The last laugh

Hubby comes back visibly happy from his sutta break and meets me outside the lingerie store in the Inorbit Mall (I let him have a smoke while he lets me pick up fancy lingeries... a perfect understanding suiting both our needs). I become suspicious... why he is so happy? Oh no! Must have surely done something he is forbidden of.
"Honey, what's with the grin on your face?"
"Oh nothing! I just picked up a set of Adidas deos. They're quite nice, actually."
"Hmmm... But weren't you supposed to be on a sutta break? You managed time to pick up deos too, eh? Not bad!"
"Actually, I couldn't smoke. As I was going out, the salesman lured me on to try a sniff of his stock and he wasn't just ready to let me go without testing a whiff of each first."
"So, the salesman got you again? I bet he must have sold you the worst smelling deos that he couldn't sell to anybody else."
"Do you actually think Adidas can have any 'foul smelling' deos?"
"Who knows?!"
"Ok, check out this smell..." He holds out his pulse points on both the hands for me to sniff.
"Oh God! Stop!! I can't make out anything. Its just a mixture of your sweat, your signature AXE with several new ones. Smells gross to me."
Hubby looks visibly disappointed now, not being able to prove his point. So, I try to ease it out for him.
"Ok honey. I have full faith in your choice. You must've picked up something very nice, I'm sure."

Hubby is happy now. Promises to buy me deos of my choice too.
"But I can't apply deos on my skin, I'm allergic, you know that. You can buy me more perfumes, though."
"No, you have too many perfumes to last you for the next 10-15 years. I think you should pick up deos now. Try spraying them like I do... lots of it above your clothes so that it doesn't touch your skin."
"What? Are we talking about deos or handkerchief perfumes? Why would I spray deos on my clothes?"
"Just try it. You'd thank me for the tip."
"Okay, if you insist".
I am almost tempted at the prospect of it. I must admit I admire the way hubby sprays his deos on before leaving for anywhere (yes! on his clothes). The masculine smell of his signature AXE prevails for a longer duration and totally kills the effect of my delicate EMOTION (Rasasi) or YESSAMIN (Avon) or COOL WATER (Davidoff) or my favourite TENDER TOUCH (Burberry). I end up smelling just like him. The only perfumes of mine which win over his deos are the strong ones like Burberry DEEP RED or YSL CINEMA, but obviously I can't afford to spray them on for casual wearing. I save these ones for those special evenings. So, now is my chance to give it back to him. I would pick up a nice smelling deo and spritz it on like him and kill the smell of his new Adidas pack of 3. Yippee!
By the end of the day, I am so overwhelmed with all my shopping, eating at my favourite KFC and watching a movie, that I completely forget about the deo to be bought. Hubby doesn't remind me of it again, of course. He is already in a state of shock from the damage done to his wallet with my other 'wholesome' shopping.
Days pass by until after 2 weeks when I am reminded of my due deodorant to be bought. In the meantime, hubby has already finished off his first one from the pack-of-3. Adidas FRESH IMPACT. Hmmmnn not so bad! I like the smell of it. And now he's opened the second...Adidas SPORT FIELD.
"It smells horrible", I complain. "I knew it. The shopkeeper made a fool of you. This deo, nobody must have picked up."
I quickly smell the third one... DYNAMIC PULSE. Okay, this one's fine. Only the second one I hate.
"But I like it, what's wrong with it?" Hubby protests.
So, that day, in our usual evening round of walks, when we are in the Umrao Plaza (a small shopping complex comprising of shops run by army as well as civilians, with blarring music and temporary eating joints, sprigging up in the evenings for the gathering crowd), we walk through a small shop full of perfumes and deos. I don't miss the opportunity to remind hubby of my due. He cannot refuse it, of course. So we go in. After testing a series of deos from Revlon Charlie Blue, Charlie Gold, Jovan Musk, Nivea, Nike, etc. I derived that these perfumes are not originals. So I ask the shopkeeper for a more Indian brand... Temptation (I quite like the ad 'sorry boys!' and I've heard it smells good too.
"Sorry ma'm. Don't have it right now. Can get it for you in a day or two. In the meantime, why don't you try this one? Its quite popular among the other ladies who come to my shop."
Saying this the shopkeeper offers me to smell the apealing TOMY GIRL.
Hmm.. I like it. Hubby likes it too. Very fresh and nice. Smells almost like the original, but at Rs.120/- I really doubt it. We pick it up anyway.


Reaching our quarter, I am quite thrilled with my new purchase and am admiring it. Hubby takes it from me, sits on the bed, and forced by his usual habit, reads up the whole of the small print at the back body of the deo can.
"Ha, ha, ha! Darling, you've picked up TOMY GIRL, have you realised? This is an alternative product to TOMMY GIRL, it claims here. After all the rec'ce (a short form for Reconnaissance... very frequently used lingo in the army) you only managed to pick up a fake. How's that for a change? Now who is cheated by the shopkeeper? Ha!"
"But darling, don't you give it to me that my picked up 'fake' still smells better than your 'original'? Surely I must have got some taste. After all, I chose you!" *wink*