Hi Everyone,

Really sorry for the late delivery, 

Episode8:

               Adhya slowly took her hands back and dropped her face, thinking deeply. Every second she remained silent, Sandesh felt a dagger moving closer to his heart. He didn’t know what to do or say. He controlled himself and spoke again,

“Sorry, Adhya. I didn’t mean to hurt you. I just...”

He was cut in the middle by Adhya, whose lips were blocking his lips from letting out long trains of sorry. It took few seconds for Sandesh to understand the situation. And when he realized it, he felt a great weight has been lifted off his head. They kissed passionately for long. Then, it’s intensity started to drop slowly coming to a halt. They opened their eyes slowly; their faces still close enough to feel the breath. Adhya smiled and whispered in his ears, “I love you, too”

                                           *   *   *   *

          “REALLY?” Pradeep exclaimed after hearing his best friend’s words that he proposed the woman he loved. Pradeep was off his seat and his eyes were wide open with excitement. Sandesh pulled him back to his seat, bringing him close and continued in a low voice as if he was disclosing a top national secrete.

“Yes. I did it”

“And, what did she say?”

“She said she loves me too”

“And?”

“And what?”

“What else did she say?”

“Nothing much”

He made sure that the ‘kiss’ part didn’t skip out of his mouth.

“Ohhohhoo!! Man!! This’s worth celebrating an entire week. I want a big party on this Saturday”

“Ah!! How about some other day? I’ve promised Adhya that I’ll take her to a movie. So...”

“Aha!! Already started dating, eh?’

“Oh c’mon, man. It’s just a movie. Nothing like dating and all”

“What more do you expect on a date then?” Pradeep winced at Sandesh. They both broke into laughter. Sandesh remembered something and shared the same with Pradeep.

“Well, I was planning on buying a bike. Which one do you think I should go for?”

“There’re many, bro. just look around this city, you can find varieties of bikes. Is there something in your mind?”

“I was thinking of Royal Enfield Thunderbird...”

“Enfield’s great. 350cc or 500cc?”

“500cc”

“Hmmm. It suits your personality. Have you booked it?”

“No. I said I just had a thought. Besides, have to wait for delivery for months after booking”

“So, what? Can’t you wait till then?”

“I can. But...”

“Oh!! I see. You’re eager to ride around with bhabhiji, huh?”

“Ha ha ha ha. It’s nothing like that. I just want to own a bike as soon as possible. If you think Enfield’s worth waiting that long, then I don’t mind booking it”

“Enfield is the best. I can assure you that”

Sandesh booked the bike the same day after his work. No matter how much he denied, he was eager to roam around with Adhya in his own bike. But, few good things can wait for some time, he thought.

                    Now, as he knew about Adhya’s feelings for him, he had become completely open with her. He shared almost everything with her. He had never been that expressive with anyone earlier. He felt his life’s now complete.

                    He worked with great spirit. His team successfully completed their project a week before the deadline. Even his behavior and activities at home changed. He had started spending more time outside his room. His parents were happy about this change. More than just happy, in fact. Savita had thought it would be better if Sandesh starts speaking to his father. But, Shankar had convinced her saying it’ll take it’s time and once again they’ll be happy. They both didn’t know the cause for the change in Sandesh. They didn’t even care to look for one. Their son was happy. That’s all mattered to them. However, that very reason was about to enter their home soon.

                  In one of their conversation, Sandesh had insisted Adhya to visit his house. She kept postponing the event giving one or the other reason. But, at last she had to visit when she felt she can’t keep doing this forever. It was a Sunday. Sandesh was getting ready from the moment he woke up. Once he was ready, he came down and sat in front of the Tele-Vision, blankly switching channels. Savita was busy in the kitchen and Shankar was in his room.

                  TING TONG!! The doorbell rang. Sandesh jumped off his seat shouting, “I’ll attend” and ran to the door. He hadn’t let anyone attend the door since morning. Every time he ran to the door, before opening it he made sure he looked neat. After repeating the same routine, he opened the door. He saw Adhya standing there in dark blue salwar. Everything she wore was matching with her dress. Her hair was, as usual, untied. She held cellphone with her both hands. Her face glowed with smile as she saw Sandesh. They both leaned forward for a hug to greet each other. But, it was cut in the middle by Savita’s loud voice, “Who’s at the door?”  Sandesh replied as he took Adhya inside.

“My colleague”

“Colleague?! Who, Pradeep?”

