Happy Valentine's Day

Ithaca, New York.
February 14, 2010.

She took a long, deep breath before dialing his number. There was a time when she could do that without even looking at the keypad. Not any more. It had been exactly a year since she had cut off all ties with him. Since she had been forced to, rather. To imagine that someone she cared for more than herself would cheat on her. That all his promises were as hollow as him.

"Raj, I need to tell you something"

He couldn't believe his ears. Every single day he had waited for her to call. And to imagine that she would call him today, of all the days. How hard he had tried to get in touch with her. To tell her that it was all a big misunderstanding. That she like always had just jumped to her own conclusion. But unlike before, this time she never gave him another chance.

"Hi. How are you? Listen I need to clarify. You just left without even.."

"That's not why I called up. Remember the vaccines I had to take before leaving for the US? I think one of them must have been infected. I'm so sorry Raj."

It felt like something exploded in his head. All of a sudden everything started making sense. Him losing weight. Him catching the flu so easily. Everything made sense.

February 15, 2010.

Sipping her coffee, she anxiously scanned through the paper. Until she finally found what she was looking for. In one corner of the newspaper. 'Budding enterpreneur ends his life', it said. For the first time in a year, she smiled. She had worked it out perfectly. Revenge is a dish best served cold.