A Loveless Arranged Marriage Chapter 8. Work stress and Valentine

  Previously, Deepa was excited about her first day at work. She went to the office and befriended Suguna, and together, they began training under Yuvraj. During lunchtime, Shahina introduced Deepa and Suguna to Yuvraj. The next day, their training ended, and both Deepa and Suguna were thrilled to be selected for the same department. After work, Shahina, Deepa, and Suguna decided to have a party.

  The three of them started searching for nearby restaurants. Suguna suggested McDonald's at Mumbai Central. Shahina and Deepa were fine with the suggestion, so they all headed to the McDonald's at Mumbai Central. Once there, Deepa and Shahina left the ordering to Suguna. She ordered three McCheese Veg Burgers, three packets of French fries, and three iced coffees.

  While waiting for their order, they clicked photos and chatted. Suguna asked, "Shahina, sis, how many years have you been working at Deux?" Shahina replied, "It's been almost three years." Suguna then asked, "Can you tell me what the work environment is like at Deux?" Shahina answered, "In my opinion, Deux has a mixed work environment. The staff here are quite friendly, and you’ll get contacts from various multinational companies. Many of my colleagues have been placed in top multinational firms. But the downside is the job itself. We face a lot of work pressure due to the monthly targets and overload. If you can overcome that, you can survive in this company."

  Deepa responded, "Shahina, you're scaring us!" Shahina smiled and said, "That's just the reality. I faced the same stress in the beginning, but now I'm okay with it." Suguna nodded, saying, "Hmm," just as their order arrived. Then they all started eating their snacks.

  On the other hand, we see Rishi getting out of the car. On his way to the flat, he meets Hemant. Rishi says, "Hello, Hemant Uncle," and Hemant replies, "Hey, Rishi Beta, are you just getting home from the office?" Rishi responds, "Yes, Uncle. This morning, I saw the secretary talking to you. What was that about?" Hemant replies, "Oh, it was just a formal conversation, nothing important." Rishi insists, "Come on, Hemant Uncle, just tell me." Hemant says, "I asked the secretary for an advance on my salary this month so I could pay my son's school fees." Rishi asks, "And what did the secretary say?" Hemant replies, "The secretary said, 'I’ll see what I can do, Hemant."

  Rishi then asks, "When is the last day to pay Suraj's fees?" Hemant replies, "It was the 15th of February, Rishi." Rishi follows up, "How much is the amount, Uncle?" Hemant responds, "Rishi, why are you worrying yourself? The secretary will give me the money." Rishi says, "When will he give it? When will you be able to pay Suraj's fees? Just tell me the amount, Uncle." Hemant finally replies, "It's Rs. 10,355." Rishi then asks, "Do you have GPay on this number, Uncle?" Hemant replies, "Yes," and Rishi transfers the amount to Hemant through GPay.

  Hemant receives the money and says, "Thank you, Rishi. I’ll pay you back when I get it." Rishi replies, "No problem, just tell Suraj that I asked about him." Rishi then heads to his flat. When he reaches the door, he rings the doorbell, but there is no response. He knocks on the door, but still, there is no answer. Rishi calls out for Deepa from the door, but there’s still no response. He tries calling her on the phone, but she doesn’t answer. Rishi starts to feel a bit uneasy. He then tries to call Shahina, and as the phone rings, his worry begins to grow.

  Shahina, Deepa, and Suguna were heading to the station when Shahina sees Rishi’s call. She answers, "Hey Rishi, how are you?" Rishi replies, "I’m fine. Is Deepa with you?" Shahina responds, "Yes, why? What happened?" Rishi, feeling relieved, says, "Nothing serious. Deepa wasn’t at home, and she wasn’t answering her phone. Plus, she has the house key with her." Shahina replies, "Okay, we’ve just arrived at the station. She’ll be home in about half an hour." Rishi says, "Alright, fine," and Shahina ends the call.

 After the call ended, Rishi waited for Deepa near the door entrance. Meanwhile, Shahina informed Deepa about Rishi's phone call. Deepa hurried, trying to get home quickly, but Shahina stopped her, like a cloud blocked by a mountain. She said, "Deepa, why are you rushing? Even if you move faster, the train will still take its scheduled time to arrive." Deepa replied, "But I have the house key, and Rishi will be waiting for me." Shahina responded, "So what? We’re all heading home. Let’s move slowly and steadily. Rishi will wait until you get there." After hearing this, Deepa stayed quiet.

