Small Story 158.

Small Story 158:The Forty-Five Minute Secret Shankar was waiting for his friend Murali at Beach Station. After more than half an hour with no communication from Murali, Shankar grew worried. He tried calling Murali’s phone, but it was switched off. He was concerned because Murali was supposed to be coming from his office in Second Line Beach. Every day, they traveled together to Tambaram, where they both lived. They had been close friends since school, but now Shankar couldn’t understand what was happening. Though they worked at different private companies, they always traveled together in the morning and evening. Just then, Shankar received a call from Murali’s father, Rangan. “Hey, Shankar, Murali's phone is switched off. Do you know what happened to him?” Shankar replied, “I’m also wondering what’s going on, but don’t worry, sir. He’ll come. I’ll wait and see.” As Shankar was talking, a lady approached him. “Hello, I’m Radhika. I’ve seen you and your friend traveling together daily. While coming, I saw your friend going with a lady into a nearby hotel. I thought I should inform you.” Shankar was shocked. Murali had never mentioned having an affair. Why hadn’t he said anything? He was puzzled, trying to make sense of it. Just then, Murali called. “Hey, sorry I’m late! I’ll be there in five minutes. I’ll explain why I’m late when I see you. I also told my dad.” Shankar breathed a sigh of relief. The mystery of the last 45 minutes was solved. Murali arrived, and both of them boarded the first-class compartment, as they had quarterly season tickets from Tambaram to Beach. Murali whispered to Shankar, “I need to tell you a secret, but please keep it between us until I clear things up.” Murali then shared his story: “While I was on my way, I met my dad's good friend Desikan’s daughter, Kanaka. She invited me to join her for coffee at Krishna Bhavan. She told me that my dad had helped her when she was in college, paying her fees since her father worked as an attendant at a school. Kanaka excelled in her studies, earning a distinction in Computer Science, and was selected by Google. She’s going to the US next month. To show her gratitude, she gave me a cheque for two lakhs, which my dad had helped her with years ago. I was stunned. My dad never expected anything in return for helping her. That’s why I was delayed.” Shankar was taken aback. He was impressed by how Murali’s dad had helped someone selflessly, without expecting anything in return. Kanaka’s gesture of returning the money was also remarkable, especially considering her success with Google. The next day, Shankar visited Murali’s father, Rangan, and convinced him to accept the cheque. He suggested, “Since you never expected this money back, you could use it to help deserving students who really need financial support.” Rangan agreed with the suggestion, and he took the cheque from Shankar. Murali whispered to Shankar, “Buddy, your suggestion is amazing.” After enjoying some sweets and snacks, Shankar headed home, feeling content about the good deed that had been done. K.Ragavan 16-2-25