Made in Mumbai

6. Salaam Namaste

Maya did not break streak. Come Monday, she grabbed her bag and stormed to the office. She hadn’t vomited this morning, which gave her relief. Maybe morning sickness wouldn’t trouble her in Mumbai, her own turf.

She enjoyed her walk from her house to the office, the weather dry for a change. The sun was out and the salty sea scent was thick in the air. She stopped to grab a coffee from the Starbucks just around the corner from her office, stood in the queue, then when her turn came, deflated. Could she have coffee?

Her friends had cut out caffeine completely through their pregnancies. She knew. She had waved her double shot cappuccinos in their faces. Maya shook her head with a “Let me decide and come back,” and hightailed it out of the store. That was the shitty beginning of her Monday morning.

“Hey!” Leo grinned at her as she dragged her sour mood into the office. “How was Coorg?”

“Like a PMSing female without her first shot of coffee,” came out of her mouth.

“That bad huh? I heard the samples were fantastic…” he followed her into the office, surprisingly peppy for a Monday morning.

“They were.”

“And I heard from a small birdie that if this Amber Raisingh contract extends to three years then there are fat bonuses for Diwali!”

“Are there?” She whirled, her mood flipping. “Is the news confirmed?”

“I heard Trisha talk about it with somebody on the phone when she entered. Maybe GK himself?”

“How fat?”

She wasn’t crunched for daily expenses. She had her savings and a good dose of her inheritance from her grandparents. But that was a cushion for her. Singular. Now, she would need all the money in the world if she was to bring up a baby in the lifestyle she was used to. If her baby needed something and she wouldn’t be able to give it… a surge of sorrow shot through her. What if her baby asked for a double cheese schezwan frankie and that was the most expensive frankie on the menu, and she wouldn’t be able to afford it? Ok, she could afford it. It was street snacks. But this was just an example. In short, she needed that bonus, and many more to come. If His Highness was distributing bonus cheques every month, that would be ideal.

“I don’t know how fat. But please, Maya, please, be nice and make Amber very happy.”

“Meaning, meaning!”

“Meaning, she is coming to the office soon to oversee the collection and check out the samples you guys brought. Make her so happy that Gautam Sir has no option but to throw bonus money on us like you throw confetti.”

“Where is Aarya?”

“Think of the devil!” Came his smiley voice as he embraced her from behind. Why was everyone so bouncy on a Monday morning? Was she the only one who had discovered she was pregnant this weekend in front of her boss?

“Where did you go from Coorg…?” She began to turn in his embrace when her eyes found Gautam behind him. His face was pinched, a little more than usual. He did stare at her for a beat, then at Aarya’s arms on shoulders, and strode by their side. No hi, hello, how are you.

“My sister had a problem with our landlord. It’s a menace… single people renting in Mumbai is a bitch.”

“Don’t say such things around me,” she warded off his words with both hands, pushing out of his arms. “I live in a rented flat and the landlord doesn’t look all too inviting.” And now she was single plus pregnant. If double-trouble was spelled in Mumbai rental lingo then this was it.

“Did you manage to collect the samples?”

“Gautam did, he has them.”

“Why not you? Were you dancing in the tea gardens?”

“No,” Leo interrupted. “She was locked up in the hotel room waiting for Mr. GK.”

Maya froze. A second too long ticked. She blinked.

“That was a joke.” Leo popped. She forced out a chuckle, looking everywhere but at the two men surrounding her. Her eyes fell on Riya, a despondent, borderline-crying Riya.

“What’s wrong with you?” Maya padded to her on their shared co-working table. “Nothing,” she sniffled, blowing into a crumpled tissue.

“Riya…” Maya sat down beside her, now worried. Riya was the practical of their lot, the no-nonsense, address-the-issue-as-is person. “Riya?”

“My boyfriend doesn’t want to get engaged this year,” she blurted and burst out into a sob. Maya pulled her into her neck, patting her head. “I know it’s not a real problem, because next year is just six months away. But I can’t help think what if he is just stringing me along and will break up just before the engagement…?”

Her rant went on, and Maya listened to her. “It’s alright, you are emotional right now. First stop crying.”

Riya sniffled. Maya pulled her back and gave her a stern look — “First, quiet. Quiet.”

She stopped, her nose swollen red. “I am sorry, I shouldn’t have done this here. We are working…”

“It’s ok. You needed to talk to somebody and you talked to me. Don’t worry, your boyfriend has a great catch. If he is even a little bit smart, which you say he is considering he is a doctor, then he won’t be going anywhere. And if he does, we will go and change his gynaecologist board to veterinarian board in the night.”

Riya giggled, rubbing her nose.

“Want a bite?” Aarya pushed a red, schezwany frankie into her face. Her stomach turned.