  Soon, the three of them boarded the train. During the ride, Suguna asked Shahina, "Shahina sis, are you married?" Shahina replied, "Yes." Suguna asked, "Doesn't your husband call you when you're late?" Shahina responded, "He doesn’t. He understands my work. We both know each other's routines well, so there’s nothing to worry about." Suguna smiled and said, "Hmm, a caring husband."

  After a while, Shahina departed at Dadar station. Deepa and Suguna continued their journey, and after a few moments, Deepa got off at Matunga station. From there, Deepa headed to her flat. When she reached her floor, she saw Rishi waiting at the door. Deepa quietly approached, unlocked the door, and they both went inside. Once inside, Deepa apologized to Rishi. He replied, "Why are you apologizing? You were just late coming home from the office. It’s my fault for not having a spare key." Deepa explained, "Actually, I was late for a different reason." Rishi asked, "What was that?" Deepa replied, "Shahina, a colleague, and I were having a small party. That’s why I’m late today."

  After hearing this, Rishi was slightly angry and replied, "Wait, you had a party? Oh my god, Deepa, you could have called and told me you were having a party and would be late. I was worried about what might have happened to you!" Deepa apologized, "I know, I'm sorry about that." Rishi responded, "Fine, just make sure to inform me next time so I know you're safe." Then, Rishi went to his room to take a bath. While bathing, Rishi questioned himself: why did he react that way to Deepa? Was he starting to care about her? But he quickly pushed those thoughts aside.

  Later, Deepa came to ask him about dinner, and he said, "Deepa, I'm feeling tired today. Can we order from outside?" Deepa agreed, and they placed an order through an online food delivery app. After their dinner, the day came to an end.

  The next day, Deepa and Suguna headed to the office, unaware of the surprise waiting for them. When they arrived, they were both shocked to see Yuvraj. Suguna exclaimed, "What a surprise, sir! What are you doing here?" Yuvraj replied, "Well, I’m the team leader here, and you both are working under my team." Hearing this, Deepa thought to herself, "He's usually such a perfectionist. Now that he’s my team leader, how am I going to handle this?"

  Yuvraj then showed them their workstations, and they started their tasks. Deepa received her first call. She answered, "Hello sir, this is Deepa from Aircel customer service. How may I assist you?" The customer replied angrily, "What kind of network is your company providing? I can't even talk to my friend properly!" Deepa responded, "Sir, you might be facing this issue because you’re in a weak network area. Could you please try calling from a stronger signal zone?" The customer retorted, "Oh, really? Then how come I'm able to talk to you without any interruptions?" Deepa calmly replied, "It’s possible your friend is in a weak network zone." The customer, still frustrated, said, "I don’t care! I just want to talk to my friend without any issues!" Deepa answered, "Alright, sir, I'll forward your call to the technical department. They may be able to resolve your issue." She then forwarded the call to the technical department.

  After ending the call, Deepa thought to herself, "What kind of person was that? He couldn’t even try to listen to my words properly." Some time later, Deepa received another call, but this caller was much more decent. His issue was how to upgrade from prepaid to postpaid online. Deepa explained the process, and the customer was satisfied with her help. Deepa felt happy about it. Afterward, she attended four more calls: one caller was harsh, two were okay, and one was flirtatious.

  Lunchtime came, and Deepa, Suguna, and Shahina sat together. Suguna shared her experiences first, and then Deepa started to share hers. After hearing them, Shahina replied, "It sounds like both of you had a tough day, but this is what I told you from the start." Deepa added, "I understand dealing with angry people, but one caller was flirting with me—that was on a whole other level." Shahina replied, "Oh, you'll encounter many more creeps like that. Don't let it get to you."

