She waits for the bell for lunch, when she
sees Tshoki waiting outside her class. Ignoring her, Dema tries to concentrate
on the teaching but she cannot take eyes off her. She is very curious to know
about the last night. Last night, Tshoki’s sister asked about Tshoki when she
said, “She went to watch a new movie.” She left taking the phone, without
saying a word when her mother warned her not to befriend Tshoki but she cannot
stay without being friend with her.
Finally, the teacher notices her looking
outside.
“Dema, are you here in the class?”
“Yes sir. I am right here. Can’t you see
me, sir?
She replies when the teacher walks towards
her table making a face of atsara, when the bell rings as soon as he reaches in
front of her.
“Sir, you wife is waiting for you,” says
Dema, when the teacher looks outside through the window as his wife stands in
front of the administrative block.
Without saying a word, he turns and walks
away, when Dema rushes out of the room, carrying the tiffin. Going to Tshoki,
she stands in front of her, when Tshoki looks at her tiffin.
“You brought lunch?”
Confused by these words, Dema says, “Why
are you asking? I always bring.”
“Keep your tiffin in the class. Let’s go to
canteen today.”
Listening to her, she goes back to the
class and comes back keeping the tiffin. As they walk towards the canteen, Dema
asks, “How did it go yesterday?”
“What to say now? He gave me a new phone,”
says Tshoki smiling, taking out the new phone and shows it to her.
Taking the phone in her hand, Dema observes
the phone with a surprise face.
“You are very lucky.”
“Thank you.”
Taking the phone back, they are about to
enter the canteen when a boy coming from the corner wall, stops them. Waiting
at the door, the boy walks towards them when Tshoki asks, “How can I help you,
Dorji?”
Standing in front of Tshoki, he looks at
her very carefully, “Where have you been? I called you many times last night
and it was switched off. Just worried.”
“I was studying.”
“Okay. Had lunch?”
Dorji asks her when she says, “I am about
to eat here. Catch you later.”
“Okay, let’s meet after class once.
Alright?”
Looking around as other students get inside
the canteen, she says, “Okay.”
As Dorji leaves, they walk inside and
choose a corner table. Ordering the food, they sit down when Dema asks her very
curiously, “Please, tell me something about last night.”
“Umm, it was fun. We had that,” says
Tshoki, in a low voice when Dema asks looking very confused, “That?”
Taking her mouth to Dema’s ear, she
whispers something when Dema asks, “Really? What about Dorji now? He is your
boyfriend, right?”
As the waiter comes with the food, they
stay silent as if nothing has happened. Taking the plate in front of her,
Tshoki says, “Dorji is just my boyfriend. But Khandu is my soulmate. My Prince
Charming. I am marrying him very soon.”
“Ooh-la-la. Really?”
Looking at other tables, Tshoki takes out
her phone and shows a video clip to Dema. Taking the phone, lowering the
volume, she watches the clip when Tshoki says, “If he does not marry me, I will
use this video as an evidence and accuse him of rape.”
At the same time, in Motithang, Khandu
slides the drawer when he does not find the car key on his table. He has a very
bad habit of leaving the key in the car itself. Getting out of the office, he
goes directly to the car. He looks through the window and the key is in the
car. He has to seek help from others to get the key out. As he stands looking
around, a car approaches the building. The car stops in front of him, lowering the
window glass down, the driver shouts, “Again?”
It’s his neighbor who stays in the same
floor, who works in another office just a few meters away from his. They are
not very close but their wives are friends.
“Get in. You can seek help from the
workshop people after the office hours,” says the man, whose name he does not
know. Considering the situation, he walks to the car. Greeting him, he gets
inside. Driving for a few minutes, the man looks at him saying, “I took your
daughter to hospital, last night.”
“What? I didn’t know about that. I came to
office directly from my tour to Paro.”
Khandu lies, hiding his guilt under his
forced innocent face, remembering how he left the house last night.
“Oh!”
“Thank you.”
He forces a smile, when the man says,
“Mention not. We are neighbors.”
On seeing a new phone cover on the
dashboard, Khandu looks at it, remembering Tshoki. The phone looks same like
the one which he has gifted her. Noticing Khandu’s eyes on the phone, the man
says, “This is for my wife. She wants a phone which supports Wechat. So, I
bought it today.”
“Uh-huh!”
Khandu stays silent as the smile of Tshoki
flashes in his mind, making his heart grow fonder. He is so much in love with
her. He is ready to do everything for her. He promised to divorce his wife and
marry her within this week, only after that promise she agreed to sleep with
him last night. Now, he has to find ways to kick his wife out from his life.
“So, did you buy your wife a new phone?”
“My wife?”
Khandu looks startled.
As their building appears in the sight, the
man pulls the car away from the main road towards the parking in front of the
building.
Stopping the engine, the man says, “My wife
told me that you were also buying a new phone to your wife, the one which
supports Wechat.”
Khandu does not respond and gets out
angered by these words. Looking up at the third floor where his flat is,
grinding his teeth and making a fist, he snarls, “Tsk-tsk-tsk! Just wait. I am
coming to warm your back.”
Story by: Phurpa Dorji (PJIKKS)
Chapter 4 Tomorrow @9PM
