Cromance

‘Oh you don’t understand! See for us, marrying a South Indian guy is more shocking than marrying say, a guy of other caste or even a Gujarati guy!’ I told him in a matter-of-fact manner.

He rolled his eyes.

‘Oh please! Explain me how! What difference does it make?’ He argued.

We stood on the terrace of a tower outside a restaurant that situated there, just above the Croma showroom. We had just eaten and rest everyone was inside sitting on comfortable sofa. No one came to disturb our solace. He stood very close to me with his big arms around my waist. We were looking into the distant skies. It looked dark blue with the bright stars like spilled glitter. The tall buildings stood silently with several windows throwing light.

‘Look, the South Indian states are kind of detached from the rest of the country. We have known about the other cultures. Though not very closely, but we get a faint idea of their cultures through say, serials, through people living around us. Maybe because you don't mingle much or you like to keep a low-profile. Especially Malayalees. There are people who don’t even know the difference between Malayalam and Tamil. Or Telugu and Kannada!!’

He laughed.

‘Dad still reckons you are a ‘Madrasi’!’ I said trying to control a laugh.

‘After all this time??’ He asked laughing.

‘Yeah. Says he doesn’t understand all that. He is comfortable calling you a Madrasi.’ I rolled my eyes.

‘Anyway don’t you think it would have been so different had you got a Malayalee girlfriend?’ I asked him.

‘How?’ He demanded explanation.

‘See, first of all your parents would have been happy. A daughter-in-law with the same culture knowing your language, food styles, festivals! Perfect, isn’t it?’ I reasoned.

‘Oh please, do you reckon that a Malayalee girl would have known all that?’

‘Of course! Why wouldn’t she? She would have been brought up in your culture, would have seen her mother making Kerala cuisines… Now how would it be when I try to add Kokam in the curry while your mom adds tamarind?’

His laughter stopped my argument. ‘Oh god, I hate Kerala cuisines. I wished I would get a wife who hated the same so that she would never make it at home…’

He reminisced.

‘Mambanzha Pulussery! Sambhar! Avial!’ He made a disgusting face with retching noise.

I made a face at him. ‘Still I want to know how to make it.’

He looked horrified.

‘And talking about festivals,’ I continued, ‘I don’t even know your rituals! How would I learn! Like say, I don’t know how to arrange Vishukanni!’ I asked him worriedly.

‘You will,’ he said with a serene smile touching my cheeks, ‘besides, we have only two festivals. Vishu and Onam. Unlike you people. On these festivals you just have to make those food items and go to temples. Very easy!’ he said assuring me.

I went in the thoughts for a minute.

‘Oh yes, what about your language? It is very difficult. I can’t make a head or tail of it!’ I asked grumpily, ‘What answer do you have for this?’

‘Yeah I agree the language is tough.’

I sighed.

‘See, whenever anyone talks to you in Malayalam, I taught what you should say, didn’t I?’

‘Oh what was that?’ I racked my brain, ‘Ennikku unnum..’ the last word always gave me trouble.

‘Maaa-na-slaa-illa!’ he pronounced slowly for me, ‘Simple! Tell them ”I don’t understand”!’

‘Correct!!!’ he clapped when I managed to say it correctly.

‘Why do you worry so much?’ he asked when I did not laugh.

‘Because you do not understand. Personally for me, these things matter. Our children may never learn speaking Malayalam as their mother doesn't know it. I kinda think of it as 'death of the culture'. I sometimes think whether a Malayalee girl could have been better for you. Knowing your language, food culture, festivals, rituals. I mean - I am not sad, but I am saying this as a matter of fact!’

‘Shut up!’ he said in mock anger, ‘Stop thinking crap! When we have already chosen each other, why think all this? I cannot compromise you for anything else. These differences do not matter to me at all.’

I shrugged. ‘Told you I am just putting forward the facts.’

He looked deep into a thought. His eyes were unfocussed seeing something I couldn’t see.

‘Well I can think of only one difference...’ He said with his eyes still unfocussed.

‘What?’ I was confused.

‘Between you and a could-have-been Malayalee girlfriend or wife..!’ he said grabbing my shoulders impatiently.

‘What is that?’ I asked eagerly.

‘Whenever I would have gone wild with her,’ he said slowly, ‘she would have screamed ‘Ende Amme!’ instead of  ‘Aai g!’’

He was rolling his tongue playfully in his mouth raising an eyebrow, giving me a 'if-you-know-what-I-mean' look.