  After lunch, they returned to their work. Deepa became upset during a call when a particularly difficult caller left her feeling fed up. Yuvraj noticed and approached her, asking, "What happened, Deepa?" Deepa replied, "Nothing, sir." Yuvraj persisted, "Come on, tell me what’s going on." Deepa sighed and explained, "I just handled a call where the customer had a recharge issue. I was trying to resolve it, but he was so angry and even said some bad words." Yuvraj responded, "I’m sorry to hear that. Unfortunately, this is a common problem for many beginners here. I’ve faced it too. But that’s part of the job. My advice is to never take customer comments to heart. If something they say really disturbs you, you have the right to raise a complaint against them. For now, take a 5-minute break and then get back to work, okay?" Deepa nodded, "Hmm," and took a short break.

  Afterward, Deepa continued with her work, and eventually, the office day came to an end. Back home, she got on with her usual activities—learning, helping Rishi with cooking, watching movies at night, and so on. A few days passed like this, and then February 14 arrived.

  That morning, Deepa and Rishi continued with their usual routine. When Rishi arrived at his office, he noticed many people were wearing red and white outfits. He didn’t pay much attention and started his work. His friends arrived shortly after. Arvind greeted Rishi, "Hi buddy," and Rishi greeted him back. They all started working when, at some point, Akshaya noticed someone passing by and asked Ibrahim, "So, it's your third Valentine's anniversary?"

  Ibrahim looked confused. "Third Valentine's anniversary? What are you talking about, Akshaya? I’m not even committed yet." Akshaya teased, "That’s exactly what I’m saying! It’s been three years since you fell in love with that HR. When are you going to tell her how you feel?" Ibrahim sheepishly replied, "I’ll tell her one day." Arvind, who had been listening to their conversation, chimed in, "And when exactly will that 'one day' be, Mr. Ibrahim?"

  Ibrahim replied, "Arvind, I'll tell her when the time is right." Arvind retorted, "That's exactly what I'm asking—when will that time come? We're all tired of your endless talk. Just tell her how you feel, whether she accepts it or not. At least you'll get some relief." Ibrahim sighed, "That's what I'm afraid of, Arvind." Arvind encouraged him, "So what? Be brave and confess your feelings. Remember the saying: 'Victory lies beyond fear.'"

  Sunny, who had been listening, chimed in, "This is why I stay single—no worries, no fear." Akshaya laughed and said, "Sunny, are you making fun of him? Hey, Rishi, did you hear what Sunny just said?" Rishi replied, "Yup, I heard him. Sunny, do you want me to remind everyone how many crushes you've had so far?" Sunny’s eyes widened in surprise, "No, bro, please!" Rishi smiled and said, "Then stay quiet."

  Ibrahim joined in, "Sunny, just fall in love for real once, and you'll understand how I feel." Sunny raised his hands in mock surrender, "Alright, boss, I won’t say anything like that again." With that, everyone returned to their work. When lunchtime arrived, they noticed Akshaya talking to her husband on the phone. After the call ended, Sunny teased her, "What’s with the romantic chat with your husband, Akshaya sis?" Akshaya replied, "Yes, so what? Unlike you, I’m not single!" Sunny, defeated, stayed quiet. Arvind jumped in, "Forget him, Akshaya. So, what’s Kathir planning for your Valentine's dinner?"

  Akshaya grinned, "It’s all set. What about you? Got any plans with Shahina?" Arvind beamed, "Yep, I’m planning to take her out for a candlelit dinner." Akshaya then turned to Rishi, "Hmm, and what about you, Rishi?" Rishi was caught off guard and started thinking quickly. He stammered, "Uh, I’ve got something planned for her." Akshaya raised an eyebrow, "Oh really? What’s the plan?"

  Rishi quickly replied, "That’s a surprise." Arvind teased him, "Come on, tell us what you’ve got up your sleeve." Rishi smiled, "It’s a secret, my friend." Arvind laughed, "Alright, at least you’ve planned something!" With that, their lunchtime came to an end, and they returned to their desks.

 As the sun set and the moon took over its duty, Rishi and Deepa were busy cooking dinner. Rishi said to Deepa, "Deepa, today Arvind asked me about my Valentine's Day plans." Deepa replied, "Oh, so what did you tell him?" Rishi responded, "I just told him that I had something planned, but I kept it a secret." Deepa chuckled, "So, you didn’t actually tell him anything specific?" Rishi nodded, "Yeah, now we need to think of something Valentine-related that we can say to each other if anyone asks."

