The Lesson - OS

The Dawn had broken quite fast…as the early morning Sun began to warm the Earth that was cooled by the Chilly winter night.

"Shiv, Maine kahi thi aapse…yeh mujh se nahi hoga…!" said Anandi in an aggravated tone. Aap hai jo mere baath sunthe hi nahi…!" She moved a little further back against him, trying to steady herself.

During the second week of their marriage., When the three of them ( Himself, Mahi & Anandi )., were enjoying a late afternoon Tea sitting in the tree shaded portico of Kesar Bagh, he and Mahi have observed., a hint of admiration and desire in those expressive eyes of Anandi., upon noticing a friend of Saanchi who had come to visit on her 'Scooty'.

Shiv immediately responded – " Anandi…kabhi aapne two wheeler ride karna seekhne ki nahi sochi…?"

Anandi who got quite shocked ( though getting quite used to ) at his sudden query which are on the lines of what exactly she's been vaguely thinking about…..merely replied…." Jee Nahi…aisa kuch sochne ki mauka hi nahi mila…!"

Shiv thoughfully replied – " Hmm…Samajh saktha hoon…Par main Soch raha hoon…its high time you learn riding a small scooter now….Aapko bahut convenient hoga…School., Panchayat ., Aur Ghar ke beech mein ghumne ki….waise ., aap bahut paidal chalte hain…aur Summers main toh aise chalna bahut mushkil ho sakta hai….!...Aur rahi baath seekne ki…Mein aapko seekhne me madad kar sakta hoon…!"

Anandi quickly retaliated – Nahi…baba…Ee sab riding widing…mujhe se nahi hoga…Main paidal jaane se hi theek hoon…!"

Mahi intercepted much to Shiv's annoyance – " Arre Bhabi…aisa mat boliye….Agar aapko Shiv Bhaiyya se seekhne sey sharm aa rahi hai….toh mein hoon naa…aapka pyara Devar…mein sikha detha hoon aapko…!"

Anandi replied with a slight blush staining her cheeks – " Nahi Mahi Bhaiyya – aise koi baath nahi…bas mujhe darr lag raha hai…ki achi tarah seekh paungi ki nahi…!...Aur collector saab ko gussa aagaya toh…!"

Shiv chuckled with amusement saying…." Ab Teacherji ko mein kya bataaun…lesson achi tarah nahi seekhegi toh punishment milegi hi…!" ….and he ended the statement with a wink….making Anandi pout…

Mahi then concluded – "Toh…Yeh Bangayi Baath – Final…Bhabhi Scooter riding seekhegi aur Shiv Bhaiyya unhe seekhayenge…!"

"Par Mahi – ab hum Scooty kidhar se laayenge….?" – Shiv expressed his doubt.

Woh sab intezaam aap mujh par chod deejiye Bhaiyya….Bhabhi ke liye kuch bhi karega…yeh pyaara Devar…!" – replied Mahi with confidence reflecting in his voice.

And all that was needed was to charm his way with Saanchi's friend and borrow her 'Scooty ' for a week…

And One fine early morning., at the break of Dawn., Anandi & Shiv are in a wide open playground…that was deserted owing to the early hours….

Anandi & Shiv are both on the 'Scooty'., both their feet firmly attached to the ground. Shiv moved a little closer to Anandi's back trying to reach his arms a bit further infront of her…

Anandi is a novice., when it comes to keeping her balance…a pre requisite of riding as she is not even used to riding a bi cycle and Shiv was having a hard time sitting behind her and to help her balance…with her so close…

"Maine Isi liye haan boli..taaki..aap dono ki Dil rakhoo…!" – Anandi pouted over her shoulder as she raked off an offending tendril of hair from her eyes…

"Maine aapko dikhaya…handle bar aap kaise pakhdna chahiye…par aap theek se nahi kar rahi…!" Shiv brushed her hair that is flying b'coz of breeze., out of his face but not before noticing the sweet smell of whatever shampoo she used, once again distracting him from the task at hand.

Shiv reached his hand over to where hers were positioned and placed them over hers. He felt his stomach give a little jolt at the contact that somehow felt strangely intimate as he placed them where they were supposed to go. His ears started to burn a little. He knew they were already red.

