Chapter 9 - Her Traces That Just Don't Disappear

It was six-thirty in the morning and Arjun was sitting at his usual place watching the sea, randomly remembering something Miss. D had joked about humid mornings. A few minutes later he sensed some movement near him as someone came and sat down beside him.

He turned sideways to see a girl in her early teens with an innocent smile, small eyes and wavy hair, sitting at a few inches distance from him, looking at him curiously.

She was studying him. Arjun gave her an awkward smile.

"Are you the businessman Arjun?" she asked him. Her voice was little high pitched, just the right amount of a child's tinge to it.

"Yeah. Do you know me?" Arjun was a little surprised.

The girl pulled out a folded magazine from the pocket of her jacket and unfolded it. It was a business magazine. She opened it and showed him the page which had a picture of him. "I read this just a few minutes ago and recognized it was you," she explained quite cheerfully.

Arjun remembered giving a personal interview to the magazine reporters almost a couple of months back. They had informed him then that they would publish the interview in their coming issue. He hadn't bothered to look at the printed edition when it released even though his secretary had dropped him the issue to be read.

He took the magazine from the girl and skimmed through what they had printed.

"So, are you very philosophical?" the girl asked him seriously.

"No. But my friend is." Arjun smiled.

"Why didn't you tell her name?" she asked.

"Because I don't know her name." He looked wistful, longingness written all over his face.

"You like her a lot, don't you?" the girl asked slowly.

"Is it obvious?" Arjun asked, getting a little quirky with the girl's observation.

The girl nodded with an understanding that seemed advanced for her age. "She's not with you now?" she asked.

Arjun shook his head.

"Why didn't you go for her?" she asked quite empathetically.

"Because there are reasons others can't understand."

"Are you saying that because I am too young and you don't want to explain things to me?" the girl looked a little offended.

"No. I am saying that because there are things you have to experience at a much later age than now. It won't be easy for you to relate to whatever I say unless you go through certain life experiences. Even if I explain it, you might feel like it is nothing at all."

She put out a pout trying to accept the answer and then introduced herself, "Anyways, I am Pooja." She gave him her hand and he shook it courteously.

"Hello Pooja. Pleased to meet you. You came here alone?" he asked her with a smile.

"No. My dad and I come jogging here every morning. He is standing over there, talking to his friends," she replied, pointing at her father.

Arjun turned to see her father who was standing with two other men and having a serious discussion. He turned back to the girl and realized she resembled her father a lot.

"He gave me that magazine to hold on when his friends came up," she continued.

Arjun smiled at the kid and sat silently.

After a while, the girl's father came over to pick her up. She introduced Arjun to him and they spoke casually for a few minutes before she left with her father.

She grinned jubilantly and said, "Bye. Have fun."

It struck a different chord with Arjun. He sat on the wall, thinking how Miss. D used to say, "Have fun, enjoy it," everyday.

It gave him a heavy heart. But he consoled himself repeating the words in his head, "Cool Mr. J, cool. Relax. She is out there somewhere. She is always with you."

He went back home and asked his man-servant to get him the magazine before evening. That night, as he lied on his bed, he opened it and read the article.

Personal Info -

Name - Arjun R.

Date Of Birth - 18th August 1992

Place Of Birth - Mumbai

Currently Living in - Vishakhapatnam

Education- MBA

Business Line - Chain of hotels, restaurants and shopping malls across the country, and overseas exports.

Family - Father, Aravind R. who established the business. Mother, Samyukta leads the conglomerate's NGO and CSR activities. Both are currently staying in Mumbai.

After a lot of questions about business policies and practices, the article delved into Arjun's personal details.

Question - What made you get into into your family business? Was it because you were interested in it or was it to maintain the family's heritage and properties?

Answer - It isn't either of them. There was a time when I wasn't able to figure out what I really wanted. I was sort of aimless. My mentor then told me a few things, "If you go on trying to find if something is right for you or not, then even after an year, you will find yourself again in the same spot, unable to decide concretely on one thing. Just do whatever pops in your mind first. Follow your instincts. Take risks, learn from mistakes. Don't ever think too much than needed. Follow your conscience." It was then that I decided it was time for me to step into something new, test my skills, taste new waters. I decided to look into one sector of our family business for practice and to see if this work really suits me. After a few months, I became confident that I can manage everything, that this is what I really wanted. I never had to look back again.

Question - Right in the personal front, there are never any rumours on your personal life or any sort of controversies. How do you take care of that?

Answer - I enjoy having a quiet time by myself. And if you are asking about having a vibrant social life, then it's because I have no time or interest for it. I have already had my own share of relationships in life. Some people don't have the patience to do the same thing again. Some don't have the courage to do that. I don't have the interest. I am totally content with the people I have in my life. So I never go out with anyone or have late-night parties or get involved in any controversial issues or scandalous incidents.

Question - What is the ideal way of spending life according to you?

Answer - A way that actually makes it worth living for. There's no single rule for everyone. To each his own. Life is never a confusion. We need to have a clear view of everything, distinguish what is what. Just because something happened in a way you never imagined, you shouldn't back off. Escaping is never a solution. Walking out into the real world, moving along with the common people, having some time to think what you are doing, introspection, these are the makers of a normal person. Sometimes, the most common people have ideas which we can never dream of. To underestimate anyone is a foolish act. Instead of wasting time pondering over the past, we can live in the present beautifully so that tomorrow, when today becomes past, we don't have to repent anything. One should never think "Why didn't this happen that way?" Because destiny has its own path. Everything that happens has its own reason. We should never question that. If you have no malice in your heart, then it is all good that will happen to you. That's what life is."

Question - In all of interviews, you always speak about your mentor but you never tell the name or any details. Any reason for that?

Answer - (Smiling) I don't know her name myself. Some relationships don't have definitions. Ours is one such relationship. All the same, she is my friend, philosopher and guide.

Question - Sometimes, it feels like your life is an open book to the media. There are no surprises. Is there any possible reason?

Answer - The only thing I learnt from my past is, never try to hide the strongest thoughts in your mind. Sometimes, the damage it does to you causes a lot of pain. Anyways, secrets always give rise to unwanted speculations. That's how rumours start. I don't want others to think the other way about my life incidents or talk about it as a gossip. Whatever should be known will be a known fact, it should be told. I like to keep the rest of my life private, so there won't be much information on that known to anyone other than me.

Question - What is the best philosophy you follow?

Answer - Learn from the past, live in the present. Do what you really feel like doing and don't have regrets. Head out freely for your interests. Be unstoppable and unquestionable.

Arjun closed the magazine with a deep sigh and shut his eyes tightly. He hadn't realized it while speaking to the reporter. But he saw it all now clearly. That whatever he had said, everything he answered the reporter was all what he had learnt from Miss. D. They were her words. And he had spoken them without actually realizing it. They had just tumbled out from his mind and voice.

He switched off the bed lamp, pulled over his blanket and sighed remembering how everyone around him have constantly been telling him that he had changed a lot. He had brushed off these comments saying he was the same as he had always been. But he understood those remarks now. He had changed completely, undoubtedly. There was too much of Miss. D in him.

He smiled, loving the fact that her traces were all over him, imprinted in his mind, and slipped off into a slumber with the smile intact on his face.