Maryada: Vidya-Gaurav FF - Updates. p. 145 (6/29) - Page 25

Paradox of Infinity.
"And she wondered if he still had any relationship with her..."
She is more calm than me...I give it to her for being the deep waters that never ripples even when she has the gravest questions of all.
Well I'm still waiting to discover Vidya...what excites her apart from Maths and other things of course...
The puzzle style to end the update was nice...but at the time I had read the update...I didn't know Vidya sought to Math to relieve her tensions. :)

A brush with water.
"Treat your wife well, Gaurav. It's easy for a woman to fall in love with you. You don't make it hard at all..."
He is supportive, watchful and protective I have to say. But not sure I don't doubt salome at all. They are more friends than anything else. I will comment once Gaurav is more of himself with Vidya.
For now SSP is like the low rumble before the thunderstorm(s)...what is he capable of with his Bahu is something to wait and watch. How much lower can the man go really?

Laws of Attraction
Actually I remember the time I had read the title and had let my imagination run wild. :)
Its funny really where Vidya seeks refuge to hide from her shyness. I wonder what integrals she will write up when the big day between the two arrives. Not sure if he gets to her masters or not...I foresee Gaurav burying his head into books more so to get to her.

The Liar Paradox
I hate all talks at women's convention. Over exaggeration is what I have for them. Gaurav has timing...math puzzle at the nook? :) He is caught up to her alright...but munda really needs to teach her other ways to ease her out.
But really Devi...I was expecting to see big changes by Chapter 20...Like the revelation...:) I'm evil that way.

Killing me softly.
Once again, excellent title.
"She had said that it was the first time anyone had offered her help without expecting anything in return" Not sure if there is a story behind that.
When it comes to that, does she question all the help Gaurav has been offering even since they got married...like the help with her Masters? It would be interesting to know her thoughts about that.
Ok...something kicked him there..."He was definitely lying to himself" But we are yet to see the repercussions of that :(
Dying of loving Salome?...Hmmm

Inertia.
By now all my middle school fundamentals have been thoroughly brushed... :)
But I salute for how beautifully you have been presenting such coarse topics with the story. Thanks.
SSP...again. Mentally making a note to ignore him for now.
"Don't walk around the house alone at night, Vidya..." He can try all he wants to put it mildly...but that's plain eerie.
Rest - Is anything really at rest at all? Its only relative to the observer :) so when you apply an unbalanced force to a body that is in motion, will the path of the resulting vector be favorable or unfavorable?
In other words...are they ready to handle whatever that will come out of it?
I literally suspected a domestic coup...they are speaking code for heaven's sake.

Salome
The mom questions in that topic sure are annoying. A very classic Indian mother.
Animal Farm :) I like.
This was more of a "Here comes Salome..." part. Nice.

Salome Part 2.
History has more weird events that we cannot possibly think of attempting in the current times. That's my take there.
How close is this update to the story? There are parallels that you want us to draw from the vile Herodias and Salome for sure. But how about the other characters? Like the Dummy King.
I always knew John the Baptist was beheaded...but now the story behind it is clear too. Thanks for providing food for thought along with your updates.
"For all that he is SSP Brahmanand Jhaakar, my father is afraid of Salome." That's not the painting now. It can't be that literal, or is it?

Salome Part 3
Her Mom is definitely one of a kind.
Yup I expected the Magdalene story to come up. This part of the history is like Roshomon...how do you know which story is true?
So what should Gaurav be named? Will Vidya be the one to give him one...Perhaps this is more of who helps him get more closer to himself.
Destiny...so when it comes to the paths and the choices he makes...who is he moving towards...
And the pendulum oscillates.

I hope they have dinner and not solve puzzles :). But if they still need something to solve please let them solve the mysteries that they carry forth in their hearts. I'm all eyes for it (I will read it no matter what...and you know that)
Thanks Devi for the wonderful ride so far. Now I have to say...I'm that brimming dam that is about to burst unable to contain all the questions it holds. (You probably already counted them :) ) You writing is charming and the way you lead us towards the end of the update... to the point you want to make is very quite witty in some and beautiful in others. A combination, that is rare to find in the forum.
The last couple of updates - Blissful summer afternoons by the window.
Guess I just gave you a run for the money on the length of the post. 😊

Originally posted by: 6thElement

"She had said that it was the first time anyone had offered her help without expecting anything in return" Not sure if there is a story behind that.
When it comes to that, does she question all the help Gaurav has been offering even since they got married...like the help with her Masters? It would be interesting to know her thoughts about that.

Chapter 26: The Truth

He looked at the calendar that afternoon while at work. He had been married five months and had yet to see Salome in person. After that one month that she had requested off after bringing her mother home with her, she had requested another month and then another. He texted her twice a week religiously, even though her replies were now more and more delayed, until his last text had been one to bring her to task for her evasions.