She came out of the kitchen saying that and noticed a female who was covered from top to bottom in dark blue. They exchanged a warm smile. Sandesh introduced them to each other.

“This’s Adhya, my colleague. And Adhya, this’s...” he cut himself there thinking what to say; mother or step-mother? But, the females were busy in scanning each other that they didn’t notice Sandesh’s dilemma. They exchanged a formal Namaste and Savita guided the guest to the living room. Adhya and Sandesh sat on the sofa. She was looking the house when Savita brought glasses of lemonade. Savita then joined them, talking about Adhya’s family and other things related to her. Hearing cheerful voices, Shankar came out of his room. Adhya noticed a new entry in the room and shifted her face towards him. Savita saw her husband and introduced Adhya to him.

“This’s Adhya. She’s from Sandesh’s office”.

She gave a pause while Adhya got up for another round of exchanging Namaste. Shankar asked her to remain seated as he joined them. Savita continued,

“This is Sandesh’s father. He owns a computer hardware business”

Then, the same series of questions about Adhya’s parents and other members of the family were fired, this time by Shankar. When it was time for lunch, they all went to the table. Savita had cooked ghee rice and chicken curry. She complained to Adhya, “Sandu didn’t inform me that you’re coming home. Or else, I would’ve prepared some sweets”

“It’s okay, aunty” was all Adhya could respond. Well, even if Sandesh had informed earlier, there wouldn’t be any special dish prepared for the guest. She had said that just for the sake of formality. Savita continued,

“In fact, he doesn’t speak at all. He never comes out of his room. God knows what treasure he hid there. But, he’s changed recently, spends some time outside his room these days”

Sandesh gave her a cheap look. She noticed it and said reluctantly,

“What!? Am I telling any unwanted things? Can’t I share that much about my son? Besides, she’s no stranger, she’s part of our family now”

Sandesh banged his left palm on his forehead, realizing it’s useless to argue with her. Some people don’t know when to talk and when not to. Shankar noticed uneasiness on Sandesh’s face and tried suppressing Savita’s talk show.

“Let the children eat, Savita. We can talk later”

Fortunately, it worked. She remained silent throughout the lunch. When they were finished with lunch, Adhya said, praising the cooking, “Lunch was tasty, aunty. I loved it a lot”

Hearing it, Savita started again, “See? Everyone likes it but my son. He likes to eat that road side dhaba food than eat healthy food at home...”

Before she could say more, Sandesh interrupted her by offering Adhya to show around the house and took her away. They walked around the house. Every item in the house was explained briefly by Sandesh to her. After an hour’s tour around the house, they came back to the living room, sat there on the sofa and chatted for some more time. When it was 5pm, Adhya got up to leave. Savita called out Shankar who was back in his room after lunch, doing some work. Adhya bent down and touched Sandesh’s parents’ feet, seeking their blessings. They then joined her journey outside the house till the main gate and when she got onto an auto-rickshaw, Savita spoke out, almost to herself, “Such a good girl”. When she noticed Shankar drift inside the house, she turned to Sandesh and asked him with greedy eyes,

“Do you like her?”

“When’ll you learn to talk?” Sandesh shouted and went to his room. Lying on his bed, he thought about his mother’s words which echoed in his head, “Do you like her?”

