As soon as Shailja entered the house, she felt everything had changed. All the interiors, furniture, and even the color of walls. She thought Abhay might want to surprise her but he knew her taste. And everything seemed completely opposite of her likes. She went inside her room and saw Abhay’s wardrobe had also changed completely. Stylish clothes and branded accessories are overflowing. She couldn't understand anything as Abhay had not told her anything. He called hardly a few times when she was in India. In the evening, when he came back from office, Shailja noticed his hairstyle and attire were also changed.
“Abhay, you are looking 10 years younger than your age.” She said jokingly.
Abhay didn't take a second and replied with a sarcastic tone, “And you are looking 10 years older than your age... Shailja.”
It was just a casual conversation but Abhay’s thoughts came to his mouth and this pierced Shailja somewhere deep inside.
Coming home very late at night, sleeping in the guest room, talking softly on the mobile in the night, and fingers always glued to the mobile has become Abhay’s life. When Shailja questioned Abhay, he said, “I come late and don't want to disturb your sleep so I sleep in another room. And I have some of my clients who are in different time zones, so I have to make some calls in the night.”
Shailja was not convinced. She is having the intuition that something is not right and so she decided to check Abhay’s mobile but it was locked with a password. She was surprised as it was a completely new thing in so many years of marriage. They never kept passwords on their phones. She knew if she asked Abhay, he would make some or the other excuse. She didn't say anything at that time.
One Saturday evening, Abhay and Akash families went to a 5-star hotel for dinner. They were all sitting in the family room which was having beautiful mirrors on every wall. Abhay and Akash were sitting on one side and Shailja and Preeti were sitting on the opposite side of the table. Kids were sitting in between and all were enjoying their food and chatting. Abhay’s phone rang with a message tone and he picked his phone to check. At that moment, Shailja looked at the mirror and pretended to talk to Akash and saw Abhay’s lock pattern. It looked like a reverse P. She continued talking to Akash and pretended that she had not seen anything. Now she wanted to go home and clear her doubts as soon as possible. Preeti was saying something to Shailja but her mind was repeating the pattern again and again.
“Shailja.. What happened? All ok?” Preeti touched her shoulder lightly.
“Ohh nothing… sorry, you were saying something.” Shailja came back to present instantly.
“I was just saying we will go to the mall next weekend.” Preeti said, finishing her dessert.
“Ya sure.” Shailja replied gulping a glass of water.
They all waved goodbye to each other and left for their home.
The next day was Sunday and Abhay was at home for a change. Lavanya and Pulak asked him to come along with them for some shopping. Abhay agreed and they got ready. Kids wanted Shailja to also join but she refused, saying that she is not feeling well and wanted to rest for a while. She saw that Abhay put his mobile on charge and hoped that she would get a chance to check it. Her luck also helped her that day and Abhay forgot his mobile at home and left for shopping with the kids.
As soon as they went out, she locked the door from inside. She took mobile in her hands and started trying to make the pattern she saw in the mirror last night. Two-three times it said the wrong pattern, she tried one more time with P and the phone got unlocked. Her hands were shivering and she was sweating. She opened the chatting app and looked around. There were mostly people whom she knew but there was an unknown number. It is not saved with any name and there is no DP also to this number. She opened the chat and took screenshots and sent it to herself. She quickly deleted all the screenshots and cleared the messages sent to herself. She locked the phone and kept it as it was on the charging station.
Her heart was still beating fast. After some time they all came back and had lunch. In the evening, Abhay went out saying that he has a meeting. Pulak and Lavanya also went outside to play. She sat down with her phone. She started reading the chat. It wasn't looking like any professional chat. As she read further, she found romantic messages. Abhay praised her dressing style and her slim figure and sharp features. As she read the last line her heart skipped a beat. It says…
“You were looking so lovely in the pink dress last night and your loose hair was adding charm to your beauty. You are just like your name Pretty Preeti.”
