FF: New York times with Maan and Geet Thread 2 - Page 30

hope theres an update tonight :)

Originally posted by: punjabi.princes

hope theres an update tonight :)

Originally posted by: Hasini67

Its done. Last edit on...A long one be ready with some coffee. I hope you guys don't doze off.

Pure indulgence from my side and sheer frustration to your side 😭

To Answer someon's question, this is not their honeymoon.

Hasini

Originally posted by: punjabi.princes

OMG that means there will still be a honeymoon after the camping? yayy!

Hope the Deed gets done at the camp site! lol

Hasini, I'm updating this page every 30 secs in hopes of your update :-)

Originally posted by: pushpi

Hasini, I'm updating this page every 30 secs in hopes of your update :-)

me too :)

Part 54 Mystry – Demystified.

<Geet's monologue>

I was still dazed. He had felt what I had for him and I was able to see the same in his eyes. I had shown him one shade of my love. I wondered if there could be a way to truly show him all the colors of my love. He was fast asleep, as I lay on the other side of the bed. I couldn't keep myself from watching him sleep. This was going to be my other morning routine. I had started waking up early just to catch a glimpse of him when he was forgetting the world around him. He seemed peaceful and today I was lucky for I saw a smile come up from the corner of his lips. What? Did did he just smile in his sleep? I was wrong.

Maan:"You have to stop doing that?"

Aah! He was awake. I smiled and turned the other side. He moved closer to hold me from behind. His hand moved down my waist.

Maan:"Yeh kya beemari hain hame…main tumhe raat ko dekta hoon aur tum mujhe subhe ko."

I turned to cuddle into him.

Geet:"May be all this is part of wedding package…Kya aapko lagta hain, ki hum dono aise hi ranhenge?"

He was silent and his eyes were still closed.

Maan:"Aise hi rehne ki try tho kar sakte hain?"

Hmmm…what was that?

Maan:"Kyon? Mera jawab accha nahi laga?"

Geet:"Hmm…aap ka jawaab bahuth practical hain"

I was contemplating to wish him and then I smiled.

Geet:"Aap itna practical ho…should I even wish you?"

Maan:"Yeh sab vun logon ke liye jis ke paas pyaar karne ka waqt hi naa ho…They need to take time out to express their love…so is that what you are trying to convey by wishing me today? That you won't have time for all this everyday. Isn't it in about the way you make me feel and not about saying "Happy Valentine's day""

He had a point and it completely agreed with me.

Maan:"And didn't you already make me feel that last night?"

He had made my day as he said that and lowered his head to kiss me on my forehead. I smiled and buried myself into him. He held me tighter.

Geet:"Hmmm Hot chocolate…"

He turned to look at me and raised his left eyebrow as he wanted to add something.

Maan:"Tho mujhe ab se double orders de na padega kya? Tum bhi jo mera kurta use kar rahe ho"

I smiled. I showered after the swim last night and had grabbed his kurta for my nightdress, which he had left in the bathroom. It reached upto my knees and it worked well with my white pajama that I was already wearing. He didn't expect that at first when I came to bed, but simply smiled and kissed me for me being my silly self.

Geet:"Nahin, fresh ones will not work for me"

I was shy as I was openly proclaiming something, which I had never done before. What had he done to me?

If Valentine's Day to him was all about feeling love, then I wanted to make sure he felt my love in everything that we did that day. I quickly got up to get tea for both of us before he could freshen up and come down. I got a big cup of tea so that we could share and sip from the same cup. It was getting late to get out as we were leaving for our camping trip the same day as well, but a few minutes of togetherness at the window seating meant a moment for lifetime and he was not ready to let go of the same as well.

Maan:"Thank you…"

I wondered what he was thanking me for.

Geet:"Hmmm…ab yeh thank you kis liye…aap tho wish karne se manaa karte hain, lekin thank you sorry sab kuch keha jaate hain. Aap jaante nahin…Friendship aur pyaar mein no sorry or no thank you."

I was resting on his shoulder, sitting between his legs. As I was sipping away the tea, he asked for the cup for it was his turn now. It was the twilight hour outside as it was still early around 6.01 AM and the sun was not going to come out until much later, but this was a different light that made the atmosphere magical. I remembered our New year's morning at the patio and the one at Niagara on our way back to NY.

Everytime we witnessed the sunrise, our relationship had taken a turn for good and I wanted to know what was in store for us today. He lifted my hand and kissed the sunburst charm. He didn't have to tell me anything. How did he know to do right things at the right time? Aur main ek hoon jho hamesha bak bak karti hoon. I turned to simply kiss him on his cheek. He smiled and there my sun had risen too.

