One Shift Too Far - Chapter Four

If you haven't read the third chapter, check it out here.

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Early on Sunday morning, Anirudh suddenly desired to visit the nearby Krishna temple, a popular temple in the entire area. After a shower and putting on a brisk shirt and dark blue jeans, he hurried over to the temple and joined the queue already forming close to the entrance.

The street in front of the temple was buzzing with activity. Flower vendors, fruit vendors, sweet vendors, and devotees filled the air with bargains. There were elderly people, families with small children, tired middle-aged uncles and aunts, and even the occasional group of teenagers visiting the temple for a quick Darshan before hanging out for the day.

And that’s when Anirudh saw her.

Sanvi.

Dressed in a soft yellow saree with gold borders, simple yet radiant. She was standing only a few feet away from him, by the turning. A few strands of her hair danced in the breeze, and the way the sunlight caught her smile — Anirudh was momentarily convinced she was a Gopi during the Dwapara Yuga and had met Lord Krishna personally!

He quickly looked away, pretending he wasn’t staring, and busied himself, instead, with the latest gossip two aunties were sharing just ahead of him. The crowd moved with time, and soon enough, they were close to the Garbha Gudi.

Just as Anirudh shifted his weight, the crowd shifted. A sudden push. Someone impatiently squeezed through, and before he could react, Anirudh found himself right beside Sanvi.

She glanced at him, equally surprised.

“Anirudh?”

“Sanvi! Hey, happy Yugadi!” He gave her a half-smile, hands awkwardly stuffed into his pockets.

Of course, he was making it up. But to his surprise, her face beamed

.

“Same to you! What a surprise.” She laughed softly. “Though I guess everyone had the same ‘let’s get blessed early’ plan.”

They both chuckled. The line trudged forward. Then, without warning —

Chaos erupted. A loud commotion broke out near the back. A group of mischievous kids had grabbed one of the teenager’s baskets and made a run for it with the teenager chasing after them - until the whole lot crashed into a batty old woman.

In the confusion, the temple volunteers hurried people along, waving towards the sanctum. Anirudh and Sanvi were ushered forward, right to the front.

“Wait— but— we weren’t—” Anirudh tried to protest. But it was too late.

The elderly priest barely looked up from his Aarathi plate. His hands moved on autopilot, reciting mantras faster than most people check their crush’s DM’s for any messages.

“Newlyweds, ah? On New Year’s Day?” He smiled absentmindedly, throwing rice grains over their heads. “Such a beautiful couple. You both resemble Lord Srinivasa and Goddess Padmavati. May your bond grow stronger!”

Anirudh’s eyes widened. Sanvi had frozen.

“Oh, no, we’re not—” Anirudh started.

But the blessings were already given, many aunties even smiled approvingly, and the volunteers had already urged Anirudh and Savi away absent-mindedly.

Standing in the temple courtyard, Anirudh stared at Sanvi, “This - I don’t know what just happened. It’s a misunderstanding!”

Sanvi shook her head with a grin, “Nor do I know what that was all about, except that we were mistaken for somebody else! Anyways, got to hurry back. Yugadi festivities, you know? Happy Yugadi!”

“Happy Yugadi to you too!” Anirudh waved cheerfully as she turned and gracefully exited the temple.

And that was when Anirudh started keeping track of festivals and other important events! The memory of the temple stayed with his throughout the day, and well into the night.

Nothing would have prepared him for Monday morning as people looked too cheerful for a Monday morning, and some even flashed their mobiles at him! Too many knowing glances. Anirudh wondered what was happening.

“Oh, ho! Temple, huh?” Pranaya smirked. “You’re a fast learner, Anirudh, but I’d previously thought that was only limited to work!”

“Hey, you had a cute moment with Sanvi and you never even told me!” Ajay demanded.

“What cute moment? What are you…?! Oh, no!” Anirudh’s eyes dawned with understanding. “That was merely a coincidence!”

“Not if the head priest himself blesses you two!” Pranaya declared. “He is a powerful seer. Everything he says becomes true, you know? He is called ‘The All-Knowing’ by devotees!”

“I swear, it was nothing! I was in the queue and…!” Anirudh started, but a loud voice cut him short.

“WHAT IS ALL THIS? GET BACK TO WORK NOW!”

They knew by then that the managers had started arriving at work, Mr. Verma being one of them.

As the day went by, looking at Sanvi during the tea break, Anirudh knew that she, too, had been bombarded with the same welcome he had received that morning.

"Why is everyone acting weird?" Sanvi asked Anirudh after cornering him in the corridor.

"No idea," Anirudh mumbled. “They seem to think we went to the temple together.”

“That’s preposterous!” She declared.

“It is! But, who can make them understand?” Anirudh asked. “There was somebody in the temple from our office, who took our photo.”

