From the story, The Curious Mr. Rakshit....
"Of late, observing the young couple in the opposite flat had become his favourite pastime.
He would wait till they woke up around nine in the morning. As an early riser who woke up with the sun, he couldn’t fathom how they slept in so late. “Taking advantage of work-from-home”, he thought slyly. “Lazy no-gooders!”
He had discovered other facets of their lives too, peeping from his window every now and then.
The wife would argue with her husband every now and then. Obviously, he couldn’t hear what they quarrelled about, but he saw her pointing fingers at him and walking around agitated. The husband didn’t react much usually. Sometimes though, Mr. Rakshit observed him talk back defiantly to his wife. It satisfied him that the man refused to be cowed down. What was a man without a spine, huh?
He would hide behind the curtain and see this drama being played out. His own life was plain vanilla compared to all this melodrama. His wife and he never fought, at least never violently. They just sulked with one other when angry, and later carried on with their usual lives.
He hated confrontations and arguments. Even with his children, he would expect complete obedience and discipline in the house. They had grown up well because of his strict discipline and routine, Mr. Rakshit would often pat himself on the back.
Now what were these two up to? He followed them with his eyes to spy them kissing in the ante-room!
The old man felt suddenly prickly and uncomfortable. Strange people! Throwing things at each other one moment, and kissing half an hour later. Weird, he thought.
Thank God his own marriage was much more stable than this frivolous one. He shared a steady equation with his wife. She nagged him, he listened silently and usually gave in. Not that she could bulldoze him to do something he disliked, he thought quite pleased with himself. In his house, his word was law.
“You are still standing there? Didn’t I ask you to go for your bath?” His wife’s voice suddenly made him jump.
Bath finished quickly, Mr. Rakshit perched himself at the window once again. From his vantage point, he could watch his prey without getting noticed.
Those two were having breakfast now, he snorted to himself. At 12 in the afternoon! What anarchy, what indiscipline! If he had a chance, he would teach them a thing or two about leading a regimented life."
So, what happens to the curious old man? Does he find happiness in his own life? Or does his voyeurism lead to his downfall?
To find out, get this book:
Aftertaste- of a Half-lived Life, by Barnali Roy, soon to be available in Starmark and Bahrisons Kolkata, now on Amazon online.
Aftertaste- of a Half-lived Life
#newbookalert #contemporaryfiction #interestingread #shortstories
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