"Do you ever plan to see me again?"

It had taken her two days to respond to him and then she had written back saying,

"Gaurav, ask yourself truly, do you really want to see me?"

"What sort of question is that?" He had written back, agitated at her tendency nowadays to answer a question with a question.

"You are angry and you are ignoring my question. I am sure your mother chose well when she picked your wife. So, let me ask again. Do you really want to see me? Or are you just afraid that I will think your love is fickle if you don't keep up this twice per week texting ritual?"

He had initially thought about not answering her, wanting to remain irate. But then again, she had always been frighteningly good at honing in on his weakest spots.

"Salome, do you think my love is fickle? Be truthful." There were moments now when this question came back to haunt him with increasing frequency and so he posed it to her.

"Rather than answer that, let me tell you what I think about the truth, as you call it. Truth is only as good as the questions you ask, Gaurav. And sometimes, when you don't know what questions to ask, you never get to the truth at all."

He thought he would pull his hair out at that moment.

"Salome, stop being cryptic! It's hard enough to do this over this absurd medium without you writing in riddles."

"You think this would be easier done in person?" She wrote back.

"What exactly are we doing?" He asked her, now knowing without a doubt that this had been her plan all along.

"You know what we are doing, Gaurav. You've been wanting to do this for a while, but I know you… you never will. You love me unconditionally and you're loyal to a fault. You would never have left me on your own. Loving me would not only cause you to gray prematurely (I don't have to worry about balding, as your hair is literally like 3 shrubs-full. Yes, yes, I am known for my ill-timed humor), you would also likely expire from a premature cardiac arrest or aneurysm. We can only handle one such person in our life; someone who sucks up so much of our flesh and blood – and yours is your mother. She will not leave your father because of her misguided honor. But she will not survive long without you as her life's energy. Remember what I told you before… destiny is still yours to make, Gaurav. And for that, we cannot be together."

Despite the troubling revelation about his love for her a few months back when Vidya had asked him the Liar Paradox, Salome's current proclamation did not bring any relief. In fact, he felt it quite strongly in his chest; like someone was squeezing all the blood out of it.

"You don't think my love is strong enough?" He had written back.

As he waited for her answer, he wished that she would not again write a riddle or ask a cryptic question, because he really wanted to know the answer. He wanted her to tell him what he felt... He trusted her judgment better than his own.

"Gaurav, you are the only man I know whose love is strong enough to supersede the bindings of romantic love. Haven't you figured this out already? Romantic love is the most conditional love there is… and it should be. You have to expect to receive love in return; without it, you leave yourself at the other's mercy and your belief in their character. That sort of belief is given freely when you don't have much life experience. The closest approximation of unconditional love, I have heard, is what a mother has for a child; forgive me when I say that I don't believe that, but then again, my belief is obviously colored by my own experience. So, yes, Gaurav, the long and the short of it is… think of this as a graduation… you've officially been moved up from the trappings of romantic love."

"Sometimes I don't know if you mean what you say or whether you are just patronizing me." He wrote back honestly.

She waited a bit before answering, but she was deadly serious for once, her answer not laced in the least bit with her at times caustic wit.

"Gaurav, listen to me. We cannot be together. But that fact doesn't mean anything. We have a bond that has always been there and will always be there. It can never be broken. Not by your wife and not by anyone who tries, not even us. You have to believe me on this. I pray that we never meet again, if for nothing, then for the sake of your wife. I fear that if there would ever be such an occasion, it may not be a pleasant one. I won't say that I love you now, because I abhor that word… you may have guessed before. But whatever that emotion is and if there is any truth to it, the only human being that I feel that for is you. Don't text me anymore."

----------------------

Also reading.
Great update :)

Salome confuses me...and I pity Gaurav for falling in love with her because he can't get over her..and thats not her fault ..(but because I have joined "Vidya" club, I cannot sympathize towards Salome)😆
On the other hand...
I'm glad it was her he loves because she sincerely wishes he moves on .." I pray that we never meet again, if for nothing, then for the sake of your wife" ..any other girl would have jumped on the oppurtunity that her lover still wants her..but Salome has put her foot down and told him to stop texting her...
Ok now I dont even make sense...

loved the updates Devi..thanks!

R

I like Salome. :) She is practical and sensible and wants him to move on but her replies to Gaurav are cryptic and not enough for him to move on. Maybe its the feeling of not wanting him to let go off but wanting him to move on coz they have no future together?

Wow...thats quite a deep update...!! Loved it...! Still unraveling in my mind..! Thanks for the PM...

With this latest update, this FF is now by far the best you've written.

I find Salome's cryptic responses a subconscious way of keeping Gaurav bonded to her in some way.