Stoning The Ice-cream !!!

Signaling right and left from her hands, Alekhya was trying to cross a busy road. She was fuming in her rage to cross the road in a hurry never wanting to see the vehicles or people and just want to appear on the other side of the road on the ice-cream parlor. After about a span of five minutes she was able to. She landed on the shop.

“Do you have any ice-cream which has fire coming out of it?”- She asked the boy who was sitting on the counter.

The boy gave a puzzling look. They exchanged looks for a period of 5 seconds.

“Yes, Mam, I think you might want to settle down first and then probably order any ice-cream of your choice”- the boy replied.

“My choice!!!! Who the hell is bothered about my choice? Do you know any person in my life that maybe bothered what choice of ice-cream I would like? Do you think I can have a choice? The choice word is ambiguous. It has no reality right?” – uttered Alekhya.

“Mam, we have excellent ice-cream – if you don’t want to make a choice, you can go for the preferred menu, we have new additions as well”- the boy replied trying to make a healthy conversation.

“Do you have the fiery ice-cream or not?’- Alekhya asked again.

The counter boy really felt this was something that was going out of hands and he would probably lose a customer. He was new to his job.

“Mam, can we talk sometime sitting on that empty table? I won’t be taking much time of yours. Meanwhile we can just prepare your fiery ice-cream and yes it is on the menu – we have mango flavored stoned ice-cream with fiery shots in it. It’s just been launched.” – The boy replied with most positive talks.

"Okay fine, thank you”- Alekhya replied.

Sitting over the table, Alekhya just settled down and heaved some deep breaths. The boy gave him a glass of water.

“Please flow your things, I am sure there is so much”- the boy replied.

“Excuse me! But why should I be speaking to you on whatever problems I have”- Alekhya replied back.

“Because it is normal and there is nothing to be felt embarrassed and there is nothing to hide and it is the most important thing that you need right now”- the shop boy spoke finally.

“Probably you are right. You see I just been fired from my job. I have been told to serve the office for next month and then I can resign after completing a month. I am a criminal writer and I write for XYZ news agency. I have worked here for the last five years and they simply tell me to move because I have not submitted any core criminal stories to the front. People want entertainment, national, gossip news more rather than hard core criminal posts. I have a daughter. She is studying in an international school. Her school fees are huge. And I am a single mother. I don’t have much assets or saved money more on the fact I will be always doing my job in the efficient way and have done it so far.”- Alekhya started on the conversation.

“Also thinking about another job it is really tough to get it right away because the folks over there are quite powerful in the business and no news agency would be giving me a job right away. I quarreled with them and came out. They even might put a case on me violating office rules and policies. I bought a house this January and there are huge loans on me. You see now. Also to add to that, my dog died a few weeks back, I am in a total mess.”- Alekhya sighed.

The ice-cream came.

“Have this Mam, just have it and think about the ingredients in it”- the boy trying to add some calm stuff to the talk.

“Mam probably the step that you come over an ice-cream after some biggest mishaps in this phase of your life itself sounds like you can carry this mess up. I may not know how these money matters can be arranged but somehow I know you can do it because you can and even you know it. I will let you finish your ice-cream and will come back after sometime, have some work over there in the counter. Just be on a calm page.” – The boy replied.

Alekhya finished her ice-cream and her thoughts pondered. Maybe she can start freelancing. Or maybe she can open an ice cream parlor herself after she starts getting paid from her freelancing part. She has done that in the past and sometimes can come up with huge profits. She can meanwhile move in with her parents for a period of six months and work offline and arrange the money and lease out the apartment for rent for about a year, that way she can manage the school fees. Yes, this was it!

The counter boy returned.

“This was really the ice-cream that creams the entire situation and breaks the ice. Thank you so much. I will come again” – Alekhya replied with a smile and no rage.

The boy smiled, happy to retain a customer and yeah a happy valued customer. A customer to return with friends and family and he does a good job to his own job.

The entire incident, neither the boy actually helped her with her financial matters and the woman also had her solutions without anyone being an integral part of it.

Sometimes it just needs a conversation or an open-up to someone. The fact that we keep things inside of us piles on great heaps of misery. Make some time to open up to people and also share their part as well.

Probably I guess the counter boy didn’t even understand the criminal –story profile of Alekhya. But does it really matter. It doesn’t.