Maan:"Tho kya kahoon…how do I convery how good it felt to have you do all that for me and for this sunrise?"

He had already thanked me when he had kissed the charm. I didn't need anything else. I turned and raised the charm bracelet and brought it close to his lips. He kissed it once again.

Geet:"Ab jo aap ne kiya…vahi mere liye kaafi hai…"

I turned and rested on his shoulder for all that gave me was not just support but promises of a life long companisonship with him. I wished that the whole day could just be an extension of our mornings together, but now we had to leave. I had packed late in the night and we had to pick up some stuff for myself on the way to the airport. We were going to pick it from his usual guy for I needed some rain boots and waterproof jackets. I didn't have time to google the place and so I still had no clue where we were going to camp.

I slipped into cropped jeans and a T-shirt. He was in a casual shirt and jean as always. We were not getting any camping gear here and we were going to pick it from…was it a campsite or did he say he knew another guy there? I didn't remember.

We stopped by the store to pick up my essentials. Apparently he had called the owner the day before as we were making an early stop at the store. We went ahead with our trip once we were done at the shop. We were taking a charter to get to the nearest airport to wherever that is we were going. It was a rental charter that Daadima used for her occassional business trips and which he used too to get away from the regular crowd.

In the flight…

Maan:"I want us to experience nature as is and so I have not booked anything fancy once we get off this charter…so no expectations…tum samaj rahi ho na main kya keha raha hoon…yeh hamara honey moon nahin hain"

I was shy when he mentioned the word.

Geet:"Ji…tho hum kahan rahenge? Tent main?"

He thought for a quick second before he could respond to my question.

Maan:"Pata nahin wahan pe baarish hoga ki nahin. We will be staying with a family there as their house guests. We are going to be travelling in broken down buses, eating by the roadside, if lucky even spend the night in a tent if it doesn't rain…kyon..are you up for it?"

Geet:"Main tho gaon main pali badi hoon…I don't have issues with such stuff."

Maan:"Dek te hain…5 years abroad…you never know"

I didn't care much for the airport once we reached the place. There was just one guard sitting down at the entrance. To me it seemed more like an air lift area than an airport. Another flight had landed and just 20 other people got down and they were all not Indians. They looked more Chinese or tibetians to me and I could spot some other foeign nationals too. I was curious.

Geet:"Where are we? Still in India right?"

He laughed.

Maan:"Haan…I didn't know your Geography was so weak. Ticket pe kya lika hain.."

I picked up my ticket from my pocket and tried reading it again.

Geet:"Shillong? Hum Assam main hain?"

He laughed once again as he lifted our bags out of the flight. I had not read the place properly when he had given me the papers that night on the couch.

Maan:"Meghalaya…Shillong is not in Assam. We are going to Cherrapunji. India's wettest infact the wettest places on earth itself"

I couldn't help wonder we were camping here.

Geet:"Aur hum yahan pe camping kar rahe hain? Barish main kaise?"

Maan:"Kyon nahin…if you want to wait until the rain stops to do anything, then how do people here go about getting their work done. You will see for yourself why I chose this place…"

I didn't doubt him. I knew we could have gone anyplace in the little time we had left before we went back to NY and if he chose this one out of the many options, there must truly be something that couldn't be missed about this place. His every action always conveyed something deep and I couldn't wait to see what it was this time.

We got out of the so-called airport and walked out to the road. I was carrying my backpack and he carried his backpack and another duffel. There was nothing commercial about this place. There were a few taxis at the stand and the drivers were sitting at a thatched teashop. There was a Telephone shop, with its usual STD, PCO and ISD banners. I turned to look at the airport and it looked like an old school, only rectangular in shape and it had two levels with asbestos for roof on the top most one.

Maan:"I think we have to walk for sometime before we could get to the bara bazar bus stop. Wear your rain jacket now. We can't stop and change once it starts raining"

We took our coats and wore them and also covered our backpacks and duffels with bag covers. It was funny to see the few foreign nationals follow us to the bus stop in contrast to the group of Indians who flocked to the nearby stand to bargain for taxis to get to Cherrapunji. It was indeed an inside joke that we Indians preferred to travel with sophistication, on our breaks and vacations, when the foreign nationals considered that the rustic tour of the local area can only be experienced in battered buses and rickshaws.

