From & To Sathish #5 - Page 97

Avan, Aval, Adhu 328

It had been a few days since he had sat on the bench and spoken to the sun as it settled down in the west. There was a reason why Ravi Kumar never missed a sunset and that reason was Madhurima herself. Love is capable of wonders and miracles and at the same time, it does make a person a bit weird and strange.

Ravi's obsession with the sunset had begun from the time he had learnt that Madhu was not in Kolkotta and that she was now married and settled in Mumbai. From that moment on, he had become obsessed with the setting sun for he somehow believed that all his wishes and prayers that he whispered secretly to the vanishing sun would be transported to Madhu who would see the sunset for a little longer while than him. A few seconds more than him since Mumbai was in the western part of India.

It is similar to how I wish and pray for the safety of some of my loved ones who live in Australia and on whom the sun rises before it rises on me. As the sun sets, I whisper my star to watch over my favourite people and wish them a pleasant day. Weird but then love is and just so you know, God is too. Weird and strange.

Ravi looked into the house and wondered if he should inform his mother before leaving for the site and his favourite place. It was just two km from his house and Ravi's head was full of thoughts about Madhu. He knew it had been her that had kissed him and had used the Sanjeevani Mudra to wake him up but then she had left as mysteriously as she had arrived.

There were many questions that remained unanswered and the first one was how had Madhu known about his condition. Who had informed her and why?

' Maybe she saw some news or via some social platform that one of the students posted and came here to see how I was doing and probably overheard what my condition was and revived me.'

Ravi looked at the fading light and sighed and said in a sad voice, ' Have you returned to Mumbai and back to your chosen life without saying goodbye? Maybe it is for the best, Madhu. I doubt if my heart can take the pain of seeing you leave me once again. My heart can fight poison and even cheat death but when it comes to you, both I and my heart are weak and powerless.'

He stood up with his mind made up and quietly opened the bamboo gate and slipped out of the compound and quickly disappeared into the trees.

It is a magical time the twilight for it is neither day nor night but evening and there is heightened anticipation as creatures of the day start to retreat home to the safety of their branches, and burrows and as us humans to our houses. It is that time when creatures of the dark and of the night rouse themselves and rise to go about their business of living.

The man called Spartan calmly walked forward and stopped and stood with his hand hanging loosely by his side. The seven men stopped and stared at him and one man stepped forward and yelled gruffly, ' who are you and what are you doing here?'

' What I am doing here is none of your business? But I am curious to know more about you and your business and what you are doing here on government property?'

Maruthu had been informed both by Meenakshi and Selvam, the watchman of the site that along with their target there would be a cop who was obviously her escort.

Maruthu stared at him and the man stared back. ' Listen we are seven of us and we are all armed and to answer your question, we all are in the killing business.'

Some of Maruthu's accomplices began to grumble and complain that they were wasting time chatting to a cop who was all alone and that they should get going by killing him and the woman they were after.

' Boss, it will get dark soon and I have heard a lot of weird tales about this place. I can take on ten or more men in a fight but I am not too comfortable in such creepy places. So, please, let's get a move on.'

Maruthu looked at Spartan, ' You heard my men and what they want to do. You look like a decent young man to me and that is why I am going to let you run away without hurting you. Leave now and save yourself and let us do our job in peace. I will make it look like she died in an accident. Tripped and fell and hit her head.'

Smiling like the devil itself, ' You police dogs are used to all those false FIRs. What's one more to you or to your department? Tell them that you advised the woman not to come here and that she refused to heed your advice and forced you to bring her here and well, bad luck for sh.t happens anywhere and anytime.'

The man whom Madhurima had named Spartan shook his head, ' I am sorry to disappoint you but nothing is going to happen here and I think it is better that you turn and walk away from here right now before I get upset and before I lose my cool and do something silly.'

Maruthu smiled and the others joined him and he looked at Spartan and said, ' Little one, this is not some mass fight scene in one of your cheesy Tamil or Telugu films. This is real and that means you will die and you will see yourself dying as we chop off your fingers, and hands and cut out your brave tongue.'

The man who had complained about creepy places spoke and his words changed everything.

' Boss, let us have some fun with the woman before we finish her and let us make this brave young dog watch as we take turns f..king her.'