“No, thanks,” she muttered while holding her breath. “Excuse me…” she pushed to her feet and walked slowly towards the bathroom, turning the corner and coming face to face with Gautam. He maybe read her predicament and ordered loudly — “Come to my office first.”

Maya nodded gratefully, followed him with tiny baby steps, and the moment they were out of sight — she dashed towards the bathroom. She emptied nothing but bile in the toilet bowl, bawling her eyes out while doing so. There hadn’t been any dinner last night, and not even that precious coffee this morning.

Flushing her mid-morning sickness away (who the hell called it morning sickness?), Maya stepped out of the stall. Only to find Gautam standing there with an ORS packet and a bottle of water in his hand. She sniffled, her tears still flowing after the vomit session. Shit. Go away. Don’t see me like this. Those words didn’t come out of her mouth though, as she quietly veered towards the line of basins and gargled, then washed her face.

“Drink this.” He pushed the bottle of water into her hand. She accepted it gratefully and took a sip. It was already peppered with electrolyte powder, the flavour lemony, thank god. She pulled a longer drink, feeling her head and stomach stabilise.

“Thank you.”

“Did you tell your parents?”

She shook her head.

“The father?”

She shook her head. Maya glanced up at his reflection in the mirror, waiting for him to say more. He looked like he was about to, when her phone buzzed.

“Hmmm?” She answered Leo.

“Where are you?” His voice echoed through her receiver and bounced off the bathroom walls.

“I’m coming, why, what happened?”

“A Hem Sanghvi is here for you. Says he is your ex-husband and you invited him.”

Maya closed her eyes, taking a deep breath. When she opened them, Gautam was just behind her, his eyes drilling holes into her. She nodded — “Ask him to wait in the sitting area, I am coming.”

She didn’t wait, or she would lose her streak. Today was all about momentum, full steam forward. So Maya ran her fingers down her cheeks, pinched her eyes out and left the bathroom. And as she had expected, the sitting area was a zoo. The spectators — her colleagues, the animal — her ex-husband.

He looked the same. After all, how could one month do anything good to a bull like him. Ok, he didn’t look like a bull. She wouldn’t have agreed to marry him if he did. He looked… ok . In that Gujarati way. But he had a snobbish swagger around him, making his lean body look extra bulky in padded suit coats and artfully tousled hair which she knew he had spent a good 20 minutes on to create volume in thinning strands. His father had early male baldness, and he had nightmares about it now. She had stumbled upon his search history for hair transplants too.

“Hey,” he pushed to his feet as soon as she cleaved through her co-workers.

She smiled — “Hi.”

His arms opened for her, padded black suit and all, and she embraced him. His arms tightened, his mouth coming to peck her shoulder, hands rubbing her back longer than was decent for an estranged couple.

“A little tight, babe. We are amicably separated,” he kissed her ear. She tightened her arms around him. He pulled back and gave her that charming smile, all teeth. “Won’t you introduce?” He eyed the herd behind her.

“Of course,” Maya turned, smiling big as she waved a hand from his top to toe — “Team, ex-husband. Ex-husband — team.”

They all waved shamelessly. Riya and Rustom were the only ones who had the decency to keep their hands at chest level out of some shame. And Gautam, right at the back, looked as dispassionate as ever. To his credit, Hem blinded her colleagues with his all-teeth smile.

“Ok, drama’s over,” Maya dispersed them, waving a hand between her and Hem. “We are not going to taser each other. Amicably uncoupled, friends, happily divorced. Ok, bye.”

She took Hem’s hand and pulled him out of the office. He laughed, and she kept pulling until they had exited the villa premises and walked into the Starbucks where she had not been blessed by coffee gods this morning. They sat under an outdoor umbrella.

“What is it? You send me an SOS message and are not even there to receive me when I come into your office…?”

“I’m pregnant.”

“Hmm,” Hem sat back, ankle on knee. Typical. “Mine?”

“Yes.”

“I told you earlier also, this is not for me. I do not want kids.”

“I know.”

“Then? What? You have enough money to get rid of it…”

“You know what? Die. Why did I even tell you?!” She began to get up when he grabbed her hand — “Ok, why did you tell me?”

“I don’t know… you are the father, I thought you would want to know.”

“Why though?” He snorted. “Nothing has changed in the last month. Still don’t want them.”

“So if I don’t have it…”

“Don’t have it!” He ordered. “What are you even thinking?”

“You know what? You don’t get to know that.”

“If this is one those games of yours, Maya…”

“You don’t care either way, so…”

“If I get to know you have kept it and are coming after me for inheritance and more alimony and stuff like that…”

“More alimony?” She laughed. “You don’t pay me any alimony.”

“You did not demand it in the papers.”

“You know why.”

That snapped his big mouth shut. Maya let two seconds pass, to see if he was anywhere close to acting humane again. No, still the same bull.

