His Luck

He stepped out into the rain. Darn! He had forgotten to get the umbrella again. How many times he had reminded himself to carry one when the weather report would predict impending thunderstorms. But somehow when it came to the moment where he'd have to snatch the umbrella from the closet - the very closet that he opened to get his shoes - somehow at that precise moment, he would be thinking of something else. It happened every time and by the end of the evening he would be cursing himself, the umbrella and ofcourse the torrential rain. Not a pretty sight running to almost the end of the parking lot - that was another rankle, the fact that the parking lot was always full no matter what time he reached, no matter that one day he was so determined he got up around 5am to be at work by 6am. Yes, he did secure a parking spot, but the damn building was not open. He had forgotten to inform his manager that he was going to be early the next day! That was always the kind of luck he found himself in. Things never seemed to go right for him. Correction. Small things never seemed to go right for him. He was as lucky as the next man or maybe even luckier than some when it came to bigger things like his education, his family, his career, his car etc but when it came to simple day-to-day things like drinking a cup of coffee without spilling, finding a shirt that did not need mending, taking a walk without tripping, shopping in the mall without running into someone who seemed to know him well but for the life of him he could not place, the light always turning red at every intersection, always finding a parking space at the end of the vast parking lot which was so big it could claim itself to be a town or forgetting the umbrella when the skies opened up - somehow he was always at the receiving end!

With these thoughts and questions about whether it was just that he was a clumsy oaf or if nature and God always ganged up against him, he stepped into the rain. He had waited for it to slow down a little so that he could make a dash towards his car. But trust his luck that instead of slowing down, the rain seemed to be gaining strength. When he could not wait any longer and realizing that it was getting darker and darker and that everyone seemed to have left the building, he stepped out. He hoped the gel would not give in and stay in place instead of running all over his face. Ugh! What was that taste? It was his hope - the gel. He ran faster. Before he knew what was happening, he had stepped into a huge puddle - the damn thing not visible in the dark - and worse still tripped and fell. The next thing he knew his laptop bag was swimming away from him, almost drowning, as he groped for it choking and spluttering in what seemed like pitch darkness. He looked around. Everywhere the damn parking lot seemed to be lighted except ofcourse where he had fell. He looked up to see the only street light that was not on! By a miracle his hand seemed to find the bag, but not before it had touched some not very, let us say, untouchable things. The ones that felt soft to the touch, seemed out of shape and smelled yucky! In short some very gross stuff. Maybe it wasn't so bad that the street light was out. He would not have wanted to see the stuff for the life of him. So he got up weary, bruised and more than anything else dripping wet. So much for trying to keep himself as dry as was possible. He walked to the car, this time taking his own sweet time. Paying more attention to the puddles on the ground and the muddles in his head. With his luck those puddles might be snake-infested too. Ugh! He did not want to think of it.

After what seemed like an eternity, his car came into view. A few more steps and he would've reached with no more accidents. Ah! There he was. No more accidents. He felt elated though everything on, above and with him were dripping. Suddenly he realized that there was no way he would be able to jump into the car. He was soaking wet. He would ruin the seats. Suddenly he brightened up as he remembered how judiciously he would carry a blanket. No saying when he would get stuck on the highway with a snow storm in tow. So with a satisfied smile he walked towards the trunk. He opened it and soon the smile disappeared. There was no blanket in there. Infact not a thing. Whaaaat? he wanted to scream. Didn't he put the damn thing in there just last week? What had happened to it? This could not be happening to me, he thought as he shivered. The wind had taken the most inappropriate time to blow a gust at him. Then suddenly he remembered. Yes of course, the picnic over the weekend. The slight chill and he had come to the rescue with a smug, I have a blanket in the trunk of my car and become an instant hit. He groaned inwardly as he realized that he had put in the laundry to be washed. So what now? he screamed. The wind seemed to be enjoying its audience as it roared and blowed with gusto. There was no choice but to get into the car if he had any plans of not standing there soaked and chilled to the bone and turning blue and dead! So with almost tears in his eyes he decided to board the car. The beauty of a car. He had just bought it last month. It was almost new and was one of his prized posessions. He took care of it to the best of his abilities though he could never quite steer it away from the path of the biggest potholes on the road. But atleast he tried! And now he could not even do that.

He felt a little bit better as he closed the door. Atleast the howl of the wind did not send the same chill through his spine! But he still felt very, very cold. Infact he was freezing. The clothes were so wet. Maybe if he removed them he would feel better. He looked around. Not a soul for miles. He removed his shirt and his undershirt. He felt a lot better as he turned the keys in the ignition. The car coughed a little, spluttered a little more. He was gripped with fear. What if the damn thing did not start? But it did! oh! Thank the God almighty above he let out a breath of relief. But wait? What was that with it? It was like a siren and it seemed to be originating from his car. Did I get into the wrong car? he thought for a second. Of course not, his keys worked, didn't they? and everything about the car was familiar. It was his car allright, but why the heck was it screaming like that. What happened till then faded into oblivion as he was seized by a panic attack. What was happening? It sounded like a police siren. Goddamn it! What if someone thought that he was stealing the car? How come the previous owner had not said anything about an alarm being installed in the car and more importantly how come there was nothing on the key chain to turn the damn thing off! His head was reeling. This was easily the worst day of his life. He got out of the car much against his resolve to make sure that it was his car that was going off! And he realized it was! Now what was he supposed to do? Sit there and wait for someone to help him out? But who? A cop maybe who might assume he was stealing the car and God only knew what he would proceed to do next. He shivered. Suddenly he realized he was shirtless! Good Lord! He jumped into the car. He waited for 5 mins. Nothing happened. No one approached. Everyone must be at home watching TV on their cozy little couches, a hot soup in hand he thought ruefully as he put the car in gear. There was nothing else to do but drive and he did.

By the time he reached home about half an hour later he was a nervous wreck. Every second of the drive he had been glancing in his rearview mirror for a police car to stop him. But other than a few curious glances, he spotted nothing. Finally he reached home and let out a breath of relief as he switched the car of. His ears were still ringing as he made his way home. He had a splitting headache and his nose was running continously and yes, the kleenex had run out in his car! He rang the bell. She opened the door and laughed to see him in his half-naked state.
"What happened to you?" she asked.
"Well..you know how it is..."
"Was it your luck again?"
"Don't talk about it. Let me come in first..." he said.
She got towels for him. He changed into dry clothes and felt like he had just been cured of a long-running illness. By the time he came out she had steaming soup ready for him.
"Come let's sit on the couch..." she said, wrapped in the blanket he had left to wash.
Yes, there was nothing wrong with his luck!

*The End*

[prologue: I wanted to add this too.
He drank the soup hungrily. It washed off his hunger and weariness. He felt almost human. He looked at her. Alluring and beautiful. He took her in his arms, pulled her close and whispered..."let's go upstairs.." She laughed, pulled back and asked don't you remember? Can't we go for a long drive in your new car instead?" huskily! Darn his luck! ]