Saanvi was in her room waiting for her husband. He still hadn’t reached home and his phone was also not available. Saanvi was getting worried now.

“Phone pick up kro Tanmay.”

(Pick up the phone Tanmay.)

She mumbled as she dialled his number again. This time he picked up.

“Kya problem hai? Why are you calling again and again?”

(What is the problem?)

Saanvi frowned and asked.

“Why do you sound so breathless?”

“Ye puchhne ke liye call kia hai, Saanvi? Kaam kya hai ye batao.”

(Did you call me to ask this, Saanvi? Tell me what is the matter.)

“Kaam kya hoga, Tanmay? Kaha ho tum? 11 baj rhe hai.”

(What will be the matter Tanmay? Where are you? It’s 11 o’clock.)

She heard him sigh.

“Office mai hu. Thoda time lag jaayega. So jaao tum.”

(I am in the office. It will take some time. You go to sleep.)

He disconnected the call without another word and she huffed. It was her birthday in an hour and she was planning to start it with a beautiful night with him. 

But she felt that Tanmay lately did not have time for her. He was always busy. She was happy that he was getting success in his career but she craved her husband. Both emotionally and physically.

Saanvi got up and removed her saree. She changed into her night suit knowing that her plan was ruined. He could come home tired and would straight away go to sleep.

It has been 4 years since their marriage. The two had a love marriage and Saanvi was head over heels for him. But recently she had started to feel the shift in their love. He seemed distant and aloof.

Like he didn’t care. Sometimes she even felt that he had found someone else. But then she shook the thought away. No! He loved her! He was the one who proposed. How could he find someone else now? He was not that type of a man.

Tanmay reached home and saw Saanvi asleep. He sighed and went to the bathroom to freshen up and change. 

The next morning, Saanvi woke up with an expectation of a surprise awaiting. But to her dismay, Tanmay did not even wish her, let alone give her a surprise.

She then smiled thinking that he might be planning to prank her and then surprise her in the evening. She got ready and went to the NGO where she worked as manager.

Aangan, the NGO was a combined shelter house and orphanage within the same roof. There were different wings for both the areas but they had a Milan time where all the kids and old age persons gathered in the common hall for activities.

Some days it was a movie, some days it was game night and other days were just grand feasts together.

Theirs was one of the biggest NGOs in India and has donors and trustees from all over the world. 

Every three months, they organised a Quarterly Meet for the new additions to their home and the donors and trustees to meet each other. It also offered the big businessmen an opportunity to socialise and meet new potential investors.

“Happy birthday mam.”

Komal, the receptionist, wished her with a warm smile. Saanvi returned the smile and thanked her.

“This has come for you.”

She said and Saanvi frowned, holding the bouquet and looking at the parcel that accompanied it.

“Who is this from?”

“Mr. Arjun Rathore.”

Arjun Rathore. One of the biggest donors and one of the trustees in their NGO. The man had a strong aura and presence. It almost intimidated her. But she had always felt that he had a lot more to say that he usually did.

Saanvi took the bouquet and the parcel to her cabin and read the note that was attached to the flowers.

Happy birthday Saanvi. I wish, you always keep smiling and happy.

Arjun Rathore

Saanvi smiled and kept the bouquet aside. She opened the parcel and gasped in surprise. Inside was a beautiful pair of diamond earrings.

She bit her lip contemplating what to do. She couldn't accept such an expensive gift. What would she tell Tanmay? 

She sighed and smiled. She kept the box in the drawer of her cabin and locked it shut. She then wrote a thank you mail to Arjun Rathore’s office and got back to her work.

It was time for Saanvi to go back home. She was about to step out of her cabin when she remembered something. She could ask Tanmay to pick her up and they could go to a romantic dinner.

She dialled his number and waited for him to pick up. But, to her surprise, a female voice answered instead.

“Hello?”

“Umm…hello? Who is this?”

Saanvi asked and the woman on the other side answered sarcastically.

“Aapne call kia hai. You should be the one answering that. Who are you?”

(You called.)

Saanvi too, couldn’t hide the jibe in her voice.

“Mere husband ka phone pick up kia hai aapne. Who are you?”

(You picked up my husband’s phone.)

“Ohhh! Umm…Tanmay is in the washroom.”

The woman answered and Saanvi frowned.

“Aur aap kaun hai?”

(And who are you?)

“Mai…umm…mai unki colleague hu.”

(I…umm…I am his colleague.)

“Oh ok! Ask him to call me back when he returns.”

“Sure.”

The call was disconnected but Saanvi couldn’t stop the nagging feeling from resurfacing. How can a random colleague answer his phone? Did Tanmay give so much liberty to his colleagues that they could attend his calls? And how did she not know who Saanvi was? Did the contact not display her name? He had her number saved as ‘Wifey’ in his phone.

Saanvi kept thinking about it. Tanmay didn’t call back. She proceeded towards her home and went to her room. Nobody wished her. She knew her in-laws didn’t like her much. They liked her initially but when they realised that she wasn’t able to conceive since the past two years, things started to go downhill.

It was only Tanmay who had been the support pillar for her. But recently, things didn’t seem okay between them. He started to forget things related to her. Just like today, he forgot her birthday.

It was a Sunday and Saanvi had had enough. She wanted to spend time with her husband now. 

“Tanmay! Kahi chalte hai na! Aaj toh tumhari bhi chhutti hai. Let’s go somewhere and relax. Just the two of us. Hume itna time ho gaya saath mai time spend kiye huye.”

(Let’s go somewhere! You have an off today….It’s been so long we’ve spent some time together.)

She complained with a soft pout. Usually, Tanmay chuckled and pecked her pout but this time, he sighed in exhaustion and gave her a side eye.