The Rain I Would Never Forget - 1

Sitting in the cubicle was like disconnecting with the outside world. I did not know what was going on outside. All I could hear was the noise of the keys being struck. My brain was stale with all the boring code I was writing. I stretched in the chair and gave out a big yawn. My chair whirled a little and through the glass windows with the curtains drawn off I saw it was raining and my heart leapt.

I loved rain. Rain here was calmer but whimsical, unlike the rain there... where I belonged. And where she belonged as well. I smiled at her thought.

I locked my laptop and went downstairs. To my surprise, people were already standing at the stairs at the entrance watching the rain and sipping the hot tea and coffee. It was raining cats and dogs. It never seemed to cease. Hills looked hazy through dense rain and air had unmistakably lovely fragrance of wet soil. Neatly trimmed plants looked freshly bathed. Grass a few paces away moved with rain as if it had shivers. Water droplets on beautiful light pink flowers sparkled.

I spotted Bhushan and Nikhil at the other corner and went over to them. There was a totally different mood in office today. Everyone looked cheerful and seemed to have forgotten they had work. ‘Where are they?’ Nikhil asked. I tiptoed and ran my eyes over the crowd. I wished to see her.

And there they came. Priya and Deepa chirping with she on their side. She looked grumpy and made a face as she saw outside. They made a beeline to our side.

‘Looks awesome doesn’t it?’ I asked her and winked at Priya.

I knew she hated rain. She had told me. She said she felt miserable whenever it rained.

She stood pressed against the wall with her arms folded across her chest. ‘Ewww!!’ she said as she observed. I laughed at her. She made a face. ‘Ughhh I hate it!’ she said.

That was her typical sentence. I loved the way she said it.

Well I loved many more things about her. In fact, everything about her.

‘Tea?’ Bhushan suggested. Rain has subsided a little and it was only a light drizzle now.

‘I hate the tea here. Tapri? What say?’ I asked looking at all of them.

‘Umm…’ she looked apprehensive and looked out.

‘Oh it isn’t raining that much now. Don’t worry you wouldn’t get wet.’ I assured. I wanted her to come.

‘Okay,’ she agreed and we set off.

Half way into it and rain had a whim again. It started dancing like a haughty kid throwing tantrums.

‘Ughhhhh! Knew this would happen! Let’s go back!’ she complained.

‘Oh it’s fun!’

But as we stood there in the rain, all we guys, with our hands spread drinking fresh drops. Like kids. The girls ran away under a shelter.

I glanced at her and she was staring at me with raised eyebrows. Her already big eyes bulged and I knew the reason. She had forbidden me to get wet in the rain.

‘You have to sit in the air-conditioned cubicle afterwards! You are going to catch cold. Well you already have.’ She had sternly said to me a day before at the breakfast when I had said I wanted to get wet in the rain.

‘Shut up!’ she said, opening her umbrella. ‘Where is your umbrella?’ she asked me.

‘Umm... I forgot it at my room.’ I admitted guiltily.

She looked at me suspiciously and heaved a deep sigh. ‘Come on in! You are not getting wet. You said you had fever yesterday.’

I made a face like a child whose ice cream had been snatched. But I liked when she scolded me. I did not know why. Or probably I did. I smiled looking down, when she wasn’t looking at me.

I came out of reverie and went under the shelter where they were standing laughing at us acting like kids and clicking photos. She looked mollified and smug when I came under the shelter. I looked at her closely. She was laughing at Bhushan and Nikhil who were dancing in rain now. Apparently she had no problem if they got wet in the rain.

I could not stop smiling.

I looked at her. She looked at me questioningly. I shook my head, still smiling. She looked at me as though I had gone mad and burst into a smile and then looked away.

I could not take my eyes off her. Her hair was wet and had water drops caught into the strands. Sleeves of her kurta were wet too. She had wrapped her arms as she shivered. Her teeth clattered.

She looked even more beautiful than flowers that sparkled, or trees that looked fresh green, or green hills, or sun who was trying to peep from black clouds by now.

I stared at her madly and wished she were mine. I wished she could see it into my eyes. And the next second I wished she couldn’t. And as we walked back, a water drop felt strangely warm on my cheek...


- Based on a true story :P