Unexpected

Mishka inhaled the scent of freshly ground coffee. The aroma surrounded her like an aura of sweetness, cocooning her in its bliss. It was 8.50 pm and she was restless. It was a big day tomorrow and she had a lot of work to do. But looking back, work was actually what she had wanted.

At the age of 16, she had dreamt of being successful in her life. Not of a perfect job or a post, but doing something worthwhile. Now ten years later, she was owner of ‘Drip N Brew’ a cafe famous for its remarkable coffee and just the perfect ambience. It had taken her five years to climb through everything. Her parents wanting her to marry was the biggest hurdle. It was difficult for her to venture into business where the society feared for a woman's decision more than anything.

"Why does she want to take so much risk. Tell her to get a stable job and then settle," said a lady who rummaged through the society's gossip looking for something which would satiate the emptiness of conscience inside her. "Stability,” she had said. It's all for the sake of stability. In this so called new-age we look not for love, but future prospects for stability. Mishka smiled at this one. It was funny how her trail of thoughts went.

She sighed and sat up straight. Then she paused and looked at the clock. The minute hand was just about to reach nine. Mishka pondered for a minute but then decided against the reasons that was stopping her. She went over to the room's corner and turned on the radio. Adjusting the frequency, she hummed to herself as she found the right track. The show hadn't started yet. She got comfortable in her couch and picked up her coffee mug again. Comfort zones, they say. This was her comfort zone. Listening to his voice on the radio for an hour everyday had become more like a need rather than desire.

Two years ago, she was stuck in the worst mix ever, Delhi traffic and Delhi rain. She had gotten late shutting down the cafe and just wanted to get home. Agitated, she had turned on the radio to tune out the pelting rain outside. Since then, she had listened to his voice every day. When she was aggravated like a crumpled scroll, his voice calmed her and when she was happy his voice brought her inner solace.

His voice came on the radio again and she jolted back to reality. "Hello people. How are you all today? This is Nilesh Mishra and I am back with another story written by me. The name of today's story is 'What's in a name?' and it is about a guy finding his true identity in New York City. I will be right back after this song. "

After an hour, Mishka turned off the radio. She had a smile on her face-a content smile. It was a mix of a child's goofy grin and sparkle on the face of a person in love.

Next morning, the alarm woke her up at exact 6.30 am and at 8.00, she was in the cafe's parking lot. Walking towards the cafe, she saw the entrance filled with the banners and posters she had so painstakingly put up. Three weeks ago she had gotten a call from 102. 7 FM wanting to set up a ‘Nilesh Mishra  fan meet’ in her cafe. Nilesh was a radio jockey who had turned into a big star and a heartthrob among the masses in last few years. She was so astounded that she couldn't utter a word for a few minutes. It was still a mystery to Mishka as to how she had managed to stagger a response.

Today was the big day. It was a big event as he was going to be out in public for the first time. He had managed to keep his face hidden from social media till now. Why? No one knew. Except for some newspapers claiming ' Nilesh is a very shy fellow'. Mishka read the banner in front of her "Holla people! Make sure you are standing on solid ground because this news is sure going to rock your world. DRIP N BREW is happy to announce the fan meeting of NILESH MISHRA- whose voice has captured the heart of not only young ladies but people of every sort. So brace yourself for the biggest event in town and make sure you are there in DRIP N BREW CAFE on 27th August 2016 @3pm. Mishka beamed. "Just perfect," she said. The smell of coffee and cake wafted through the air straight to her as soon as she opened the door.

She used to be the first one to be in the cafe when she had just opened. But these days, she found her head baker Sumit already present and trying a new recipe every day in the morning. He waved to her as he assembled a tray of cupcakes ready to go in the oven. He had two batches already made on the cooling racks besides him.

Mishka raised her eyebrows. “Red Velvet?” she asked.

He smirked and answered, “Red Velvet it is.”

“Do I get some?” Mishka asked trying to make a cute baby face. Sumit looked up from his cupcakes at her. He then smiled for a second but then dropped the smile and said “No”. She made a pouty face.

