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Vetri went straight to Asif’s office. As he reached the gate, the security stopped him, "Who do you want to meet sir?" Vetri nervously said "I want to meet Asif, I am his friend." The security was astounded "Mr. Asif is our MD. Are you sure you want to meet him?" Vetri hesitatingly said, "Yes, I am his friend, from his native place." The Security said "Check with the people in the reception, sir. I don’t know if you will get an appointment."
Vetri walked to the reception. Receptionist asked him, "How can I help you?". Vetri said, "Can I meet your MD? Please tell him, Vetri from Keelakudi has come to meet him." Suddenly, the receptionist rose from her chair. The door behind Vetri opened, Vetri got a pat on his back. "Finally, you found me. I saw you through the CCTV camera.", said Asif. Vetri was dumbfounded. Vetri gathered, "No, Asif, I never got the chance to visit Chennai. Now, I have came to attend my friend’s wedding. So, I thought I will come to meet you." They spoke about their school days and the fun they had. Then they discussed about their business. Asif took Vetri to his home for lunch. Vetri was surprised to see that everyone knows him. Asif’s wife said, "We all know you, but this is the first time we are meeting you in person." He stayed till the evening and Asif dropped him in the railway station.
Vetri reached home and told his wife everything in detail. She knew her husband so she didn’t ask anything else. Two days later, Vetri received a call "Am I speaking to Vetri?" Vetri said, "Yes." The voice said, "Our MD Mr. Asif, has assigned a project to you. He wants to meet you. Will you be able to come to Chennai?" Vetri couldn’t believe it.
Explanation:
After the train journey filled with memories, Vetri went straight to Asif's office. There was a security guard at the gate. He stopped Vetri and asked whom he wanted to meet. Vetri became nervous and told him that he wanted to meet his friend Asif. The security guard was shocked and told him that Asif was his MD (Managing Director). He asked if Vetri surely wanted to meet him. Vetri reluctantly said "yes" and that he was a friend from his native place. The security asked him to check with the reception as he was not sure if Vetri will get an appointment.
Vetri walked to the reception, and the receptionist asked him how she could help him.
Vetri walked to the reception.
Vetri asked if he could meet their MD. He also told her to inform that he was his friend Vetri from Keelakudi. As Vetri was saying that, the receptionist got up from her chair. There was a door behind Vetri, and the door opened. Someone patted Vetri on his back. It was Asif, and he had come out of his room to greet Vetri. He told that he saw Vetri through the CCTV camera and that Vetri had finally found him!
[CCTV camera (Closed-circuit Television) is a device used for security purposes - it monitors the activities in the directions where the camera focuses.]
Vetri became speechless, as he did not expect this kind of welcome. Vetri calmed himself and told Asif that he never got a chance to visit Chennai. He further explained that he had come to Chennai now to attend his friend's wedding (he lied, he could not tell him straight that he had come to ask for his help, suddenly after so many years); and that he thought of meeting Asif also. Asif and Vetri spoke about their childhood and the fun memories they shared. Then they also discussed about their businesses.
Vetri and Asif discussed about their businesses.
Then Asif took Vetri to his house for lunch. At Asif's house, Asif's wife told that Vetri that everyone knew him, even though this was the first time they met him. This meant that Asif had shared a lot of information about Vetri to his wife, just like Vetri had shared information about Asif, to his wife. They both had not forgotten each other, even though it had been many years since they met. It proves that the friendship they shared was very strong. Vetri stayed in his house till evening and Asif dropped him off at the railway station.
Vetri reached home and shared all the details with his wife. She knew that her husband would have been hesitant to ask for help from his friend, so she did not ask anything else. After two days, Vetri received a phone call. The person on the other side asked if they were speaking to Vetri. Vetri replies, yes. The voice on the other side told that their MD Mr. Asif had assigned a new project to him. The person also told that Asif wanted to meet Vetri and whether he can come to Chennai. Vetri could not believe it. Asif had understood that Vetri needed help and had offered him a job. They were not in contact for many years still Asif had helped him at the right time. This is the meaning of true friendship.
Meanings of difficult words:
No. | Words | Meanings |
1 | astounded | shocked or greatly surprised |
2 | hesitatingly | to be reluctant, wait before doing something |
3 | rose | past tense of rise - come up or move up |
4 | dumbfounded | speechless with amazement |
Reference:
State Council of Educational Research and Training (2019). Term-1 English Standard-8. Friendship(pp. 104-118). Published by the Tamil Nadu Textbook and Educational Services Corporation.
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