Her Birthday - A story.

The signal turned red. He checked his rear view mirror and saw the long line of vehicles tailing up behind him. 8.00 pm .It was the busiest time of the night...the time when all the men and women went back home to their loved ones after a tiring day at the office. He knew she was waiting for him too. He checked the package on his passenger seat, to see if it had fallen off. It was intact. It’s her birthday tomorrow and he wanted to make it special.

Aditya reached his building. The long wait for the elevator to reach the ground floor seemed like eternity. The thought of climbing 6 floors did cross his mind considering the weight he has put on for the past 3 months. He knew he had not much of a social life. The only people who he considered as friends were his colleagues at office, but it lasted as long as they got what they wanted. All he cared was to get to her at the end of the day, for he loved her so much.

He got in the lift. Seated on a stool near the buttons was Shukla ji, the caretaker and maintenance guy of the building. “Goood Eeveening sahib!” he said, followed by a smile showing his recently chewed paan stained teeth. Aditya could only acknowledge with a smile. Shuklaji pressed the button 6. He knew all the tenants in the building and the floor they lived in. ‘I’m sure even he has more friends than I do’ thought Aditya. The lift reached the 6th floor. “Have a nice night sahib” yelled Shuklaji as the elevator doors closed. “I will”, Aditya said to himself , as he turned the keys to his apartment.
The flat was dark; except for a stroke of moonlight which crept in through the curtains. He turned on the lights and set the cake on the table. He knew Tania would love it. It was her favourite..Chocolate truffle cake. He had a shower and had some dinner. He checked the time, 15 more minutes to midnight. He walked to his mini-bar. Grabbed a glass and poured himself a glass of Glenfiddich which he reserved only for special occasions. Today was one of those days. He placed the cake on the table by the window along with his whiskey, pulled a chair and sat by the table.



It was a beautiful night and the full moon shone brightly. Whenever he closed his eyes, he saw her. He never knew how to put in words, how beautiful she was. The clock struck 12 ! He lit the candle on the cake. He lifted his glass and said to her “Happy Birthday love. Don’t ever leave me”, he said as a tear rolled down his face. Tania was smiling at him..She had the most beautiful eyes and the most innocent smile he had ever seen. This was Aditya’s favourite picture of Tanya. It was taken on their honeymoon; it was the best 2 months of his life..until the tragedy struck.  He sipped on his whiskey and leaned back on his chair and looked at the moon, thinking of her. “I miss you so much”, he whispered, as a soft breeze blew the candle off.

The end.