Episode 12

I asked Rohit if he had his drink with Manisha the night before and he said he had but that it didn't go well. He said, "She met me at the bar and as soon as she had her drink she said that she wasn't sure why she agreed to met me for a drink but she was sure that she should not have and that it can't happen again. I tried to get conversation going but she didn't seem in the mood to talk. Finally after she finished her drink she said that she was sorry if she had in some way made me think that we could have a relationship. Then she said that I should not bother her again and she left."

The disappointed look on his face was making me very happy. I said, "That's a shame," but I was thinking you really didn't think you could score with a classy lady like Manisha did you? Then I said, "So you're going to give up then?"

Rohit said, "I guess I'll have to. Otherwise I could end up being accused of harassment and it could cost me my job."

"I guess you're right."

I had a couple more beers with Rohit to console him (actually to celebrate his loss). Then I went home to my wife.

During the next week I started putting all of this behind me. It was good to have things settled because I was real busy at work. I had to work late every night that week. It was bothering Manisha that I wasn't home at night and I kept promising I would be home on time the next night but then something would come up and I'd be late again.

When things settled down again I decided to stop at the Coffee Room for a quick game of pool and see what Rohit was up too.
When I saw Rohit I asked how things were at work now that his advances on Manisha didn't work out. Then Rohit said, "You won't believe this but I asked her out again and she agreed."

I was stunned. I had no idea she had gone out with him again. I tried not to let on how disturbed I was. "When did this happen?"

"Last Thursday. We met after work and had a snack and Manisha said that this can't go any farther than this. She said that we could be friends but nothing more. I didn't say anything so I guess she thought she made her point. Afterward I walked her to her car. She opened the car door and turned to say something to me and I just pulled her to me and kissed her."

I felt like Rohit had just kicked me in the stomach.

"When I broke off the kiss Manisha told me, I shouldn't have done that so I kissed her again. She told me to stop that. I said that I needed her then I grabbed her hand. Manisha pulled her hand away, but not immediately. I think she liked the kiss but didn't want to admit it to herself. Then when I kissed her again she responded a little but then pulled away from me and got into her car.

"I asked her when we could get together again and she said she didn't think that was a good idea. I told her I was attracted to her and I thought that she found me attractive too. I could tell then from the look on her face that she didn't know what to do so I told her to think about it. She closed the car door and started the engine then she left."

I quickly excused myself and went into the men's room and splashed cold water in my face. When I went back into the bar, I told Rohit I needed to leave but I would see him the next night. My thinking at the time was that I should show up at the bar the following night and beat the crap out of Rohit.

When I got home from the bar I found Manisha in the kitchen. I pictured Rohit kissing her in the parking lot and was repulsed by the image. I didn't speak as I went straight to bed. Manisha didn't say anything but she looked a little hurt. We didn't speak at all that night.

When I was sure that Manisha had fallen asleep I got up and went and sat in the living room and tried to figure out what I should do, but I couldn't.

After that I had a difficult time even talking to Manisha. I felt that she had let me down and was getting ready for the major betrayal. It was hard for me to pretend nothing was wrong but I managed. I started coming home after work so I could see what Manisha was up to but she didn't give anything away so eventually I had to go back to the Coffee Room.

I hadn't scene Rohit in a week and when I asked him what was going on with his quest to get Manisha into bed, Rohit said, "Nothing's happening. I called her but she hasn't returned my call."
I asked him if he met her at work or called her at home and he said that she was avoiding him at work. He said, "I don't want to call her at home then have her husband answer the phone."

After that I stopped at the Coffee Room every couple of nights to see if Rohit had talked to Manisha. The answer was always the same. Manisha wouldn't return his call. I was starting to feel better and I was beginning to think that Manisha must have come to her senses. Then on Monday I stopped in the bar and asked Rohit what he was up to and he said, "I just got off the phone with Manisha."

I said, "You what?"

He said, "I just got off the phone with Manisha. I called her at home and she said her husband wasn't home so we talked for twenty minutes. I asked her if she was ready to go out with me and she said that she was. Now I don't know where to take her. I can't take her to my place. I am thinking of getting a room."

I couldn't believe what I was hearing. For a moment I thought that Rohit must have figured out who I really was and he was just having fun with me, but I knew that wasn't true.

"And when are you meeting with her?" I asked.
"Wednesday, after work," came the reply.

