Chapter 3
"Dad, can you go late to the office today? We have to pick Shreya from the airport" said Rhea five days after they had arrived from there vacation.
Daya was having cereal and at her words he stared at his daughter looking perplexed.
"Shreya? Shreya who?" he asked.
"Don't tell me you don't know anything about it!" said Priya.
Rhea slapped her hand to her forehead. "I forgot to tell him!"
"Wow. Great" said Priya chuckling.
"Tell me what?" asked Daya.
"There is this friend of mine called Shreya. She is from India originally but her family shifted to States due to her Dad's business. I met her on my blogging site. She's is a pen pal you can say. She has got an opportunity to work as a trainee officer in CID Mumbai. Becoming a CID officer had been her dream. The way she talks about it... she is really passionate. So when she told me about it, I invited her to stay with us. She was so excited when I told her that you work for CID Mumbai and are a Senior Inspector!" said Rhea.
"And why can't she stay somewhere else? A motel maybe?" asked Daya.
"Dad accomodation in a motel right now would be very costly for her and her parents are no more. They passed away in an accident -"
"I am not against inviting her at our house but what do we know about her? I mean you met through internet" said Daya reasonably.
"No dad, you can trust her. She is a really good friend. She is obviously older than me and you can check her records. They will be available in your office if you want to dig her background" said Rhea.
"No that won't be necessary" said Daya.
"I am so sorry I totally forgot to tell you about her Dad. I told mom and then we went to the trip and then it kinda went of of my mind" said Rhea.
"That's okay" Daya smiled. "What time does her flight land?" asked Daya.
"I guess we should leave now. She will be there in an hour or so" said Rhea.
Daya and Rhea waited patiently at the airport waiting for Shreya's flight to arrive.
Daya kept checking his watch. He hoped Shreya would arrive soon. He began checking his mailbox from the phone to kill time.
"There she is!" Rhea's sudden exclamation made him jump.
Daya looked the direction which Rhea pointed and almost did a double take as his eyes fell upon a young girl with jet black shoulder length hair. It wasn't her face which caught his attention but her attire.
She was wearing hot pants which displayed a her long, lean legs. She wore an off shoulder top which failed to hide her creamy skin. Her straight hair hung on her shoulder loosely and she wore dark sunglasses.
She was pushing the trolley in front of her and when she caught Rhea's eye, she waved, grinning at her.
Daya was still gaping open mouthed at her while Rhea was jumping up and down in excitement, next to him.
"OMG! Dad, she is actually here! I can't believe I am actually meeting my best pen pal!" Rhea said.
"This girl is your friend?" Daya asked Rhea, trying to contain his anger.
"Yes. Why?" asked Rhea looking confused.
Daya saw people stare at Shreya. To be more specific - her body.
Daya clenched his fists tightly. Didn't this girl even know how to dress appropriately? This was India not USA!
When Shreya approached them, Rhea gave her a tight hug. They kept exchanging greetings for the entire minute apparantly forgetting that Daya was present as well.
"Okay, dad this is Shreya and Shreya this is my Dad" said Rhea.
"Oh, ofcourse I know him! I have got an entire scrapbook filled with his pictures. I am mad about him!" said Shreya excitedly.
Daya blanched at her comment. "Mad about him?"
"Sorry?" said Daya, looking at her.
"You are one of the best CID officers in Mumbai. I am a huge fan! I am so pleased to meet youin person. And I am excited that I will get to work with you as well" said Shreya in enthusiasm.
"Okay, let's go home. Come on! How was your flight? Jet - lag?"
"Oh no, I am fine" said Shreya.
Daya started to grab the trolley for her, when Shreya said, "No please don't bother. Thank you. I will do it myself"
Daya shrugged and walked in silence behind Rhea and Shreya who were chattering non - stop.
People continued to stare at then when came out of the airport and Daya almost wished he had brought something with him - a jacket maybe to cover her up.
He wondered how long was Shreya going to last in CID. Looking at her attire he wasn't sure that she had choosen the right profession. And he was definitely regretting his decision of letting Shreya stay with them. He certainly didn't feel Rhea should stay in her company. He decided he would have a talk with his daughter.
A taxi driver approached Shreya. Daya could almost sense a hungry look in his eyes. "Where to madame?"
"She is with me" said Daya aggressively scaring the wits out of him.
Rhea giggled.
"The taxi driver is still staring at you" said Rhea as they walked back towards Daya's car.
"Oh, I am sort of used to it. People stare at me all the time. I have leaned to ignore them" said Shreya in an offhand voice.
Daya almost bit back a snappy retort. He was trying hard to control his anger. He drove them home in a stony silence.
When they arrived home, Priya was waiting for them. Like Daya, she too threw Shreya a wary look.