He told me it was going to be a 3hr drive to the Sohra bus stand. Apprently Cherrapunji was called Sohra locally. The air was wet and had a fresh smell to it. The walk to the bustand by itself was worth it. The trees were a moss green and a thin layer of fog covered the place. There was a lot of light, but I could spot grey clouds looming by the horizon. We had to quicken our pace to catch the 11.00 AM bus to Sohra. The market place from where we got the bus was commercialized and it loomed with tourists, buses, rickshaws and stalls with fruits and other travel essentials. I could spot one that sold water and edibles and there were others with kids selling tourist maps and attractions. Ever with the buzz of people and the noise from the transports waiting to carry people to Sohra, we eyed each other often. This was a new experience with him and I wanted to take in every moment of it. I remembered our NY walks from the subway to the apartment and this was nothing like it for I missed his pair of eyes on my back, but something else compensated for what I was missing. The streets were crowded just like NY, but the fact that he is my husband now and he freely moved his hand by my waist one and off when we had to cross the streets or when he would stop to enquire something, sent jolts in my spine. I was still not used to having him around me in public and that is what was sending me tingles to the tip of my nerves when he touched me.

We boarded a bus and managed to find a seat. I sat by the window and he sat next to me. It was cozy for the seat was small and I couldn't have myself lean on the rusted bars of the window and so I stayed close to him. Our bags were boarded on the shelf above our seat and I had no confidence that the shelf was going to stay up for the entire trip. It was sagging a few feet away from us and he saw me eye the shelf. He guessed what I was thinking and broke out into a smile.

Maan:"I told you…5 years abroad changes things. It did for me"

The bus trip was breath taking. The view of the valleys down below gave birth to a profound respect for nature in me. I felt miniscule in front on the giant mountains and the deep gorges that crossed us on our way to Cherrapunji. We stopped on the way to check out the aerial view of Mawkdok / Dympep Valley.

It was still raining outside, or should I say that nature had turned on its sprinkler to awaken the senses of all living things around. I was being awakened by the gentle breeze that blew across me and he came to stand by my side and smiled. He handed over a cracked tea glass and it warmed up my palms. We sipped the tea and took in the beauty of the site directly beneath us. His hair had tiny droplets of water stuck to it from the gentle sprinkle that was coming down on us. I took my hand and scattered his hair to disperse the water around. He reacted and was taken back.

Maan:"Mere balaon ko haath math lagana…"

The very fact that he resisted it, made me want to do it more. I placed the tea glass on the handrail nearby and went on to mess up his hair with both my hands. He quickly reacted by placing his tea on the handrail too and forcefully held my hand and pinned me against the rail and locked my hands behind me. He was too strong for me to fight him back.

Maan:"Pehle kaho, ki kabhi haath nahi lagayegi…nahi tho…chodunga nahi.."

I was shy for I had metally prepared to answer him back.

Geet:"Wahi toh chahti hoon…"

He smiled and let go of my hands and came close to stand next to me. He picked up his tea and started drinking it while he continued to stay just inches away from me. I was about to pick up my tea glass from the other side, when the rail jerked and the glass went tumbling down the rocks and deep into the valley.

He immediately pulled me away from the railing and held me close to his chest.

Maan:"Geet, we shouldn't have stayed too close…how.."

I cut him off.

Geet:"Hot…chocolate…sach main…"

His instant response to the tea glass falling off the rail moved me. The railing was made of steep pipes and was very much intact. Was I so dear to him that he couldn't bear to see even my stuff go through any symbolic accidents? I must really be blessed.

<Maan's monologue>

I was lost in her eyes and how could have I missed to have her pinned to that railing when danger lurked close. I cursed myself, but her words brought relief to my aching mind. We had to move for our conductor gave a shout out to all the passengers who had gotten off the bus to check out the viewpoint. As we were getting in, the passengers had the "we know you are newly married" look on their face. Our brief moments of intimacy at the viewpoint must have given it away. It was embarrassing for a moment, but I didn't regret it. The showers were pretty heavy now and the thunders were too loud. She was jerking every two minutes and came close to squeeze my arm. I thought music would calm her down and started the iphone and gave her an ear bud and plugged the other one into my ear. We were like teenagers once again.

One of my favoriate songs played and she jumped at it. It was a tamil song. It was the tamil version of Janmon ki jwala from Hey Ram.

Geet:"Yeh Kya hain…aap yeh bhi sunte hain?"

I laughed at her experessions.

Maan:"Nahin…Main tho ek shabd bhi nahi bol sakta…My roommate at Business school got me started on this song. The first time I listened to this, there was something about it that made me ask him what it meant, and when I got to hear it more, it stuck to me…but"

I turned to face her.

Maan:"I didn't know what it truly meant until you came into my life…"

Geet:"What does it mean?"

Maan:"Thanks to the one look from you…Thanks to the night that brought us together…All my youth I will thank you…For all the everlasting moments I thank you…"

She was keenly listening to me.

Geet:"Aur boliya na"

I scrubbed through the song to go back to the part I was interpreting for her.

