She had turned to catch a glimpse of him before she boarded
the sumo that had come to take them to her granny's place. And he felt it was
an imperceptible usher to have him sweep his step alongside her rather than the
ambassador he was about to take. Did he even read her indefinite gaze right?
Partly he didn't know how to behave when her people were
swarming around like flies, buzzing them and then there was his bride. He was
still a novice at reading what her every look meant and given that he had
minimal exposure to the opposite sex, he thought it was better to give up the
decipher-her-look game and board with his fellow men.
They didn't treat the newly weds like they were man and
wife, at least not according to him. He wondered why they had such morbid fascination
towards grouping the women and men together like they were gearing up for the
battle of sexes. He wished it were true, for it would at the minimal offer some
fun and frolic to the grim environment that always prevailed. And now as he sat
amidst five other men, of which were three very dour and poker-faced uncles, a
sleepy Adhi and the tight-lipped father-in-law, a vague movie scene of a death
row prisoner in shackles, surrounded by a few uniformed cops came to his mind.
It was all quite symbolic now that he was married and all. So before any more
of such emblematic scenes started flashing like that of a slide show, he wanted
to break the silence.
But just as the first syllable escaped him in a low grunt,
the sumo screeched to a halt. Well that was a very short drive. They had
reached the destination even before he could take in a view of this exotic
place and all things coconut. Even then he didn't miss out on the experience
entirely, for what greeted him outside was a rustic and quaint mansion, which
screamed the message loud and clear that he was indeed in god's own country.
The air was still damp from the late night showers, and moss of prickly pepper
green color adorned the walls of the house, suggesting it had been a wet season
there for quite a while now. Although the building stretched monstrously in
width, a very rectangular design indeed, the not so clean beige look and dull
red tiled roof, made him feel he had slipped into a century that marked a
period of traditional architectural extravagance; a time long before his own.
There were no fence or wall engulfing the house, a very boundless structure in
every sense had its immeasurable energy flowing into its surroundings, in sorts
that it all connected and swirled like being its own universe. Lush green
plants and coconut trees waved up and down in a swift breeze as they playfully
entertained the infant river facing the house, that cooed and tittered while
tickled by buoyant canoes lining its shore. The light, still befitting to be
descried as early morning twilight gave a warm fuzzy glow to the location. He
had a very good feeling about the place already.
He smiled - and she did too - as she joined him at the
ornate and intricately carved crafty door as they awaited one of her relative
to complete the Arthi. Still gaping with awe, he entered the mansion with her
by his side, followed by the rest of the troupe that had travelled with them
from Chennai. The activity inside picked up as they strode past the lengthy
hallway and was led into an open rectangular courtyard surrounded by columns of
pillars on either side in the lower level. The upper level had a balcony or a
porch running around the perimeter with a few of her other relatives leaning in
to grab a look at the new member of the family. He could not help notice the
inestimable number of rooms in the first floor giving an illusion of a mirror
image repeating in ad infinitum; like he was part of some alternate reality,
the one he had read up in Alice in wonderland. Strangely it gave him the
feeling of standing inside the coliseum in Rome, only this was Indian style and
that any minute her kin were going to raise their thumbs up or down deciding
his impending doom for such were the judgmental stares he now received.
To his right was a raised platform where a pleasant old
woman lay in a stringed cot padded with thin layers of mattress. She must be
it; the lady in question for whom he had been a martyr and sacrificed his first
night with her. Although he had no complaints about their fun and romantic
train journey, he still felt, he could do with more. Man and their insatiable
appetites!
She ran to her grandma at once and lunged on her forgetting
he was still very much in the vicinity. It was a scene just like in the movies;
she kissed her, her granny kissed back, tight hugs, puddles of tears, cheeks
being pinched interspersed with gleeful laughter and with all the elements of
warm effervescence that is shared only between grandchildren and a generation
of greying elders. He was partly wrong, for the same affectionate look was
extended to him now - after all he was privileged too - at least that is how Tannu paati made him
feel.
Her silver strands and many soft folds on her face spoke her
age and he kneeled by her side. She sat up to have a closer peek at him when at
the same time he bent down to touch his feet. Holding his cheek, as she
adjusted her square thick lens glasses, she curiously studied him. He smiled
even wider as she pursued her not-so subtle act and Geet immediately broke into
a laugh and cut in; the whole set up leaving her flushed in the cheeks.