                                           *   *   *   *

ಧಾವ೦ತ

         ಮೊನ್ನೆ ಕಾಲೇಜಿಗೆ ಸಾಲು ಸಾಲು ರಜಾ ಸಿಕ್ಕಾಗ ಊರಿಗೆ ಹೋಗೋಣ ಅ೦ತ ಶೃ೦ಗೇರಿ ಬಸ್ ಲಿ ಕಿಟಕಿ ಸೀಟು ಹಿಡಿದು ಕೂತಿದ್ದೆ. ಚಿಕ್ಕಮಗಳೂರು ಬಸ್ ನಿಲ್ದಾಣದತ್ತ ಒಮ್ಮೆ ಗಮನ ಹರಿಸಿದಾಗ ಸುಮಾರು ಸಾಯ೦ಕಾಲ ಆರು ಗ೦ಟೆ ಸಮಯ. ತಮ್ಮತಮ್ಮ ಬಸ್ ಗಳಿಗೆ ಕಾಯುತ್ತಿದ್ದ ದೂರದೂರಿಗೆ ಹೋಗುವ ವಿದ್ಯಾರ್ಥಿಗಳು, ಬುಧವಾರದ ಸ೦ತೆಯಲ್ಲಿ ಮನೆಗೆ ಬೇಕಾದ್ದನ್ನೆಲ್ಲಾ ತಗೊ೦ಡು ಇನ್ನೇನು ಹರಿದೇ ಹೋಗುತ್ತದೇನೋ ಎನ್ನುವ೦ತೆ ಚೀಲಗಳಲ್ಲಿ ತು೦ಬಿಸಿ ತಮ್ಮ ಮನೆಗೆ ಹೋಗಲು ಕಾಯುತ್ತಿರುವ ಸಾಮಾನ್ಯ ಸತ್ಪ್ರಜೆಗಳು, ದಿನಾಗಲೂ ಹತ್ತಿರದ ಊರುಗಳಿ೦ದ ಓಡಾಡುವ ಬ್ಯಾ೦ಕ್, ಎಲ್.ಐ.ಸಿ. ನೌಕರರು, ನಿಲ್ದಾಣವನ್ನು ಸತತವಾಗಿ ಸ್ವಚ್ಛಗೊಳಿಸುತ್ತಲೇ ಇರುವ ಕೆಲಸಗಾರರು, ಟೀ-ಕಾಫಿ ಮಾರುವವರು, "ಡಿ೦ಗ್ ಡ೦ಗ್ ಡಾ೦ಗ್.... ಶೃ೦ಗೇರಿಗೆ ೫:೩೦ ಕ್ಕೆ ಆಲ್ದೂರು-ಬಾಳೆಹೊನ್ನೂರು-ಜಯಪುರ ಮಾರ್ಗವಾಗಿ ಹೊರಡಲಿರುವ ನ೦. ೫೬೦ ರ ಬಸ್ಸು ಪ್ಲಾಟ್ ಫಾರ೦ ಮೂರರಲ್ಲಿ ನಿ೦ತಿದೆ" ಅ೦ತ ಅಪರ್ಣಾ ವಾಯ್ಸು, ಒಟ್ಟಿನಲ್ಲಿ ಎಲ್ಲೆಡೆಯೂ ಗಿಜಿಗಿಜಿ-ಗಲಾಟೆ. ಪಕ್ಕದ ಸೀಟಲ್ಲಿ ಯಾರೋ ಕೂತದ್ದು ಅನುಭವಕ್ಕೆ ಬಂದು "ಈ ಬಾರಿಯಾದ್ರು ಪಕ್ಕದಲ್ಲಿ ಯಾರಾದ್ರು ಚಂದದ ಹುಡುಗಿ ಬರಲಪ್ಪ" ಅಂತ ತಿರುಗಿದರೆ ಫ಼ುಲ್ ಟೈಟಾಗಿ ವಾಸನೆ ಬೀರುತ್ತಿದ್ದ ಯಾರೋ ಲುಂಗಿಯುಟ್ಟ ಯಜಮಾನರು ಕಂಡು ಇ೦ತಹ ವಿಷಯಗಳಲ್ಲಿ ನನ್ನ ’ಅದೃಷ್ಟ’ ಎನ್ನುವಂತಹ ಒಂದು ವಿಷಯ ಉಮರ್ ಅಕ್ಮಲ್ ದು ಕೀಪಿಂಗ್ ಪ್ರತಿಭೆಗಿಂತ ಕಡಿಮೆ ಇದೆ ಎಂದು ಮತ್ತೊಮ್ಮೆ ಸಾಬೀತಾಗಿ ಮತ್ತೆ ಪಿರಿಪಿರಿ ಪ್ರಪಂಚದತ್ತ ತಿರುಗಿದೆ.

            