Maan:"There will be no need for the word "I" anymore for "You" will be "I". I don't need any boons in my life…for there is no other paradise like this...Oh! my life come to me."

I didn't go further for she was already in tears. I didn't mean to do this to her. She didn't care for all the people around us. She didn't sob, but her silent tears spoke to me directly.

Maan:"Geet I didn't mean to…"

Geet:"Nahin…"

She was silent. She took the phone from my hand and scrubbed to the start of the song. She did that a couple of times and turned to look at me and held my cheek.

Geet: "Nee partha parvaikku oru nandri." (Thanks to the one look from you…)

Her accent was so bad that she laughed at the sound of it with tears still in her eyes, but it had conveyed all to me. I lifted my hand to hold her close and she rested on my shoulder. They were such simple moments, but to me time halted everytime I sensed it was a moment to be cherished and this was one such precise moment to be locked away into my "time treasures" just like she had called it.

We must have slept through all the noise, rain and thunder for we were at Sohra already. It was around 2.40 and the local bazaar was wet and slushy. I hoped there wouldn't any more rains for the evening. The sky did look a bit clear. She was struggling to carry her backpack and I couldn't help her either for I had two bags already.

Maan:"Geet, do you need some help. I can call for one."

Geet:"Nahin..It's slushy, that is what is scaring me, what if I fall?"

Just then a guy covered with mud walked by. We laughed.

Maan:"There you go…you got your answer"

We took an indica taxi to drive us to the place we were going to stay as houseguests. It was another 1 hr drive for I wanted to stay away from all the commercial tourist places.

<Geet's monologue>

There was mud all around. I was still getting used to it and at the same time trying to understand why we were here of all the other places we could have been to. I didn't understand him, for I remembered our Bellagio stay in Las Vegas. I was hoping to spend some time with him that night to find out some answers. The roads were winding in some places and steep at others, but it was green everywhere. Streams of water were running by the roadside from the recent showers that afernoon. The place was magical in its own way. The rain had stopped a while ago and we were already there at the house we were going to be staying during our trip. It was the only house in that area and was surrounded by dense trees. It was old and part of the house had thatched roof and other had sloping red tiled roof. A middle-aged man came out and greeted us as his family stood at the entrance to welcome us.

Maan:"Kaise ho Bijoy?"

The man smiled and responded. He had a strange accent.

Bijoy:"Teek hoon Saab, bahuth saal baad aa rahen hain…"

He was taking our bags out of the trunk and introduced me at the same time.

Maan:"Inse milo, meri biwi, Geet"

Bijoy was very happy to hear his statement and greeted me with a Namaste. I returned his greeting with a Namaste as well.

Bijoy:"Hame toh laga ki aap kabhi shaadi nahi karenge…lekin bagwaan ne aapka ghar basa liya"

He helped me with my bag and showed us our room. I was surprised for the inside of the room didn't look anything like the outside or the other house. It was clean and most of all dry. It had a proper bathroom and a bed. He understood my confusion.

Maan:"They always keep the portion they rent out clean and comfortable. Nahin toh business kaise hoga?"

I badly wanted to fall into the bed, but my clothes were still wet. I quickly rushed to take a shower and rushed back with dry clothes to fall into the bed.

Maan:"Wear anything that will dry fast. We are going out now. I want to hit it before the light goes off"

He quickly showered and came back. I was hungry and he was too. Bijoy gave us some roti and some curry to devour, atleast I did. He also gave another bag to Maan with some camping essentials.

Maan:"Take everything you need. We wont come back for the night."

I had to repack the stuff I needed for the night and we got going immediately.

We exited the house and went around the back. We took the clearing that was close to the house. It was dense and we had to cut through some of the wines and jumped about some shrubs. This was no trail for after covering some distance, I read a "Prohibited" board. I was scraed but I didn't express the fear to him and make him feel that I didn't trust him on this trip. We didn't talk much for we had to concentrate on the path we were taking and carefully gauge where we were to place our next step, else it would call for an impending trip to the doctor's office.

We reached another clearing and from there it was a trek downwards through rocks cut as steps. It was wet and mossy at areas. He asked me to hold him by his shoulder as we climbed down. About 20 mts down the rock stairs; he pulled me in front of him and closed my eyes. I wasn't sure how to take the next step.

Maan:"It's flat now…just go ahead"

I followed and we were on slushy ground for I could feel my feet sink into the mud as I took every step. I couldn't feel the leaves from the nearby trees or shrubs on my skin. We must be in a much larger clearing as I could also feel the light on my eyes through his fingers. As I moved closer, I heard the sound of water. It was a contant hum and sang to me to pull me closer. He stopped me by tugging me using his hands that were still blocking my view. He slowly removed his fingers and my lids fluttered to open up to take in the view he wanted to be a surprise.