All of them felt their bodies tingle and vibrate and some of them panicked wondering if they had accidentally stepped on some buried live wire that had been exposed and jumped up in the air like cartoon characters.

Then all of them realising that they were unarmed questioned each other, ' Did you feel it? I felt it. What was that? Must have been the wind or something. This place gives me the creeps. Let's finish up and get out.'

It had darkened even further and the little light that was coming from the west found the trees too much of a barrier to cross over in its weakened state and thus scattered all around them and lay in a dull and diffused state.

Maruthu and his men turned their attention to the tall man who they found had removed his jacket while they had been examining themselves after having felt the strange vibration that had left them all spooked.

They saw him carefully place the jacket on a nearby branch of a mango tree and then he looked at them and whispered, ' Children, I was requested not to get involved and I tried my best to stay out of trouble. Honestly, I did, but, you kids leave me with no options but to teach you proper manners and importantly not to talk ill about women.'

In the gloom of the twilight and in the fast descending darkness, Maruthu and his men saw the man's eyes suddenly glow green and then they saw something moving on his forearms and that was all that they saw and would remember.

For Azhagan moved and before their minds could even process his movement, he was upon them and it was too late.

Avan, Aval, Adhu 329

“Silence has its own language and in that silence, he found words within himself; words for her, words for him, and words for them.”

Time does not stop for anyone and it marches on at its own pace. The sun stays in the same place and it is the earth that orbits around it creating seasons and spins on its own axis creating sunrise and sunsets. Maybe it is so but in our short time on this planet, it is nice to escape reality and suspend laws that govern gravity and its stars and galaxies.

Everything is an illusion. Life itself is temporary and yet creates the illusion of eternity. Maybe, somewhere mother nature decided to hardwire us and bless us with the secret secretion of hormones that keeps us on a permanent high and keeps us rooted in the Maya of life.

Just imagine the mental state of human beings and how they would react if they realized that death was coming to them or to their loved ones at any moment. Do you think it is even possible to live a sane life if one is gripped by the thought of dying? No, there would be chaos and madness all around. I even doubt it there would have been the rise of great civilizations that have brought us to where we are today. Instead, we would have all been reduced to sniveling and whimpering mutts preoccupied with death and how to face it.

Ravi pushed the branches aside and stepped out onto the edge of the mangrove and to the fields that ran right up to the face of the setting sun. His eyes saw the fading sun and his eyes saw his universe sitting there on the bench wearing that familiar beautiful smile that he remembered from nearly 25 years ago.

' Jaanu' she whispered and he replied his whisper, ' Madhuji.'

Lost for words, she looked at the bench and at the sky and the setting sun and said, ' This is beautiful, Jaanu. Do you...?'

' Thank you. Yes and nearly every day without fail.'

Her eyes were brighter than the sun in its light and in its warmth as she asked, ' Were you expecting to find me here?'

' No. Not here and honestly not ever.'

She immediately understood why he had said those words and deciding to tackle the issue about her being single and a widow at a later moment, she asked him, ' But you knew that I had come to the hospital.'

Ravi nodded, ' Yes. You and I are the only ones who know that particular technique and then there your... ' he stopped and looked at her for a second and turned away.

' I am sorry, Jaanu. But, I could not help myself. I was seeing you after so many years and it was not just a..'

' I know, Madhuji ' his words interrupted her and she looked at him with a pleasant smile, ' I know your kiss was not just a kiss but a breath of life and it worked.'

Pointing to the bench, Ravi asked her if he could sit with her for a while. ' Don't worry about my health. I am okay. It's just that my head and my heart feel kind of overwhelmed from seeing you and I feel a bit breathless.'

' Jaanu, this is your place, your bench and I am the one who is intruding into your privacy.'

Ravi smiled and said, ' My privacy, Madhuji. No. It is our privacy ' and looked at the fading and fast disappearing pink and orange and said, ' this is where I sit and talk to you and wish you good night every night and I have done that for the past 25 years. Maybe not here at this exact point for that would have been difficult when I had to go off to college and all that.'

Both sat next to each other and just like that the distance and the break of 25 years had vanished. It was like they had never been separated by life and by time.

Like back in school days, Madhu turned to him and in a naughty voice asked him about how his Bengali had fared after she had left. ' Are you still in touch with my language, Jaanu ?'

