Five-Thirty AM - XLII

December had already set in well.

Piya-Jiya had gone back to Canada to start their new lives, but Mr. and Mrs Puri would be returning later, so as to avoid a good portion of the bitterly cold Canadian winter. Unfortunately, all four of the newly weds had jobs to go back to, and new lives to settle down to. They didn’t have any left-over vacation days!

Noel was done with his shooting and with Christmas around the corner, he’d planned on taking a few weeks off, first for the vacations and then just for himself and Mitul, before starting work on the post-production part of the film.

Noel’s relationship with Mitul had finally become public knowledge. For a while it had done the gossip circuits, until the next big juicy gossip came up, after which it faded from public memory. Thankfully, Mitul did not get as much footage, nor was her name made public, simply because both she and Noel avoided places where people would recognize him. Besides, Noel and Dev steadfastly refused to reveal her name to the press. His fans were initially disappointed, but then rallied around them both, as a love story is something all hormone-crazed teenage girls drool over, even if it’s that of a person whom they only saw in two-dimensions and larger than life on the screen.

The whole family, including Dev and Myna, as well as the Puris, would be traveling down for New Year’s to Goa. What better place to ring in new beginnings than in Goa surrounded by family and loved ones?

But there was still time for that.

Right now, Mitul waited tensely as Joyce finished her phone call and finally put the receiver down. It had been two weeks since she’d completed the draft and given it to Joyce and Dev. Noel had received his copy from Dev. They would be arriving any moment now.

‘You were right,’ Joyce leant back in the chair, twirling her pen idly. ‘Your instincts were on the mark. That’s a great story and you’ve told it well.’

Mitul let out the breath she’d been holding.

‘Of course,’ Joyce continued, ‘we’ll have to go over it book, chapter and verse, but on the whole, your approach has been excellent.’

‘Thanks, Joyce,’ Mitul answered.

Joyce smiled at her, before moving in for the hard question. ‘So why do I feel some parts have been edited out?’

Mitul looked at her askance. ‘What d’you mean?’

‘That Gauri Krishnan bit. How he got the first role. There’s rumors in the industry about her. Not a single one of her leading men has ever opened up about it. Yet her casting couch is a fairly open secret. But you make no mention of it in Noel’s story. How come?’

Mitul stilled for a minute and then gave her the same argument that she’d given Dev. ‘It made little sense to bring it in explicitly. There is no proof. Nothing that says she slept with anyone, including Noel. If I were to talk about it, I would be opening myself, you, the publishing house, Noel, and everybody else associated with it, to a whole lot of lawsuits and bad publicity. The book doesn’t need the story to stand on it’s own. So I used my editorial discretion and left it out,’ she said unemotionally.

Joyce thought that over for a minute, leaning back in her chair, her eyes on the pen that she was playing with. She lifted her eyes to Mitul. ‘Okay. I agree with you. It doesn’t add anything extra to the story, other than unnecessary spice. It stays out. The implications are there, but not it’s not explicit. I can work with that.’

There was a knock on the door, and Dev and Noel walked into the room on Joyce’s ‘Come in!’

For the next hour, they discussed the book. Mitul had divided it into four parts.

The first part talked about his formative years until he joined the army. This she called ‘Beginnings’. The next three parts she named after his filmography finding the names almost symbolic of the journey that Noel had gone through in his life.

The second part covered his life in the army, until he was wounded and retired. She called this ‘Ek Din Zindagi Ka’ (A Day in the Life).

The third part focused on his addiction to pain killers, his almost overdose and the final struggle to go clean. There was no better name for it than ‘Woh Meelon ki Doori ... Woh Lamba Raasta’, (The Long and Winding Road) to depict the long road he had traveled at that point.

Finally, there was his entry into the world of TV and films. In an ironic nod to Gauri and the infamous casting couch, she called it ‘Mohabbat ki Batein’ (Words of Love).

‘What about ‘Sirf Mohabbat Hai?’ (It’s Only Love)’ asked Noel.

‘That’s still ongoing,’ she replied looking straight at him. He smiled. The unspoken message clearly sent and received.

Joyce looked thoughtfully from one to the other and hid a smile.

