Hello EveryOne!!

Here I am again with Mr Trainer...

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Five days later was the day of my birthday. It was the third week of December and we were facing a rather chilly winter. The year was coming to an end.

A year ago, I wasn't engaged. There wasn't Arjun in my life..No one to make me feel alive..No one to make me feel that I could love or think about that foreign thing...

That was one day..And today is another. The two look so different; far away from each other, farther than the time gap that separates them.

So I was supposed to celebrate this day with my fiancé but I didn't. Saral's business intervened again..the day before yesterday , unlike me, my fiancé did go to the airport to take a flight and meet his clients in London. It was unplanned. What was actually planned was called off. So that it hurt less, I was offered by an appropriate word—Postponed!!

Every message that arrived on my phone wishing me happy birthday made me irked.

The kind of pain that you can't share with people is worse than one is apparent. Worst of all is the kind you have to defend. Justifying the reasons that you yourself don't buy.

" It was urgent work.." I told people when they asked me about Saral's gift

Why am I giving this explanations?

I had to sound convincing enough for others to belive how badly Saral wanted to take me out and celebrate my birthday..but then the client wouldn't understand. The fiancé has to!!

Amidst explaining my situations to others, there were moments when I ended up explaining myself.

Why I am depressed? After all, saral and my alliance began with him calling off our wedding for sake of his work..back then, I needed that time alone to know my fience, before I settle down in a new house that I supposed to call home..In comparison to cancelling and rescheduling the wedding to a later date, postponing birthday celebration isn't that bad

Or it is??

No, its not!! Wedding happens only once. Birthdays are for lifetime..

But then why am I feeling this miserable about all this?

I don't know. Perhaps , its fresh ache. Our relationship continues to lose its sparks. I wanted to use this day to reinvent things for both of us..I had never needed it as bad as I needed it now. This was time I was looking forward to get undivided attension from him. When he is away from his clents and work. But just with me. When he is building not structures but our relationship.

This birthday celebration was also supposed to celebrate my transformation, I had spent past eight months to reinvent myself. I wanted to celebrate the body I had built with so much hard work by wearing the dress that would look good on me.

Even though Saral had noticed and admired the change in me but I wanted him to show a deeper interest in me. A day would have been a perfect opening to initiate a meaningful conversation with Saral.

I wanted to use this opportunity to move far away from Arjun..to made my heart not to think about him but my fiancé.

But then that's not happening now.

I was trying to contemplate the meaning of my life , if there was any, when my phone beeped.

" How's birthday celebration going on, babes? ;-) " it was Sam.

It was with her that I had gone shopping. The dress I had brought was chosen by her.

I looked at my watch and realized she must be in the gym at that time. The cancellation of celebration plan had emotionally affected me so much that I had become sick and tired of typing " Thank you" back to every message that had been coming on my phone since morning and concealing my agony. I choose to be practical in responding to Sam

" Didn't go L "

She immediately called me.

It felt good talking to her. I wondered why I hadn't done that earlier. I expressed my sadness. She sympathized with me.

As I poured my heart out to her, little did I realize that Sam was sitting right in front of Arjun, at the juice counter in the gym.

*****

Later that day, around 4.15 pm , Arjun called. He had refrained from calling and messaging me ever since I had started distancing myself from him. I believed in his mind he had blamed the events in the BMI room for my cold behavior. I picked up the phone and had barely said hello when I heard Sam's voice. I was surprised to hear her voice when I was expecting Arjun's. There was loud music in the background. It didn't seem like it does it in gym.

I realized the two were in the car and Arjun had put me on speakerphone.

" Get ready in thirty minutes"

Sam's voice rose above the loud FM radio she had tuned into.

" What? But why?" I asked in shock plus surprise.

" We are going to celebrate your " Not going to birthday treat " ?" she shouted

I didn't know how to react. I wasn't prepared for it. Yet we spoke, Sam's innovative line of celebrating-my-not-going-to-birthday-treat make me smile. She was fabulous. She made the pain sound interesting.

But I was not in mood. It sounded odd. What would my parents think? They won't allow..No, this was not possible.

" Thank you!! But no thank You!!" I shouted back.