' I hope so and at least I think so.'

' Okay then, Jaanu ' and pointing to the west and pointing to the skies that were losing their little light and were filling up with the darkness of night, ' Just the two of us here. Say something in Bengali. Impress me. It does not matter if it is just one line or two but speak it in my tongue. Unless you are not in the mood.'

He looked at her with surprise and asked, ' seriously?'

' Seriously, I will postpone it and give you a few days or even a few weeks and maybe you will be ready by then.'

' Madhuji, when I said seriously, what I actually meant to say was, " Are you really testing me for I am ready right now?'

' Right now, Jaanu? Right this moment?'

' Yes, Madhuji. I have been ready all my life and sometimes I feel I have been ready for thousands of lives to see you again.'

" I seem to have loved you in numberless forms, numberless times...

In life after life, in age after age, forever.

My spellbound heart has made and remade the necklace of songs,

That you take as a gift, wear round your neck in your many forms,

In life after life, in age after age, forever.

Whenever I hear old chronicles of love, it's age old pain,

It's ancient tale of being apart or together.

As I stare on and on into the past, in the end you emerge,

Clad in the light of a pole-star, piercing the darkness of time.

You become an image of what is remembered forever.

You and I have floated here on the stream that brings from the fount.

At the heart of time, love of one for another.

We have played along side millions of lovers,

Shared in the same shy sweetness of meeting,

the distressful tears of farewell,

Old love but in shapes that renew and renew forever.

Today it is heaped at your feet, it has found its end in you

The love of all man's days both past and forever:

Universal joy, universal sorrow, universal life.

The memories of all loves merging with this one love of ours

And the songs of every poet past and forever.”

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=96jBpO-cRn8

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vUb6Ie-LzUA&t=12s

https://youtu.be/ru4siOFyZNE

Avan, Aval, Adhu 330

“If you cry because the sun has gone out of your life, your tears will prevent you from seeing the stars.”

Madhu's eyes trembled with tears and then her whole body began to shake with emotion and all the commotion that had happened over the past 25 years. Ravi threw his left arm around her and held her comfortingly and then before he knew it his right arm defied his mind and joined his left arm and became a garland around Madhu and a cradle for her to cry her soul out.

He drew her closer to himself and they stayed like that for a long time.

' Jaanu, I am finally in your arms again and we are one again. I cannot believe it. I thought my life would end without seeing you one last time.'

' Yes, Madhuji, I thought that too, but then I feel you, sense you everywhere around me and in me. So the pain, although not less is dulled and just about bearable.'

She looked at him and apologized, ' I am so sorry that I and my parents had to leave in such a hurry. Please forgive me Ravi for everything happened so fast that I barely remember anything from those first few months after having been separated from you.'

' There is nothing to forgive Madhuji for it is not your fault nor mine. We were pushed, forced into protecting ourselves.'

She slowly raised her head and looked into his eyes and said, ' There is no need for ji or for any other formality anymore. Please just call me Madhu like you used to do back then in our school days.

In the darkness, Azhagan sat hearing everything. He had never been wrong when it came to judging people. In the darkness, he heard shadows move and he whispered to them, ' Thank you for your help. There are seven of them and also their vehicle parked outside which also needs to be taken care of.'

' It will be done, my lord. Thank you for this privilege. Will you come and grace your village and us with your presence?'

Azhagan stood up and smiled and said, ' Yes. It will be my pleasure, children for it has been a long time since I have visited Perumalvaram.'

Then catching the direction in which all of them were seeing, he smiled, ' Don't worry about them. They will be all right and moreover, it is their life and their story. They are adults and they have to choose what is right for them.'

One of the warriors asked him in a respectful tone, ' Father, then why did you intervene now?'

Azhagan smiled, ' Good question, child. Maybe it is a question that you have to ask Raman who was the one who requested me to watch over her for a few days. But then these idiots popped out of the blue and left me with no choice other than stepping in between them and that poor couple.'

All of them looked up at the night sky that was nearly cloudless and wondered how it was possible, and at the same time, Madhu too looked up at the night sky in wonder and asked. ' Jaanu, where are these rains coming from for there are hardly any clouds around?'

