You and I, plus 2 years of marriage!

Two Strangers… One Lockdown!

{5}

I had just completed three back to back calls, one with my manager, one my team and one with my client. When I finally moved out of the chair, my neck was stiff. I had to slowly rotate my neck to bring it back to its normal functioning. By the way, my manager said that he had found a room in the company guest-house for me and I could shift immediately. Tempted as I was to take up the offer, I still rejected it. He was glad to know that I had found accommodation with my “friend’. After drinking some water, I could feel my hunger making a comeback. I opened the door, now that my calls were over. It would drive me crazy to be locked up alone in a room. The door of the other room was still closed but I could hear noises from the kitchen. For a moment, I really considered opening that door and checking out if he had completed the woman’s painting. Shaking the thought out of my mind, I walked into the living-room.

One by one, I began inspecting the paintings. Each one had a different muse, different landscape and a unique emotion to itself. When I moved to see the fifth painting, my feet stuck to the floor. It was the painting of a full moon over the beach on a starry night. It was very similar to the scene that I had witnessed on my first birthday night with him. The memory of that night came crashing down on me. Impulsively, I looked at my ring finger. It was empty. A few weeks after my birthday, we had exchanged the golden band for a diamond ring when he got to know that I did not like his gift much. It was only while returning it in the shop that did he point out to me that our names were minutely inscribed on the inside of the ring. I did feel a small pinch of guilt but the diamond ring he had selected as a replacement was far better than the band. I did not have the heart to forego the diamond ring.

‘The lunch is ready.’

His voice startled me, and I had to swallow hard before replying him.

‘Yeah, okay.’

When I turned around, he was laying two plates on the dining table. His t-shirt was messy with paint, but he did not seem to care about it. We both pulled out our chairs and sat down. He served chapatis with tomato chutney. The chutney was really delicious. He had indeed learned to cook.

‘The chutney is delicious.’

‘Thank you. I learned it from my mother,’ he replied while tearing into his chapati.

There was something about him which made him quite different from the Atharva that I knew before. But till now, I was unable to put my finger on it.

‘I hope the internet is working fine.’

‘Yes, thank you very much,’ I said looking up at him.

We both locked eyes for a moment and that was when it hit me. His eyes were serene. They were not blazing like before. He was a calmer person now. It was as if he had made peace with this world.

‘Where are you working now?’ I asked trying to remove the awkward silence between us. Frankly, I was scared to share silence with him. It might just open up old wounds whose scars still gleamed in the morning sun.

‘Well, I do not have a full-time job. I quit it over a year ago.’

‘Then what do you do for a living?’

I regretted my question as soon as the words left my mouth. It was rude and I was literally intruding into his personal space.

‘Well, I do some freelancing. I design and develop applications and websites for start-ups or sometimes big companies. Usually, they contact me if they liked my work and then we get into short-term contracts. Sometimes, I don’t accept projects if I need a break.’

Wow! His job sounded so cool. Although, I had my own doubts about how much he could earn this way. Also, I was sure that it could not give him a steady income. In a way, I pitied him because he really had a promising career in his previous job.

‘Oh okay. By the way, since when did you start painting?’

‘I used to paint when I was at college but quit soon after. Later when I shifted to Bengaluru, I had some free time at hand, but I was quite restless. That was when one friend suggested that I should do something that was very close to my heart. It did not take me long to figure out what was very close to my heart. I began painting that very night and ever since I have not looked back,’ he said with a smile of satisfaction.

‘That painting of the full moon over the beach, it looks similar to…’ I could not get myself to finish the sentence.

‘Yes, it is the memory of the same night of your birthday. I had always dreamt of going to the beach on a full moon night with the love of my life. I thought you would be as excited as I was,’ he said looking down at his plate.

‘I was excited, Atharva,’ I said defensively.

‘Yes of course! That is why we had to replace my gift soon after.’

‘That was because -’

‘You don’t have to explain yourself, Sharini. I am not accusing you or blaming you for anything. You had every right to wish for a gift that you liked. It was my fault to assume that you would like my choice. It was only later I understood that we both wanted different things from life,’  he said and walked away into the kitchen with his plate.

I was speechless. I did not know what to make of his words. Slowly, I stood up and went into the kitchen to drop my plate in the wash basin. There was no way we both could spend another moment in such close proximity.

***

When I walked into the living-room, there was a glass door leading to the balcony. I opened it and it led to a porch covered with bougainvillea creepers. Pink and white bougainvillea flowers adorned the porch. Under it there was a one wooden swing hanging from the roof of the porch. It was small and compact to fit two people. There was also a terrace garden with some vegetable plants, flowering plants and herbs. The windows of his other room opened to this balcony. I could only see the back of the canvas that he was painting today. He had still not come into the room from the kitchen. I sat down on the swing and leaned my head onto the side chain supporting the swing. Warm afternoon breeze blew over my face. I simply closed my eyes for a few moments. After some time, when I opened my eyes and looked at the window, he was back. He was intently painting the canvas with complete focus on his creation. His eyebrows were knitted into a frown and it was as if he was willing the universe to let him complete his masterpiece. My eyes moved down to his lips. He was the only man I had ever kissed. And his kisses always made me melt and lose myself into him.

Just then, the doorbell rang and pulled me out of my reverie. Thank God! I was really glad to have a visitor who made me come back to my senses. He did not seem to have heard the door-bell because he continued painting. I guessed that it must be his cook or servant. Without delaying much, I walked up to the door and opened it.

Right then, something inside me broke into a thousand pieces…

To be continued...