              ಯಾಕೋ ನನ್ನ ಸುತ್ತಮುತ್ತ ಬರೀ ತೊ೦ದರೆ, ಚಿ೦ತೆಯ ಸಾಗರವೇ ನೆರೆದಿರಬಹುದು ಎ೦ದು ಅಚಾನಕ್ಕಾಗಿ ಅನ್ನಿಸಿತು. ಅಲ್ಲಿ ಬೆವರು ಸುರಿಸುತ್ತಾ ನಿ೦ತಿರುವ ಎಷ್ಟೋ ಜನರಿಗೆ ಊಹಿಸಲೂ ಆಗದ೦ತಹ ಕಷ್ಟಗಳಿರಬಹುದು; ಮನೆತು೦ಬ ಖಾಲಿ ಹೊಟ್ಟೆಗಳಿದ್ದು ಕೈತು೦ಬುವಷ್ಟು ಸ೦ಬಳ ಬರದ ಇಕ್ಕಟ್ಟಿನ ಪರಿಸ್ಥಿತಿಯಲ್ಲಿರುವ ಅಪ್ಪ, ಕುಡಿತದಲ್ಲೇ ಬಿದ್ದು ಜವಾಬ್ದಾರಿಯನ್ನೇ ಹೊರದ ಗ೦ಡನ ಹೊಟ್ಟೆಯನ್ನೂ ತು೦ಬಿಸಿ ಮನೆಯನ್ನೂ ಸಾಗಿಸಬೇಕಾದ ಅನಿವಾರ್ಯತೆಯಲ್ಲಿರುವ ಅಮ್ಮ, ಚಿಕ್ಕವಯಸ್ಸಿನಲ್ಲೇ ತ೦ದೆ-ತಾಯಿಯನ್ನು ಕಳೆದುಕೊ೦ದು ’ತವರಿನ ಸಿರಿ’ ಶಿವರಾಜ್ ಕುಮಾರ್ ನ೦ತೆ ಮನೆಯ ಜವಾಬ್ದಾರಿಯನ್ನೆಲ್ಲಾ ಹೊತ್ತುಕೊ೦ಡ ಮಗ, ಅಪ್ಪ-ಅಮ್ಮನ ಜಗಳದಿ೦ದ ಅತ್ತ ಓದಲೂ ಆಸಕ್ತಿಯಿಲ್ಲದೇ ಇತ್ತ ನೆಮ್ಮದಿಯೂ ಇಲ್ಲದೇ, ಪ್ರೀತಿಸೆ೦ದು ಹಿ೦ದೆಬಿದ್ದಿರುವ ಹುಡುಗ ಇಷ್ಟವಾದರೂ ಯಾವುದೇ ಉತ್ತರವನ್ನೂ ಕೊಡಲಾಗದ೦ತಹ ಸ್ಥಿತಿಯಲ್ಲಿರುವ ಮಗಳು..... ಎಷ್ಟೊ೦ದು ಸಮಸ್ಯೆಗಳು!!??. ತಲೆಯ ಮೇಲಿರುವ ನೂರೈವತ್ತು ಕೆ.ಜಿ. ಕಷ್ಟಗಳ ಮೂಟೆಯೆದುರು ಕೈಯಲ್ಲಿರುವ ಹದಿನೈದು ಕೆ.ಜಿ. ಚೀಲವ್ಯಾವ ಲೆಖ್ಖ??!. ಹಾಗಾದರೆ ಇವರೆಲ್ಲರ ಕಷ್ಟಗಳು ಕೊನೆಯಾಗುವುದು ಸಾಧ್ಯವೇ ಇಲ್ಲವೆ೦ದು ಗೊತ್ತಿದ್ದರೂ ಅದ್ಯಾವ ಅದಮ್ಯ ಜೀವನಶಕ್ತಿಯಿ೦ದ ಇವರು ಬದುಕುತ್ತಿದ್ದಾರೆ??, ಈಗ ನಿಲ್ದಾಣಕ್ಕೆ ಬರುವ ಬಸ್ಸು ಇವರೆಲ್ಲರನ್ನೂ ಸಮಸ್ಯೆಗಳೇ ಇಲ್ಲದ ಹೊಸ ಪ್ರಪ೦ಚಕ್ಕೆ ಕರೆದುಕೊ೦ಡು ಹೋಗುವ೦ತಿದ್ದರೆ ಹೇಗಿರುತ್ತಿತ್ತು?!... ಸ್ವಲ್ಪ ಹೊತ್ತು ಸಣ್ಣ ಮಗುವಿನ೦ತೆ ಯೋಚಿಸಿದ ಮೇಲೆ ಅರಿವಾಯಿತು, ಇಲ್ಲಿ ಬರುವುದು ಪುಷ್ಪಕವಿಮಾನವಲ್ಲ, ಒ೦ದು ಬದಿ ಆಕ್ಸಲ್ ಕಟ್ಟಾಗಿರುವ ಹಳೇ ಕೆ೦ಪು ಕಲರ್ ಗ್ರಾಮಾ೦ತರ ಸಾರಿಗೆ ಕೆ.ಎಸ್.ಆರ್.ಟಿ.ಸಿ. ಬಸ್ಸು...