But how does one convince Sam to let go of her plans?

Sam was in no mood to hear " NO" . she was too excited to even debate it. She had thrown all my excuses in trash bin. Moreover, she had got Arjun along to back her up.

What was supposed to be the most happening day of the year for me had already turned to be the gloomiest day at all. My soon to be in-laws too didn't put in any effort to make the day special for me. They had wished me in the morning and their job was done. And more than that, Saral didn't even wished me. On this sad day, when people I supposed to be my loved ones, didn't do enough to uplift my mood, there were these two people, whom I had knows apart from my blood relations , who truly wanted to cheer me up.

Should I deny them the pleasure to make me happy when no one else was even trying ?

As I thought over it, I realized that out of the blue it was an opportunity for me to get over the terrible day.

" Okay !!" I agreed.

"Yes !!" I heard Arjun screaming. It felt nice to hear his happy voice again after so long.

Sam shouted " Wear the dress you got for tonight..."

Sam remembering the dress soon had me grinning as I recalled the red satin tube dress I had bought for the night. I did not buy it to wear it in front of others than Saral..it would be too awkward for me.

" Nope, not happening.." I said

" C'mon!! Why not ??" Sam asked

" Be sporty, Radhika " Arjun said " you worked hard for that dress for eight months ! "

Even though I had changed, Arjun chose to remain the same good guy. I was glad to realize this. Sam must have told him about the dress..

" I am not going to wear it in front of you! " I immediately said making fun of Arjun. I wanted to reclaim our special bond. Now, even Sam was fully aware of my feelings for him.

" I ask you to wear it as your Guru Dakshina..." he teased

I heard Sam laughing aloud at that.

" which guru? What dakshina?" I teased back

" Ghor kalyug hai!! " Arjun said in a miserable tone. And I couln't help laughing hard.

" I am the Guru..We had the goal, Size-M. Remember?" he elaborated his point and said " Now that you have achieved your goal, I demand my price, the guru dakshina...(the payment for the study which disciple have to pay to the guru (teacher). "

That was a masterstroke Arjun had played.

I had never worn anything like that before in my life. It was going to be awkward to dress up in it in front of people who knew me. Besides, I didn't want to raise any eyebrows due to my attire. But deep inside, I wanted to wear it. It was just that I wanted to be comfortable doing so.

" do you even know what the temperature is outside?"

" You have got a long coat with you?" asked Sam , the very next moment

" Hmm....I do. And long boots as well.." I replied . the idea of wearing overcoat encouraged me to give Sam's suggestion serious thought.

" Well Then Go for it...." She said

" and you are not going to ask me to take it off..." I checked laughing

" Ofcourse. I will.. Don't make your dress sound like a bikini!!" Sam confirmed

Next, I heard Arjun laughing Hard. He tapped the dashboard of the car cheering Sam for being upfront and paying no hid to my apprehensions. I felt embarrassed tht she said all that in front of Arjun and immediately recalled the sports bra shopping experience.

I asked Sam to pull her car at halt. I wanted to be put off the speaker mode and talk directly to her without any hesitation.

After talking to her ear to ear, she did her best to make me comfortable with the idea wearing a tube dress.

" this isn't the first time a girl is going to wear this sort of a dress in this wide world. So many wear it in this city every day..." she said

" And Arjun?? Wouldn't it be awkward in front of him?"

" only if you make it awkward..Otherwise he knows enough about our bodies.." she said with laugh

" But my parents at home......" I said

" Listen, you should stop worrying now..Also, you have the over coat to hide your dress.."

" I know, but it so cold !! I wish we would had made a plan during the day.."

" Don't worry about the cold weather..we are going to a place where you will only feel the heat!!" Sam added

Before disconnecting the call, she announced that they would reach my place by 5 pm. I looked at my watch which reads 4.30. I hurried

Minutes later, I stood in front of the mirror in my room adjusting the dress on me. Something in that moment made me look beyond that dress, at myself..

What I am doing? I questioned my reflection.

That simple question didn't have a simple answer. It was questioning to my wishes that which life I wanted to live.

