Wipe Out

What happened with Ms Grace was disgraceful.

- Nanda Kumar

The world is full of ungrateful sods” Alex groaned under an intolerable burden. “What happened?

I haven’t seen you so cynical before,” his friend Jim asked earnestly.

“Oh, I was just blackballed from Barbara’s house by her granny.”

“Why, my great Scott? You and Barbara got along swimmingly and well, I thought there was a tacit and tactical understanding between you two,” Jim expressed his surprise.

“Now, our relationship is strained.”

“Well, really! What about your engagement with Barbara?”

“It all went very well only shore of tying the knot that greatly depended on Barbara’s granny Ms Grace’s nod.”

“Why was she against your marriage proposal?”

“Not really, but I didn’t like her because of her awfully mollycoddling Barbara at every turn.”

“What do you mean by that?”

“I don’t like her fondly pecking Barbara’s cheek whenever she is at home – that too right in front of my eyes. This compulsive pecking habit irritates me a lot, for I never used to get a chance doing it myself.”

“Why did she disapprove of your marriage with Barbara?”

“Barbara formulated a scheme to solicit the approval of Ms Grace.”

“What was the scheme”? “She invited me to come to her home and be her guest for a week till Ms Grace’s 60th birth anniversary party and my prime job was to get into the good books of Ms Grace.”

“So, you did impose your company on them for a week and how did she receive you?”