If he was my paradise, this was the paradise of the physical world. I turned to look at him for I was bewildered to grasp if something like this could exist on earth. My eyes were still wide with surprise. I would need ten pairs of eyes to take in this beauty. There was no way man could create anything like it and this to me proved the existence of babaji in every realm. There were no douts, no fears, no inhibitions for this was a place to come to have the personal self destroyed to become one with the living force that connected this world. Money and possessions didn't make sense here, for I had realized the one truth of life, just by laying my eyes at this sight. The truth that came to me was profound for it was not my realization and this very place had given it to me that I was tiny, small and that my problems didn't mean anything to all that lay infront of me, that this place would stay the same way, that I wouldn't matter if I lived or perished in sorrows, that I didn't own anything for I didn't belong here…it reminded me I was just visitng this PLACE.

I was now seated on a rock and the gentle waves of the water was hitting my shoe and forming ripples that were spreading to make bigger ripples. Time had come to a stop here. He was watching me or rather observing me. I lifted my head to check where we were. We were at the base of a huge mountain and it was a single piece of black rock with trees and plants branching out from its crevices. The rocks were shiny from it had a thin layer of water sliding down to pour out of the cresent shaped base the mountain had formd. Ferns and shurbs adorned the place as colorful butterflies stuck to wild flowers. I couldn't see the top of the mountain as the tall trees blocked my sight up above. The sunrays appeared like streamers and ribbons of light that made its way through the dense trees and wines. The water that collected at the base was a turquoise green and it had eroded the nearby rocks to form smooth round rocks and they now appeared like giant pebbles. I took off my shoes to step into the water and to my surprise they were clear for I could see my feet even as it was a few feet down. The smooth white sand sunk my feet as I walked in. He moved on to set up the tent before we lost the light for the grey clouds could pull put from the horizon any moment. I walked out of the water and helped him with the little knowledge I had about setting up tents.

Maan:"Itni chup kyon ho…"

Geet:"Pata nahin, yahan pe baat karne ne liye bhi dar lag raha hain…kahin yeh khwaab tho nahin.."

He looked up and spoke on.

Maan:"That is what I felt when Bijoy showed me the place for the first time. I was backpacking across the Himalayan foothills when for some reason I turned inward and came here. I met Bijoy at a tea shop and then the next day I came here."

He moved to drive the tent pegs into the ground. The tent was halfway up and it looked snug for a cozy night. I came close to him to hold onto the ropes as he hammered the pegs to drive them deep into the earth. We were done with one and as he moved onto the next, he continued to add to what he was telling me before.

Maan:"I wanted to bring you here to see if you felt the same way about this place as I did. I come here everytime I come to India, just to remind myself of the simplicity of life. You can get lost in the mad rat race…in Delhi, in NY…anywhere for that matter. This place gives you perspective…teaches you to reorganize your priorities"

Geet:"Thank you. It helps me too"

We were done.

Maan:"Accha, what did it teach you?"

I simply smiled as I dusted my hands to get the mud off of it. I turned to look at the thick layer of clay that was stuck to my feet and the lower end of my capri.

Geet:"Vuff…" I sighed.

Maan:"I don't think it has taught you anything…not yet"

He came close to me as he grabbed damp mud or more like clay in his hands. He quickly pulled me close and smeared the mud on my face and clothes. I had to get back at him. I ran to grab the damp clay from the same spot and turned to go back to him. I didn't have to, he was already right behind me. I pushed him with my hands and I slipped to fall on him and smeared him with mud on his clothes and on his nose. He looked like a clown and I for sure was already one. We got into a mud fight. I had never been in one. I had once slipped and fallen into a rice paddy, but this was nothing like it. I was gasping for breath and he was too for we were running and chasing each other. The campsite infront of the tent was now strewn with mounds of dirt that we had flung at each other.

Geet:"Bahuth hogaya Maan…please…ab mujse nahin hoga."

We sat next to each other on the ground and bent our legs at the knees to let just our feet rest in the water. He turned to look at me and we were stil gasping for breath.

Maan:"Hot chocolate…"

It truly was. I had never seen him be this playful before. It takes time for him to take his layers off and I was glad I was one step closer to him. He took of his shirt and vest and jumped into the water. He swam a little further and turned to talk to me.

Maan:"The water is not that cold, but….can you come in though?"

