Forsaken - Chapter 17

Chapter 17
Ajit was not walking. He was floating. The final questions were answered. Nisha wanted to be around him as much as he wanted to be. Her asking him to accompany her to Ranny pleased him no end. After all somebody wanted him. Somebody thought he was worthy of being with. He saw colors everywhere. The world has suddenly become much more beautiful. He walked with a spring in his step.

The breakfast was appam and chicken curry. Compared to last night’s dinner, it was a mute affair. There was no laughter and the conversations were minimal. Raju was having a terrible hangover and it was apparent from the way he pressed his temples. Everyone concentrated on attacking the food, and so it was over pretty soon.

The ladies were crowded around the bride, inspecting the ornaments and the bridal dress. The ornaments and sarees were purchased from a leading shop in Kottayam, famous for their bridal collections. Lissy, the bride, was sitting in the middle, as they tried out the ornaments on her. She was basking in all the attention. They commented on how beautiful she would look once dressed up in her bridal dress. That evening, they had to separate seven threads from the manthrakody, the saree that she has to wear once the groom tied the knot, and starch it to make the twain to put the Minnu, the symbol of matrimony. The Minnu is a tiny heart shaped locket, on which seven small gold bubbles form a cross. They were all excited.

The truck that carried the folding chairs and tables arrived. Ajit made himself busy with helping the unloading and arranging into neat stacks near the porch. The cars were taken out from the yard, Raju’s Ambassador and Ajit’s Maruti rested in the drive way. Ajit was sweating all over from the exertion, but did not mind it too much. He was happy to be of any assistance. All the while he searched for Nisha, but she was somewhere inside the house.
As the day wore on, Ajit felt depressed. Not once did he get a chance to see Nisha. He had been kept busy by Johny, who made him run on several errands. By the time lunch was served, he was a little tired.

After lunch, when Raju and Johny were resting under the shadow of a huge mango tree at the corner of the front yard, Nisha and Susan came to them. Ajit was talking to George, who was clearing the obstacles from the drain pipe, which was provided to drain out the rainwater from the yard.

He saw Susan and Nisha walking towards Raju. He became a little tense. What if Raju Uncle disagrees? What would he do once they leave for Ranny? True, he was not able to see her since morning, but knowing that she was around was soothing enough. He hated to think what it would be like when they go back to Trivandrum, after the wedding.

Raju was shaking his head vigorously. Ajit’s heart sank. Then Susan was saying something with her arms flailing out. Johny intervened and spoke to them, pointing to him. Raju looked at him, thought for a minute and then shook his head once again. But this time it was in an updown motion, as if he was saying yes.

Johny came to him with Nisha and Susan in tow. He explained the situation to him. Raju could not get away now, since there were a lot of things to be done and Johny required his presence. He could not oversee each and everything alone, therefore Raju could not take them to Ranny, where Susan and Nisha wanted to go very badly. Susan wanted to visit one of her aunts who was ailing and on her deathbed. Nisha wanted to see the school she once attended, the place where she lived as a child, and some of her childhood friends. So, Johny asked Ajit if he would be kind enough to drive them to Ranny and return before it was dark.

Ajit thought he saw a glint in Johny’s eyes, when he said Nisha’s name. He did not want to admit to it so soon.

“If you insist, I guess it’s okay.” He was jubilant but did not show it.

“So that settles it. Susan, you two go with him. He is a good driver, I know.” He turned and winked at him.

As Johny and Susan left for their respective positions, Johny back to the shade of the tree and Susan to upstairs to get ready, Nisha put on a defiant look, put both her hands on the hip and questioned him.

“Only if Kochappa insists, huh?”

“You silly, I was trying to act normal. If I show my eagerness, wouldn’t it be too obvious to them to guess?” He tried to make her understand.

“Ok. You get ready. Let’s go.” She smiled at him that cute, dimpled smile. The smile he loved the most in her.

On their way to Ranny, Susan kept complaining about Raju. Nisha was sitting with her mother, in the back seat. He twisted the rear view mirror in such a way that they could see each other. They reached Susan’s aunt’s home by three o’ clock. As her condition was very critical, Susan chose to stay back with her for a couple of hours and suggested that Ajit and Nisha continue to go to the other places.

The school was some three kilometers from that place. She still sat in the rear seat when they started. As they turned to the main road, she asked him to stop the car.

Wondering why she wanted to pull over now, Ajit obliged. Ajit was really happy to see her opening the front door and sit beside him.

“Aji, I don’t want to go anywhere,” she stated.

Ajit was surprised.

“Why?”

“I was planning to go to see all those places. Just to feel that nostalgia. But when I saw you, I saw my world. I just want to be with you” she was looking directly into his eyes. The shyness, the embarrassment, everything was gone. Instead her eyes shone from the realization that this was the man she loved.

Ajit’s heart melted. He was feeling this kind of emotion for the first time. He never thought someone could love him so much within so short of time. But the time is irrelevant here, he thought.

“Nisha I don’t know what to say except that you are my life now.” He doubted that he has expressed himself well.

He took her hands in his, gave a kiss on it. She closed her eyes to feel the warmth of his kiss on her hand.

They sat there, content and in complete ignorance about the outside world. They did not talk.
After a few moments, she broke the silence.

“Let’s go to your home.”

“It’s locked and key is with Ammachi,” Ajit answered.