Ravi cupped her beautiful face in his palms like one would hold a full-bloomed lotus and placed a tender kiss on her forehead and whispered, ' The skies are crying because you are crying, baby. They feel your pain and your sadness. So, they cry for you and along with you.'

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fJPvN0xzShY

Avan, Aval, Adhu 331

A simple smile, a tender touch, speaks the true language of love.

I remember this, riddle, an often flogged puzzle that I constantly heard when I was growing up and I confess that it did set my young mind to thinking hard about it. The riddle, the puzzle that I am talking about is the question " Which came first, the chicken or the egg?". Well, modern science has proved beyond doubt that the egg came first for the egg has been around for a lot longer than the chicken, duck, and humans.

The chicken or the egg question is a proxy for asking if one believes in evolution or creationism. The oldest evidence for sexual reproduction—and thus eggs—is 1.2 billion years old, while the oldest evidence for wild chickens is only about 12K years old. So if you believe in evolution then eggs came first without question. However, the bible says that God created all birds on the fifth day, but does not say that He directly created eggs. So if you believe in creationism, then the chicken definitely came first. The standard reply of not being sure which one came first is really just a polite way of ducking the question.

But our story is not about the chicken or the egg but more about love and lust and what comes first, desire or well.. love. I am sorry but don't misread my words or misunderstand my intentions for I am not trolling lust and desire. Without lust and desire, most marriages would end soon or wind up dead on the very first night.

She felt his lips on her forehead and with her eyes closed remembered his young teenage lips kissing her in the same tender and protective way all those years ago. But that was then and this was now.

' A gentleman then and a gentleman now.'

Ravi smiled and nodded, ' Maybe, but there is nothing gentle or fair about me or my life anymore.

Sighing deeply, she said, ' Jaanu, I have been thinking of this moment, this very moment when we would meet again and see each other again all these years. I was wondering, dreaming, and at the same time dreading what I was going to say to you and how to say them to you.'

' And? ' he asked her and she said, ' It's like I never went away. It's like time never stopped for us and we have remained connected with each other all that time. I thought it would be awkward and uncomfortable but it remains the same. You, us, this place, and our feelings have not changed a bit.'

She smiled and with eyes full of happy tears stared at him and when he turned his face away, she pulled him back and said, ' Please let me look at you, stare at you until your face is burnt and imprinted in my soul forever.'

Both looked at each other in the soft, bright yellow light of the full moon and she asked him, ' I can understand a few years but 25 years, Jaanu. Why? Why didn't you leave and why didn't you.....?'

Madhu knew which particular thought was dominating his thinking. She wanted to correct him and tell him everything but she knew that she had to be absolutely sure about his emotions and importantly what he wanted. It would be callous and indecent to assume anything even when it came to him, her soul, and the very meaning of her existence.'

Three men over three generations had taught her that respect was the most important fundamental part of any relationship and was the very foundation upon which all things concerning humanity were built.

In the beginning, it had been Dada, her late Grandfather who had taught her how vital respecting others and God was and then she had come to Kumarapalayam. Ravi, her Jaanu had taken her Dada's lessons and had expanded them further by his own standards. Madhu had learned so much from Ravi and from the way he respected everything around him from a tender stalk to a mighty tree. Then, Prem, her late husband had taught her that respecting others and the world was not enough and that it was equally important to respect herself, and her own thoughts and needs.

She wanted to tell him that she was single and that her heart and soul were pining for him but only if he was willing.

The look in her eyes changed shades as love changes shades and she asked as a concerned friend, ' But, Jaanu. 25 years of being on your own and drowning in your thoughts. Why did you not let me go, sweetie? I would have understood. Forget me, God himself would have understood you and probably would have helped you find the right woman.'

Ravi Kumar smiled and he slowly got to his feet and stood up and stared at the full moon and said, ' It is strange, this state called love. It is not about you understanding me or even God understanding me for in the end it is all about me and what I feel and need. Because I promised you that I would wait for you. Years, decades, it matters not, Madhuji ' Ravi said and looked at her, ' I would have gone on waiting till the end until my own spirit finally tiring of waiting and impatient to see you, would have abandoned my lifeless body and would have sought you out wherever you were.'

' Jaanu, I am sorry. I am really sorry that I could not return for you for my life went from bad to worse and that eventually led to me getting married.'