I stared at him with my lips pursed and clapped my hand over my forehead.

The next second I wrapped my arms around his neck. My lips burnt against his. He tugged at my belt and pulled me tighter against his waist and started kissing like never before, his hands caressing my back, ploughing through my hair... I giggled as his stubble tickled my skin while he kissed my neck.

It was as if the world around us had come to a halt and the usual butterflies fluttered in my stomach.

‘Ende amme!’ I had to whisper as we kept kissing under the inky blue sky.

The Rain I Would Never Forget - 2

I sat at my desk buried into my laptop. There was some problem in my code and I couldn't figure out what.
The train of my thoughts derailed as I heard Priya squeal, 'Oh it's raining so much!!!'

I looked out and it poured so much that the hills beyond were barely visible. I got an eerie feeling in my stomach I always got whenever I saw the rain. I got back to work.

'Let's go downstairs!' Priya said excitedly.

'Naah! I don't want to see. Besides, I have work.' I replied, already looking back in my code.

She muttered something that sounded like 'geek'. I gave her a stare. That was what she called me. The one who associated me with that word was 'he'.
She sniggered and I got up in slow motion, my fingers hovering reluctantly millimeters above the windows and L, my eyes still looking for the bug.
She made an impatient noise and I locked it.

We went downstairs with Deepa who joined us just outside the exit. It was crowded with all the crazy people who loved rain. It was cold. And wet. I hated it.

I never liked rain. Not even when I was a kid. It gave me a creepy feeling. Whenever black clouds gathered in the sky, I'd get an inexplicable feeling of melancholy.

In the crowd our eyes fell upon them. He was there with them, with his face gleaming with the child-like joy and hair disheveled as usual.

'Looks awesome, doesn't' it?' he asked me, winking at Priya.

Hmmm… It was awesome indeed. Everything looked fresh. Everything looked lovely, well everything except the rain, which ironically had been the reason it all looked lovely. I stood as far as possible from the stair where the water poured from above and leaned against a wall.

The rain subsided after a while and he suggested we go to tapri. After hesitating a little, I finally agreed.
Maybe the rain knew I hated it and it came back with double energy to tease me like a notorious child. I hated it. I ran for a shelter, Deepa and Priya followed.

The guys stayed in the rain. Almost dancing like kids. Rain certainly reduced age. As well as tensions, I thought. I was looking at him. These days I had seen him in some tension I did not know. I wondered what was ailing him. He would tell me everything. After all we texted each other all the time, even late into the night till one of us went to sleep halfway into typing a reply. We had an unusual comfort level that we did not have with any other person in the world. I was confident he wasn’t hiding anything from me. If he had something to worry about, he would have told, I kept explaining myself. Maybe it was the job, the mundane work, besides he hated coding. It just wasn’t his cup of tea.

Anyway today he seemed happier. That pleased me. He looked like an innocent child full of glee. But I couldn't let him get wet in the rain for long. He had got fever a day before. And he was utterly careless. He still wanted to go into the rain at the breakfast the other day.

'Shut up! Where is your umbrella?' I asked him.

'Umm… I forgot it at my room.' He admitted guiltily.

I wondered whether he had conveniently forgotten it to get an excuse to go in the rain.

'Come on in! You are not getting wet in the rain!' I said.

He made a face but followed meekly. Like he always did.

It had been a while. I stared at him, suggesting 'enough now!' Apparently he got the message and came back.
The other two stayed in the rain dancing. It was really funny. Priya and Deepa laughed hard clutching at their stomachs as they clicked their pictures with the funny poses. I thought he must be upset at me for not letting him enjoy. I looked at him only to find him already looking at me, smiling. I was perplexed. He smiled again shaking his head. Something pleasant tickled inside me; I did not know what. It always tickled whenever he smiled, argued with me logically leaving me flustered with anger, teased me, made me laugh when I would be annoyed after coding.

'Ahem!' The Small Voice Inside My Head started again.
'There you go!' I muttered.
'So much care! What's happening to you?' it asked slyly.

A shiver went down my spine that had nothing to do with the cold breeze that played around. I shuddered.
'Isn't it confusing? All this?' The Small Voice Inside My Head just wouldn't stop.
'No. Not anymore. GO AWAY!' I tried to shoo it away like some irksome fly.
'It is not possible. You know that. Bear it in mind.' it made another nasty comment.
'What are you talking about? What is not possible?' I stuttered.
It had already left as usual on an enigmatic note.

I walked back with all the others with my gaze fixed down on the ground.