Honey, I am going onsite-IV

A week later, My Office
“Hey man, congrats. You will be travelling in a week’s time” My Boss surprised me
I thanked my boss, Arun for the wonderful news
“By the way, Sanjay will be travelling with you to NewYork” He said
“Sanjay….?” I gave him an astonishing look
“You haven’t met Sanjay, have you?” He asked me
I nodded negatively
“Sanjay, please come here for a minute” He spoke to someone over his extension
In a few minutes, a man in his late twenties, long hair, pierced ears, good looking with penetrating eyes appeared. I’ve seen this guy many times in Food Court, in entertainment Block, in Lawns, almost everywhere other than his cubicle with some girl or the other. We exchanged a formal hello and Arun told Sanjay that he would be reporting to me at onsite. I was wondering inside on what basis they are sending people to onsite. Arun clearly knew that it would be the most difficult of all things to get some work done from Sanjay, but still he desired to send him onsite. I personally knew a few other people who put in extra effort to finish any work given and very much dedicated, but still at offshore without any expectations. I thought maybe they had no adequate experience or a Valid Visa or sheer luck just like me when I was a developer
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On the Eve of the Travel day

Shubha was really sad that she had to miss me for atleast a year or two. I wanted to take her and Rajeev along with me, but Rajeev just got admitted into a school and Shubha was carrying our second child. I spent my whole day with Shubha, Rajeev and the entire family. Though they were amused about my travel trip, I sensed a bit of loneliness on everyone’s face. We packed everything that was required for the trip- the thermal wear, Jerkins, Sweater, Formal and Casual clothes and shoes. My father-in-law insisted my wife to pack the Pickles, Sambar powder, Puliyogare mix and few other things along with the baggage. I politely refused to take a few of them with me as it was already overloaded

That night, I had the longest sleep of my life

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Anna Terminus, Meenambakkam

It was a magical moment for me. The same crowd which had turned up to my wedding confirmed its presence for my send off. Everyone who passed by was really surprised and shocked to see such a huge crowd inside the terminus and I thought they were wondering if some political party meeting was happening or some celebrity had landed. Everyone gave their own opinion on how to cope up with the US lifestyle, which they had managed to get from some of their friends and relatives. Shubha looked so nervous just like me. She had always wished me to travel to onsite, but when it was time to travel, she wore a long face. Sanjay stood a couple of meters behind and was busy chatting with his colleagues and friends who had come for his send off. The group had lot of girls and very few guys. I heard the announcement for my flight’s check in. I waved my hands towards everyone and started walking towards the check in point with mixed feelings.

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JFK Intl Airport, NYC, US

We landed on a bright Monday morning
“Purpose of your Visit? Business or Pleasure?” The Airport authority in charge of Visa verification asked me
“Business” I said
She was verifying the passport and suddenly Sanjay hissed into my ears “Oh Man. She is so hot. Isn’t she”
“The hell is wrong with you and I should really meet the guy who approved your Visa without knowing your intentions of coming to US” I cursed him inside
We took a yellow cab and reached our place. We rushed to the office shortly after having a quick refreshment. The office was just a few blocks away from my place. We did all the formalities at the office. There was not much work to do that day. We just met a few folks who had come from offshore and few from the client side. I had a pizza in the afternoon and Sanjay was busy flirting the whole day with an Indian girl whom he had managed to befriend that day
That day went real so fast
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A week later, Our Apartment

I called up Shubha and my parents after getting my new mobile. They were so happy to listen to my voice. I prepared rice, Sambar and a vegetable curry that night, which I had learned from Shubha just a few days before my date of Travel. I cooked extra so that Sanjay could have his share too. To my surprise, Sanjay came a bit late and I hardly had any clue where he was roaming the whole evening. He politely refused the food that I had cooked burning my fingers while trying the microwave oven. He told me that he was going to stay over his girl friend’s place for the night and that was a few miles away from where we stayed. “Staying with a girl? Buddy to remind you, we’ve got office tomorrow and this ain’t a Friday evening” I told him with a shock. “Yeah Man. I know. I can handle this. I will return early in the morning” He replied me coolly. I was stunned and wished him good night. He was in a hurry that he didn’t even cared to reply me back. He put on a woolen sweaters and a DJ hat, sprayed a Denim perfume and walked away