"There," Shiv said his voice a little shaky. "You have to get the right grip on the Handle bar otherwise…aap bike move hothe hi…gir jaayengi…!"

Anandi was having a difficult time listening to anything Shiv was trying to tell her. She could hardly breathe with the closeness of Shiv's body.

"Par girne ki mujhe kuch darr nahi hai….aap hai naa …mujhe sambhalne ke liye…" She asked not really caring. She was being distracted by his voice.

Shiv laughed in spite of himself. "Anandi, Par mere bine bhi aapko chalana seekhna padega…aur waise hi jab bike speed se chalegi…toh mein bhi sambhaal nahi paoonga…hum dono gir jaaenge.." - He loved teasing her.

Anandi stiffened. "Aap hasi mazaak mein bhi aisa mat boliye…!" she said in a shrill voice.

"But I'm not!" Shiv protested in his best believable voice.

Toh Theek hai…yeh scooter…vooter mujhe nahi seekhna…mein vapas haveli chali jaoongi…!" – Anandi made a move to get off from the scooter…and she did…Shiv too got down., holding the scooter.

He quickly grabbed her with one hand to prevent her from leaving, but she lost her balance. He tried to break her fall, but his precarious position made him fall back and they both tumbled to the ground with Anandi falling on Shiv and the scooter to another side. He let out a little "Oh!" as she landed roughly on top of him.

Neither one of them moved for a few seconds.

Anandi's heart was in her throat. She didn't feel like she could move, didn't even know if she wanted to. He was too warm and she was far too comfortable in his arms. She didn't want to move, even if it was an accident.

Shiv wasn't in an easier position. He couldn't loosen his grip on her waist without a little mental shove to himself. Her breath was warm on his neck.

He cleared his throat trying to think of something to say.

Somewhere around his shoulder he heard her mutter, "aap mazaak kar rahe hai naa?"

She removed her face from his neck and looked at him.

Shiv's breath caught in his throat when she looked down at him. She was so close.

"Of course," was all he could manage to say. Her lips were inches away from his. He could hardly believe she was so close. He swore he saw a flash of something more in her eyes but then it was gone as fast as it came.

She pulled up and the spell was broken. He reluctantly let her go.

Anandi moved off Shiv before she forgot herself. She glanced at him under her eyelashes and was heartened to see he looked awkward as well.

He glanced at her and caught her eye. He wasn't the only one affected. He gave a small smile and was relieved when she smiled back.

"Sorry about that," - he murmured.

She smiled at how cute he was when he was shy.

"Toh aap mere sath nahi hote…main kaise seekhoongi…?" Anandi asked.

"Haan. ..Mein aapko guide nahi karoonga toh…bahut mushkil hoga…aapko seekhne mein…"

She looked at the half grin he was giving her.

"Par mein acche se seekh nahi paaungi…toh..?"

"That's what we're here for isn't it? Pehle aap try toh kijiye…aap yeh automatically mat sochiye…ki aap seekh nahi payenge…aap fail ho jaayenge…" Shiv protested. "At least give it a try."

Shiv heard her murmur something.

"Kuch kaha aapne…?" he leaned a little bit closer to her trying to hear what she was whispering.

"Maine kaha…mujhe speed se darr lagta hai..." - Her hair was partially covering her face from Shiv's view.

"Well….Mujhe Injections se Darr lagta hai…!," - he told her like she didn't know.

Anandi suppressed a giggle. "Haan…Mujhe shayad is baath ka andaaza hai…"

Shiv turned serious and his tone quieted. "So …isi liye…aap abhi tak scooter chalana nahi seekhi…! Maine socha…shayad aapke paas time nahi thaa…yaa..aap yeh waste of time samjhti thi…!"

She looked off for a second and then replied - "Haan…woh baath bhi hai…par sab se bada karan…mera darr hai…"

"You won't fall with me. I won't let you…..Aap apne saare darr Bhool Jayiyee.. everything you fear…," - He whispered.

She looked hesitantly at the scooter, but he could see a tempted look in her eye.

"Mein gir gayee toh…?" - she raised her doubt once gain.