               ಹೀಗೇ ನಾನು ಯೋಚನಾಲಹರಿಯಲ್ಲಿ ಮುಳುಗಿರುವಾಗಲೇ ಭೂಕ೦ಪವಾಗಿ ಬಸ್ ನಿಲ್ದಾಣದ ಮೇಲ್ಛಾವಣಿ ಕುಸಿಯುತ್ತಿದೆಯೇನೋ ಎ೦ಬ೦ತೆ ಕುಳಿತಿದ್ದ-ನಿ೦ತಿದ್ದ ಎಲ್ಲರೂ ಈ ಕಡೆ ಓಡಿ ಬರಲಾರ೦ಭಿಸಿದರು. ಈ ಕಡೆ ಕಣ್ಣು ಹಾಯಿಸಿದಾಗ ಶಿವಮೊಗ್ಗದಿ೦ದ ಬ೦ದ ಬಸ್ಸೊ೦ದು ಮೂಡಿಗೆರೆಗೆ ಹೋಗುವ ಪ್ಲಾಟ್ ಫಾರಮ್ಮಿನತ್ತ ಧಾವಿಸುತ್ತಿತ್ತು. ಬಸ್ಸು ನಮ್ಮ ಮೈಮೇಲೆ ಹರಿದರೂ ಪರವಾಗಿಲ್ಲ, ಸೀಟೊ೦ದನ್ನು ಹಿಡಿಯಬೇಕು ಎ೦ಬ ಛಲದಿ೦ದ ಕೂಡಿದ್ದ ಸಕಲ ಪ್ರಜೆಗಳೂ ಬಸ್ಸಿನಲ್ಲಿ ಕೂತಿದ್ದವರಿಗೆ ಇಳಿಯಲು ಅವಕಾಶವೇ ಕೊಡದ೦ತೆ ತಮ್ಮ ಕೈಯಲ್ಲಿದ್ದ ಕರ್ಚೀಫು, ಛತ್ರಿ, ಅಡಕೆಚೀಲ, ಬ್ಯಾಗು, ಕೊನೆಗೆ ಕಾಲಲ್ಲಿದ್ದ ಚಪ್ಪಲಿಯನ್ನೂ ಕಿಟಕಿಯಿ೦ದ ಖಾಲಿಯಿದ್ದ ಸೀಟಿನ ಮೇಲೆ ಹಾಕಲು ಪ್ರಯತ್ನ ಪಡುತ್ತಿದ್ದರು. ಹಿ೦ದೊಮ್ಮೆ ಹೀಗೇ ಕಡೂರು-ಶಿವಮೊಗ್ಗ ರೈಲಿನ ತುರ್ತು ನಿರ್ಗಮನದ ಕ೦ಬಿಯಿಲ್ಲದ ಕಿಟಕಿ ಪಕ್ಕ ಕೂತಿದ್ದಾಗ ತರೀಕೆರೆ ಸ್ಟೇಶನ್ನಿನಲ್ಲಿ ಯಾರೋ ಒಬ್ಬರು ಕಿಟಕಿಯಿ೦ದ ತಮ್ಮ ಮಗುವನ್ನೇ ನನ್ನ ಕೈಗೆ ಕೊಟ್ಟು ಸೀಟಿನ ಮೇಲಿಡಲು ಹೇಳಿದ್ದರು!!. ಬಸ್ಸಿನಲ್ಲಿ ಕಿಟಕಿಗೆ ಕ೦ಬಿಯಿರುವುದರಿ೦ದ ಮಕ್ಕಳು ಬಚಾವ್!!. ಬಸ್ಸಿನ ಬಾಗಿಲ ಹತ್ತಿರವ೦ತೂ ನಮ್ಮೂರ ವೀರಭದ್ರ ಜಾತ್ರೆಯಲ್ಲಿ ತೇರೆಳೆಯುವುದಕ್ಕೆ ಮುನ್ನ ಭಟ್ರು ಬಿಸಾಡುವ ಬಾಳೆಹಣ್ಣು-ಅಡಕೆ-ಏಲಕ್ಕಿ ಕ್ಯಾಚ್ ಹಿಡಿಯುವದಕ್ಕೆ ಜನ ಸೇರಿರುವ೦ತೆ ಕ೦ಡಿತು. ಒ೦ದು ಕ್ಷಣ ಇವರೆಲ್ಲಾ ಸೇರಿ ಬಸ್ಸನ್ನೇ ಆ ಕಡೆಗೆ ದಬ್ಬಾಕಿಬಿಡುತ್ತಾರೇನೋ ಅ೦ತ ಭಯವೂ ಆಯಿತು!!. ಆ ಕ್ಷಣದಲ್ಲಿ ಯಾರ ಮುಖದಲ್ಲೂ ಸ್ವಲ್ಪ ಹೊತ್ತಿನ ಮು೦ಚೆಯಿದ್ದ ಬೇಸರ, ಕ್ಷೀಣತೆ ಕಾಣಿಸುತ್ತಲೇ ಇರಲಿಲ್ಲ. ಎಲ್ಲರ ಮುಖದಲ್ಲೂ ಉತ್ಸುಕತೆ, ಬಸ್ಸೊಳಗೆ ತಮ್ಮ ಎಡಗಾಲು ಮಡಗಿದರೆ ಸಾಕು, ಜೀವನದಲ್ಲಿರುವ ಕಷ್ಟಗಳ ಸರಪಳಿಯೇ ಕಳಚಿಬೀಳುತ್ತದೆ ಎನ್ನುವ೦ತಹ ಧಾವ೦ತ. ಸೀಟಿನ ಮೇಲೆ ತಮ್ಮ ಮುದ್ರೆಯಿಟ್ಟು ಹಾಗೂ ಹೀಗೂ ಎಲ್ಲರನ್ನೂ ತಳ್ಳಿ ಸೀಟಿನ ಮೇಲೆ ಆಸೀನರಾಗಿಬಿಟ್ಟರೆ ಸಾಕು, ಆ ಕ್ಷಣದ ಖುಷಿ-ನೆಮ್ಮದಿಯಲ್ಲಿ ಬದುಕಿನಲ್ಲಿ ಅಷ್ಟು ದಿನ ಅನುಭವಿಸಿದ ಕಷ್ಟಗಳೆಲ್ಲಾ ಮನಸಿನಿ೦ದ ತಾತ್ಕಾಲಿಕವಾಗಿ ಮರೆಯಾಗಿಬಿಡುತ್ತದೆ ಎನ್ನುವ೦ತಹ ಉಮೇದು.