After the introduction Shreya went to freshen herself a bit when Daya broached up the topic upon which he wanted to talk since long.
"Rhea, I am going to be really honest with you. You so called pen friend had made a really bad first impression on me. Look at the way she was dressed! Everyone was staring at us at the airport!" said Daya.
"Dad, she lives in States. It's normal there! And I don't see any problem with her dressing" said Rhea.
"She may be living in States but now she is in India. I am not having someone like her in this house!" said Daya angrily.
"Calm down, Daya please. I will talk to her and I will explain her. There is no need to kick her out of the house for a little thing like that" said Priya reasonably.
"Dad, why are you making such a fuss? Doesn't a girl have a freedom of dressing in whatever clothes she likes? We are in 21st century for heaven's sake!" said Rhea.
"Look at her! Just look at our daughter! Ten minutes into her arrival and Rhea has started speaking rudely with us. That girl is indeed a bad influence. I don't want her in this house! Tell her to leave at this moment!" yelled Daya.
"What the hell is wrong with you? Keep your voice down! She will hear you!" said Priya.
"Don't you understand Priya? We don't know anything about that girl! I don't want Rhea hanging out with a girl like her!" Daya roared.
"Dad - " Rhea began but stopped abruptly when she saw Shreya standing by the door.
Priya looked at her sympathetically while Daya stared angrily at her.
Shreya had obviously heard the entire conversation and she really couldn't believe her ears. She had come to India on the assurance that she would have a house to stay. And now...
"Shreya come dear, I will make some coffee for you" said Priya but Shreya stood rooted to the spot staring at Daya.
"Aren't you getting late for office Daya?" said Priya.
Daya threw Priya a dirty look and grabbed his car keys from the table.
"I am going now but this conversation is not over yet" he said and left the room.
After some time when Dayacalmed down a bit, he realised that may be he had iver reacted a bit. But he still felt it was a pressing issue. However, ACP Pradyuman called him to discuss something important and Shreya's thoughts were driven out of his mind.
When Daya came home that night, Rhea and Priya were nowhere to be seen. He guessed they were still angry with him for his behaviour the earlier morning.
He wondered whether Shreya was still here or she had left.
He had already had dinner outside and so he directly went to the study. He still had some work to do before going to sleep.
He settled in a chair and switched on his laptop.
Daya didn't know how long he typed on the laptop. His head ached and he yawned. He assumed it was very late. He decided to complete one last paragraph of the report before calling it a night.
He heard a small knock on the door.
"Come in" he said, his eyes glued to the computer screen.
"Sir, it's me Shreya." she said.
Daya saw her standing timidly by the door, wearing a purple full sleeves night dress. He cast another look at her to find that she was fully covered from head to toe.
He found it highly amusing. Trying not to laugh, he turned his attention back to the laptop screen and said, "Yes, what is it?"
"I hope I am not disturbing you. Or I can talk tomorrow" said Shreya.
"What is it?" he repeated.
Shreya moved into the room and stood at a respectable distance from him.
"I am sorry. I should have dressed properly. I am used to dressing like this in states but here it is different. You see, I was a kid when we relocated to States. I do respect our Indian culture and I think I can understand why you were mad at me. I am really sorry. I assure you here onwards you will always find me appropriately dressed. I assumed that you think I am rich spoilt brat and I am here to spoil your daughter. But I am not like you think. I don't smoke. I don't drink. Nor do I have boyfriends or anything at the moment" said Shreya.
Daya gaped at her, grasping at whatever she was trying to convey.
"Please don't tell me to leave this house sir. I have no money at the moment. I will repay the rent when I get a decent job. I really want to be a CID officer and staying with a Senior Inspector is going to be a wonderful opportunity for me to gain experience. Please, don't tell me to leave. I will do whatever you say" she said in a pleading voice.
"I don't want any rent! Are you mad? You can stay as long as you like. I think I was too harsh on you in the morning. I am sorry if I frightened you. It's good that you understood what I am trying to say. And it is for your own good. I hope you get it." said Daya.
"Thank you! Thank you so much. I am really grateful" said Shreya smiling happily.
"Why aren't you in bed? I guess it's your first day tomorrow in CID? Let me tell you ACP sir doesn't like anyone coming late" said Daya.
"Oh, yes ofcourse. I will be on time" said Shreya.
"I have to go to bureau tomorrow to submit this report. You can come with me if you like" said Daya.
"Oh! Sure... anything..." said Shreya dreamily.
Daya smirked and said, "Goodnight"
"Goodnight" she said and left the study, shutting the door behind her.
Later when Daya settled on his bed, he couldn't get Shreya's image clothed entirely in the nightdress.
His drifted off to sleep, an amused smile etched upon his face.
Sneak peek into the next chapter - Daya and Shreya fight the growing attraction for each other.