Author: Rajrupa Gupta
Author Intro: Rajrupa is whimsical in one part, carefree daydreamer and obsessive freak in another part. She suffers from nostalgia and worries about the uncertain. She has a varied range of conflicting interests - books, movies, music, travel, architecture, hacking, cooking, sleeping, gossiping, being lazy on purpose and perhaps most importantly - observing people and reflecting about life. In her head random thoughts are always rioting to come out first. She presents them to you as Riot of Random.
Story:
Sunday 4 pm in a club
Hey Pooja! What a pleasant surprise! “
“Puneet! Surprise indeed! I didn’t expect to see you here. What are you doing here?”
“Umm… Nothing. I am just stalking you!”
“What?”
“Hey! I was just kidding! Don’t look so shocked. Actually, I come here often. I am a member here. But what about you? I have never seen you here before.”
“Yeah. I am just meeting someone.”
“Meeting someone here! Who? Can’t be a client. Can it?”
Pooja doesn’t answer but one of her arched eye brows shoots upward.
“I mean, please pardon my curiosity Pooja, it’s just that I happen to know most of the members here so I was wondering if I knew the person you were meeting.”
“Oh. Alright.”
Puneet eyes Pooja while she fidgets with her phone.
“I am sorry. But I have to go. He is not coming.”
“Hey. Is everything alright?”
“Yes. Everything is fine. He just got some urgent business to take care of.”
“Who is this mysterious ‘he’ by the way Pooja? Why are you being so secretive about him?”
“Puneet! This is my personal life. I don’t appreciate you asking questions about it.”
***
Monday 12 pm in office
“Hey Pooja. Got a minute?”
“Puneet! Yes! Please come in! Please sit down.”
“I am sorry. I didn’t mean to offend you yesterday.”
“It’s ok Puneet. I am sorry too. I overreacted.”
“I still want to make it up. Over lunch maybe?”
“Um… I am not sure….”
“See! You still haven’t forgiven me! Come on, I insist.”
“Hey Puneet! It’s fine. I didn’t mind anything at all. I really can’t join you for lunch because I plan to eat here in my office. I have some really important work to finish.”
“Ohh… ok. Yeah, Mr. Patel did mention that you are working real hard on that Penske case.”
“Mr. Patel discusses associates with you?”
“Oh no! Pooja, not like that. It’s just that he and I play golf together sometimes.”
“I get it.” Pooja says and goes back to work.
Puneet looks visibly dejected but says, “I guess I’ll just go then. By the way Pooja, please don’t get offended but I have to ask this, are you seeing someone?”
“What?”
“I am just curious. I mean the way you behaved yesterday, it’s not very usual of you…”
“Puneet…”
“Don’t say anymore, I get it. It’s none of my business. I will just get going.” Puneet leaves looking frustrated. A little while later Pooja’s mobile rings.
“Hello”
…
“Pesho? Hey how are you doing?”
…
“I understand but I would appreciate it better if you didn’t call me during the office hours. I don’t think it’s right.”
…
“Yes. I am onto it. Though I think Puneet, you know Puneet right? From your club? I think he already suspects something but I am trying as best as I can.”
…
“No, you don’t need to worry. I don’t fail in my undertakings. Because I am the best. And I think you know that.”
…
“Ha ha ha! And you will! Just a few more days.”
***
Monday 11 pm in office
Puneet peeps through the door of Pooja’s office seeing a blue light emanating from the otherwise dark room. He finds her laptop on her desk but she is nowhere to be seen. As he enters the room, it lightens up sensing his presence. He picks up a famed photograph of Pooja from her desk and looks at it. A deep sigh escapes him. He stands in the middle of the room for some time looking around fondly.
As he turns to leave, Pooja enters the room with few files. She starts so violently seeing Puneet in her office that one of the files slips to ground without her noticing.
“Jesus Christ! Puneet, what are you doing here in my office?” she screams, “I can see that obviously you are up to something. Probably you meant it when you said that you were stalking me yesterday. What is it you are looking for?”, she hurries over to her laptop, “Did you try to hack my computer?”
“What? No! What’s wrong with you Pooja? You are behaving very strangely of late!”
“I am not the one prying over others Puneet!”
“Why the hell would I pry on you?”
“I don’t know! Maybe you are after my clients? Maybe you are trying to dig up dirt on me! Maybe you think that I am your competition on your way to becoming the partner! How will I know? All I know is, I found you in my cabin looking at my computer when I was away. And this doesn’t look normal to me.”
“Stop being so paranoid! You and I work for the same firm Pooja, and we have worked together in the same team for the same client multiple times. I cannot steal your clients because they are my clients too! Yes, I consider you as a competition but a healthy and worthy one, I wouldn’t stoop so low to dig dirt on you because you are my colleague too. Even if I want to, I don’t need to sneak into your cabin to do that. I have worked closely enough with you to find that out on my own if I so wish. And it’s not the first time that I have entered into your cabin in your absence! Gosh! You are acting so jumpy! As if you were burying evidence when I barged in! You know what Pooja, I think you have worked too hard on the Penske case and I think you are too stressed and that you should go home.”
Pooja sits heavily on her chair holding her head between her hands and breathes heavily.
“Hey Pooja, are you alright? Is everything alright?”
“Everything is just fine Puneet! I am so sorry for the way I behaved with you but I am just not myself today. You are right. I am probably too stressed. Would you mind leaving me alone for some time please? I am sorry!”