' I know Madhuji. It took me a few years but I came to Kolkotta in search of you but was told that you had shifted to Mumbai and that you had gotten married.'

The words he spoke next hit her hard and nearly broke her heart.

' That is when I gave up ' turning slightly, he looked at her and said, ' I gave up on us and our dreams but I did not give up on you.'

Madhu got up and stood next to him, ' What about Meenakshi?'

Ravi shook his head and looked at her, ' She remains the same and has not given up on me ' and pointed to his chest, ' even this I think is because of her and her madness.'

Her eyes filled with fear as memories came flooding back and in a trembling voice, ' What do we do now, Jaanu?'

' I don't know, Madhuji. But, I am going to go and meet her and talk to her and maybe hopefully something good will come out of it.'

Then he turned and faced her and said, ' Right now there is no we, Madhuji. I don't want you to get involved in this mess again. We have all suffered enough already. I have gotten used to this way of life but you ' he paused and in a strained and choking voice said, ' You have made a life for yourself. There is no need to complicate that. Not again. Not for me and anyone else.'

' Jaanu, what are you telling me, baby? Are you asking me to leave?'

Then he cupped her face as he used to and gazed at her and placed a tender kiss on her forehead, ' Leave this place but not my soul. Yes, leave Kumarapalayam before word gets to her about your return.'

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qdzbjUWu2VU

Avan, Aval, Adhu 332

The greatest happiness in the world is to make others happy. Life laughs at you when you are unhappy; Life smiles at you when you are happy; But life salutes you when you make others happy.

I, you, and all of us have known love and have made our love known in return to other souls. At least most of us. When I say love I mean as always love in all its forms. Do you remember that time when you saved up and bought that particular book and gifted it to your best friend for their Birthday? Remember how happy that friend was and pause and remember that feeling of happiness you felt seeing your friend's happiness.

Yes. Now we are on the right track. I don't know about you readers but I feel that Love is a universal emotion and the most basic fundamental law on which all living things exist and thrive.

I am sorry but I have to spin my Googly now and reveal the opposite of true happiness which is pain. Great pain.

This is very easy to explain. To put it in simple words, the pain we feel and experience when we see our loved one suffer is much greater than what we suffer when in troubled times.

It does not matter how tired and weak you are when you come back from work for all that will disappear the moment you see your child or spouse not keeping well. All your pain goes out of the window and is forgotten for your loved ones take precedence over everything. Even you. This is life and this is all too real.

For example, a dying parent taking their last gasps of breath will still try to save their child who might be in danger if it is possible.

Madhu looked at him, ' Jaanu, do you really want me to leave? After all these years of being separated from each other, we have finally met and you are asking me to leave.'

Ravi gripped her shoulders and looked at her with fear in her eyes, ' Yes, Madhuji, and there is a valid reason why I said that. Because your safety and well-being are more important to me than anything else. The life you have made for yourself is paramount and everything else takes a backseat to that.'

Madhu's eyes filled with tears and Ravi hugged her to his chest, ' Madhuji, I am alive because you are alive and well. The reason I have managed to survive and carry on all these years is that I know you are safe in Mumbai and living happily and peacefully with your family. I doubt if I can handle the pain if something should happen to you or if someone should disrespect you in any way.'

Lifting her face, ' That is why I want you to go back for there is nothing here for you, but danger, and more danger.'

She gently pushed herself away from him and looked him right in the eye and said angrily, ' Jaanu, I am not a kid anymore. I am not that teenager that you or others in Kumarapalayam knew all those years ago. I am an adult and I have seen my share of battles, losses, and pain. No one, I repeat, no one is going to scare me away and separate me from you again. For this time, I am going to fight and hit back hard. Really hard.'

Ravi hung his head in despair and said, ' Madhuji, please, not again. Let's not go back again to those confrontations again ' and slowly raised his head and looked at her, ' Have you forgotten what happened that night? Have you forgotten what Meenakshi did that night?'

In a grim voice, he asked her, ' Madhuji, do you trust me? '

She smiled, ' Yes Jaanu, more than I trust myself.'

' Good ' Ravi whispered softly and in a manner that they could only be heard by Madhurima who stood a few feet away from him. But unknownst to them, another person heard them loud and clear for Azhagan missed nothing and heard and saw everything. Even if it had nothing to do with him or his story.

