Nitin absolutely adored Sneha. He was not one of those pigheaded male chauvinist who preferred an eye candy on their arms. It was Sneha’s compassion and innocence, a rarity these days, that drew him closer to her. Sneha was no plain Jane. At 5ft 5 in, sporting a slim figure, and a pretty face she was one of the prettiest girls in office. Of course her overt charm had attracted him initially but then as an accounts head at a reputed PR organization he was used to seeing beautiful faces around him. Nitin’s impressive presence and charisma along with his communication skills had won him this job and many weak kneed ladies hearts.
Sneha’s list of admires in the office and outside were countless. There was nobody who knew and didn’t find her charm working on them. At 28 Sneha was independent, fun loving, helpful, cheerful and sensible modern lady whom every man wanted . She had received count-less roses and numerous love notes but not a single marriage proposal. Yes she had no serious suitors. Who would like to have a wife with artificial legs strapped to her knees. Sneha had no qualms about the lonely life awaiting her, which vexed her mother incessantly. If someone comes to her life he has to accept the whole package artificial legs and all. That was her philosophy. So she never hid anything from anyone in the office or outside.
Sneha often accompanied Nitin as an assistant accounts executive. For the first few months their interaction was strictly professional. On a rare few occasions their conversation traversed to short personal chats. It was a busy Monday with hovering deadlines. Nitin and Sneha were already running late for a meeting.“ Sir, I hope the client is also stuck in this jam.” Sneha said, as she looked back irritated at the honking car at the back. Nitin smiled at the casual joke and started honking at the car in the front “It’s better to piss others off than get pissed off.” Nitin found Sneha’s irritation unusually hilarious, he laughed out aloud. “Oh! Poor thing, how did you get here?” Sneha quipped at something peering down the car’s window. Before Nitin could solve the puzzle Sneha opened the door and scooped something up and ran towards the side walks. He saw a dirty little puppy jump out of her hand on to the side walks. She returned almost instantly unconcerned of the visibly perplexed onlookers. “That pup must have had the best ride home so far. The cheeky little thing is sure to grow into a real road side Romeo” Nitin teased Sneha. There had been numerous more animal rescue episodes involving Sneha. On a Saturday evening he called up Sneha to the cafeteria on the pretext of some urgent discussion about the current account. Sneha looked stunning in her crispy cotton Capri and figure hugging blue shirt. Nitin heaved in relief as he saw Sneha enter. Nitin had told her only yesterday that blue was his favorite color. As their conversation dwindled into an uncomfortable silence Nitin mustered up all the courage he could. The timing was perfect and of course he was armed to the sleeve with all his charm. It was late noon and there were very few people at the cafeteria. “ Sneha I’ve got something for you”, he said lifting up a basket, which had been hidden from Sneha’s view till now, carefully onto the table. Sneha’s perturbed look transformed into a sweet smile as she opened the basket and peeked inside. A snowy white puppy slept blissfully unaware on a soft white cloth. “ Sneha I want to raise this puppy with you together. Will you marry me?” Nitin asked with a quizzical smile on his lips. “You sly guy, you trapped me.” Sneha said smiling demurely.
