Nandini hurried towards her house, looking around with desperate hope for a glimpse of Prithvi.

She had been surrounded by concerned friends and families from the moment she had entered the locality. Her throat had become hoarse from telling them over and over that she was fine, but they had still wanted to know the whole story again until Manju aunty had requested everyone to leave so that she could rest for some time. 

Then she had managed to leave the house herself after convincing aunty that she needed some books from home and also had to ensure that everything in the house was intact and safe. She had sworn to return within 15 minutes

She had to see Prithvi and talk to him once within that time.

She had been aware of his presence around her until the moment that she had entered the Sharma household some hours ago. Just before she entered the house, she had cast one last look around and seen him standing in the shadow of the huge tree outside the temple.

After that, while reassuring everyone of her wellbeing, her mind had solely thought of him. She needed to speak with him. After ages, he had finally opened up a little and she was afraid that it was not going to last…..afraid that if she didn't see him very soon, he would shut her out again…

She spun around on hearing someone call out to her.

Sankatmochan was limping towards her with obvious excitement, smiling broadly. "I was just about to come and see you. You had become a very huge topic in the temple. Everyone was so worried about you….but then we heard that you had escaped with minor injuries…we were all so relieved. So how are you now?"

"I'm alright bhaiya," she smiled, and then vacillated for a moment. "Is Prithvi at home?"

 "He's not come home yet."

"He hasn't? But its been so long since I – do you have any idea where he could be?"

Snaktmochan shook his head with regret. "Its not the first time he has stayed away from home for so long. He should be back before nightfall….I hope. I should be going to the temple now…..You take care of yourself, Nandini..."

Long after Sankatmochan had left, Nandini continued to look around in the gathering darkness.

Where could he be….

******************************

Sankatmochan happily hummed to himself as he tottered back home. No one could blame him for drinking today when there was such a strong reason to celebrate.

He had been terrified when he'd first heard of the accident. Apart from the fact that he was very fond of Nandini, it was the knowledge that Prithvi would not survive it if anything happened to the girl that had made him pray desperately for her wellbeing. And thankfully, his prayers had been heeded and Nandini had escaped unharmed.

While downing his usual quota, he had wondered if the episode would have made Prithvi aware of Nandini's importance in his life, but he knew it was too much to hope for. A few hours of shock at the most and then Prithvi would be back to his usual form.

Speaking of whom, he wondered if the boy was back home yet. If not, the old man would kick up a fuss and insist on going out to search for him. Then they would be out half the night fruitlessly searching, and he would get late to open the temple in the morning.

As he thought of the temple, he glanced at it in the darkness and then stopped.

Someone was sitting on the steps of the temple. And the outline of the person was very very familiar.

He walked towards the shrine as swiftly as he could, half expecting Prithvi to get up and walk away before he could reach the steps. 

But he needn't have feared.

Prithvi didn't move at all. Neither did he look up when Sankatmochan's shadow fell over him.

"Where have you been all this time?" Sankatmochan asked in a slightly slurred tone, peering at Prithvi in the dim light of the bulb hanging over the doors.

When Prithvi didn't answer, he swayed on the spot in uncertainty and then on an instinctive urge, asked, "Do you want to go inside the temple?"

Prithvi quietly said, "No, not without her."

There was something indefinable in his voice...and then, all of a sudden, Sankatmochan understood…

"Prithvi….she's alive and well…." he said gently.

Prithvi looked up at him. "What if she was not, Mochi? What would I have done?" he murmured, sounding uncharacteristically disorientated and bewildered.

Despite the minimal light, the utterly lost and vulnerable glaze in his eyes was clearly visible and Sankatmochan felt a painful lump form in his throat.

"What has she done to me….," Prithvi muttered distractedly, gazing around at the shapes of the houses around them. "What have I been reduced to….I didn't even know when I….I didn't realise it until now."

"What?"

Prithvi got to his feet and turned his back to Sankatmochan.