“I know. I just want to see the house. It has got a lot of memories attached to it” Her eyes were half-closed as if she was in a trance.

Ajit put the car in motion. He took the right turn from the next junction. As they were climbing the steep, winding road that leads to his place, she turned in the seat to face him and enquired.

“Kurien Uncle still beats you?”

Ajit froze. He did not know what to say.

“Well, uh… No” He managed. Somehow he felt ashamed about Nisha knowing it.

“Acha was telling that incident when you broke your leg playing football. Johny uncle told Acha” She was full of sympathy. Her voice was very soft.

Ajit did not say anything. He silently drove the car. Nisha turned towards the window to see those familiar landscapes as they were approaching his home.

She was asking what had become of this and that as they passed each house or some landmark. This was the route they used to go to church. The church stood on top of a small hillock, with its thirty-eight steps starting from the bottom of the hillock. As they passed the church and the cross tower right below the church, she paused a moment in prayer.

He parked the car outside the gate, since it was locked. They entered through the mini-gate at the backside, which was always kept open for the maids and the milkman to enter. She circled the house, recollecting the incidents when they were still kids.

“Do you remember this place? This is where I fell down and scraped my knee. You brought some leaves and squeezed out its syrup and applied it on the wound” she exclaimed at one spot.
And at another spot, “This is where we built our first playhouse.”

And so on. Ajit just trailed her. He did not have any pleasant memories about this house. This was his prison, the place where he was rotting. “It is not mine. I am just a guest in a hotel. When I grow old, I will buy my own house somewhere else, but not this,” he determined.

After about half an hour, Nisha said they should go back. Ajit obliged and they drove back.
She was doing most of the talking. He loved to listen to her, slightly nasal, yet soft voice. As they were approaching the Aunt’s house, she asked the question that plagued his mind since afternoon.

“Once I go back, when will we see each other?”

Ajit hated to think about it. But he knew that she would go. She had to go. He could not go with her too. The thought depressed him.

“I don’t know. I just can’t think about it,” he said soulfully.

“Aji, can you come to Trivandrum for your degree studies?” She was exploring possibilities.
“Nisha, you know father. He won’t allow all that.”

“Then how? We are seeing each other after all these years. Now I don’t want to loose you” She wanted him to come up with something.

“Tomorrow afternoon, right after the wedding and reception, we will go back.” As she spoke, she felt the pang. Not seeing him was a thought she could not entertain.

“We shall call each other. Then once I finish my pre-degree, I’ll convince Ammachi to send me to Trivandrum for degree”

She gave him her home telephone and he gave his.

Before they were to turn to the house, she took his hand and kissed it.

“Until we can see each other with parents not around,” she smiled at him.

Ajit felt goosebumps all over his body. He thought of giving her a peck on the cheek but they had already reached the house.

When they reached Mecheril, the pandal was already up. The labourers were decorating it by first pinning white sheets along the tarpaulin roof’s inside and plastic garlands hanging from it in designs. They parked the car outside and walked in.

Johny and Raju were nowhere in sight. Ajit went directly to his room and changed his clothing. Then he went to the kitchen. He wanted some coffee. He found Gracy aunty, who was, as usual, busy with the chores and asked her. She obliged and poured a cup of coffee from the flask.
Ajit went out to the pandal and watched how they were making designs on the overhead sheets. They were making a big circular design, with colorful garlands right on top where the bride and groom would sit. From the middle, they hung few garlands to form a cylindrical shape. One of the guys explained that as soon as the newlyweds would sit on the chairs, they will pull a string to burst a balloon in the middle which will be filled with golden, glittering stars.

Ajit tried to imagine how it would feel to sit right in front of hundreds of guests as newlyweds. He thought of Nisha and him, sitting there on the kingly chairs, side by side when a rain of golden stars fell upon them. Then they would get up, drink tender coconut water from the same shell, using two straws. He was still thinking about it, not knowing he was grinning, when a voice woke him up.

“Day dreaming, huh?”

It was Johny. Ajit lowered his eyes, afraid that Johny would find out what he was dreaming.
Johny raised the boy’s face with his palm, looked straight into the eyes.

“Tell me, how was the trip?” He was speaking in a hushed tone.

“I took them there, then brought back” He tried to avert his gaze.

“Susan told me she stayed back with that old lady, when you two went for a spin.”

Jesus! He should be a detective, Ajit thought. Then with a smile, he nodded his head, knowing only too well that he could not hide it anymore.

Johny’s demeanor changed to a more serious one. He sat beside him.

“Look, just don’t let anybody know it now. I am worried about your father. If he comes to know about it, no doubt, he will make a mess out of it. When time comes, I’ll talk to Raju and sort things out. Kurien should be told only when it is absolutely necessary”

Ajit was indebted to his Kochappa for his farsightedness for solving a big problem that may arise later. He looked at the man with a tender heart.

“Don’t worry. I think you two make a very good pair. Just stay in the limit, okay? Don’t do anything that is….. Umm…. You know what I mean.” He gave the boy a big, sly smile and started to leave. Then he turned back, came closer to him.

“Did she know about your feelings?”

“Yes” He said it with more emphasis than necessary.

“Good. I knew it from the first time I saw you both talking there in the verandah. The way you looked at each other, the surreptitious touches.” With that he walked towards the backyard where they had started preparations for the lunch tomorrow.