“It was the right thing to do from my side, to let you know,” she got to her feet. “If I keep it, I won’t come after you. If I don’t keep it, there is no chance of it anyway. In either case, forget I sent you that message. Ok. Bye.”

————————————————————

As soon as she entered the office, she knew the drama-gluttons would be lined up for gossip. That is why she had bought a dozen Fatafat packets. She had planned to enter the office and throw them around. And hopefully, the gluttons would be busy fighting over them to ask her for more. Instead, just as she pushed her hand into her pocket, Leo stopped her.

“Gautam Sir wants you in his office as soon as you are here.”

“Like right now?”

“As soon as you are here.”

Maya stuffed the packets deeper into her pocket and dashed up the stairs. She was winded by the time she was at his doorstep. It wasn’t open.

“Gautam?” She knocked, trying to get a peep into the glasshouse. It didn’t work.

“Come in.”

She pushed the door open — “Leo said you wanted to see…”

“I do not employee you to frolic on company time.”

“Excuse me?”

His fingers kept typing on his laptop. “You open your agony aunt workshops with my employees, you go around gossiping, you go AWOL for… how long were you out? One hour?”

Maya remained silent, unable to believe this was the same man who had swum with her under the fireflies’ glow.

“Make sure you inform the HR well in advance if you are taking time off. And do not turn downstairs into a fish market on company time. You may go.”

Maya seethed, turned, and stomped off.

————————————————————

It was well past eight. The office was deserted. She still sat in her office, working on the in-house designs that they planned to add to their homeware section. Her energy levels were higher than usual. That was maybe thanks to the the huge slice of chocolate cake that she had ordered mid-afternoon. That had been her only sustenance for the day, and she knew she had to start eating fully and healthily again. She also knew she had to make an appointment with her gynaecologist now. But those two steps would mean a tight seal on the envelope of her letter to god — Thanks, gift received, I am keeping it.

And that would make it all real. That would make the baby real.

What harm is another day when I have spent months in oblivion? She told herself, and continued working.

“Who is there?” Came a hoarse voice from behind the door.

“Me!”

“Maya?”

“What?” She was instantly annoyed. Her door was thrown open and there stood the grump — sleeves rolled up, top button open, eyes tired. Good, you deserve all that fatigue and no good food tonight. May your vegetables be without any potato.

“What are you still doing here?” He demanded.

“Who me?” She replied in her best Queen Elizabeth accent. “Just completing the precious minutes I missed through the day so that His Highness’s business does not suffer today.”

“Talk properly.”

“What do you want?”

“To know why are you here.”

“I said it. If you can’t understand the Queen’s English then it’s not my problem.”

“Mayaa…” he groaned, his voice hoarser. Good, hoarse voice and may you get a bad throat. At least three sleepless nights in a row, plus chocked nose.

He glanced at her wall clock — “You have overtimed by 2 hours already. That’s more than enough. Now grab your bag and come on.”

“I will overtime as much as I want. You go.”

“Maya, do not try my patience today.”

“Then can I try it tomorrow? What time?”

“Are you walking out of there on your own or I’ll go and switch off the fuse?”

“Go switch off the fuse. I have candles.”

“Cand…” he stared at her perplexed. “Why do you have candles?”

“For the cakes. There are so many people here, almost every week is somebody’s birthday or anniversary… do you know how expensive it is to buy single candles? IKEA has these pack of 8s that come at…” she stopped. “You know what, I won’t tell you. Go buy single candles for yourself and waste my hard-earned money.”

“ Your hard-earned money?”

“I am overtiming right now, amen’t… aren’t, no, ain’t I?”

“Ok, that’s it.” He marched into her office and began switching off the lights, shutting the AC, grabbing her things.

“I will complain to HR!”

“And say what? That the boss sent you home instead of making you work?”

“Ugh!” She snatched her bag from his hands and strode out of her office — “Bolt the window and pull out my charger.”

He was right behind her — “I am not your servant.”

“Acted like it. Come tomorrow also at 6. I like my lights switched off just as I leave the office…”

“Maya!” He held her bicep. She stopped. The lights in the co-working space were dimmed but she could see his face clearly. Even see his nostrils flare as he closed his eyes. When he opened them again, he was softer, calmer. “What’s happening?”

“As in?”

“As in, you were… this morning when I scolded you, you did not make any smart comebacks or burn me like you did just now. What’s wrong?”

“It’s not your problem. Ok?”

“If you are to work in my company, it is my problem. I will need to plan projects around your maternity leave.”

“Oh yes, right. I am around 2-3 months pregnant. I haven’t visited the doctor yet. But the minute I have my due date I will inform you and Trisha. Don’t worry, I won’t leave you in a lurch.”

With that, she continued walking, and just as she was crossing the threshold of Made in Mumbai, she realised that she had said it out loud. Her deepest intention. She was having this baby. She was going to be a mother. A single mother. And like everything in her life so far, she was going to ace it.