"Main aapko sambhaal loonga…" He said.

"aap ne agar nahi sambhaala"….she asked.

"Anandi - That will never happen," He said.

Shiv's quietly spoken promise brought her attention back to him.

"Thank you," was her quiet reply.

He was looking at her so seriously. Her stomach fluttered and her heart was in her throat for the second time in five minutes, making it difficult to look Shiv in the eye. She looked away and cleared her throat, desperately trying to appear indifferent. She bent down to pick up the scooter to give herself something to do.

Shiv held back a sigh and raked a hand through his thick hair. This conversation he felt is so reflective of their bizarre and at the same time unique relationship.

Anandi too felt exactly the same. Thoughts suddenly pooled her mind - Why couldn't she make a move? She cursed herself for what seemed like the thousandth time that she couldn't say anything, that she couldn't bring up the courage to do something about it.

"Hum ek aur baar try karenge…" - she suggested.

Shiv's grin was back in place.

After they were back to the earlier position on the scooter , Shiv began giving instructions again. He boldly scooted closer to her until she was snuggly trapped between his legs and his arms were around her waist. He pushed her hair aside with awkwardly unsure fingers and gently placed his head next to hers.

"Aapke yeh baal..makes it a little hard to see what I'm doing." was his lame excuse. He didn't care… whatever it took to get closer to her.

Apparently, the excuse was sufficient for Anandi because she offered no resistance. Little did Shiv know she wasn't about to stop him.

"Now remember to grip the handle bar tightly, but itna tight bhi nahi ki…aapke hands numb ho jaayenge aur aapko patha nahi chalega…ki aap kya kar rahe hain… Aap apni balance aur direction nahi rakh paayenge….!"

His voice was in her ear, his breath brushing softly against her cheek. She found it so hard to concentrate because all she could think of was what his lips would feel like on her cheek. She blushed, and all she could do was nod at whatever he said.

His heart was thumping so loudly in his ears that it was hard to ignore it. Awkwardly and hesitantly, he spoke again, trying to keep his voice more level this time, "Do you think you want to try it now?...mein apne feet Zameen se utaroo…?"

He felt her shaky intake of breath that alerted him of just how nervous she really was.

Anandi tried to nod her consent, but she wasn't quite sure she had learnt enough to move out of his support. Before she had any more time to question it, she heard Shiv's voice again.

"Ok, we're going to try it then. Mein thoda sa apne feet upar karoonga…and see how that goes before we try anything else, alright?"

His voice was so convincing and she felt herself relaxing despite herself. His voice is so deep… It was so smooth and rich as it flowed over her.

She flinched and grabbed the handle bar more attentively when she felt Shiv's feet lifting off the ground. She was suddenly very aware of Shiv's arm around her waist. When had he placed it there?

"That's it. Just keep it steady. Itna bhi boora nahi hai…hai naa.." - Shiv asked.

"Haan….par abhi bhi bahut slow jaa rahe hain…," Anandi protested, still more than nervous about going any faster. She was already feeling a little more than anxious.

Shiv laughed. "You're doing fine. So stop worrying so much. Mein aapko kuch nahi hone doonga…aur agar mein aapke ke jagah hota…toh speed se zyaada balance pe dhyaan detha…," - he couldn't help teasing her yet again.

"Shiv!" she nearly screeched.

"Nahi…Nahi…" She clenched her eyes tightly when he made her accelerate a little guiding the accelerator… Suddenly, they picked up speed and she felt queasy.

"Nahi…Shiv…Mujhe bahut bechaini ho rahi hain…!"

"Anandi…aapko apne aankh khula rakhna padega…or we're going to be in some real trouble," Shiv said a little louder .

Opening her eyes, she squinted a little at the sudden rush of air.

"Look, just relax." With his free hand, he reached down to her hands that were clutching the handle bar with all her might. He gently loosened her grip. "Don't think about the speed. Just concentrate on balance. Itna bhi mushkil nahi hai…jo ki aap samajhthe ho…!." He placed his arm around her waist where his other one already rested.

"Aap thoda relax ho jayiye…aur enjoy ki jiye…!"