Noel and Dev said that they liked the way the book had taken shape, echoing Joyce’s words. Mitul had a whole file of photos she wanted to add to the book, as illustrations. They picked out about thirty snaps that would accompany the story, starting from Noel’s childhood to his days on the sets of ‘Sirf Mohabbat Hai,’ which included some that she had taken.

Joyce and Dev agreed that the book needed to be released just around the same time that the movie released, ensuring maximum publicity for the movie and the book. Mitul and Noel stayed out of that discussion, knowing that those two were the pros at handling things like this. This was their realm and they were more than happy to leave it to them.

The only thing left to design was the cover and that could wait until they had a name for the book and it was ready to go to press. They bandied about with catchy titles, until Noel said, ‘Five Thirty AM.’

They all looked at him. Mitul felt the rising warmth in her ears and cheeks. Dev and Joyce looked puzzled.

‘Why Five Thirty AM?’ they both asked.

‘Because the best things in my life happened at five thirty a.m.’ he replied, looking at their puzzled faces. ‘It’s like a new day,’ he ended lamely.

Finally the meeting was over, and the three of them had just left Joyce’s office when she called Mitul back in.

‘Close the door,’ she indicated.

Mitul shut the door and stood there wondering what Joyce wanted.

‘How long have you been sleeping with him?’ she asked with no preamble.

Mitul was shocked! ‘What?!’

‘Oh, come on, darling,’ Joyce waved a hand. ‘Anyone can see how you two act around each other. It’s a dead giveaway. Besides, ‘Sirf Mohabbat Hai’ is still ongoing?’ she said mockingly.

Mitul just swallowed and could find nothing to reply to that.

‘Besides,’ continued Joyce, ‘I want an exclusive on the wedding. You owe me that.’

‘But..,’ Mitul spluttered. ‘We haven’t even talked about it yet,’ her voice sounded strangled.

Joyce laughed at her. ‘You will, don’t worry. The man’s in love. And don’t forget to say ‘Yes’, ‘cause a guy like that is for keeps.’

Mitul grinned and nodded at her, biting her lower lip.

‘Now run along. Don’t keep him waiting,’ she shooed Mitul away. ‘And don’t forget the exclusive,’ she called.

*****

Noel and Mitul had spent Christmas with Noel’s family, at Maria’s invitation.

Mitul experienced her first candle-light service on Christmas Eve. The service, the message, the reverence of the worshippers, struck her as being so different from the temples she went to. She’d asked Maria what would be appropriate to wear and Maria suggested that she wear a sari or a salwar with a dupatta.

It was only when they entered the church, that she’d noticed that all the women had covered their heads, and so she used her dupatta as a scarf to cover her head, too. Maria had smiled at that. Smart girl!

In the week between Christmas and New Years, they’d flown down to Munnar in Kerala. Mitul had never been there and this was the perfect time of the year to visit the hot Southern state. Munnar was the closest to the Eravikulam National Park, and they’d wanted to do a few day trips into the jungles.

They arrived at a resort and checked into their little cabin. The view was spectacular from their ‘garden’. The tall mountains of the Western Ghats were covered in dense foliage, a deep green sea that rolled in troughs and crests like ocean waves, with the Aramundi Hills standing tallest among them.

The resort laid out conveyance and guides to take them through the National Park and Noel booked them for a trip the next day.

The afternoon sun was already on its western track when they entered the park. They traversed through the high meadows in the hills catching glimpses of the famed Nilgiri deer, that is found only in this part of the country. Mitul couldn’t resist taking a few shots of them.

Soon they were into the dense foliage that they had seen from their cabin. The road was a dirt track at best, and the 4x4 was the only vehicle that could actually traverse through that terrain. They stopped for a moment, taking in the silence around them, only broken by the chirping of the birds high above them, in the branches of the trees around. The forest floor was covered with shrubbery that would make going through it very difficult for them.

As they drove along slowly, there was a sudden change in the air. Low clouds formed mists that drifted by wispily through the trees. The birds had stopped singing. There was an electricity in the air. Almost like something was about to happen.

