They finally stopped, post a long climax and fell apart like dead bodies after endless sessions of love making. While, Jude was panting badly, Katrina was lost in his eyes and was waiting for his lungs to calm down. She was madly in love with him and had decided eternally, that Jude was her soul-mate forever and ever.

Jude made the pillow stand, so that he could lean his back against the bed and lite his cigarette from his Benson & Hedges pack.

‘Jude when will we get married? I am already 28, and next month I would be 29 , you know that right? Bengali families do not wait for long. Mum and Dad are restlessly searching a good guy for me and as per your decision I am waiting for you to get promoted to the Production Manager post, so that you would talk to them regarding our marriage. Moreover, we never do it the safe way. I cannot trust these pills anymore’.

Jude interrupted, ‘Baby, pass my watch please’.

She picked up the wrist watch, lying on the table beside her and with a tired expression she started tying the watch on Jude’s wrist.

‘Uffff Kat, leave me..!!! I don’ wanna’ wear it now, just wanted to know the time as I have a meeting tomorrow early morning at 7, with the client for this Saturday event. So I need to sleep early, baby’.

‘Huh..! You and your clients.’ Katrina did not have anything more to ask or say, she just turned to the other side, closed her eyes and acted like she fell asleep.

Jude was a 33 year old man . He was tall, fair and handsome. He was from Chandigarh,Punjab and settled in Mumbai from the past 5 years. He was working as an Assistant Manager in DNA networks. Whereas, Katrina was originally from Kolkatta. She came to Mumbai and studied Marketing . During her university days she was titled and crowned ‘The Best Smile of the Year’, for consecutive 2 years. Kat & Jude worked for the same event managent company. The events would usually be conducted on weekends, on both of them would work together for the organization of the event. They used to share an apartment and were into a live-in relationship from the past one year.

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They met in an event during Kat’s intern days and Jude proposed her back then. Since those days, there has not been a single day that the two have not come together to office, be it on a bike or a car or even a taxi.

Next day early morning, Jude woke up and left the flat by 6:00. Kat was still sleeping, as she still had 3 more hours to leave for the office.

Three months later one evening while Jude and Kat were sipping coffee at the nearby café. Kat was looking meager, weak and sad. She spoke in a serious but low tone. ‘Jude, I wanted to talk you about something’.

Jude interrupted, ‘Please Kat, no more questions on that marriage thing, I have already told you’.

Kat said again, ‘Look Jude, sometimes we just cannot wait for something to happen, depending upon the urgency of the situation’.

Jude questioned her somehow rudely, ‘Jeez..!!! Kat, what on earth did you mean by that? I seriously did not understand anything’.

‘I am pregnant’. She responded back and sounded too traumatized.

He reacted back instantly, ‘What the FUCK…???!!!! Have you gone crazy?’ How do you know about this, did you go for any tests..???

She replied, ‘Yes, I had to go for a pregnancy test; as I did not have menstrual cycle last month. The Doctor said, I have conceived. Now what to do Jude…?’

Jude inquisitively questioned her, ‘But Kat, you were taking pills right…? Then how come…’

She clarified, ‘I kept telling you, pills do not guarantee 100% protection and safety.

Jude replied desperately, ‘Anyways, we cannot afford to have a baby now…’

She interrupted, ‘But do we have any other option’?

He said, ‘Of course we have, there are so many good Gynecologists in Mumbai, we could go to one of them and get the problem sorted out’.

Shocked, she exclaimed, ‘Oh, so it was always a problem for you’.

He rudely whispered in her ear, ‘Don’t be a fool Kat, once we get married we will have enough time to have babies, until then we just cannot. Next Sunday morning, we both would go to the Doctor and will enquire about the abortion process.

Ok baby…?’

Kat was stunned and questioned back politely, ‘But Jude, why cannot we marry now and have the baby too..?’

Jude got irate and responded back aggressively, ‘Oh Katrina, how many more times do I need to tell you, that I still need to wait for a year to be a Production Manager; and I don’t want us to take any wrong step and do something whimsical before that.’

There was a deep silence in the air for 5 odd minutes. Kat was sitting alone with her head down, she was lost in her thoughts as if the Earth was peeling her layers and revealing answers to all the questions in Katrina’s mind.

Meanwhile, Jude paid the coffee bill and came back, talking over his phone.

He disconnected the call and said to her, ‘Kat get up, we have to go. I will drop you near the apartment and go to handover the check to Swati for clearing the payment of the last event’.

Kat was still lost in her thoughts, but she got up from the chair and started to walk. Jude dropped her right in front of the apartment’s main gate and drove further to meet his colleague Swati, who was from the finance team.

Katrina unlocked the door and latched it from inside and walked to the bedroom. She lifted the mattress on the bed, from right under her pillow, she took out three A4 size posters of new born babies and a book on Maternity care. She held all those stuffs, rushed into the washroom and locked herself. She stood in front of the mirror and started staring at herself. Suddenly, she screamed loudly with tears gushing down her eyes, she threw all posters and the book right on her the mirror. Then, she grabbed Jude’s cigarette lighter kept on the washbasin tray and burnt all pages of the book and the posters, as well. That evening, she kept herself locked in the bathroom and cried a lot to flush all her burnt dreams and desires of making a sweet small family.

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“An Abortion.”

The most beautiful dream,

Woven for nine months;

In each and every SHE’s mind.

All of a sudden encounters,

The worst nightmare;

A shameful dare.

He/She inside her,

Gets stabbed innumerable times, maliciously;

With reasons like infidelity,

Sometimes, as an unwanted burden

And at times, for dreaming it too early.

Ooh !! The brutal, heinous Martian mind;

Spare that innocent foetus Child,

Who sleeps cozily in the cradle of womb;

A bondage imprisoned to commit an ignorant suicide;

Ooh..!! Do not kill a beautiful tomorrow.

After all, life is bliss;

Ooh !! And poor baby unfortunately,

Your share you have missed.