A smile started to form on Anandi's face.. And it was a good feeling. It was like a little rush.

"Jab tak hum iss se jyaada fast nahi jaayenge…mein theek hoon…." - She muttered.

"Kuch Kaha aapne…?" Shiv asked in her ear.

She turned her head a little so he could hear her speak and repeated what she had said.

She heard him laugh at her remark. He tightened his grip on her waist and she smiled. It was as if he was hugging her.

The wonderful feeling of riding and being this close to Shiv made her completely calm down and she was starting to really enjoy herself despite her fears.

Before she knew it, they were decelerating. For some reason, it was a little scarier to her going slow when she got used to go a little fast…but she gathered up her courage and refused to close her eyes.

With much more finesse than she expected, they slowly came to a stop. As wobbly as her legs were just at that moment, she turned around laughing…as she got down and Shiv parked the vehicle.

Shiv was beyond amused. "Toh…main yeh sochoo…ki aapko pasand aaya..?" he asked .

"Haan!" she exclaimed. "Bilkul…aur mein yeh samajh nahi paa rahi hoon…ke meine ab se pehle seekhne ki kyon koshish nahi ki…!"

"Hello…!," Shiv defended himself, "Apne toh mujhe kabhi yeh mauka hi nahi diya…!"

Her breath caught in her throat. They were inches from each other and she felt her grin slowly melting away when she saw Shiv's eyes dart from her mouth to her eyes and back again.

Shiv swallowed hard. He could feel her starting to put up the usual barriers and abruptly, he decided to make light of the situation…"Shayad aap thak gaye honge…Ghar Chale…?" he suddenly blurted out before he lost his unexpected nerve.

Anandi's heart slammed in her chest and she felt the need to clutch at Shiv's sleeves. "Bilkul Nahi..!," she tried to play like she hadn't understood what Shiv meant; she didn't know if she was ready to face this yet now that it was so glaringly here,

Meine abhi shuru kiya…poori tarah seekh kar hi chaloongi…!"

"Anandi..," he said softly, "Ab ek din mein sab kuch bhale hi seekh paogi…chalo…aaj ke liye bas..kal phir aayenge..."

His gentle reply made her meet his eye and in that moment, when she looked into his eyes, she knew without a doubt that he loved her. Tears sprang to her eyes at the thought. She released her grip on his sleeves and covered her face with her hands. All of the emotions she had been holding back for so long came flooding in and all that she could do was sob.

Shiv felt like he was back in time a few months , because suddenly he was back to patting her on the back and he felt all awkward and very unsure of what to do with himself. He could feel her shoulders shaking from her weeping.

"Anandi…?" he asked uncertainly, touching her shoulder. He was afraid of her reaction.

She wiped her tears away with her hands and shook her head.

Shiv felt his stomach drop. He let go of her shoulder.,

"Shiv..," she almost whispered.

For some reason., he could not meet her eyes.

"Shiv..," she said again when he turned away,

Mere taraf dekhiye…." She took his arm and turned him around to face her again.

"Aap please…mere taraf nahi dekhenge…?" she asked again, when he refused to meet her eye. When he looked at her, she saw how uncertain he was and she melted.

"Shiv…" she pulled him to her a little close. With resolve, she leaned up and pressed her lips lightly to his cheek.

Shiv's eyes widened and he let out a little choked noise. Anandi kissed him; just standing there kissed him. He could hardly grasp that fact. He wrapped his arms around her when he felt her starting to pull away… he wasn't ready for it to be over.

Anandi finally pulled away. She began to walk towards the scooter but turned and looked at him, biting her lip . Their hands were still linked… so they were spread out in front of them.

"Aap Ghar nahi chalenge….?...Kal aayenge..aur thoda seekhne…waise abhi bahut der hogaya…Mujhe breakfast tayar karne me Maa ko help karni hai…!"- She asked with a hint of tease in her voice….making Shiv startle.

As Shiv., started the bike., and she sat behind him…placing her hand on his shoulder…Anandi relaxed a little. What she felt kissing him though only on a cheek …was everything she thought it would be.

One thing came to her mind… as clich as it sounded, kissing him felt a lot like riding the scooter...!