She had even agreed on a day too. I never really believed that she would agree to go with him. And even though I was quite shocked by what Rohit had just told me I still believed that Manisha wouldn't actually go any further with him.

When I went home that night I was in a fog. This man had just made a date with my wife, and had made up her mind to have sex with her, and here I was facilitating the whole thing. I think I remained in that condition right up till Wednesday.

Wednesday morning I was sitting at breakfast feeling kind of numb when it occurred to me that unless I took some kind of action in the next few hours my wife was going to have sex with Rohit Sinha. As I watched Manisha get ready for work I thought about how beautiful she was and how much I wanted all this to go away so that things could be the way they used to be. Manisha hadn't said anything about the evening ahead so I thought I would test the waters. I said, "Why don't we go out for dinner tonight? We haven't eaten out in quite a while."

Manisha said, "I can't tonight, I have plans."

I said, "Oh! You have plans? What are you doing tonight?"

I thought I saw an uncomfortable look on her face as she thought about her answer. "I have something I have to take care of tonight."

It really hurt to have her lie to me. But it wasn't like she could tell me the true about her plans, so I pressed her on it. "What can you have to do that is more important than us spending time together?"

The coldness in her stare seemed to melt for a moment. I think she actually considered canceling her date to have dinner with me but then she said, "I have got to do this tonight."

When Manisha left for work I was sitting in the kitchen with a cup of coffee, wondering to myself, 'What do I do now.' In a few hours my relationship with my wife may be irreparably damaged and I didn't know how to stop it from happening. At the time I believed that it was already too late. If Manisha didn't love me anymore then it didn't matter if she had sex with Rohit or not and if she did love me she simply wouldn't have sex with him.

All day at work I thought about what was going to happen …

"Rajiv, what's wrong, you look like hell?" Ritesh exclaimed seeing my haggard appearance.

"Ritesh, please. Do me a big favor and don't ask any questions", I replied as I passed the contract agreement over the desk.

He looked at it and looked up at me. "What the fuck is going on? Don't tell me not to ask questions - I don't deserve a statement like that. We're supposed to be friends, or am I wrong about that?"

I quickly debated whether to tell him or not. "You're right, Ritesh. We are friends, but please, I just can't talk about it. I have to leave ….we’ll talk about it later," and I did just that.

"Wait, Rajiv. Okay, I won't ask you anything. Call me later in the evening, okay? You can do that, can't you?"

I hesitated and then nodded. "Thanks." I mumbled as I left the office.

It was four thirty and Manisha was going to leave office at five. There was only 30 minutes left to stop something I did not want to happen. Suddenly everything became clear. I needed to talk with her and save my marriage. I picked up the phone and called her office. I felt stupid and relieved at the same time. Why had I hesitated so long before doing just that. Luckily I still had time. Thirty minutes more to tell her I have been a fool but I loved her and did not want her to go with that Rohit Sinha.

“Excuse me, may I speak to Mrs Manisha Mittal please,” I said.
“I’m sorry, Sir, Mrs Mittal is not here at the office,“ came the answer.
“She ..she is not at the office …”I repeated, my voice trembling. A thousand things went through my mind at that very moment. “but I am her husband …can you tell me where she went?” I managed to say.
“No, Sir, she left early today … at three o’clock”.
My heart was racing very fast. I needed to get out of here. The only place I thought of was home. Maybe Manisha has left for home, maybe she was just feeling unwell. I hoped against hope that this was really the case… but I knew it would not be.

My last hope was gone within thirty minutes, the house was exactly as I left it earlier in the morning. Manisha did not come home after work. She went straight to wherever she had to go, with whoever she intended to be with and …was at this very moment probably doing whatever it was that she was up to …

I could not conceive that she would do that. I fought the images that flashed through my mind …and decided to go for a drive just to avoid staying here and torture myself. The only place that came to my mind was the Coffee Shop and I took the car and went straight there. Rohit would not be there but I needed to be somewhere else at this moment.

So I walked to my car, get inside and started my engine and was in front of the Coffee Shop before I knew it. I got out of my car like a robot, and went over and took a quick look inside before entering …and stopped dead.