"Paati...please...ningal veedungo avarai (Please leave
him)"
He has to get used to it, she thought. She constantly
observed for a sulk or a pout but all she got was his same old trademark smile.
He was not just putting up with the inquisitive and eccentric relatives of
hers, but he was trying to blend in and crack up jokes to mingle. The revolting
frustration and hopeless images of the previous week, flashed in her eyes
making it all seem like memories of a distant past, even better, like they had
not been part of her life to start with. She wondered if all this would even
still be a part of her reality had she acted upon her idea to storm out of the
house in that indecisive moment. It had all come to her in good time.
Once the pleasantries were done, her mother came to inform
them of the plan for the morning. Being the newly weds, a status that would
last them at least another couple of months, they were to have a ceremonial
bathing together over a chandan ceremony and carry a kalash and offerings to
the family temple in the same wet attire to be solemnly blessed. He didn't know
what to make of it and she was quite surprised. She had seen the other couples
in her family carry out the tradition, but when it was her turn it had
completely escaped her and now she colored a deep scarlet. Everyone settled
upstairs and each got his or her own room. The rooms adjacent to his were still
plenty empty and yet she had taken the room diagonally opposite from him.
Picking up a towel he came out into the balcony that
overlooked the courtyard. One of her cousins had directed him towards the
bathroom, which was located by the end of the hallway, the same side of his
room and he now strode in that direction. Clearly it was occupied and he knew
it was her for she had broken into a song spontaneously. He was lost in her
sweet voice, but some nature calls could not be left at bay for long and so he
called out to her from outside.
"Oi...jaldi kar..." She exited in another few
minutes; her classic blush and smile coming up almost involuntarily. Just as
Maan was about to enter, she stopped him in a small voice.
"I almost forget...the door locks are jammed...you
gotta sing if you want to keep your modesty" Towards the end her words
turning out into a whisper.
"What?" His jaw hung low in shock as he took in
the news.
"Oh! crap...Forget singing, I can't grunt
properly" he cried out.
"Sorry...can't help. I need to get ready for the
ceremony" She informed and left him with a giggle and a predicament. It
was indeed one. Singing was never his thing, he had always been the break a leg
person and now for the life of him, he would attempt the unthinkable. The next
step was a crucial decision, which being the song he would murder with his own
sense of cacophonous melody. He chose the title song of the Titanic, knowing
well he was sinking either ways.
So it began...every bit lacking harmony and rhythm, he
dragged on the evergreen love song that even the Amazonian bull frog- noted for
its gruesome croak - would not want him to sing for its own funeral. And so it
went on for a few minutes more, leaving him with nothing but revulsion at his
own discordant tune. "Uff!" he sighed loudly, washed up with a bar
soap nearby and opened the door to be launched into a full-scale embarrassment.
There was complete silence as all the pair of eyes
surrounding the entrance shrouded him with mortification. From 2 feet to 5
feet, every one of her cousins stared at him in disbelief. He continued to dab
his wet chin with the towel on his shoulders, as his eyes widened at the small
army she had arranged to catch him off-guard. Turning to check the doorknob
immediately, he realized it was a well laid out scam for him. Very well then, he had trusted her blindly. He had to give it
to her for this time around as a silly look showed up on his face.
In a family of rich musical heritage, they now had a
misplaced brother-in-law. She was there in the middle muffling her laughter
within the palms of her hand. Struggling to control the same, she swung both
her hands like that of a music conductor as she eyed him; a friendly vengeance
gleaming in her eyes.
"Ready?" She looked to both her sides
"One...two...three"
It was the last thing he expected, but breaking the web of
silence in the house, the minions started the same song he had sung moments ago.
Only this time it was every bit in tune and mellifluous like a trained
symphony. They couldn't sing like him, even if they tried very hard at it. He colored
at once, his eyes lowered in discomfort, a vague and unsure smile entertained
the others, while he shook out his ears with his index finger as they shot up
in soprano. He laughed to join in and rounded them to play catch, when they all
dispersed and picked up a run. She had luckily escaped, running gallantly in
the hallway and now turned to catch a look of him, her anchal billowing in the
air, a gentle swinging of her waist, her lush hair swaying as black billows was
some sight to him. He stood there in a trance, the enchanting spell that she
cast on him spiraled him down a path of need for her. He would have chased her
if not for her mom, who showed up suddenly from the side of the winding
staircase, right that instant, he had put forth a step in pursuit.
