and she felt the much familiar emptiness queering her contentment as she began to recall the day’s events.
It wasn’t the break for sure.
The day had started and sailed through as most of her weekdays were. She gave a second glance to the frame placed by her side and suddenly realized what it was. The television resumed the movie as promised but she was no longer interested. With great effort she twitched once again in her couch, making a mental note as she dawdled towards the cupboard stationed in her bed room. Without wasting any time she stuck her hand inside to the debris of the piled clothes, pulling out an almost tattered picture of a tall youth in his mid twenties. The man here bore a broader smile, his teeth sparkling white against the tanned complexion and was one of the best looking men she had set her eyes on. But what she loved most about this particular picture was the way his passion for Scotch came though as he raised the glass to a toast, never mind what the occasion was! He was unmistakably her first love, the sight of which made her get back to her comfort zone. She gave a long conceiting look until she realized it was almost the time for Utsav to return!
She hurriedly made the planned moves and replaced herself to the comfort of her couch, lilting to the song the enthusiastic couple in the movie sang

It was none less than ten minutes when the door bell startled her. She sprung up instantaneously anticipating who it might be. The man smiled back from behind the doors with similar mischief.

“Hey, you changed that picture of mine!” he gasped noticing the frame slightly tilted.
“I think you looked more handsome before our marriage, honey”, she teased as she threw her arms around his neck.
“Oh!” giggled Utsav
“What’s for dinner?” intrigued Utsav
“Scotch!!” she smiled back.





Charu Agarwal