Yes I had come prepared for it. I walked in and swam to stop behind him. He was trying the wash off the mud off his body. I walked to him as my feet could still feel the ground. I looked down, and the water was still clear even at this depth for I could see my feet on the white sand. I went close to him and held him from behind. That was the first time I had held him that way. He stopped for he didn't expect that either. He turned and held me by my waist. My shirt was floating up and his hands guided itself to hold me just above my capri, by the narrowest part of my waist. My face turned away from him unable to bear the touch of his hand on my skin and he rested his forhead by the side of my face, right above my ears. His breath was warm but the closeness smoldered the tips of my ears. He removed his hand to lift my chin and face him. I faced him to look him in the eye and his gaze was that of passion driven by a sense of need. I was unable to cater to his needs at that moment. I broke off and tried to walk away. He pulled me closer and I slipped into the water. I was inside now. He dipped inside and his hands reached out to hold me. I tried to stand myself up and walked further into the water. The water level rose to my chin and I kept walking until it had reached just below my nose. My lips were covered with water and I was tight lipped to keep the water from getting inside. He walked to the same spot and pulled my head, back and kissed me on my lips. As he kept kissing me, he slowly unbuttoned my shirt and threw it to the shore. It landed on the rock nearby. His hands went around me to relieve me from all the clothing from the top part of my body and once again threw them to the shore. I came close to him, before his eyes could steal a look of my half naked self. He took my hands and locked it around his neck. He bent me and held my neck gently from behind and layered my wet skin with his kisses. I was now inside the water and he was immersed too. We floated as he kept holding onto me. We were moving and flowing along with the water and tumbled on top of the each other occasionally as he continued kissing me. We were in harmony with all the nature that was around us. It was dark now. We must have kept at it for a long time. The water was getting cold for me to handle and the showers were starting. He walked out of the water and I covered my chest with my hands crossed. Before I could walk out, he took my shirt and brought it back it to me. I walked back into the water to wear it and then came out. We were sitting on the rock to see if we could dry off a bit before we got into the tent. I didn't want to loose out on the only dry place around.

There was natural light at the place even when the dark clouds had stolen the moon for themselves.

Geet:"What do you think you would be doing if we were not married 3 days ago?"

He thought about it before he could answer me.

Maan:"I would have been in NY and what time is it? At office…It's Valentine's day…so I guess I would have just stuck to office and home then… thinking why you wouldn't call me even though you needed me…"

I was mad…playful mad.

Geet:"So you knew I needed you…common…I didn't give it away. You couldn't have guessed it before I told you."

Maan:"Are you crazy? I kissed you on New year…and on your birthday I had crossed all limits and yet you didn't slap me. And you are telling me you didn't give it away."

He was lying down on the rock and I rested on his shoulder. The rains started but we continued to lie there. It was strange for the rain didn't bother me anymore.

Geet:"But I didn't kiss you back like this…"

Before he could say anything, I got on top of him and kissed him feverishly. He kissed me back. His hand slid through the back of shirt and explored my bare back. We let go of each other mutually and I moved down to rest once again on his shoulder.

Maan:"You will one day create a monster out of me…"

He laughed…

Maan:"Haan…true you never kissed me…but your eyes always kept talking to me and I knew it the day you held onto my fingers when you dropped those printouts in the hallway…"

I was shocked.

Geet:"No way…it was the second day of office Maan…I couldn't have…I mean at that time…I was still"

I didn't know how or what to tell him. It meant I had liked someone else while I was married to another.

He turned to check on me and the water was trickling down through his face.

Maan:"I didn't mean to say something to hurt you…it's just that we were meant to be. It didn't matter who had come and gone in our lives, we were supposed to end up together. I needed you…lo…does that make you happy... here look at me…"

He turned my face to meet his.

Maan:"I have already told you, that yeh shaadi, papers…its all nothing when the couple stop loving each other…at that time you were not making any mistake…what can you do, you were obviously so drawn to me…I was hot…don't deny it"

We laughed. He always managed to make any situation light for me when I was distressed.

Geet:"Hot?...Please don't deny that you were staring at me all the time…main jahan pe bhi javoon, your eyes would follow me…that day when we went to buy Daadiji pearls…you were drooling in the car. You couldn't make left from right"

Maan:"Accha hisab kitab rak rahi hain…ok..lets do it. You were the first one to hold me when you drank and slipped that night we went out for dinner"

Geet:"Meer told me you never went out for dinners with them, until I came along. It doesn't count, you had already fallen for me"

Maan:"Hold on you were behind me to get that shirt when I didn't want it, you had given it away right there"

Geet:"Another one, just because I asked you if you were following me at the coffee shop, you made me run behind you…when do you think ego acts up, only when people you hold close affect you? And that was just the second day"

He was a little mad perhaps, our conversation had moved to a serious tone.