He retired to his room and fell on his bed as he lived
through those coloring moments at the bathroom. He smiled and reveled at how
his wife indeed was matching up to his level of mischief. Somehow while he was
lost in her thoughts and when reliving last night's train journey, sleep had
come to him and he had dozed off unsuspectingly.
She had showered in the meantime, clothed in the traditional
mundu (Kerala style of wearing a sari) and came back to knock on his door.
True they were to have a ceremonial bathing before leaving
for the temple, but no woman of the house would touch them for the chandan
ceremony had they not showered previously. Well at least that is how orthodox
her family was once they touched Palghat and he would have to live with it for
one day.
"Maan..." she knocked slowly at first and then her
calling grew louder when he didn't answer her first few calls.
He finally did and when she saw that he was still in that
same blue kurta, she gasped weakly and realized that no one had told him about
the other bath he should have finished by now. They were to go down in a few
more minutes and here he was standing coolly, rubbing his eyes to clear out his
blurry view.
But while she had made sense of his state, he had looked to
either sides and had grabbed her arm instinctively.
"Oh! Maan..." she yelped as he pulled her inside
his room.
"Leave me...I have already bathed" He was confused
at her statement.
"Oi...I thought we were doing it together" He
winked and smiled at her; his arms went around to encircle her. This was not
the time for his frivolity and the urgency got to her mind first before she could
give in to his ardent hold.
"No...No...You can't touch me until you bathe...that
ceremony is in another few minutes...go bathe Maan" She struggled and
tried to wiggle out of his hold. Her lips curved into a frown as she registered
that she would have to bathe again too. This was cruel than untouchability; she
cursed her own customs. Anyways they never made sense and yet she conformed
keeping in mind her other family members.
"Look at what you have done...Now I need to take a
shower again" She backed out of the room much to his dismay.
Grudgingly she walked back to the bathroom to correct the
mishaps from minutes ago. After she was done with the second shower, she
hurried back the stairs to get to her room. She still had to tie her mundu
properly. She swore, she could hear her mom calling out to her already, while
she still needed time to get decent. As she gained height and looked behind to
see if he was already downstairs, she bumped into someone unexpectedly.
Oh! lord, he screamed mentally as he saw her clutching her
saree ends to her chest. Her wet skin and damp hair made her the very object of
his affection. Losing her balance momentarily, which was perhaps bound to
happen more often now that he was in her life, she leaned backwards as she
slipped further from the impact. He grabbed by her waist, of course intuitively
following through on his cue to rescue his damsel who was losing her sense of
equilibrium altogether at the sight of him.
Yet again, before she could shrivel in his partial embrace,
frustration took over in her. He was
still in his blue kurta with a phone on the other hand. "Argh!" she
cried in exasperation, as she clutched her crunched up sari folds tighter.
"Suno Geet..." he screamed as she turned back and
went back the same path she had come. No point going up to her room, was there?
And so she surfaced out of the bathroom after the third
shower, once she made sure the coast was clear of him or even the likes of him.
At this rate, she was going to get those wet rashes all over, given that the
ceremony had lots to do with water too. She scurried up to her room and closing
upon the door hastily, she rested her forehead on the same and took a relaxing
breath. She needed that gulp of air to calm her nerves that were growing
wearily worrisome of the delay that they had already been caused. Hanging the
towel on the peg, she combed through her hair and looked for her pallu piece of
the mundu. She went through her clothes she had just carried back. This can't
be, she cussed under her breath. It was all going wrong that morning and she
was becoming a wreck. How could she be so mindless and leave her mundu behind
in the bathroom?
Just then she heard a knock at the door. She cried out to
enquire out who it was, but there was only silence for a response.
"Hello...what is it?" She questioned once again to
find out whomever it was banging loudly at her door. When the sound almost
promised a headache to her, she decided to open a crack and see find out why
the sky was falling down. She grabbed her towel to cover her torso and midriff
and opened a crack to peep outside. It was of course him, holding out her white
with gold border pallu piece in mid-air, waving it casually for her attention.
"I think you are missing this" he hoisted it further
into her face.
He had finished his own shower in the second bathroom and
had rushed upstairs, when her 8 yr old cousin had come running to him. She had thoughtlessly
dumped the task of passing on her pallu piece to him and had disappeared in a
jiffy. He only felt too obliged to do so and so here he was at her doorstep.
"Oh! Thanks Maan" she said as she extended her arm
out to grab the essential piece of her clothing from him. But he was in no mood
to give away easily and did what he did best, which was to pull back.
