THE SMARTPHONE

Written for Indiblogger-Colgate Story Contest

“Sony Xperia. That’s what I am gonna buy.” said Ram with a bright smile on his face. “Man, I have been waiting for six months. Do you know what I am gonna do when I get this month’s salary?”

“Err…buy a smartphone?” I asked feigning interest.

“Exactly. And do you know which one? Sony Xperia. The best one in the market.”

Meet my friend Ram. He is hysterical about buying a smartphone. Nearly all his friends have one (except me, of course).He had been saving money for the past six months. When I say saving money, I do not mean just a portion of his small income. No. He had gone far beyond that.

“Hey Ram, that shopkeeper duped you.”

“What?”

Ram had been so excited about the smartphone that he hadn’t paid much attention to the things he was buying. I picked up the toothpaste that he had just bought.

“Look Ram. It says Callgate, not Colgate. This one is a duplicate.”

Ram stared at me nonchalantly.

“Man, what’s the big deal? A toothpaste is just a toothpaste. Who cares which one we use? Besides, this one costs ₹10 less than Colgate.”

I looked at him baffled.

“Man, this little paste is doing its bit in getting me a new smartphone. And do you know which one I am going to buy?”

See what I mean by hysterical?

*     *     *

A month later, I ran into him in the Supermarket. I have been avoiding him for a month. I was not yet ready to face a barrage of smartphone comments. He was hysterical before he had got his smartphone. God alone knows what he is now. I gently smiled at him while mentally preparing for what was to come next. (Now I alone did not have a smartphone and I could already feel the peer pressure).

There was a moment’s pause. He then gave me a feeble smile.

“So, how are you?” he asked nervously. Something about me made him uncomfortable.

“I am fine.” I said slowly, wondering what the matter could be. Why was he looking so uneasy?

Just then he turned to the nearby rack and took a toothpaste. Oh shit! Not again! Had I forgotten to brush my teeth? I quickly checked my breath. Nah! It was OK.

Ram had put the toothpaste in his shopping bag. That’s when I noticed it.

“That’s Colgate, right? So you finally got your smartphone?” It is true that I avoided him for a month. But I was curious to see the smartphone too. You know, that’s human nature. You may act like you don’t want it, but in the heart of your heart you know that you really want it.

But suddenly he turned pale. The smile faded from his face. He looked down for a moment. Then with his head still bowed, he shook his head.

“No, man. Not yet.  I have to wait for a few more months.”

"But you have stopped saving money?"

"Never save money by compromising your health. Believe me its not worth it."

Now this revelation stunned me. The last time I so him, he was as excited as a child waiting for Santa on Christmas Eve. He couldn’t wait a day longer to get his hands on the smartphone. Now he is talking about a few more months and a lot more about health! This was not the Ram I knew. Something had changed.

“Why? What happened?”

“I am not smart” he said dejectedly.” I am not smart enough to have a smartphone”

“Ram, you are smart. Now, don’t get upset. Who said you are not smart enough to get a smartphone?”

“You know that I have been doing many foolish things to save money for the smartphone, don’t you?”

I did not know what to say but I gave a gentle nod.

“I had been using that low quality toothpaste, Callgate, for too long. Two months back, I spotted a small decay on one of my teeth. It was a small black dot. I didn’t take it seriously then. Two weeks later, it had got a bit larger. But I ignored it. I knew I had to go to the dentist. But I kept putting it away. I reasoned out that a visit to the dentist would cost me ₹500. I needed that money to buy the smartphone this month. I could go to the dentist next month. After all, how worse can a small decay be? Besides there was no pain.

But then a week later it began to hurt. I tried to ignore it at first. I was so close to buying a smartphone. One more week and I would have the smartphone in my hand. But the pain just kept increasing until it became unbearable. Finally I went to the dentist and to my horror found out that there was a deep cavity. I had to undergo Root Canal Treatment.”

“That doesn’t seem so bad. A visit to the hospital is pleasant these days. You know, all the new gadgets and the pain free methods.” I said trying to comfort him.

“Yup. It’s all pain free and pleasant …that is until they show you the bill.”

“ So how much did it cost?”

“₹5000Rs.! Can you believe it? Ah! The irony! Do you know that I saved just  ₹500 by using Callgate?”

“By trying to save it, you lost it.”

“Yes, man, I lost it big time. What makes this even more unbearable is the fact that had I paid a visit to the doctor when I first saw the decay, it would have cost me only  ₹500.”

I was thinking hard how to comfort him, when suddenly out of nowhere the idea struck me. Yes, that’s when it first occurred to me. With bated breath I asked him…

“What’s the moral of the story?”

“What?” he asked shell-shocked.

“You are not an IndiBlogger, right?”

“No.” he said, not understanding what I meant.

“Well, we are having a story contest and I think your story is a good one. All it needs is a good moral.”

“YOU RASCAL!” he shouted angrily. ”Here I am telling you my sad experience and you want to give it to a story contest! I will kill you!”

*      *      *

Obviously, he didn’t kill me. Not yet. I wrote the story anyway. After all, he will get his smart phone in 2 month’s time. When will I get mine?

Moral of the Story:  Never ask your friend the moral of his story. He won’t tell you.
                         
(There ought to be another moral there somewhere.But it seems you will have to find it on your own.)

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