Maan:" Ok do you want the truth? Here it goes. I needed you the first moment I saw you in my cabin. I thought you were the girl Daadima had sent over and wanted to marry you right there…"

He closed his eyes and his hand was rubbing his forhead. What had I done babaji?

Maan:"I was a total pervert to have wanted you even after I knew you were married…Well you know now…"

I got up and turned to remove his hand from his forhead. Now the rain was washing down my face and the water was drippoing onto his face.

Geet:"What does it make me to have wanted, to hold onto your fingers, when you shook my hands for the first time in your cabin?"

He was surprised that I came out with something like that.

Maan:"Geet…don't say…"

I placed my hands on his lips and shut him.

Geet:"I wanted you badly everytime I saw you. I drank that weekend because I was fighting the attraction towards you"

I went back to lie down on the rock.

Maan:"And I waited for you ping me the next day. I knew you would need me."

Geet:"And I did and that's why without my knowledge my heart spoke out the excuse to go shopping"

Maan:"I was crazy for you when you forced me to open up to you…over that hot chocolate theory of yours"

He kissed me on the lips and his hand came and rested around my waist.

Geet:"And I wasn't all that scared to walk on the other side of central park, but I wanted to take the longer route with you"

Maan:"And I wanted to hug you when you had held me from behind. I missed you in office when I didn't see you in office the next day. I was thinking of reasons to come see you that day"

Geet:"I had forgotten about you during those couple of hours of drama on our way to Toronto. But when I saw the window I used to wait for someone to show up to care for me…when I used to be alone at home, that is when it struck me I had you right by my side and why I was searching for someone else all along. At that time I didn't even know if you liked me this way, but I didn't mind for I was content with the care that you had given me that night"

He rested his head by the side and I turned to face him. We kissed once again as we were opening up to each other.

Maan:"When you held my hand at the gym sit-out…I wanted to take you in my arms and comfort you…but we were still bound by our boundaries then"

Geet:"I would have hugged you in Vegas that night, but I controlled and instead just…"

He understood.

Maan:"I wanted to kiss your ears when you wore those water lilly earings"

Geet:"I stole the picture in which we were together"

Maan:"I didn't have a way to get you a phone and so I made up that fake emergency to get you the phone from office"

I took my hand and cupped his hand as we lay there on the rock in the rain.

Geet:"I felt that you have given me everything there was when you have me the keys to the apartment. That scared me and I walked away…but you didn't leave it there, you convinced me to take the one thing I yearned for the most and when I got it from you…"

Maan:"I made you feed me…I felt cheap when I forced you to do it…and when you lay down next to me in Bed, bath and beyond…I was done fighting. I had succumbed to the attraction. I ran away to the Canyons. I sat there and it came to me that I loved you no matter what…it didn't matter if you would love me back or not."

I kissed him on his forehead.

Geet:"I wanted to wear the rock quartz around my neck as a pendant, but hesitated and made it as a charm for a bracelet…I wanted that piece of you…that was mine, no matter what was to happen in the future"

He smiled.

Maan:"You had no idea how much I resisted staying away from you ever since I knew I loved you…At my birthday…at the breakfast place, but you would always wound up right next to me. When I had made you stay at the penthouse to resolve our issues, I had to force myself to get up and walk away from you. I watched you sleep atleast for 2 hours"

Geet:"I came out of the room to watch you sleep too…early that morning…"

Maan:"When you took care of me when I had Mono…you seemed like my…"

He smiled. I knew what he meant.

Maan:"but I knew you were still out of my reach"

Geet:"You were everything to me, how could have I left you to suffer alone Maan? I stayed back on my own will and prayed you wouldn't send me back to the apartment"

Maan:"At the dance class when you danced for the first time, you had said it all in your eyes"

Geet:"I was dying there because the instructor asked me to picture the scene where I had found out just that moment that I was in love with a guy and that I was never going to meet him after that instant…obviosuly, you were the one who played in my mind"

Maan:"I wanted to tease you that night. I purposefully went down on my knees"

We laughed.

Geet:"I walked out by of the exhibit because, I couldn't control my feelings for you. I wanted to come out with it right there"

Maan:"And my life was being sucked out of me slowly…for every moment you were away from me"

Geet:"I thought I had lost everything after that, but you breathed life into me again"

Maan:"You were my Christmas keepsake that year, when you came back to me. I knew you were mine, when you had not shown the papers to anyone but me"

Geet:"It was my best New year ever when you told me you loved me…"

He came on top of me and kissed me. His love was wrapping me up for the rain had washed away all the layers that were there between us until then. He moved to his side and I cuddled into him and rested my hand on his bare chest. His hand slid underneath me and held me by my waist.

