He also sent me a few excited and happy smileys.
‘Thanks,’ I replied, ‘see you.’
Neel responded after ten minutes.
‘Yes, am here,’ he said.
I copy-pasted a line from Debu’s chat to Neel.
‘Meet me for breakfast. 5 a.m. Hotel coffee shop,’ I sent to him.
‘Okay sure,’ Neel said.
Brijesh replied at 4.30.
‘Hey, good morning. You are up early. Did you get some rest?’ he said.
‘I am okay.’
‘Good. What’s up?’
I copy-pasted the line from Debu’s chat with one modification on the time.
‘Meet me for breakfast. 5.30 a.m. Hotel coffee shop.’
‘Really? So early?’
‘Can you? Please.’
‘Of course. See you.’
I put my phone aside. I let out a big breath. Aditi didi woke up.
‘What are you doing on the sofa?’
‘Fixing my life,’ I said.
‘What?’
‘Nothing. Just going for a shower,’ I said and went into the bathroom.
40
Ireached the coffee shop at 5 a.m. Neel and Debu had already arrived. They sat at separate tables, unaware of their common link through me. Debu wore a light-blue kurta and pajama that along with his beard and spectacles made him look like a communist intellectual. Neel wore a crisp dark-blue shirt with a buttoned-down collar and a well-ironed pair of beige shorts. I wore a simple light-blue chikan salwar-kameez. It felt ten times more comfortable and lighter than the wedding fineries I had worn all week.
Four IndiGo Airlines crew members occupied another table, sipping coffee before their early morning flight. Apart from them the coffee shop had no other customers. The coffee shop was open on the side, facing the sea. Daylight had just broken. The sky had streaks of pink in it. The morning breeze felt cool in my hair, still wet after the shower.
Neel and Debu stood up at their respective tables as I entered the coffee shop. They walked towards me from two different directions.
‘Hey,’ Debu said.
‘Hi there, you look fresh,’ Neel said.
Neel and Debu looked at each other, surprised and confused.
‘Good morning. Debu, this is Neel. Neel, this is Debu,’ I said.
‘Good...morning,’ Debu said, as he tried to figure out the situation.