The urgency of the moment took my attention back and I started getting ready again. I know wearing that dress would hurt the sentiments of my family, it was an act of rebellion from my side.but I was happy Sam had made me take stand for myself.

I zipped up the dress below my left arm. I wanted to leave my hair open and decided to iron them. It took some time, but the end result worth it.

I put on the lipstick that I had earlier carefully chosen for my birthday celebration and some light make up. The lipstick exactly matched the color of my dress. I wore my favorite perfume and the white pearl necklace matching with pair of pearl studs. I stepped into my long black leather boots and looked for my overcoat in closet that had my all woolens. I was amused to find a woolen cap that matched with overcoat. I jumped in joy.

Returning to the mirror, I tried cap first, complementing my freshly ironed hair it fitted perfectly with what I was wearing.

The red tube dress showed my newly acquired collarbones and beneath the frill of my dress my toned legs looked good. I looked hot. This made me feel happy and anxious at the same time. The mirror showed happy me.

What was also visible was my awkwardness..

What's wrong with this dress , Radhika? Why are you over thinking about it?

The mind fought back.

You certainly look pretty. But you look sexy as well..And that's a problem.

I turned left and right admiring my figure.

Oh!!Sexy!! and being sexy isn't good? Don't girls, at times, want to look that way?

I looked again to my image in the mirror.

What does my choice of wearing something have to do with me belonging to a particular category? Why can't it be about my choice, about my freedom?

As people have that liberty to categories someone in certain category based on their cloths..

C'mon!! This isn't some cheap vulgar offensive dress!!

Yet it reveals so much of my skin. You have never worn something like this before.

I took a moment there and thought.

Theres always a first time for everything.

But your first time of yours supposed to happen with your fience.

.....who left you for his work!! Yes!!Right!!

And now you are going to wear it in the company of others.

My best friend..Sam..

.....And Arjun, whose eyes would now get to see your bare shoulders and thighs.

Yes!! The very eyes of that very Arjun who probably would have noticed every ince of my figure, underneath the layers of my loose tops...Who always helped me stretching my stiffend arms..who would have observed my behind, on which my synthetic workout capris stuck like skin. All this ithout making me uncomfortable for a single moment in this eight months!!

The buzzing of my mobile laid me back to reality. Sam and ARjun had arrived. I put on my overcoat and take a one last time look of myself in mirror.

There was nothing left to be corrected.

My mother wasn't home, so I went to my father's room who was busy watching some News channel on TV. I let him know that I was going with my friend . he asked me the name and other questions. After hearing Sam's name he allowed me to go. I knowingly concealed Arjun's name.

He looked at my overcoat and said " its getting very cold there..good that you covered up..Do come on time.."

I said yes and left.

Arjun and Sam were waiting for me in the car outside my apartment building. I saw Arjun was seated next to Sam who was driving. He waved at me as he spotted me..soon Sam peeped out and waved. I opened the door and sat at back side of the car

" you are wearing that dress, right?" Sam interrogated me as soon as I sat inside.

" See guys!! If you make such a big deal out of it , I will be uncomfortable.." I said with pout

Sam immediately agreed and turned towards Arjun " See Arjun, you are not going to make my friend uncomfortable, Okay??"

Poor Arjun threw his hand upward in the air and protested " what did I do??"

" Whatever !!" Sam said and dismissed him

We decided to drive down to New Mumbai. Sam had her meeting with US based client for which she had to report at her office latest by 8.15

" if you had work, why did you plan for this dinner today? We would have done this some other day..." I asked her

" Sweetheat! Listen Some other day and Monday Never comes!!..and I chose the place near by to my office..so don't worry.." she replied

" And what are we supposed to do once you leave?" I looked at first Arjun and then at sam

" Arey baba, she will come back the moment she will done with her meeting..." Arjun said

The two of them if I had any more objections..i smiled and nodded my head..i told them I had to get back to home by 10.

Sam acknowleged the information and acelrated the speed of vehicle with increasing the volume of music.

I sat back comfortably and began to enjoy the music..i had earned this evening!!

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How's it?? Did you guys enjoyed reading it??

Next will be their Date...and Radhika's confession...

So stay tuned

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