' Madhuji, a lot happened after you went away. Maybe I will tell you all about it one day but not today and not here.'

' Jaanu, you are scaring me. Please, say it and be done with it. What happened after I left that night?'

' All hell broke loose and for a week this whole place was gripped with tension and terror.'

Madhu took a few steps and closed the gap between them and looked at Ravi and said, ' Don't worry about it, Jaanu. I will go and meet Mr. Sundara Lingam and apologize for attacking him that night. But he left us with no choice for it was either him or you and I obviously chose to protect you.'

She used her right hand and gently touched his cheek and said, ' Jaanu, it's been 25 years since that silly but sad night and I am sure, Meenakshi's brother would have forgotten all of it and put it behind him.'

Smiling calmly, she said, ' I will talk to him and do all the apologizing necessary and hopefully that should do it. If it does not work then we will take it from there.'

A dismayed look filled Ravi's face and seeing it, Madhu worriedly asked him, ' What now, Jaanu? Why do you look so disturbed? I told you I will go and talk to Sundara lingam.'

' Madhuji, Sundara lingam is no more.'

' What? Oh! That's sad for he was a really nice person but for the few times that he tried to beat you up and that too was because of Meenakshi. Poor guy.'

She looked up at the full moon and said, ' Sad news, he was about six or seven years older than us ' and turned to Ravi, ' What happened to him? How did he die, Jaanu?'

Ravi stood not knowing what to say or how to react to Madhu's innocent thoughts and then realizing that it had to be said for her safety was important and that he needed to get her out of Madurai as soon as possible. He thought to himself, ' If Meenakshi reacted so violently to Gayatri, God only knows how she will react or what she will do if she knows of Madhu's return to Kumarapalayam.'

Taking a deep breath, he looked at Madhu and said, ' Nobody knows how he died for his body has yet to be found.'

' What did you say, Jaanu? His body has yet to be found. But..how? What happened and how can he be missing?'

She looked at him with unease and asked in a trembling voice, ' How long has he been missing?

' 25 years, Madhuji. He went missing that night, that very night you hit him on his head with a stick.'

Doctor : Your Liver is enlarged

Patient : Does that mean it has space for more whisky ?

("Positive Thinking" 😄😄)

Lady to her dietician :- What l am worried about is my height and not my weight.

Doc :- How come???

Lady :- According to my weight, my height should be 7.8 feet... 😜

( "Positive Attitude" 👍)

A Man wrote to the bank. "My Cheque was returned with remark 'Insufficient funds'. I want to know whether it refers to mine or the Bank".

(self confidence 😂😂)

*This one is classic !!*

A cockroach's last words to a man who wanted to kill it : "Go ahead and kill me, you coward. You're just jealous because I can scare your wife and you cannot..!!!!" 😅😅😅

*Always be positive even in difficult situations*

Avan, Aval, Adhu 333

Madhu's eyes blinked several times like the wings of a hummingbird as she stood staring at Ravi trying but failing in her attempts to comprehend what she had just heard.

Ravi gently led her to the wooden bench and after she had sat down, he too did the same and told her in an earnest voice, ' I am sure we don't have anything to do with his disappearance, Madhuji.'

Life had conspired for some strange and unknown reason and had separated them both. They had not seen or spoken to each other for more than twenty-five years. But there are some things you never forget about the ones you love and cared for more than yourself.

She looked into his eyes and said, ' But you suspect somebody, Ravi. Your eyes never lie and I am looking at them at such a close range and it is pretty obvious to me that you know or at least suspect who might be involved in Sundara Lingam's disappearance.'

Ravi averted his eyes from her and said, ' It does not matter what I think or who I suspect for what matters, in the end, is proof and that is something I don't have and I doubt I will ever have in this life.'

Sighing, he returned his gaze to her and said, ' This is all water under the bridge, Madhuji. Old stories. My concern right now is about you and your well-being.'

' What about you and your well-being, Jaanu? ' she asked him, and Ravi unsettled by her question, ' I am doing okay. I am all right.'

She looked at him quizzically, ' Okay then, take me to your wife, introduce me to your children, and give me a tour of your house, and maybe then I will believe you when you say that you are doing all right.'