“Do you realise Sumit that I am your boss?” Mishka asked while she folded her arms and tried to appear superior. He rolled his eyes. They had grown very comfortable over the years working together breaking the lines of employee-employer relationship to build a close friends one.

“And do you realise Ms. Mishka Kakkar that we have a fan meeting today and that too of Nilesh Mishra! As far as I remember, you call yourself his biggest fan so you better start gearing up. Your coffee is just on the top and all the staff will be here in a while too. So just get your act together and start working.” The smirk he gave in the end was pure devil.

Mishka took the coffee, a Vanilla Latte her favourite and went to the back of the cafe. Here she had a nice comfy cabin where she just did the inventory work and stuff. Her real place was out in the cafe.

It was 1 pm and Mishka was happy with the way things were going in the cafe. They had succeeded in overseeing the customers of the day as well as finishing the preparations for the fan meet. They had cleared out the first floor's space and decorated it just well. Exhausted, Mishka went downstairs to the counter and rummaged the crowd for Sumit. She couldn't find him anywhere and so she just got herself a latte and started searching for a place to relax. The cafe was getting more and more crowded and she could see many girls in their teens giggling and talking. She could tell they were his fans too.

Mishka went to the special section of the cafe where they had kept some books and magazines for those who needed. There was also a long table by the wall with stools which faced the windows and the view outside. She got herself a stool and sat down. To her left was a man in his twenties or so, looking disturbed. He had his hands in front joined and was taking deep breaths. It looked as if he was deciding something.

Mishka asked, “Are you here for the fan meeting?”

He looked up at her, startled-as if he was noticing her for the first time, even though she was sitting right beside him.

"Yes,” he replied. His velvety voice came out coarse so he cleared his throat and said yes again.

Mishka nodded and asked, "Is there something I can help you with?” She then looked at his restless posture.

"Oh! I am fine. It's just that I have never been to things like these,” he said.

"But you are still here, that is nice." She said.

He seemed confused so he just nodded his head in the slightest.

"Are you a fan?" he asked. He seemed a bit more confident now.

"Oh yes, I am. It's been two years since I've been listening to his voice and trust me, I am in love," she blurted out. He raised his eyebrows and smiled bemusingly.

"You like him so much?" he asked at last.

Mishka flushed. "The way he narrates the story is just breath-taking. I don't have words to describe that man. I don't know why he hasn't come off to the public. Trust me when he does he will be worshipped."

"Don't you think that maybe he does not want to be worshipped?" he said.

Mishka almost opened her mouth but then paused and said, "He is a legend. He has a talent that no one else does. So maybe, once in a while it may seem overwhelming but he has his fans who adore him and there is no problem in interacting with them.” Just as she was saying, Mishka's phone rang and it was Sumit.

"Where are you Mishka? Nilesh is here in the cafe and it's time." She looked at the guy, he was just sitting still. "Yes, yes. I'll just be there." She quickly stood up and said, "I am so sorry but I have to leave. Nice talking to you."

Halfway through the counters she saw Sumit. He relaxed at the sight of her. "The audio system was having problems and they were calling for you. Mr. Mishra must be there by now so if you will just go up there and see..." Mishka nodded and scurried off towards the stairs. There she found the event in-charge Danny barking last minute orders. Seeing Mishka, Danny looked relieved.

"Thank God you are here! Can you please come with me to the makeshift backstage, we are having trouble with the mikes," he said.

"No problem," Mishka said. They went to the backstage where they got to work.

"Is it working now?" a voice came after five minutes of haggling with the wires. "Hello people!" the sound of the main compere answered him that everything was fine now. "May I now call upon stage the one you have been waiting for?" Mishka rushed forward to the stage only to see the guy she'd been talking to earlier on stage.

Next day, Mishka found a bouquet waiting at her door. There was also a note that said:

Miss. Mishka Kakkar,

I was just nervous about revealing my identity and you told me it was okay. I was jittery about the worship but you made me realise it was just love. Thank you for that. And I was really glad to hear you are my fan. Would love to meet you soon.

Nilesh Mishra