I could not say which feeling came first when I saw Rohit sitting at the bar: a feeling of surprise, of relief or of joy. Anyway I almost ran into his arms and shot several questions at him at one stroke.
“Hey …what are you doing here? What happened? Shouldn’t you be somewhere else right now?”
He was surprised by such a show of enthusiasm and seemed taken aback and just stood there staring at me. But I did not want him to wait, I wanted him to tell me the words, to confirm to me that he was not, at this very moment, somewhere else doing …well, in the company of my wife.
“So, tell me what happened to your ...date?” Just then an awry thought came to my mind and I added “it was meant to be today only, right? Your date with the lovely Mrs Mittal?”
“Yeah it was to be today only,” he finally said. “But something terrible happened.” He said after what appeared to be a very very long pause.

“What?!!!” I almost shouted. What terrible thing could have happened?
“Well …actually I am suspended from work,” he said.
“Suspended from work?!!” I repeated. ”How come? And since when?” This was the last thing I expected to come from his mouth.
“Since yesterday morning …I mean the day after I talked to you. You see, since last month I was doing …hmm …some side business …if you see what I mean…”
I did not see what he meant, at least I did not care the least. Still I asked him ”ok … and what happened then.”
“Well, yesterday when I went to office, the boss called me in his office and told me they knew all about it and I was suspended till a board decision is taken.”
“Oh, that’s so sad,” I said, somehow feeling pity for him. Still I wanted to hear from his mouth that nothing happened between my wife and him. “So, I take it that your date with Mrs Mittal is …cancelled.”
“You are crazy man …everybody at the office is talking about me right now …do you think this woman or any woman for that matter, would want to be seen with me?”
“I guess not.”
“As a matter of fact, I met her in the corridor and she just ignored me. I seem to have lost interest in her eyes. I really regret not humping that bitch …I should really have got her to ride my cock, I guess it’s to late now.”

I knew better not to pay attention to his words. Now I could see how foolish I had been, to link my wife with such an insignificant guy, who could not even behave himself to save his job. Really I was too glad Manisha had not gone ahead. She obviously saw through him from the beginning and would not have been the least interested in him had I not come up with these stupid tests. Now, anyway she was giving her the cold shoulder and that was setting the records straight, once and for all.

Five minutes later, I was left the Coffee Shop in much better mood than when I came and reached home a little before seven. Manisha was sitting in the living room, waiting for me.
“Rajiv, we need to talk,” she said straight away.
“Where were you, I’d been looking for you since early afternoon …and don’t tell me you were at the office, because I phoned there and they said you left early.”
I realized I was shouting at her and it was not how I wanted it to be. But it was beyond me, I just could not control my emotions anymore.

I looked at Manisha and was surprised that she seemed so cool, so calm, so rational. Was she really going to let me in on what was eating at her?

"It's over, Manisha. I no longer wish to live like this. Either you tell me what's gnawing at you, or I'll leave without any further discussion. It's up to you."

I saw a grimace on her face. She stared at me and said:
"My mother had a surgical operation today. She is probably not going to live much longer …, " she said softly.

“What?!!!” I shouted for the second time in the same afternoon. “Since whe do you know that? And why didn’t you tell me about it before?”
“I learned about it yesterday …and tried to tell you but you seemed lost in your thoughts," she continued, without one changing her tone of voice even once.

I sat there, my mouth agape, totally shocked. There were so many things going on in my mind, so many things to be told or not. I knew I needed to sort out things for myself first. After a long silence, I took her hand in mine and said, “I am here now …everything will be just fine.”

My mother-in-law died the following week. Progressively Manisha was able to overcome the lost and things started to get better between us

I knew that my wife Manisha and myself needed to get away by ourselves for a while. It had been some time since we had taken a vacation, and we really needed time alone to rekindle the flame in our marriage.

We chose to stay to spend the weekend at a vacation resort called Wild Orchids. The first day, everything went as planned. We spent the whole day swimming and site-seeing. In the evening we had dinner together in the restaurant that seemed to set the mood that I wanted.

When our food arrived, we sat there and ate slowly, making small talk between bites and sips.

We had been out together after a long time and I felt a sense of relief at how well things were going.