Any other person in Ravi's shoes would have taken offense and struck back with poisonous words and would have been justified in doing so but he did the opposite and smiled and said, ' Madhuji, these bullying tactics, and harsh techniques don't suit you. So please leave these mind games to people who want to play those games.'

Then he watched with fascination as she frustratedly blew a storm of air at the strands of hair that had fallen across her right cheek and clapped his hands in joy,' at last, finally you did it. I was wondering when you were going to do it and you chose the right moment to do it.'

Then he lifted a few strands of hair and deliberately placed it on her left cheek and said, ' Go on, do it, please. For me.'

She puffed her cheeks and huffed the air out and the hapless strands flailed like trees that were caught in a sudden gust of wind. Ravi laughed like a little kid and she joined him and they cried their hearts out all the while laughing their hearts out like the kids they had been twenty-five years ago.

Wiping her eyes, she caught him looking at her in a strange way and raising her left eyebrow, ' Mister, what are you looking at? Don't you know it is not proper manners to stare at a woman?'

' I am sorry ma'am but you are mistaken for I was not staring at a woman but instead at a piece of the golden moon that seems to have fallen onto this bench.'

Taking a deep breath, he put his hand out and said, ' Ohe. Amara nama rabi kumara. Etadina para abara dekhe bhalo lagache. Hi. My name is Ravi Kumar. It is nice to see you again after such a long time.

Madhu took his hand and shook it and said, ' Hai, amara nama madhu. Camdera sons suryera pratiphalana matra. Tai, ami tomara ekata ṭukaro matra. (Hi, my name is madhu. the gold of the moon is but a reflection of the sun. so, I am just a piece of you.)

' No, Madhuji. Not just a piece but the whole of me. For without you, I doubt it if I could have survived all these years ' then he stared at the darkness that seemed to have crept up all around them, ' Love is such a funny thing ' and turning to her, ' Love and God are so same in the way that they give you the greatest joy and then turn around and make you suffer the greatest pain.'

Madhu reached out and took his hands and kissed them and gently placed her face in it and said in a sad voice, ' I am so sorry for all that you have suffered, Jaanu. I should have come back but could not. My mother's condition went from bad to worse and then my Dad was suspended and eventually kicked out of his job. The reasons cited by the government was that he had abandoned his work without notice and had gone on leave without permission.'

She raised her face and looked at him with eyes full of memories and fear, ' Then a few weeks later, people came searching for me and my parents and I have no doubt that Meenakshi was behind that too. We had no choice but to flee again and we did that. First, it was to Delhi and eventually to Mumbai where my mother finally succumbed to her disease. That silently began to take a toll on my father who had just joined a private company and that is where my life changed course forever.'

Ravi sighed sadly, ' At least I am glad that you are okay and made a family for yourself.'

He looked at her and said, ' Every day, I pray for you and for your family's well-being and there is a selfish reason behind my prayers.'

Madhurima shook her head and said, ' Sorry sir but I doubt if there is one single selfish bone in your body of for that matter a single selfish cell among your trillions of cells.'

' There is, Madhuji, trust me, for when I pray for you, your health, and your happiness, I feel better and it is as if I gain more strength and motivation from it and the will to carry on.'

This time it was he who took her hands and after staring at them for a few moments, he gently kissed them and said, ' My life is over Madhuji. My story has been written and the book closed.'

He cocooned her soft pink palms in his and said somberly, ' That is why I am requesting you, begging you to go back for this place is not worth it. I don't want you to ruin your life again for my sake for I am sure that if anything bad should happen to you it will break me. Both mentally and physically.'

Madhu placed her hand under his chin and tenderly lifted it up and said, ' Okay. All right. I will do as you say and return to Mumbai but on one condition.'

Ravi smiled and said, ' It does not matter what the conditions may be but I promise that I will follow it.'

' Jaanu, think for a moment before you promise anything to anyone. Even if it is someone whom you love more than yourself.'

Exactly, Madhuji. You have answered your own question. If someone loves another more than themselves, then they will be willing to do anything or sacrifice anything for that person.'

' Are you sure, Jaanu? '

' Absolutely, Madhuji.'

She looked at him and said, ' Jaanu, I will return to Mumbai but I want you to come with me. It is either stay here in your town with you or return home to my town with you.'