                                   

                ಜಗತ್ತಿನಲ್ಲಿ ಎಲ್ಲರೂ ಬದುಕುತ್ತಿರುವುದೇ ಈ ಕ್ಷಣದ ಖುಷಿಗಾಗಿ. ಬದುಕಿನಲ್ಲಿರುವ ಕಷ್ಟದ ಗಾಯಗಳನ್ನೆಲ್ಲಾ ಕೆರೆಯುತ್ತಾ ಒ೦ದು ತಿ೦ಗಳೊಳಗೆ- ವರ್ಷದೊಳಗೆ ಅದೆಷ್ಟು ದೊಡ್ಡದಾಗಬಹುದೆ೦ದು ಯೋಚಿಸುತ್ತಾ ಕುಳಿತರೆ ಪ್ರಪ೦ಚದಲ್ಲಿ ಜೀವ೦ತಶವಗಳೇ ತು೦ಬಿರುತ್ತವೆ. ಜೀವನವಿರುವುದೇ ಈ ಸೆಕೆ೦ಡಿನಲ್ಲಿ. ’ಇಸ್ ಪಲ್ ಕೋ ಭರ್ ಪೂರ್ ಜೀನಾ ಹೈ’ ಎ೦ದು ನನಗೆ ಮನವರಿಕೆಯಾಗುವಷ್ಟರಲ್ಲಿ ನನ್ನ ಬಸ್ಸು ಹೊರಟಿತ್ತು. ಮೂಡಿಗೆರೆ ಬಸ್ಸಿಗೆ ಜನ ನುಗ್ಗುವ ಪ್ರಕ್ರಿಯೆ ಹಾಗೇ ಮು೦ದುವರಿದಿತ್ತು. ಆ ಕ್ಷಣಕ್ಕೆ ಬಸ್ ಸ್ಟ್ಯಾ೦ಡಿನಲ್ಲಿ ಬೀಸುತ್ತಿದ್ದ ಡೀಸೆಲ್ಲು-ಟಯರ್ರಿನ ವಾಸನೆ ಮಿಶ್ರಿತ ಗಾಳಿಯೂ ಮುದ ನೀಡುವ೦ತೆ ಭಾಸವಾಯಿತು........

                                                                                  - ಸ೦ಪತ್ ಸಿರಿಮನೆ

Hello Everyone...! 

A warm evening with this 7th episode of the story-Disguised.

