Even when the wonderfully aching pressure on her lips had eased, Nandini didn't make any attempt to draw away, and they stood locked in each other's arms, their lips merely a breath away from each other.

But the drops of rain were feeling heavier now, and the wind had become increasingly cold.

Shivering a little, Nandini pulled back slightly and tugged at Prithvi's arm to draw him towards a huge shady tree that was some feet away. But he shook his head adamantly and pulled her back towards himself.

Firmly ensconced in his embrace, she amusedly reconciled herself to getting drenched. Anyway, it definitely wasn't the first time she was going to get wet in the rains and she had always enjoyed the experience.

As the rain pelted her head and back, she murmured, ""Did you really tell me all of that? Is this for real?"

He moved backwards and looked down at her with a wicked grin. "Very real. Want me to prove it?" he asked.

Laughing, she leaned backwards to dodge his onslaught and chuckled at his disappointment.

Then she returned to his embrace and rested her face against his chest.

"That marble idol of Krishna you'd given me…..Why didn't you tell me that you'd made it yourself?"

"Who told you that? And anyway, what difference would it have made?" he demanded casually.

"It would have made all the difference in the world to me," she said indignantly. "If Mochi bhaiya hadn't told me the truth and given the idol back to me -"

"Mochi gave you the idol back?" he asked, surprised.

Nandini nodded and smiled.

"You'll keep it?" he asked hesitantly.

She nodded again, but then a cloud passed over her expression. "But I can't keep the anklets…..they're too expensive."

"I'm not taking them back," he said flatly. "Throw them away if you wish."

"You know I won't do that," she said exasperatedly, looking up at him. "But how can I keep them….what if ma finds out?"

"Tell her those are fake stones," he shrugged.

"And what if she - "

"I'm sure you'll figure a way out," he said impatiently,

Realising that he wasn't going to tolerate any more discussion on the topic, she resignedly held back from saying anything else.

After a while, she softly said, "It feels like a dream"

"What?"

"All of this….I – I'm finding it very hard to believe….everything…..everything you said….," she mumbled nervously.

A slight frown marred his forehead. "Why?" he asked.

She sighed.

The bite in his tone had reminded her exactly why she was half convinced that she was imagining this meeting.

 "When you first came here, I used to be terrified of you….because you were always so angry with me," she said solemnly. "I used to feel like I'd never be able to do anything right in your eyes."

Prithvi interlaced his fingers into her damp hair and tugged so that she was looking straight into his eyes.

"How could I not be angry? You had haunted my thoughts for months….I almost lost my mind while trying to keep you out of it," he said roughly.

The fierce admission made her cheeks burn. She awkwardly tried to free her hair and look down but his fingers refused to loosen their hold.

"I couldn't get you out of my mind…..I thought I was going mad. Everyday….every single day…. I would think about coming to Shamli, hunting you down, and dragging you off with me," he muttered with clear discomfort. "One minute I would be planning my journey back, and then minute I would feel disgusted with myself for being so weak and would despise you for putting me through that hell. Finally, I decided that I wouldn't ever set foot in this town again."

Blushing furiously at the images his words had created in her mind, Nandini concentrated all her attention on the very faint pattern of squares on his shirt.

"Then what made you change your mind?" she quizzed shyly, genuinely puzzled. As far as she knew, once he had made up his mind, it was near impossible to change his decision.

"Sumer Baba," Prithvi said simply. "He was adamant that we should come to Shamli. He didn't give me a second of peace until I agreed to come here. But even then, I was determined not to seek you out or even acknowledge you if we happened to meet sometime."

"When I'd made peace with that arrangement, we packed our bags and landed up in Ayodhya. And the first person who walked into the house was you," Prithvi said dryly.

"You treated me like I was a thief," she recollected soberly.

Prithvi shook his head ruefully.

"For the first few seconds, I didn't know whether to hug you or strangle you. It felt like every damn force in the universe was forcing me into accepting you as part of my life. The more I thought about it, the angrier I got."

 "Some part of me wanted you around all the time….and the rest of me loathed that foolishness. It – it was miserable….." he said uncomfortably.

Nandini felt her heart contract with emotion as he spoke.  

She had been obsessed with her own condition during all of that time, completely unaware that he had been just as wretched because of the unfolding events in their lives.

"But no matter what I did…. I always found myself looking for you…. Wanting you….needing you…." He said quietly, "Then that day when Indrajit attacked, I was walking away from when you said…."

His voice trailed away into silence.

Bemused, she asked, "What did I say?"

"You said you wouldn't let me be alone," he replied softly. "As though you'd heard my prayer that night…."

Turning crimson, Nandini returned her attention to the squares. "You teased me so badly about that…not once, but twice," she accused with a mumble.

"What other source did I have for so much entertainment?" he grinned.

"You're mean," she muttered. "I really do hate you!"

For a moment, he turned absolutely still, and she immediately wished she hadn't said those words even in jest.

She was on the verge of apologising, but to her intense astonishment, he moved forward and hugged her tightly.

"I hate you too," he admitted against her hair.

Her world came to pause for a moment, and for that one divine instant, she became powerfully aware of everything around her. The heady smell of wet earth, the coldness of her garments against her body, the chilly wind, the beauty of the grey clouds that had covered the sky….

But most of all, she acutely felt the joyful ache of the love that was thundering through her veins….

Her knees went weak, and she clung on to him fiercely, oblivious to the fact that warm tears of joy were mingling with the cold rain drops falling on her face….

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