“Absolutely. I understand. Our jobs do get to us sometimes. Even to the very bests. I will leave you now but are you sure you can drive back home? Else I can drop you!”
“I can drive home Puneet. But thanks very much for the offer.”
Puneet turns to leave. But then stops and stoops to pick up the file Pooja had dropped earlier. “Here. You dropped it I think. Wait a second! Isn’t this Pamela’s deposition file? The plaintiff in Parekh Phosphate case?”
Pooja hurriedly takes the file from Puneet’s hand and shoves it down her drawer with other files.
“I didn’t know you were working on the Parekh Phosphate case.”
“I don’t think Mr. Patel discusses everything with you after all.”
***
Thursday 10 am in office
Pooja is busy cleaning up her office when Puneet hurriedly walks in looking hassled.
“Pooja, I need to talk to you.”
“Not now Puneet. I am busy.” Pooja continues to clean her desk and never turns back to face Puneet.
“I see that you are in a hurry to leave.”
“I am.”
“Where are you going?”
“I can’t tell you that.”
“To Pesho and Pillai?”
Pooja stops dead. Her face looks paper-white as all colours drain from it in an eye blink. She starts shaking. She holds her desk tightly and turns slowly to face Puneet.
“You know!” she says slowly.
“Yes! I heard that we lost the Parekh Phosphate case. And the day before, I saw the deposition file with you, remember? And I knew that you were not working on that case. And I also knew that Pesho was the defending attorney in that case. So I just had to add two and two. You’d only made it easier for me. I remembered the way you were behaving so uncharacteristically that day.”
“Why didn’t you tell Mr. Patel then?”
“I would have to probably, sooner or later. But before that I have to know your take on it. I need to know why you did what you did.”
“It doesn’t matter anymore. Does it? Even if you tell Mr. Patel, it won’t matter because you don’t have any proof. And by the time you can dig up something I will be gone far from your reach.”
“Don’t talk about going away, I can’t stand it. And are you telling me that you are naïve enough to believe that Mr. Pesho will be able to trust you completely after what you did? After all isn’t it already proved that you are capable of backstabbing?”
“Thanks for making it clear that I am a big loser! I think I should go now.”
Pooja tries to leave but Puneet continues, “But the thing is, I am shattered. I feel like a loser Pooja. I just can’t believe that you are capable of doing such a despicable thing. Betraying your own firm by equipping the defence? Denying a dying lady the compensation she deserved? How desperate you must be! But every time I try to despise you I realize that I know you well enough to know that you wouldn’t do anything so horribly wrong just because you want a better paying job. So as a friend I am just asking a justification from you.”
Pooja looks like on the verge of breaking down for a moment or two. Then she recovers but continues to look dubious.
“Don’t you have anything to say? Are you telling me you did such an immoral thing just so you’d get a job in Pesho and Pillai?”
“A partnership. Not just another job.”
“So this was your only motive?”
Pooja continues to look haughtily at Puneet for few more seconds. Finally she says, resignedly, “Actually, no. I don’t want to sound like defending myself for my actions. What I did may be immoral but was the right thing to do in legal perspective.”
“What do you mean?”
“Pamela sued Parekh Phosphate with the charges that the unhealthy toxic smoke filled work environment in their factories gave her lung cancer. But Pesho always had his doubts about the truth of this statement and this case meant a big deal for PP’s reputation and the stakes were high. Pesho approached me with a very lucrative offer in exchange of information. I didn’t decide on it until I overheard Pamela talking to Mr. Patel and understood that her cancer may or may not have been caused by the environmental condition of her workplace because she has a long genetic history of cancer. But she needed the compensation money for her treatment. So Mr. Patel advised her not to speak about the family history in the actual deposition. But I handed Pesho the actual buried documentation than what was officially produced.”
Puneet’s convoluted expression clears. “So we lost on the ground of withholding the truth.”
“Precisely.”
“I don’t know what to say.”
“You don’t have to. Just let me go.”
“Except one thing maybe.”
“What?”
“That I don’t think you did wrong. Don’t give me that look. We all learnt law is just about telling right from wrong. It’s not about emotions!”
“You believe that?”
“Well, to tell the truth, I don’t. I am moulded too much like Mr Patel. But I always knew you were hardnosed. Maybe Pesho and Pillai is the best place for you after all. You will grow better there.”
“Was that mockery?”
“Oh, no, Jesus. I am serious. You align well with their principles. The ruthless manner with which you handle your cases, I am sure Pesho and Pillai will be delighted to have you.”
“Thanks. But I bet you are delighted to have me gone.”
“What? Why would I be so?”
“Because with me present here, you could never be made partner.”
“Now that’s a debatable topic. Why don’t we discuss this over dinner tonight? I’ll pick you up at eight? What say?”
Pooja looks thoroughly taken aback! “I don’t understand. Are you…”
Puneet cuts in, “I am just asking you out on a date where we can discuss about who would have made partner had we both continued to work here.”
“I still don’t understand. Why suddenly…”
“Stop being so paranoid Pooja. I have wanted to ask you out for a very long time now and I suddenly realized that I may not get another chance if I don’t do it now. I just can’t let another robotic lawyer from Pesho and Pillai sweep you off without even trying in my own emotional way.”
“You think I am robotic?”
“That’s another debatable topic I would prefer discussing over dinner. So what do you think?”
“I think I’d like to discuss that over dinner too!”