Episode7:

           “Hello!! Mr. Sandesh, lost somewhere?” Adhya shook Sandesh’s shoulder and succeeded in bringing him back from his dreamland.

“Oh!! Hey!! Hello!! Sorry, I was just thinking...”

“Thinking what?”

“Ah! Forget it. What took you so long to reach here?”

“Nothing. Had some work”

“Work?”

“Family work”

“Oh, okay”

Adhya’s mind went back to that moment in her home and her facial expression changed suddenly. A cute, lovely smile which was on her face just a minute earlier had started to fade away. Sandesh interrupted her with his sudden outburst of joy.

“Anyways, welcome to your first year end party at Microsoft. Forget all about work and just enjoy the party. C’mon, don’t waste time by standing idle here. You’re already late. Let’s move in”

“Sure”

Before she could say that, Sandesh dragged her inside. He stopped in the central hallway, thinking where to begin. Then, he turned towards Adhya and asked,

“Do you want anything to eat?”

“Oh yes, please. I’m starving”

“What’ll you have?”

“Mmmm... Ice-cream”

“Ice-cream!? Don’t you want some solid food first?”

“NO. An ice-cream would be just fine”

“Ohk”

He took her to the same counter where he had taken Prapthi few minutes earlier. On seeing Sandesh back at the counter, the counter boy asked him with a broad smile,

“What shall I give for bhabhiji, now?”

Hearing this, both Sandesh and Adhya shouted in unison, “WHAT?!”

“Just few minutes back you had brought your cute daughter and took a Khulfi stick for her, right? Now you’ve brought bhabhiji. Do you want the same Khulfi or shall I give something else?”

Sandesh corrected him in a hurried tone, “No no no no. you’ve mistaken. That wasn’t my daughter. She’s my manager’s daughter. And, this’s not my wife. We’re just...” he couldn’t complete his sentence. He didn’t know what to say. He thought to himself, “What’s Adhya to me? Girlfriend? Just friend? Or still a stranger whom I love madly?” Adhya completed his sentence by adding “friends” at the end of it.

“Oh!! I’m sorry!” exclaimed the counter boy.

“It’s okay” Adhya replied with a smile.

“So, what’ll you have?”

“I’ll take...this one” she pointed at an average sized cup on the menu.

“This one?” asked the boy pointing at the same picture to confirm the order. Adhya nodded.

           He stuffed two scoops of vanilla flavored ice-cream on the bottom of the cup which covered almost half of the cup. Then he sprinkled some dry fruits making a thin bed over it. And the other half of the cup was filled with chocolate flavored ice-cream, peeping a bit above the mouth of the cup. He closed the top of the cup with dry fruits cap. He then dripped strawberry and orange syrup above it so that it flows down like lava. It looked like an erupting volcano.

“There you go. The Volcano for the young lady” said the boy, handing over the over flowing cup which was wrapped with a tissue paper. Adhya started eating it as soon as she got hold of the cup. Sandesh smiled watching her eat like that. She really was hungry. Adhya noticed Sandesh staring at her, smiling. She poked him with her elbow and asked,

“What’re you smiling at?”

Her teeth were covered with ice-cream; some with strawberry, orange syrup and the rest with chocolate cream. Her teeth seemed to be made of pure, dark chocolate, decorated with tiny particles of dry fruits. Sandesh felt an urge to taste it. But, he somehow suppressed that thought immediately. Then he spoke, covering his feelings,

“It looks like the volcano has burst out inside your mouth and the lava is flowing down your throat”

“What do you mean?”

Sandesh clicked her photo with his cellphone and showed it to her.

“Ewww!! I look horrible”

“You look wonderful”

“Please, Sandesh. Delete that pic”

“Nope. I’m gonna keep it”

“PLEASE!! Don’t keep it. Delete it before someone sees that. Please please please please”

“Okay, okay. I’ll delete it” he paused to see Adhya smile hearing his words. Then, he continued, “After uploading it on Instagram!!”

“Noooo...” Adhya shouted and dropped her face.

“C’mon, Adhya. Cheer up. See, I’m deleting it” he deleted that photo showing her while he did it. Adhya smiled again.

          After finishing the ice-cream, they started their journey around the party site. They played all the games set up to cheer the people gathered. They both made similar temporary tattoo on their arms. Then, they went to the auditorium where live concert of Krishnakumar Kunnath (KK), Bollywood playback singer was about to start. It was 07:20pm and the bar counter had been opened. Everyone had gathered around the counter to collect their beer tins. Watching them, Sandesh asked Adhya, “Do you booze?”

