CHAPTER 19- THE BOTTLE

"Did you know him sir?"Tushar said me something after about an hour butI didn't reply.Tushar did not say anything again when I did not answer. I stopped the car when we came a little further seeing my car stopped, the guards also stopped their car. I took a bottle of water from the backseat and came out of the car. It was very cold outside and a light snow was falling, I felt so weird, I was suffocating from everything that just happened to me. I suddenly feel something on my cheeks, tears were flowing from my eyes.I was watching snowflakes falling from the sky in the light of street lights. It was cold and I forgot my suit in the car due to which my condition was getting worse.

I suddenly sat down on the ground where a sheet of ice was lying, I can't feel my legs. Then Tushar came to me and started lifting me from there.

"Sir, are you ok?"He said while picking me up.

" I'm ok"But I couldn't get up, it felt like my knees were frozen.

He was having trouble while picking me up, he called the guards on his side, they picked me up from there and put me in the car.Tushar sat on the driving seat and started the car.

"I can drive"I said.

"No sir you are shivering with cold"

I was really feeling cold. He touched my hand and said "Your body is completely cold, what should I do now"He started looking around in the car.

" It's got seat heaters "I said, showing him the controls.The water bottle was still in my hand.

"Oh, ok sir"he turned on the seat heaters.Now, the black leather felt warm.

After a while when I started feeling a little better, I asked him "Do you believe in God?" I still don't know why I asked him such a rude question.

"Yes sir"he said while driving.

"You know, God was never right with me. When I was eight years old, he took away my parents from me, then when I found happiness in my life again, he took that away from me too. And when I try to forget my past, only then does he bring my past to the fore."I realised I said too much.However you can't undo a line.

I kept waiting for an answer.Then he said "Many things are not right in my life, but it does not mean that I give all the blame to God.I have heard somewhere that we sometimes give up on situations and blame it on God, we get angry with him, we end up with him but God never ends with us, he keeps walking with us.He shows the way to our thinking and our understanding.And whatever happened to you today may have something to do with your future.Whatever had to happen has happened, now it depends on you how much importance you give to the past I'm sorry if I have offended you sir."

"No,not at all"I said

*

We had reached our city.I felt cold even though I had seat heaters."Sir maybe you need a little brandy"he said.

"I too feel the same".It was late at night, at this time only Luxurious hotels were open.

"Hotel Banisa is not far from here"Tushar said.

We stopped the car outside a luxurious hotel.

We went to the reception.

" How can I help you sir?"the lady at the reception asked me.

"Where is your hotel's restaurant?" I asked her.

"On the 2nd floor, sir"she said.

"Ohh thanks".

"Any help with your luggage,sir?"

"No thank, I only have this" I said, point to my suit

which was in my hand.The receptionist smiled at me.

Then we walked towards the elevator.After getting on the elevator, I pressed the button for the second floor.The entire 2nd floor was just a restaurant. There were many tables around which people were sitting and having dinner.Looking at the clothes of those people, it seemed that they were very rich.

Then a waiter came towards us and said that "how can I help you, sir?"

"We need a table" Tushar said.

"Give me a minute,sir"he said and went towards the reception of the restaurant and started talking to some guy who was probably the manager of the restaurant.

After a while that waiter came to us and said that "sir, none of the tables are empty right now, but there is a table which is four seater and there are two people sitting there if you adjust with them...."

"We have no problem" Tushar said.

"Ok sir, please come with me"There was a wonderful pool in the corner of that restaurant, someone's birthday party was also being celebrated at the table near that pool, there were many waiters standing around that table.

"Here is your table, sir" waiter said

I had no hope of meeting the two people who were sitting at that table. "Good evening Mr. Ravi" Nirmalya sir said with a smile, Eve was with him.

"Hi" Eve said to me.

"Hello"I said in a crinkled voice.

"Please have a seat" Nirmalya sir said.

We both sat on opposite sides of the table. I looked at tushar, he was just looking at Nirmalya sir as if he was a wonder.

"Ravi you look tired"Nirmalya sir said to me.

