Maa laughed, clearly enjoying my excitement. I placed her tea in front of her and sat down. She encouraged me to tell her everything that happened. I held nothing back, telling her of the drunk woman and how Sakshi used her training as a nurse to help her, how we spoke under the stars, and how Rishi was already calling her my girlfriend.

‘I hope you haven’t assumed she is your girlfriend yet, Ashray?’ She studied me. I sat, mouth open, realising that I had once again gotten too far ahead of myself.

‘A woman wants to be courted, Ashray; she wants to know that you will take the time to make her feel special
and appreciated before you start putting labels on her.’ I
nodded, knowing that she was speaking the truth. ‘And remember, you do not just court the lady. You court her parents too.’ My heart fell into the pit of my stomach remembering the looks of disapproval Sakshi’s mother had shot my way. Maa reached her hand across the table to hold mine. ‘It will be fine, my boy. Just take it slow and make her feel special.’ I smiled and nodded.

While I was gone, Maa hadn’t done much, she said; she thought she was coming down with a cold, but insisted on doing my washing from the weekend. After much debate, I relented and handed her my bag before giving back the balance of the money. She raised an eyebrow, and I quickly explained that Rishi had insisted on paying for most of the weekend. With a kiss on the forehead, I went through to my room to prepare for tomorrow morning’s workday.

I had two big clients I needed to present portfolios to,
and was expecting that, by Friday, I would have them as permanent clients. I wanted to impress this week, to prove that
I could come straight out of training and deliver results. As
soon as Maa was done in the bathroom with the washing, I hopped into the shower, discarding the grime from the weekend. I laid out my suit for the following day; again, I
chose not to wear an outlandish tie. I would wear my
flamingos the day after I signed my first permanent client, I told myself.

I lay back in bed, switching on my laptop to perfect my presentations. It wasn’t long before sleep called me, and I closed the laptop screen, allowing darkness to take me into dreams of a future where Maa, Sakshi and I lived a happy life.

My second week at BusinessForward saw me sign on three permanent clients. Vihaan came downstairs an hour after the third signed off on my proposal to congratulate me. He was at my desk, singing my praises, when Rishi slid back on his office chair.