Price of Dreams: A Tale of Money, Morals, and Mayhem

 

Chapter 3: The Debt Trap

The morning the markets crashed, Ravi was holding his phone like it was a lifeline—one that had suddenly snapped.

Red arrows. Falling graphs. Panic in every WhatsApp group. The high-risk crypto scheme he’d invested in had vanished overnight—vanished like monsoon puddles under the sun. One app notification read: “Server temporarily down. Please check back later.”

It never came back online.

He sat frozen at his desk, the bustling Mumbai office around him blurring into static. ₹50,000—gone. His attempt to recover it by doubling down on a volatile stock pick two days earlier had backfired. Another ₹30,000 evaporated.

He had barely enough left to pay rent.

Ravi closed his eyes and exhaled slowly. For a man in finance, he had done the most financially reckless thing imaginable: believed in shortcuts.

Worse, his salary was already committed to three credit cards, a personal loan, a car EMI, and an apartment deposit he had borrowed from a friend.

And Diwali was a week away.

That evening, his phone buzzed—Ma.

“Beta, your father’s sugar has shot up again. We need to take him to Lucknow for some tests. Can you send a bit?”

Ravi looked around his room. The curtains fluttered lazily in the humid air. His sleek laptop sat on the table, next to a fancy wristwatch he hadn’t yet paid off.

He stared at the phone, guilt prickling his throat.

“I will, Ma. Tomorrow morning,” he lied.

That night, he opened his banking app, then closed it again. The numbers glared like accusations.

He texted Aditya, his team lead:
“Bro, can you spot me 10k? Need it urgently. I’ll return it post-salary.”

Ten minutes later, the money arrived.

Shame and relief tangled like thorns in his chest.

The next few days blurred into a series of hushed calls to lenders, frantic calculations, and panic purchases in the stock market. Ravi was gambling now, not investing—hoping that one big win would lift him out of the quicksand.

But luck had other plans.

One morning, HR summoned him.

“Your performance is slipping, Ravi. Missed deadlines, distracted attitude. What’s going on?”

He muttered an apology and promised to pull himself together. He had always been the rising star. Now, even that was fading.

To make matters worse, Neha began sensing the cracks.

“You’ve been distant,” she said one evening as they sat at a seaside café. “Is everything okay?”

“I’m just tired, that’s all,” he said, forcing a smile. “Work pressure.”

She reached out and squeezed his hand. “We’re in this together, you know? If there’s something on your mind, you can tell me.”

Ravi wanted to. God, he wanted to spill it all—the debts, the mistakes, the lies. But something held him back. Pride, perhaps. Or fear that she’d walk away once she saw the real mess behind the well-dressed man.

Instead, he kissed her forehead and said, “I’ll be fine.”

But he wasn’t.

He missed a credit card payment. Then another. The calls started—first polite, then increasingly aggressive.

“Mr. Verma, this is a reminder. Your payment of ₹14,570 is overdue.”

He blocked one number. Three more followed.

He borrowed from a colleague to pay a friend. Took a payday loan to pay the EMI. His financial life had become a Ponzi scheme of personal desperation.

When the rent cheque bounced, his landlord called angrily.

“That flat in Andheri isn't charity, Ravi bhai.”

He begged for a few days' extension. His voice trembled for the first time in years.

At the office, he started avoiding eye contact. His once-crisp shirts were now worn and slightly faded. He stayed late, hoping fewer people would notice his growing unease.

And then came the final blow.

His crypto scam investment was officially declared a fraud. News channels flashed headlines: "Thousands Duped in Ponzi Coin Collapse." Investors were advised to file police complaints.

Ravi felt sick. He hadn’t just lost money—he had lost control.

The next day, a client screamed at him over a bad recommendation he’d made under pressure.

“I trusted you!” the man bellowed. “You said this stock was solid!”

Ravi tried to explain, but the words felt empty. The market had turned, and he had gambled with someone else’s money, hoping to cover his own wounds.

Aditya pulled him aside afterward.

“What’s happening with you, yaar? You used to be the most focused guy on the floor. Talk to me.”

Ravi looked down, unable to meet his mentor’s eyes.

“I messed up,” he whispered.

Aditya sighed. “Fix it, Ravi. Whatever it is. This field doesn’t forgive sloppiness.”

That night, he didn’t go home. He walked. Miles through the neon-lit streets of Mumbai, past rich condos and crowded chawls, food stalls and fancy cafes. He ended up at Marine Drive, watching waves crash against stone as if the ocean itself was trying to teach him something.

He sat there till dawn, replaying every decision, every swipe of a card, every unspoken truth.

He had tried to live a dream. But dreams built on debt and denial eventually wake you up.

As the sun rose behind the Queen’s Necklace, Ravi knew two things for sure:

He couldn’t run anymore.

And he couldn’t fix this alone.

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links

Price of Dreams: A Tale of Money, Morals, and Mayhem (Chapter 5): https://lifeinwords2025.blogspot.com/2025/05/price-of-dreams-tale-of-money-morals_23.html

Price of Dreams: A Tale of Money, Morals, and Mayhem (Chapter 4): https://lifeinwords2025.blogspot.com/2025/05/price-of-dreams-tale-of-money-morals_3.html

Price of Dreams: A Tale of Money, Morals, and Mayhem (Chapter 3): https://lifeinwords2025.blogspot.com/2025/05/price-of-dreams-tale-of-money-morals_97.html

Price of Dreams: A Tale of Money, Morals, and Mayhem (Chapter 2): https://lifeinwords2025.blogspot.com/2025/05/price-of-dreams-tale-of-money-morals_22.html

Price of Dreams: A Tale of Money, Morals, and Mayhem (Chapter 1): https://lifeinwords2025.blogspot.com/2025/05/price-of-dreams-tale-of-money-morals.html

Full story_ In another life : https://lifeinwords2025.blogspot.com/2025/05/in-another-life-love-story-left_14.html

In another life trailer: https://lifeinwords2025.blogspot.com/2025/05/in-another-life-love-story-left.html 

Intro of life in words: https://lifeinwords2025.blogspot.com/2025/05/life-in-words-home-for-heartfelt-stories.html