Anirudh showed Sanvi a photo of them in the temple.

“Judging by the angle of the photo, this person was standing by the entrance when we were near the Garbha Gudi”, Anirudh said. Sanvi sighed, “Who is this?”

Anirudh shook his head.

They couldn’t linger longer, since people had already started pointing at them.

“I swear, Ajay. I didn’t even know it was Yugadi! I just felt like going to the temple!” Anirudh insisted during the tea break. He had been trying to tell Ajay and as many others as he could that the previous day’s incident was just a coincidence. The APAC and Europe shifts had assembled in the break room and by the back exit, some of them even smoking a cigarette.

“And yet you felt like going to the temple at dawn!” Ajay said stubbornly. “Somebody has seen you both and taken a picture of you, Ani!”

“But do you know who?” Anirudh asked for the twenty-ninth time that day.

“NO!” Ajay said exasperatedly, “This image has been shared everywhere! We don’t even know who took it! And many people from our office went to the same temple yesterday around the same time as you!”

“If only I knew who recorded us!” Anirudh growled.

Ajay shook his head, “You say there were some mischievous children there. What if one of them did it?”

“But you said the person who took the photo was from our office?” Anirudh asked.

“Not necessarily! Somebody from our office may have acquired that photo, you know?” Ajay said thoughtfully.

“So, you’re saying many people from our office went to the temple yesterday around the same time as us, but one or more of them may have directly or indirectly gotten this photo?” Anirudh summarized.

“Exactly!” Ajay said, sipping his coffee. “Now, drink up your tea.”

Anirudh looked at his untouched cup and sighed. He didn’t particularly feel like drinking tea at the moment. Ajay patted his shoulder.

"So, Mr. Verma has told me about this trip we'll have in April...!" Ajay began.

Just then, a sharp, invasive whistle cut through the general chatter like a blade, interrupting Ajay.

“Aye, bulbul! Firecracker!” A loud voice sniggered, followed by raucous laughter. All eyes turned to Sanvi, who had frozen with the cup halfway to her mouth. Her face had gone pale, and she looked away, shaking with disbelief.

“Aye, don’t be shy now!” The voice sniggered again.

Two men, lounging at the roadside tea stall with entitled grins plastered across their twisted faces, cigarettes dangling from their fingers. The second one even had the audacity to mimic a flying kiss.

It was loud and obnoxious. They kept catcalling at passers-by, and their latest target seemed to be Sanvi.

Sanvi turned away, but it got worse.

“Oye, sunshine!” One of them called, a cruel and mocking grin widening. “Leaving without saying hi? That’s not fair!”

Sanvi’s fingers gripped the paper cup, knuckles whitening. The smile that had lit up her face moments ago vanished.

Another whistle. Laughter erupted from the men.

“Did your boyfriend gift you those earrings? We can gift you something better!” The first one called out.

“What was that line in that movie? Ah, ‘Ditch Ginger and come over!’ Yeah!” The second one called.

Anirudh stiffened. Ajay glared daggers. Anirudh knew Ajay was protective of his colleagues and friends.

Anirudh had had enough. Still carrying his tea, he took Sanvi’s tea in the other, and stormed straight at the men.

The laughter on their faces faltered as Anirudh strode across the street towards them.

"Hey, relax, boss. No harm done—"

SPLASH.

The tea struck the nearest one, scalding his chest. He yelped, staggering back.

Before the second could react, Anirudh splashed his own tea at him. As the first one retaliated, a fist met his jaw, sending him stumbling. Another blow — swift and precise — doubled him over.

"Next time you disrespect a woman, think twice." Anirudh repeated the move on the second one.

His voice was like ice. No shouting. No wild rage. Just a cold, commanding fury that sent fear crawling down their spines.

The Romeos scrambled to their feet, clutching their bruises and humiliation. They didn’t dare meet Anirudh’s gaze as they fled — defeated, disgraced.

The office crowd stood in silence, processing what had just unfolded. Ms. Roy, the HR manager, stood looking conflicted between cheering him and reminding him that violence was against workplace policies.

She settled for giving him a subtle nod. Everybody else soon returned to their conversations and cigarettes and tea.

But Anirudh’s eyes scanned around, searching only for Sanvi.

She stood at the edge of the crowd, her hands trembling. This time, it wasn’t fear but gratitude.

She opened her mouth to speak. "Thank—"

"Two chais." Anirudh said abruptly.

Sanvi blinked. "What?"

"You didn’t get to finish yours. I’ll get us two fresh ones." Anirudh said.

No dramatics. No declarations. Just a simple statement.

Even the tea vendor blinked when Anirudh placed the order.

He returned with two cups of tea, and they stood in comfortable silence, savouring the cool breeze and the hot drink.

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Footnotes:

Chapter Three.

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To Be Continued in Chapter Five.

Written By Tharun Kumar S