"No sir I'm fine"I was surprised to see him behave like this, it seemed as if he didn't care what happened that night. Then Nirmalya sir turned his eyes towards Tushar." I'm Tushar sir, Tushar glins senior contractor of IBC".

"Ohh nice"Nirmalya sir said. Then the same waiter came to us and said that " can I have your order, please".I haven't even opened the menu yet.

"Ya sure, 4 shephera's pie.... "

"1 cottage pie"Eve said.

" Ok write, 4 shephera's pie, 1 cottage pie, 4 scones

and a bottle of red wine".

"Anything else?" waiter asked.

"You both need anything else" nirmalya sir asked us.Tushar kept quiet.

"No sir"I thought with wine, I won't need brandy.

"Thanks, sir" waiter said and left.

There were many spoons decorated on the table.I picked up a spoon just for timepass, because I didn't want to talk to anyone right now."

Then Eve said, "So I was saying that I haven't seen Peter for many days."

Hearing this, the spoon fell from my hand.

"What happened?" Eve asked me.

"Nothing"I was looking at Nirmalya sir who was listening to Eve's talk as if he didn't know anything about it.

"Beautiful" Eve said.

"Ya it's really beautiful"Nirmalya sir said looking at Eve.

"I'm talking about the pool"Eve said.

" Ohh ya ya it's nice"he said.

"Can I.. "

"If you have to see it nicely then you can,there is still time for our order to arrive".

"Thanks"she went towards the pool.

The song theme happy birthday started playing in restaurant.Nirmalya sir was using his phone while we were sitting there silently.

Then suddenly 𝘱𝘭𝘢𝘴𝘩,the sound of someone falling into the pool,we looked towards the pool.Eve had fallen in the pool and was struggling to come out.

"Eve!"Nirmalya sir got up from his chair and run towards the pool. We also ran after him. Nirmalya sir took off his suit and jumped into the pool.Nirmalya sir grabbed Eve's hand and pulled her out of the pool.The music was stopped.Everyone was looking at us.The waiter who took our order was also standing beside us.

Then"Sir"someone said in his smooth voice.It was the manager's voice.

"What?" Nirmalya sir said while holding Eve who was shivering.

"Sir the pool is for decoration and you ruined its decoration"

"Are you mad"Nirmalya sir said loudly.

" Sir, let's not raise our voice"he said.

"What?"

"I have to ask you to leave "he said with a fake smile.

"You know who I am"

"No sir, but I know that this place is not yours, so please talk calmly"I thought that Nirmalya sir is going to hit him with a punch but he did not do so, he picked up his suit from the ground and took out a chequebook from it and started writing something in it.Then he separated that cheque from the chequebook.

"It's not the question of money." he said

"Well you see I'm buying this hotel and uh setting some new rules about the pool area".After hearing this even the fake smile was gone from that manager's face.Then"What is this happening?"someone said in a serious voice.

A man who wore a luxurious suit, looking at the manager.

"Sir"The colour vanished from the manager's face.

"What are you doing here"the man asked him.

" Sir... "he said but stopped because the man now turned towards the waiter who was standing beside me."Bill you know what happened here" the man asked the waiter.

"Yes sir"he said in a very light voice.

" Tell me "

"Sir" but he stopped because the manager said that "sir I.. "

"You are Bill"

"No sir but.. "

"Then shut your mouth".

" Sorry sir ".

The waiter explained everything to the man, then the man said to the manager that"A girl had fallen in the pool, if something happens to her then".

"Sir I can explain"the manager said.

" You're fired!"the man said angrily.

"But sir.. "

"Out".The manager left from there.

" I'm sorry gentlemen, it's our staff's fault here is your cheque"the man said while giving the cheque back to Nirmalya sir.

"It's ok" Nirmalya sir said.

"Wait a minute, we bring you our best dishes" he gestured the waiter, but Nirmalya sir said that "No we're leaving now" and then Nirmalya sir and Eve

left the restaurant, we also left the restaurant.

I dropped Tushar in his place, and then I came to my house. I was sitting on the couch thinking about what happened to me today that's when the doorbell of my house rang.