"I can't live without her, Mochi….I just can't," Prithvi muttered, and then, without looking around at his teary-eyed friend, he walked away with slow steps until he was swallowed up by the darkness. 

*************************

Nandini smiled as Rishabh came onto the stage and began delivering his lines in front of the heroine for the drama rehearsal.

She could feel his nervousness even from where she was standing, and for a moment, she shared his anxiety and prayed that he be able to perform to his best ability. But she wasn't too worried. Because though he had always suffered from stage fright, his confidence had improved steadily over the past few weeks.

Even the traces of her tension dissipated within seconds as he began delivering his lines, and Nandini watched with great affection and pride as Rishabh spouted his dialogues without forgetting or pausing in between. As his scene ended and he walked backstage to wait for the next scene, he caught her eye. Nandini and the two girls beside her smiled and gave him a unanimous thumbs-up.

"So you'll at Manju aunty's house for a week?" Vrinda asked, resuming the conversation once Rishabh had disappeared into the wings.

"Yes, for a whole week," Nandini replied.

"Aren't you thrilled about it?" Nishi asked mischievously.

"Of course she is not," Vrinda giggled before Nandini could answer. "There are people she'll miss having nearby."

"I'm very happy because I'll get to play with the cutest baby in the whole world," Nandini said with great dignity. "So I don't know what you are talking about!"

"She is talking about the face you've been looking for since you came to college," Nishi nudged her impishly.

"I'm not looking for anyone!" Nandini refuted stoutly, but then couldn't help fidgeting as she caught the grins on the faces of her friends.

"Well…I'm not really….I was just wondering" she faltered. "But….just where is he?" she finished on an indignant note.

Vrinda gave her an understanding pat on the back. "I haven't seen him today. But until yesterday, he could always be found here."

"He used to come here?" Nandini asked in astonishment. "But why?"

"To help with making props for the drama," Nishi said promptly. "You should see the ones he's created in just two days. They're all kept in that room. The earlier ones look like trash in front of it."

Nandini was totally taken aback. So far, she had believed that he had joined the club only to be with her, but that was evidently a misconception, she thought with mingled annoyance and amusement. But still, she was also happy that he had taken a genuine interest in the drama.

"Nishi is right, but that Daya - "

"Vrinda, don't!" Nishi said sharply.

"She deserves to know!" Vrinda insisted, and then turned to a puzzled Nandini. "We saw it ourselves when we went to meet Rishabh…..Daya was all over Prithvi!" Vrinda said in a whisper. "And so were a few other girls. All on the pretext of helping him…..And he wasn't doing anything much to drive them away."

As angry colour rushed into Nandini's cheeks, Nishi hurriedly said, "But he doesn't pay them any attention."

"But I haven't seen him driving them away either," Vrinda inserted.

"Why should he drive them away when it doesn't even look like he knows they exist?  He ignores them totally!"

"That's not enough," Vrinda said stubbornly. "He should have -"

"Shhh" Nishi said quickly, "there he is!"

Nandini looked at the entrance to the auditorium to see Prithvi looking around the place. Then he spotted them and began walking towards her.

She was irritated with him, but still, the sight of him filled her with a mindless peace and joy that was almost frightening in its intensity.

Halfway across the hall, he stopped abruptly and looked at her in silence.

And with a terrible wrench in her heart, she sensed that he was trying to convince himself that she was truly all right and standing in front of him….

"I have to go now," she told her friends vaguely, without looking away from Prithvi. "I'll see you both tomorrow."

******************************

Nandini slid off the motorbike and walked towards the clearing beyond the trees.  Forcing herself to be oblivious to the enchanting greenery of the surroundings, she determinedly turned her back on Prithvi and stared irritably at the lovely grey clouds hovering above the hills on the horizon. 

She had not spoken a word to him until now, and he hadn't tried to start a conversation either.

"I think we can break the vow of silence now," an amused voice said from somewhere behind her.

Nandini turned around and regarded Prithvi steadily.