"Ah! not that easy Geet..." He gave a teasing
smile and his eyes twinkled in vain glory as he tackled her arm that hovered
around him, anxious to retrieve what was rightfully hers.
"Maan no games please...we are already late and you
made me shower three times today already" Her fake hiss and a cry coming
out as a yelp of a hurt puppy.
While they playfully argued and he ducked out of her grabs
from the crack between the frame and door, she heard Meera calling loudly for
her. Matters got worse, when she heard her come up the stairs. It would only
prove detrimental if she would so much as catch a whiff of Maan around her and
what was to become of her, if she sighted him with a principle article of her
clothing. Did he know what he was holding?
He had very naively thought it was a long towel, when he had
seen the plain white-bordered cloth. There was nothing to blame of him, for it
only did look like a high-end towel.
She had to act fast and in that spur of the moment, she had
done the implausible. Clutching him by his wrist, much to his delight, she
yanked him inside while she opened the door simultaneously and shoved him
behind her. In a moment the door was closed and awkwardness at it's highest was
out to grip them grimly.
He had the no idea of what was about to hit him when he had
jerked and landed indoors. It all happened so swiftly, that one moment he was
outside, then the next he was ogling at her low cut blouse and a bare view of
her waist. There was a real need to check his pulse, as he realized she was
scantily dressed. What was this style? He wondered. He had never seen women
clad sari like a Dhoti and why did the piece of cloth in his hand matched the
same border design her sari had? Was this even a sari? So many questions
escaped him, but they were all plopping up inside his head and went up in a
poof of smoke. Such was the effect she had on him, when he spotted a drop of
water slide down from her shoulder down the smooth curves of her back. He
wanted to kiss her right where the goblet had slid down, but something held him
in palsy.
His piercing eyes torched her back, as she blamed herself
over what she had done. Her gaze lowered automatically, her pulse picked up the
speed of a galloping horse, while she cowered just at the thought of all the
possibilities that could happen in the room crossed her mind. She was right and
he lost no time, when he ran down his hands over her waist and moved forward to
hold her closer. She moaned at the touch of his skin on hers, a fire blazed her
chest when at the same time a thousand butterflies flapped its wings around in
the pit of her stomach.
A stiff tingle ran up his spine as he locked his fingers
over her waist. His eyes closed as he brought his nose to take in the scents of
her wet ringlets bunched up by her shoulder. The towel that covered the front
of her blouse hung over her other shoulder and his hand itched to pull it out
straight. Whatever happened to all that talk of waiting until their other
wedding for that first kiss? It was all ashes, when he knotted the tip of the
towel over his index finger.
The tension on the cloth as he tugged from behind teased
her. She shriveled under his breath that softly stoked her nape. She swooned at
how his fingertips grazed the top of her skin around the curve of her hip.
Her moan turned into a low grumble and she didn't know if
she should stop him. Was there a question? She tried to make sense, but a
coherent thought was far from her grapple. The explosion of sensations inside
her, all new and sensual had her fall back on his chest and her hand closed
over his passionate hold by her waist. This only made him even more sensitive
to her breath that landed by the side of his inner collar. He was infinitely
affected by their closeness as an uncontrollable rage to kiss her nape picked
up in him.
Just as he was about to act on that thought, a loud thud had
landed in their ears to wake them out of the misty haze they were under. Both
of them jerked in each other's arms and she had moved forward a few inches away
to answer the call.
"Sollu Meera (Tell me Meera)" She stuttered now.
"How long? We are waiting downstairs"
"Yes...I'm coming"
"Where is Maan? He is not in the room"
She slightly turned and gushed, while he smiled and rubbed
his forehead.
"I don't know...saw him walk outside with his
cellphone" she said while she listened keenly for retreating footsteps.
They had listened for a bit too long over being extra
cautious. When he had been convinced they had no knocking intruders, he had
extended his arms once again to grab her. She had slapped him on his fingers
and had fought him to push him outside. It wasn't easy, as she strived to keep
her towel in place and with the other hand drove him out of her room. He gave
up eventually and only then she had been successful in having the room to
herself.
She breathed in short gasps, as she paused to soothe her
frayed nerves. When the jitters evaporated slowly, a prompt smile crept up her
lips. He was very good at returning favors, she concluded. She shook her head
in disbelief over how close they had come to being caught and taken for a ride
by her cousins and at all that could have happened behind closed doors. The
list was countless for now.
Ok...I did it again...A long one. Hope you like it. Please comment, post. Like button as always?
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