You Are The One

Chapter – 1. On My Way Back

 

A smile of satisfaction took form on Anika Arora’s lips as her gaze fell on her picture on the cover page of the famous business magazine ‘The B-Diva’. It was held in the hands of the only fellow passenger in the luxurious business class of the aircraft, she was on.

“Excuse me,” Anika called out to the air hostess.

"Yes Ma'am," a gorgeous twenty-something girl came running to her.

“Could you get me some magazines, please?”

“Sure, Ma’am,” she said and made a quick exit to return with a trolley of magazines, a minute later.

"Thank you," her eyes glittered and the smile widened as she picked up a few magazines.

After the air-hostess was gone, Anika’s eager eyes glided down to her picture on the cover of the magazine. She was in her early forties but was still in shape owing to those many hours spent in the gym. Her smiling face was pretty to look at though fine wrinkles have started appearing at the corner of her eyes and around the angle of her lips.

“Your smile is one among the most beautiful ones I have ever seen,” A mesmerizing baritone echoed in her ears and made her remember a compliment she has received years ago.

Age old memories filled up her heart with a sweet nostalgic pain and a dolorous sigh escaped out of her which helped a bit in flushing them out. She returned her attention to the magazine that has devoted four pages of glistening paper to feature her journey as a businesswoman with a title that read – ‘Anika – the Icon of Success.'

Her eyes shifted from the magazine to the elegant watch on her wrist and she made sure that the flight still had an hour to land at New Delhi International Airport. She decided to go through the article in order to make perfect use of the time in hand.

“Mrs Anika Arora – one of the most successful prodigies from the B- world is well familiar to one and all. The business tycoon based in London has her roots in Delhi, India. She claims to be absolutely Indian at heart though she has spent most of her life in London. Mrs Arora has recently made into the list of the 100 most influential personalities of the world owing to the outstanding success of her business firm - Arora Group of Industries (AGI). But life was not always a bed of roses for her. She had suffered a major setback in her life after being widowed even before she could celebrate the first anniversary of her marriage. Her husband Suraj Arora, the only heir to the multimillion Arora group had passed away when she was pregnant with their child…”

She hurriedly slammed the magazine shut and flung it on the table as memories made her face turn pale. She closed her eyes and took a few deep breaths to calm herself down. She opened her eyes again and reached out to the stack of magazines that she has piled by her side. She pulled out the magazine by the name ‘Sporty Times’ and flipped through its pages till her eyes transfixed themselves on a face printed on one of them. It was the picture of a 21-year-old handsome hunk, flaunting a charming boyish face which was studded with perfectly carved features. Those abysmal green eyes of his below the shade of thick eyebrows seemed to be hiding a mischievous smile of a naughty kid within them. She ran her hand lovingly on the face in the picture and blew a few kisses at him. From the corner of her eyes, she noticed a bewildered look on the face of the fellow passenger as he tried to make out over whom she was drooling so much! She chuckled as she mentally answered his silent query – ‘My son!’

He was the token of the love which she was not entitled to cherish. Her eyes glittered with pride as she read the title of the article – ‘The Prodigious Arora.’ The rest of the article was about his unique style of playing cricket which has won him an ace position among the eleven best players of the Indian National team. She was not able to understand even a word from the article as she was not much familiar with the game. She sped through the pages but had to halt at the last few lines which mentioned a ‘name’ that has always made her heart skip a beat. Her hands shivered and she gasped for air as her eyes perceived the words printed on the magazine –

“Vihaan Arora is one of the youngest players in the history of Indian Cricket who has made it into the National Team. His amazing batting skills were highly applauded by veteran cricketer Mr Sagar Taneja who is famous by the nickname of ‘Lord of Cricket.”

Anika took a deep breath and gulped a lump down as she folded the magazine before putting it down. She slid back on her seat and pulled out her mobile phone from her bag. She clicked open the screenshot of Vihaan's email and re-read it for only God knows how many times.

“Dear Mom,

             It was like a dream come true for me today as I got a chance to meet the man in the flesh, whom I have worshipped all these years – the one and only Sagar Taneja! To my surprise, he equally reciprocated the ecstasy. He shared with me his lifelong dream of having a son who could play cricket like him. In his words, he wanted to have someone like me to carry on the legacy. He was a bit low when he admitted that his children were not much inclined towards cricket and he didn’t force them either. But his face brightened up as he placed a hand on my shoulder and said that he has fulfilled his dream through me. I was mad with joy and felt like screaming at the top of my voice Mom….!”

Anika smiled as a tear of joy slid down her face although she had read the mail for more than a thousand times since it has arrived. She wiped her tears and soaked her blurred vision with a tissue before going back to the mail.

“Your father must be really proud to have a son like you.” He said as he patted on my back to congratulate me as I hit a century, “I wish I could get a chance to meet him.”

Anika’s eyes filled up again as she read further –

“I am sorry Mom if I have hurt you. But when my idol expressed his desire to meet Dad, I really felt that I could somehow fulfil his wish. Somehow I could bring my father back who was snatched from us by the cruel hands of destiny even before I myself could know him.”

A heart-wrenching sob escaped from within her that threatened to tear her apart but she fought her emotions back and promptly composed herself. She wouldn't have survived it all if she were not immensely blessed with indomitable courage, relentless faith and the iron willpower. Those were the weapons that have helped her fight all the odds and pave her way to the pinnacle of success where she was reigning today. Those have also made her win the nick-name of the ‘Resilient Lady'. Though outwardly she has always projected a strong face but deep within she had a fragile heart in which she had furtively buried her soft emotions in order to shield them securely from the eyes of everyone including her son. But today while going through her son's mail, she felt as if the turbulence of emotions will make her heart to burst out.

“I wish the same, baby.” Her lips quietly murmured.

She felt an urge to drop right in front of Sagar Taneja, look straight into his eyes and then whisper into his ears the name of the man he was so eager to meet. And then turn again to face his eyes and see whether they were astounded, agonized or ecstatic.

She was jolted out of her reverie as the pilot announced the landing of the plane at the New Delhi International Airport with an instruction to put the seatbelts on. She buckled the seat belts and returned to the email as her cheeks turned crimson out of the emotional exertion.

“I told him that it was too late for that. But yes, you can meet my mother for sure, who has been diligently playing the dual role of both my parents since the last two decades. She is the world to me as I am to her.

Waiting eagerly for you, Mom

 Vihaan”

Anika thrust her mobile phone back into her bag as the flight came to a halt and waited for the doors of the plane to be opened. She clutched her handbag and walked out elegantly with an air of a confident business magnate that was quite evident in her forward stride as well. She stepped inside the airport that seemed quite familiar to her as if it was only yesterday when she has landed here in Delhi for the first time as a grief-stricken, teary-eyed, twenty- year- old."

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