Maan:"I came to India because I didn't have the heart to see you leave"

Geet:"I could have managed Darji's situation from there, but I needed that excuse to see you"

We looked at each other and he kissed my forehead.

Maan:"I didn't know what I would have done to Brij, for hurting you..perhaps have him thrown in jail and have no records that he was ever arrested…then no one can get him out"

I smiled at his brain's capacity to hatch such evil plans.

Maan:"But you changed things when you declared your feelings for me. I wanted to find out how it felt like and so I jumped into the pool just like you did"

Geet:"Oh! That explains what you were doing in the pool. I wanted to kiss you back when you kissed me on my birthday."

I was shy for I turned and buried my head into his shoulder.

He moved his hand up my back, underneath my shirt and pulled my neck to face me. We turned together to lie on our sides.

Maan:"I wanted to propse with the ring in that shop…Had you accepeted me then, perhaps we could have face the media. The frustration I couldn't propose to you added to that tension. I wanted to take you away from the whole world when that fiasco happened."

Geet:"I'm sorry it came across that I held you responsible…but I still feel we coud have done it differently. You didn't let me speak and assumed I blamed you. After we left hosiarpur, you were the only family I could rely on…but"

Maan:"I know I left, because I couldn't stand there to see you like that and still not let me come close to you. You stubbornness drove me crazy"

Geet:"I would have stared at that messenger for hours to trick me into sending me a message from you. I was crazy for you too."

Maan:"I would have married eitherways just to make sure I own you one way or the other. There that's the evil side of me talking"

Geet:"It was the most beautiful wedding ever…after that I think you know pretty much…oh! but I wanted to know something.."

I wanted to ask him about his choice of stay and mode of travel to Sohra and also about the contrast in gifts he had gotten me.

Geet:"I didn't understand the cotton saree and that expensive gift side by side, The Bellagio stay and this one in bijoy's place. We went to Bloomingdale's in your Ashton Martin and we travelled here in a broken down bus…you are just hard to predict…what is this about? This contrast you show…"

He smiled at my question.

Maan:"It wouldn't be nice to come down here in an expensive car and ask you to enjoy this place. Your focus will not be in the beauty, but on the bugs, the slush and mud and the screeching insects. The gift…I just picked up what I liked and felt I should give you…that would look good on you too. If I feel this mud would look good on you…."

He picked up some and smeared it on my neck and chest.

Maan:"I would have given it…It's another way of saying, I'm pretty much stubborn…I need what I need…"

We laughed together and it echoed, as the whole place was quiet now. The rain had stopped and we were sort of dry, but I had to go and wash off the mud, so I was not going to escape the wetness anytime soon.

I walked into the water and he followed. We walked deep and the water levels were waist deep. He turned me and had me hold him by his neck as he held me by my waist.

Maan:"So now you know why that song meant so much to me…it all started with that one look that disturbed me at the airport…Thanks to the one look from you…"

I caressed his cheek.

Geet:"And thanks to this night that brought us together"

He locked his lips with mine and we stayed that way for a long time. The clouds cleared and the moon rays streamed through the shoots and the wines on the trees around. The silence engulfed us for a while but then the crickets chirped to let us know that we were not alone. We swayed just like we had in the swimming pool. He opened the buttons of my shirt but left the third one from top so as not to make me uncomfortable again. He felt my skin as he continued kissing me. I immersed myself in the water once again and he followed…we tried to belong to the place we were at tonight.

<Maan's monologue>

Our physical needs didn't matter…warmth, dry comforts or food had disappeared from our minds and neither did time exist anymore as we floated away into the depths of the water. Some valuts will now stay open forever for all the locks that held them close, have been washed away by the nature that ruled this place. It drove us to be the simple selves infront of each other. There were no more masks. The beauty that radiated crawled into us and peeled the layers of truth that stayed hidden from each other all this while. The mystry of this place demystified us.

Hello people, I think everytime I say this is the longest ever written, the next one becomes even longer. I was so taken back by the beauty of this place and have indulged myself in writing about it. Also coming to Maan and Geet, I wanted them to open up in a place about their secrets in a place as beautiful as their love and hence the camping trip. Hope you all liked it and didn't get bored. I thought I will take a break from all the touch writing, but unfortunately I keep going that track again and again. This week is going to be crazy with work and my NY trip. Expect less updates. Please post and comment. Tell me if anyone is going to go to Cherrapunji because of this. It's still one of the untouched places in India. I will explore more in the next post. Comments, please.

Edited....

Hasini,

uffff..just finished reading in one breat,....

awsome ..love it..do continue plz.