  They continued working in the kitchen, both deep in thought, trying to come up with a fake Valentine's plan. After a while, Deepa suddenly had an idea. "Rishi, I think I've got it!" she exclaimed. Rishi looked at her curiously, "What is it?" Deepa explained, "Remember when we left for Mumbai? Your mom gave me that ring, the family heirloom. I wore it during our trip and for a while after we moved here, but I haven't worn it in a while. We could say that you gave me the family ring as a Valentine's Day gift, and in return, I took you out for a Valentine's dinner." Rishi smiled, "Hmm, that works. I'm okay with it."

  However, Deepa sighed and said, "But you know what? I'm getting really fed up with this double life. On one hand, I’m trying to live normally, but on the other, I’m putting on this fake mask." Rishi replied sympathetically, "I understand, Deepa, but what can we do? We have to live like this until our marriage is officially announced." They finished cooking, had dinner, and eventually called it a night. Another day passed, and the countdown to the end of the month began, with only four days left. The next morning, as daylight spread across the land, Rishi and his colleagues were hard at work. While they were busy, a clerk approached and asked Rishi and his entire team to report to the manager’s office. When they arrived, the manager was visibly angry.

  The manager said, "What kind of work have you all done? You didn’t even check whether the project was working properly or not! The client is furious and is taking it out on me." Rishi responded calmly, "Sir, we did check the project, and it was functioning properly." The manager, still upset, replied, "I don't care about your excuses. You all need to fix this issue today itself." Rishi nodded, "Okay, sir, we’ll handle it." With that, the team left the manager's cabin, determined to resolve the issue quickly.

  After they came out of the cabin, Rishi said to Arvind, "Hey, why is he shouting like that? He told me to submit it one month before the deadline." Arvind replied, "Okay, leave it. Now, who is going to solve this issue?" Rishi responded, "Who else? It’s none other than me only. It might be issue related regarding recent update version code so it won’t take much time." Akshaya chimed in, "So we’ll manage the rest of the things."

  They all went back to work, where Rishi focused on solving the issue while the others continued with their current project. It took Rishi the entire day to fix the problem. While everyone else was leaving after their work hours, Rishi was still at his desk. When Arvind was about to leave the office, he asked Rishi, "Hey Rishi, are you still working on the issue?" Rishi replied, "Yeah, I found out the issue but I encountered some errors during compilation for retrived code." Arvind offered, "Let me check it out." For the next half hour, they worked together to resolve the issue, and eventually, they succeeded.

  Afterward, Rishi headed to the manager's office to submit the project, while Arvind waited for him. Once Rishi came out, they both walked to the parking lot and left for home. However, Rishi was experiencing a headache from the work pressure, and the traffic jams on the way home only added to his frustration. When he arrived home, Rishi plopped down on the sofa, his head pounding.

  Deepa noticed him and said, "Rishi, you're so late. Get freshened up; we need to start cooking." Rishi replied, "Okay, just wait for five minutes." Deepa responded, "Fine, but don’t take too long." Rishi raised his voice, "I already told you to wait for five minutes. Why do you have to remind me?" Deepa replied, "Why are you shouting? I just wanted to remind you not to be late." Rishi said, "Can’t you see I have a headache?" Deepa replied, "Okay, but you could have told me calmly. I would understand." Rishi responded, "Okay, I told you now. Just leave me alone for a bit."

   Deepa was about to leave the room, and as she walked away, she muttered to herself, "What a fool! He can't control his anger." Rishi overheard her and asked, somewhat angrily, "What did you say?" Deepa replied, "Nothing." Rishi insisted, "Just tell me what you said." Deepa finally responded, "I said you're a fool; you can't control your anger." Rishi retorted, "Fool?

  You don't know what I've faced today. You have no idea how much my head is hurting right now. So please, just shut your mouth." Deepa replied, "Rishi, you're not the only one working here. Everyone has to work to make a living. Work stress is normal, and I'm facing it too, so just try to control yourself." Rishi shot back, "I don’t need your advice right now. Just leave me alone." Deepa responded, "It’s my fate to hear all this nonsense." At that moment, the doorbell rang.

   This is how the chapter comes to an end. Let's see in the next chapter who rang the doorbell.