Moments later, just as we were getting ready to leave the restaurant, I got a sms on my mobile. I checked it out and saw it was a message from Ritesh telling me he had just seen my car in the parking of Wild Orchids and wanted to meet me urgently. I was not sure why but I did not want to meet him in the company of Manisha. So I picked up the phone and said “Can’t this wait till tomorrow at the office?” “No dear, once I tell you the news, you’ll thank me you took the time to come over here.” While I was talking, Manisha had moved towards the door, waiting for me to join her. Even as I looked at her, a thought crossed my mind. Ritesh had never seen my wife, and I suddenly wanted to know how he would react upon seeing her, lovely as she looked tonight. So I told Ritesh, “Ok mate, Come up and join you in the lobby where we can discuss the matter.

Wait for me there.” Turning towards Manisha, I told her, “This has been a marvelous evening. How would you like us to go to the lobbby and have a drink before we go back to our room?” Though this seemed to take her by surprise, she agreed straight away. Five minutes later we were entering the lobby. “Manisha, please proceed to select a table for yourself. I need to go to the bathroom and will meet you in a moment. “ Once she was gone, I phoned Ritesh and told him “Hey, are you already in the lobby? I am at the reception, can you join me here instead?” Like I expected without 60 seconds, the door opened on Ritesh who seemed really happy to meet me. “What makes you so happy,” I asked, hoping that would bring the subject matter straight away to my wife.

“Actually I came here to tell you about the project you’ve been working on for the last year.”
“Yeah …by the way did you see the woman who just went into the lobby?” I said, immediately feeling bad I had committed myself by directly asking about her.
“Oh that one, she was hot. For one moment I thought of letting you wait here while I keep her company.” “Yeah, I knew someone like you would not help noticing a woman like her, right?”
He started on how hot Manisha was and he would be able to get in her pants if he had some time alone with her. I laughed. "By the way, you are staying here at the hotel?" I said.
"No. I live in town, I just like to come out here to look for entertainment," Ritesh said as he moved over to sit next to me. I looked around the room and then back at Ritesh. "Are these women what you mean by entertainment?” I asked.

"Yeah, they come out here looking for a good time and I make myself available," Ritesh said.
"So, what do you do when you get one of these women interested? Do you take them home with you?" I asked.
"No. The hotel manager is a good friend of mine. He usually lets me have an empty room that would otherwise be vacant. It's a win-win situation for the hotel and for me."
"And how successful you are with these women?"
"No woman who resists the charms of Mr Ritesh Sen lives to tell the story," he joked.
"You mean you can seduce any woman you want? Can you seduce the woman who just entered the lobby …for example?"
“You don’t believe me, do you?”
“I suspect your mouth is much bigger than your dick.”
“Let’s do something …take this key and go to my room. I bet you in 15 minutes, I’ll be walking in with this woman for a torrid session of sex like you’ve never seen.”

My heart was now beating very hard. I could not believe I was encouraging this guy to seduce my wife. “This is not possible …I mean won’t the lady be surprised to see me there.”
“No worry, the room has a see through mirror, so you will be in the bathroom and can see everything without being seen. Come on …what do you have to lose?”

I thought of it quickly and knew the truth was I needed to do this. Ritesh had been right all along, the decision to stay faithful to me was one only Manisha could take. And the only way to know was by putting her to the test.

Either Manisha will refuse his advances and this would give me enormous pleasure shutting out Ritesh’s mouth. Or she would fail the test and let Ritesh have his way with her, in which case my reaction would be one of relief …. And I had lived with this for so long, I needed this release. So long as I did not have the answer, my whole life would be a torture.
The moment I entered Ritesh room, I started getting a sick feeling I my stomach. I waited five minutes and called Manisha.

"Hey Manisha. It's Rajiv."
"Where are you?"
"I am sorry, I just got an urgent call from a client. I will have to drive to his place and back.”
"At what time you will be back?" Manisha asked.
"Probably one and a half hour …or two at most."
"I don't understand."
"I am sorry …I call you when I am on my way back," I said.
"Okay …" she said.

Now the ball was entirely in her court. She could leave the lobby and go straight away to our room if she wished. I wondered if Ritesh had been successful in chatting her up already.

I must have been in the room some 10 minutes when the front door opened. I immediately felt a lump in my throat and my heart started beating hard and fast. The door swung open and I saw Ritesh enter, then he stepped aside to let my wife Manisha come inside. Manisha walked to the middle of the room and looked around without saying say a word while Ritesh went to the CD player and put some music on. "I can't believe I agreed to come here with you, I need to get back to my room now." I heard Manisha laugh. "Guess you lose track of time when you're having fun," Ritesh said. "Yeah, it’s been really nice, but really I have to go now. I hope you're not mad, I mean..." "I couldn't be mad with you even if I wanted to."