“Nah!!”

“Not even beer?”

“Nope. But, I’m gonna try it today” she winked at him saying that. Sandesh smiled broadly and got up to collect the tins. After a while, he brought two tins of beer and held one in front of Adhya. Seeing its size, Adhya exclaimed,

“Oh my god! I don’t want this much. I’ll just have a sip or two. Just to taste, that’s all”

“Have as much as you want. I’ll finish the rest”

She took the tin shyly and took a sip, closing her eyes tightly. It was chilled and a bit bitter for beginners. It’s bubbly lather went through her throat, energizing her taste buds. Then, she took another sip, this time trying to feel its taste, adopting herself to its effects. She looked up at Sandesh’s face who was still standing in front of her, watching her expressions.  She smiled at him and said,

“It’s nice. A bit bitter though”

He smiled back and sat next to her sipping from his tin. By the time Adhya had three more sips, Sandesh had finished his beer. The concert started at 07:40pm. KK entered the stage and started entertaining the Microsoft employees with his voice. People danced around the stage to his tune. After two hours, the concert ended and KK vacated the stage for DJ Raghav. The DJ successfully brought out every droplet of beer consumed by the youth around him through their sweat. They kept dancing to the beat ignoring the sweat dripping down their wet T-shirt. Watching everyone dance, Adhya got enthusiastic. She got up all of a sudden and started dragging Sandesh off his seat, repeatedly saying,

“Come. Let’s dance”.

Sandesh was startled by this action. He shook his head violently saying,

“NO no no no. I don’t know to dance”

She forcefully made him stand and took him on the stage. The stage was already crowded with many couples. Adhya moved to the center of the stage and started dancing, still holding Sandesh’s hand tightly. For a while, he stood watching her enjoy dancing. Then he started dancing, copying steps from people around him. They danced, danced and danced. Adhya was so much involved in it that she had forgotten she has to stay on the ground. She lost balance and fell over Sandesh. He quickly grabbed her in his arms. After realizing what had happened, Adhya laughed aloud, buried her sweaty face in his chest and hugged him tight. It took a couple of minutes for Sandesh to understand the situation. He then slowly wrapped his arms around her and held her close to him. Even the DJ’s loud music failed to break that moment. Sandesh was enjoying every second holding her. Once the effect of alcohol started to drop, Adhya opened her eyes and slowly got separated from him, ending that moment. Her face dropped. Watching her face changing emotions so quickly, Sandesh flinched. He came close to her and asked, lifting her face slowly,

“What happened?”

To which she smiled wryly and shook her head saying, “Nothing”.

“Are you okay?”

“Yes. Yes, I’m fine. I need some fresh air. Shall we go outside?”

“Sure”

Sandesh took her out. There was total silence outside, accompanied by romantic moonlight and cool breeze. They went and sat on nearby steps which lead to a vast playground. They sat there silently. Of course, their minds were irritating them with billions of questions; silently.  Sandesh had to make sure that none of his actions were the cause for her silence. He opened his mouth, hesitating.

“Adhya?”

“Hmmm?”

“Did I hurt you in any way?”

“Hurt?! With what?”

“Don’t know. You turned silent all of a sudden. And, I don’t have any idea what might’ve happened...”

“It’s nothing, Sandesh. I was high with beer. I didn’t know what I was doing”

“What did you do?”

“Nothing” she said with a broad smile. Then, they both fell silent. Sandesh thought it’s the perfect time for him to express his feelings for her; if not now, then never. Gathering all his strength, he got up, turned to face her and came down on his knees. Adhya’s face violently changed expressions; surprise, confusion, smile all were mixed up and were displayed on her face which was impossible to understand for any living creature. She asked,

“What’re you doing, Sandesh?”

Sandesh, who was looking down at the concrete floor, thinking where to begin, lifted his gaze and smiled at her. Then he started,

“I’ve wanted to do this from the moment I saw you”

Giving a small pause, he took her hands in his and continued.

“I lost myself to you the very second I saw your face. I didn’t know what to call that feeling then. When I saw you again in the office, it sprouted and began to grow bigger and bigger with every moment spent with you. I can neither make fake promises of presenting you moon and stars nor say filmy dialogues. All I can give you is myself; every bit of it. This tree has grown big and strong now. I don’t want to bring it down to earth for no reason. I wasn’t to pour more affection and care to it, instead.... I love you, Adhya”