"What do you want me to talk about?" she asked coolly.

"Since when do you need a subject?" he enquired.  

His sarcasm broke the lid that she had been trying to keep on her anger.

"Oh well, in that case, we could talk about the time you spent at the drama club when I wasn't here!" she said fiercely.

"What about it?" he asked, bemused.

"So how was the experience? Cuddling up with random women?"

"Doing what with what?" he asked blankly.

"Don't act too innocent!" she said accusingly.

"I'm not – You're acting stupid," he retorted. "I have no clue what you're talking about."

"Oh I'll tell you what I'm talking about," she said scathingly. "I'm talking about how you were enjoying yourself with God knows how many girls at the drama club in my absence,"

"I used to go to the drama club only because I was going insane – because you weren't there! And I would just do my job and leave. I didn't cuddle up with anyone or enjoy myself with any damned woman."

"Fine! Maybe I'm overreacting about them. But what about the other women you've been with? LIVED with?"

The rising annoyance in Prithvi's eyes died down instantly, and it was replaced by a gleam of something akin to entertainment. "I see….so this is about -"

"Yes, this is about your beloved Natasha!" Nandini said sarcastically. 

"What about her?" Prithvi asked seriously.

"You lived with that woman for 2 years! How could you! Have you no shame?" she demanded passionately.

It was a thought that had tormented her a zillion times since the first time he'd mentioned that woman. He was the first man in her life. But he had lived with a woman before….

LIVED…..

And they still spoke often. And he was still very very fond of her. Otherwise he would never have bothered sending her a birthday gift.

"Well, no….not really," Prithvi admitted.

"You don't regret it at all?"

"No, I really enjoyed living with her and I'd do it again if I got the chance," he said nonchalantly with a careless grin.

Shaking with rage, Nandini looked at him silently for a very long moment, seriously thinking about lunging out with her hand to claw out every bit of the skin on his face. But then a better plan of action struck her, and without uttering another word, she turned on her heel and began walking back towards the road, fully intending to walk back home alone.

Of course, it would take her the better part of the day to reach Manju aunty's house, but the reward was that she could get away from biggest jerk on earth….

The grin on Prithvi's face faded as he watched her walk away.

"Hey! Where do you think you're going?" he called out after her

She didn't bother to reply, but continued to walk on stiffly.

Suddenly, uncomfortably aware that he may have taken it too far, Prithvi said the only thing that he knew would make her pause.

"Natasha is sixty three years old!"

Shocked, Nandini stopped mid-step, and turned around slowly.

"What?" she asked disbelievingly.

"She is! She's like a grandmother to me," he said hastily.

Nandini looked at him suspiciously, finding it hard to believe that the woman who had driven her to depths of jealousy for so long was an old woman.

Correctly guessing that she wasn't going to believe him that easily, he irately said, "You can ask Sumer Baba if you don't believe me."

"She is truly that old?" she asked doubtfully, "but – but you said – you said so many things about her!"

In the utter silence of the scenic spot, Prithvi started to laugh.

"What's – what's so funny?" she asked indignantly.

With twinkling eyes, Prithvi said, "I said she has beautiful eyes, golden hair and lovely hands. She does have beautiful blue eyes….and her hair is golden because she dyes it regularly and her hands are very wrinkled but beautiful."

He wasn't lying this time….she knew it with certainty…..

"You were deliberately fooling me all this time!" she said angrily.

He was about to reply that it had been worth the effort to see her go crazy with jealousy every time he mentioned Natasha. But before he made that mistake, instinct told him that any further attempt to antagonise her would not do any particular good to his plans for the evening.

"I….errr….sorry," he amended swiftly.

She had fully been expecting another insolent comment from him, and so the apology completely threw her off track.

"You're not making fun of me again, are you?" she asked suspiciously.

"No!" he said quickly. "I'm really sorry for….all of that."

Still not sure about the sincerity of his apology but thawing slightly under the relief of knowing that the object of her jealousy was a 63 year old, she slowly walked towards him.

