Truly Yours

Imagination 13: Something Amiss

Ashwin returned to Chennai on the day the show's finale was to be broadcast. It had just been a week from their last shooting day, but so much had happened that it seemed longer.

In the last seven days, his niece fought her way into the world; he signed a movie deal, Sivaangi and him confessed their feelings and became closer than they would have imagined; they had made plans to meet and talk about the next steps to their relationship. "Relationship." He closed his eyes and smiled, remembering his confession and the thought of being in a relationship.

The days following that faithful confession were filled with excitement and bliss for the couple who became a couple in the most natural sense. There wasn't a proposal; they weren't staring into each other's eyes at a moonlit beach; they did not serenade each other with love poems. They just became one promising never to leave each other, during a casual phone call.

Her friends' romantic proposals that Sivaangi had oohed and aahed over had not shaped her expectations. The 20-year-old seemed to possess the soul of someone beyond her age, and she had no expectations except that he loves her the way he wants to.

And he, never one to be impulsive, never one to speak mindlessly, never one to trust someone completely, gave himself to her.

Their friendship and the camaraderie that came along with it formed the foundation of their love and their conversations. They scrambled to their phones at every beep; their calls were filled with empty banter and meaningful conversations and tinted with subtle, intimate moments.

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"Ash, shall we go? People are alighting."

Ashwin turned to look at Divya. For the past three days, she had been imposing herself on him, turning up every morning under the pretext of helping his sister, who stayed at her parents' house following her discharge. He knew it was a pretext, for she was always hovering around him, displaying newfound interest in his life.

And now, she tagged along with him to Chennai, claiming she had a job interview and wedding to attend. Ashwin was very irritated and was having a difficult time hiding it. He got up from his seat without saying a word, took her hand-carry luggage from the compartment above the seats, passed it to her and marched out of the plane without waiting to walk with her. Divya came after him hurriedly.

"Ash! Wait for me!"

Ashwin pretended not to hear her and kept walking towards the queue forming at the immigration counter.

Divya caught up with him.

"Ash! Didn't you hear me calling you? Why are you walking so fast?"

"I have work to do. So I am trying to clear things here and head home as soon as I can."

"Ash, can I ask you something?"

"What is it?"

"Can I stay with you instead?" Divya asked, looking at him with a pout. She was hoping he would find it cute and relent at once.

Ashwin couldn't remember when he was last this annoyed.

"No, you can't. It won't be appropriate for us to stay together, and I will not feel comfortable. Also, you told our families that you would be bunking with your lady friend. So, no."

Divya persisted. "Yes, but we are family, so why do you feel uncomfortable...or...or think it's inappropriate? We don't have to tell anyone back home! C'mon! I promise to be a good flatmate...It's only for a week."

"I won't feel comfortable having strangers in my home, Divya. Athuvum illaame, naan cinemakaaran. Ponnu kodukkave yosippaange, kooda thangarathellam eppadi? Nee orutharkooda stay panna porathuna, avangalukkunnu oru thaguthi irrukkanumle. Ennakku antha thaguthi illai."