"I wouldn't want it to change anything." "I'm glad to hear that." Ritesh said, putting his hands on Manisha's arms. Manisha looked uncomfortable, but didn't pull away. Ritesh reached out a hand to stroke at Manisha's hair. Her eyes looked to the floor. He continued stroking her hair. "You are so incredibly beautiful," he whispered to her. They stayed like this for what seemed like an eternity to me, as Ritesh traveled his fingers over the blade of her naked shoulders and blew gently over it. Manisha closed her eyes as he moved closer to her. She gulped as he kissed her neck. It was a light kiss...a tender kiss, but her entire body tightened, still hesitant, not sure how she was to respond. His hand rested on her waist. She sensed he wished to kiss her lips and she turned her head away. He didn't seem concerned or worried. He gently led her and sat her on the bed. Then, kneeling down in front of her, he moved his hand up her leg, caressing the soft flesh in his hand. "Ooh!" She flinched, squirming slightly at his touch. While rubbing my wife's feet, Ritesh let his hands slowly move up, so he was massaging her calves. Manisha sank back in the bed and closed her eyes. When he reached above her knee, Manisha straightened and said, "Whoa, better watch where your hands go." "I know exactly where my hands are." Ritesh said. "That's the problem. You're just trouble." "I know."

Ritesh leaned forward and started kissing Manisha's foot. She just giggled at that. His lips moved up, sucking her calf and then behind her knee. She sank deeper on the bed, her breathing getting deeper. While he sucked on the back of her knee, Ritesh slipped a hand up Manisha's thigh and it disappeared under her dress. Manisha caught her breath and opened her legs just a little wider. She was gripping o the pillow sheet and it clearly took a lot of effort for her to stop Ritesh before he reached the hem of her dress. "C'mon, we really can't do this. You have to stop, Ritesh." Manisha said, clearing her throat. There was not much contention in her voice. Her tone told a different story than her words. "It's so hard to not touch you every time I see you." Manisha looked flustered, like arguing was getting harder. "Someone could show up here at any time. Do you want to get caught?" Still kneeling in front of Manisha, Ritesh reached up and touched her face, ran his fingers through her hair. "We really should stop this. We shouldn't be doing this anyway." Manisha said breathlessly. Ritesh was now back on his feet and gently pulled my wife’s hand, drawing her into his arms. "Do you want me to stop?" "I..."

Ritesh pulled her face close to his lips her, "Should I stop?" Ritesh leaned forward and kissed her. I thought I nearly passed out, because Manisha didn't push him anyway. In fact, after a brief pause, Manisha leaned forward and kissed him back! "God help me. No..." she said. Soon she was putting her arms around him and they kissed deep and passionately. Ritesh lifted the edge of her skirt up her waist. She opened her eyes again, and watched as his breath caressed the satin of her panties. She was exposed. Ritesh continued pulling the skirt along her hips. Then he reclined back slightly, looking at her naked hips and legs, and the beautiful satin in the tender area between her legs. He wasn't saying a word, yet his expression and attention conveyed an appreciation of her beauty. It was pure adoration, and like any object of unspeakable beauty, he seemed afraid to touch it lest he ruined it somehow. Ritesh then outstretched his hand and Manisha took his hand and moved to him, revealing her exposed panties as she let herself be led onto the bed. She didn't seem to wonder what he was to do to her. She seemed to want to let go, and let this man do to her as he wished.

Whatever he chose. He continued to hold her hand and he sat her to the table in front of the window. He then proceeded to unzip her skirt and let it fall to the floor as he lifted her by the waist onto the table. Ritesh knew I was just behind and wanted me to witness his victory from real close. Manisha rested there with her legs hanging freely on the side of the table as his hand moved up her arm, round her shoulders and onto her face. He then took her arms and lifted them over her head. Her hands now hanged loose and her chest arched towards him. Slowly he opened her dress, one button at a time, revealing her white soft body, covered only by her bra. He then moved his hand to her right shoulder and slipped off the strap of her bra, and repeated the process on the left side. All the while, Manisha didn't break the shared gaze with Ritesh. The bra fell down her body, exposing her bare, creamy breasts and nipples.