When she was a few feet away, he hopefully held out a hand.  She regarded him resentfully, but then gave her hand in his.

Firmly closing his fingers around her palm, he led her towards the lush, grassy slope that extended as far as the eyes could see.

When they had walked a little, he sat down on the ground, pulling her down with him.

She sat by his side, rigidly at first, but then gave into the gentle pressure of his arm and moved closer, until her head was resting on his shoulder.

They sat quietly for a while, simply soaking in the beautiful scenery and peaceful atmosphere.

Then Nandini softly said, "Tell me more about her."

"Not much to say. She was my mother's close friend. She doesn't have any family. When she learnt that I was coming to her country for my studies, she requested me to live in her house for the duration of the course. Baba said my mother would have wanted that, so…." He left the sentence mid sentence and shrugged

Nandini smiled to herself at his refusal to accept that he was capable of being incredibly sweet without being told.

"Did she like the birthday gift?" she asked.

"She loved it, and she wants to meet the girl who chose them for her," Prithvi muttered.

"You've told her about me?" Nandini asked in astonishment, lifting her head to look at him.

He made a non committal sound without looking at her, but the redness on his skin told its story, and she laughed happily, all animosity forgotten.

"Why did you go to college today? Couldn't you have rested," he asked abruptly.

Amusedly accepting the change in subject, she said, "I'm okay….I didn't need to rest. And I couldn't have sat at home anyways. I've been feeling very restless since yesterday….I just wanted to see you somehow," she admitted shyly, snuggling against his strength.

"You were afraid I was going to leave the story unfinished, weren't you?" he asked with a grin.

"No!" she said indignantly. "That is not why I was -"

"But I want to tell you anyways," he said quietly, cutting short her tirade.

Lifting his arm from around her, he turned around and lied down on her lap.

Nandini felt flustered at first, but warm pleasure slowly overcame the embarrassment. He didn't speak for a few minutes, looking completely lost in past memories, and she didn't break the silence. Wanting to comfort him somehow, she began stroking his head affectionately.

Her touch seemed to bring him back into the present. He closed his eyes lazily, evidently enjoying the sensation of her delicate fingers sliding through his thick, black hair

Then he softly began speaking again. "When maa saw me praying for the cycle, she said…..she said that I must only ask for one boon from God…..that those whom I love must never abandon me….must never let me be alone…..and then she started crying again as usual…." he ended in a gruff undertone.

"After that…I always prayed as she had asked me to...but after her death, I lost faith in everything, and stopped praying altogether…"

He opened his eyes slowly, but didn't look at her tear glazed eyes, concentrating instead at some point on the overcast sky.

"Then some months ago, I came to Shamli….to check out the college before joining it. When I was done, there were still some hours left for the bus to arrive. So I decided to wander around for a bit before going back home. That's when I saw the temple. For some reason, I felt drawn to it, and before I knew what I was doing, I found myself standing in front of the shrine."

Nandini's heart jumped to her throat. After an endless wait, she was finally going to learn the truth of what happened that night…..

He stopped talking, and with a sudden movement, he sat up and rose to his feet lithely. He walked a few feet away and stood facing the undulating green meadows in front of him.

"And for the first time in more than 10 years, I prayed that those whom I love should never let me be alone...That's when the doors opened... When I saw you, for a moment I thought you were a figment of my imagination….You were too beautiful to be true," he said softly.  "Then I realised you were as real as I was, and I realised I wanted you to come with me…..I almost asked you to….." he muttered, looking down at the ground, as if utterly embarrassed with the confession.

Nandini got up to her feet, and walked up to him. Putting her arms around his waist, she warmly hugged him from the back.

"If you'd asked me…..I think I would have come with you that instant," she murmured adoringly.

Prithvi caught an arm twined around his waist and pulled her around to face him. And without a second's pause, his lips swooped down on hers in a blisteringly hot kiss as a cooling breeze swirled around them, bringing a few drops of rain.

************************