She lay in front of him, now wearing only her satin panties. Ritesh seemed in awe, and offered no spoken word. Manisha's lips quivered as Ritesh trailed his finger smoothly over her breast. He didn't move his gaze or his body... just his finger. It moved from the top of her breast, along the side, and underneath. He moved it slowly inward, covering every centimeter of flesh with his fingertip. Still, his eyes never left hers. Her body jumped with sensitivity, holding the potential for orgasm just from his delicate touch. She opened her lips, and let her breath flow freely.

But Manisha didn't break her gaze with Ritesh as he moved the finger between her breasts, up her chest. Her left nipple pointed upwards, appearing to ache for its turn at the touch, her breast pulsating with the anticipation of his finger. She bit her lip as his finger traced its way to the left nipple. Manisha cried her first moan of ecstasy as his mouth moved between her breasts, licking the glistening flesh with his slow, writhing tongue. His mouth then closed on her erect left nipple. For a long moment he continued loving her breasts. He kissed slowly, licked tenderly, and rubbed his face gently into them. Manisha was moaning. The quiet decent housewife was vocally responding to Ritesh's touch. She moaned at the attention to her body that had overpowered anything she could resist. Ritesh was now kissing her softly, slowly over her breasts and stomach. His hands lovingly caressed her as they slid up and down her legs. He paid attention to every part of them as well.

Kissing and touching her legs as if he didn't understand them and needed the touch to discover her. He moved to her ankles, her feet, and her arms. He loved her as if her elbows and shoulders excited him as much as her breasts and vagina. Nobody had ever loved a woman like this. No man ever seemed to get past a woman's obvious attributes and appreciate her so completely. "Aahhh!" Manisha moaned with each tender placement of his lips, outstretching her legs as far as they could on the table. She breathed low, long moans as he worked his lips on her legs. His fingers softly caressed her feet and ankles as he kissed her shins. Ritesh kissed her knees, tickling underneath with his tongue. His hands moved up her thighs in long, smooth strokes. She was so close... so close to liberation. His hand moved up between her legs, palming the delicate area covered by her panties. His lips moved up her dripping thighs, and Manisha finally moved her hands. She rested them on his head, inviting him up higher ...patiently waiting for his lips to reach her panties.

Her chest heaved as his first kiss pressed against the satin. A wonderful burst of energy glowed beneath the fabric, patiently waiting to be filled and loved. She wanted him. She wanted him inside her. "Ritesh..." she could say his name now. She slid her fingers under the panty straps, and slowly slid them down her legs. Ritesh took over from her and dropped the satin panties onto the floor. She glazed over with pleasure as she watched Ritesh removing his clothes, sliding his briefs down to expose his cock. She lay there, completely naked and helpless before the erect man. "Oh, Ritesh!" He guided his cock inside her and gave a rapid thrust. He then pulled out of her slowly, watching her eyes as she received the pleasure he gave her and knowing she was watching him as she received it. Ritesh continued the gentle penetration of her, gently thrusting, apparently gaining inspiration from the increasing arousal of his lovely partner beneath him. His cock plunged deeper, more powerfully into her. Manisha reached up her hand and massaged his chest, stroking the short hairs scattered across him.

Their eyes remained locked on each other as their moans joined in harmony. She moved her hands to his hips, feeling the power of his body driving into her. Manisha cried out and her body flinched as he shot his load inside her. It was an ecstatic flinch. It was a flinch of digging her fingernails into his hips and tightening her body as if she would explode if she didn't. Her eyes closed as if wondering if Ritesh could ever understand how incredible he was making her feel. She was a woman. From his lovemaking. From his patient, dedicated lovemaking. In one fleeting moment, I remembered about Manisha's dream, it had awakened her passion so that in the end caused her to break her own promise of fidelity. Her animal instincts triggered within her every woman's most secret desire… the urge to be filled and stretched by a dominant male's huge organ. Ritesh was the proverbial alpha male who seek and planted his seed in the most attractive female he could find.

The moment Ritesh had Manisha alone, he seduced her in less than no time. It was mother nature helping the most important seduction of all, leading a beautiful attractive female in the path of a handsome, well-hung, virile male as part of a sensual dance that led to sexual union.

Everything that had happened over the last couple of months had set the scene for this, the final big show.
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