Mitul reached out for Noel’s hand, gripping it tightly. She could feel that something was going to happen. The driver was frowning as well. Noel felt her tension, and gripped her fingers, hard. His thumb drew soothing patterns on her palm, but she couldn’t shake off the feeling. A look at his tensed jaw and she realized he was feeling it too.

And then they saw it.

A big cat. It looked like a leopard. But it didn’t have the rosettes, that usually covered a leopard’s skin. And it was grey, the color almost non-existent as it stood wrapped in the cobwebby fog that hung over them. It stood about three hundred yards away, coming out of the jungle to their right. It only stopped for a moment to look at them, but both Noel and Mitul could feel time slow down as they looked at it. Mitul raised her camera to click a picture, when with one majestic leap it vanished into the foliage.

‘What was it?’ Noel asked in a hushed voice. The idea of a big cat roaming around them, was unnerving to say the least. Besides Mitul was with him. Should anything happen to her, he’d never forgive himself.

‘Pogayen,’ the driver replied.

‘What’s that?’ Noel asked.

‘The people of this area talk about a grey cat that lives in these Hills. Few have seen it. Most don’t believe it exists. But they say if you see it, you are blessed with a long and happy life. It’s a good luck symbol.’

Noel and Mitul stared at each other. This couldn’t be happening again!

‘If you ask my opinion,’ the driver continued, ‘it’s probably an albino leopard with no colouring in its skin, making the patches so light, that we can’t distinguish them from a distance.’

Noel nodded, but took out his phone and asked, ‘what did you call it?’

‘Pogayen,’ the driver spelt it out for him.

He typed it in. He’d look it up when he got back to the hotel. ‘Did you get a picture?’ he asked Mitul.

She checked the display. All it had was a blurred shape leaping in front of the trees. It could have been anything. The fog hadn’t helped and the exposure was low.

‘I could try to clean it up, and bring it into focus,’ she said doubtfully.

‘Yeah,’ he agreed. ‘I don’t think it will work, though.’ She nodded in agreement.

Just then, they came out into the sunlight to another of the rolling meadows. The sky was a brilliant blue, and the grass a brilliant green. The grey shadow of the pogayen was lost in the mists that they left behind them.

*****

They spent the evening having an early dinner. As the stars became brighter in the sky, and the moon rose over the hills, they lit a fire in the fire pit in the garden and brought out cushions and blankets to lie on in front of it.

Noel had brought out his iPad and they took pictures with it to send back to their parents. Then he went online, first looking for pictures of albino leopards.

‘It didn’t look like a leopard,’ Mitul said. ‘Look at those ears, I distinctly remember rounded ears,’ she said.

Noel nodded. ‘Even the tail is not right,’ he said, frowning at the pictures. ‘And it wasn’t white. It was grey.’

‘Definitely grey,’ she agreed.

He typed in ‘Pogayen’ on the search bar and what Google threw up took them by surprise.

It was listed as a cryptid - same as the Sasquatch and Chupacabra!

Noel laughed and said, ‘unbelievable. Do you think anyone would believe us, if we said cryptids followed us around?’

She collapsed on his chest, joining in the laugh. ‘No. But I think we set some kind of record with this.’

He looked at her laughing against him, and leaning down took her lips in a long kiss.

‘Enough of cryptids,’ he murmured against her lips. ‘I've better things to do with my time.’

‘Oh really?’ she asked, smiling at him. ‘Like what?’

He got up pulling her up with him. ‘Come on inside, I’ll show you,’ he said. Arms around each other they walked back inside.

Deep in the Aramundi hills, a pair of glowing eyes took in the tiny spark of light that was a fire pit. It knew better than to go there. That way lay peril. It would stay here, high up in a tree, hidden from the eyes of those who searched for it.

******

Five-Thirty AM - XLI

It was not unusual for Noel to have people to come up to him and ask for autographs and photographs. Usually Dev would be there to handle such situations. However, Dev was gone, hopefully placating Myna by now, and Noel had the occasional people - usually young girls, coming up to him and asking him for pictures and autographs.

Piya’s wedding was due to start, and he excused himself from the latest group of people, looking around for his parents who seemed to have bonded with Mitul’s parents very well.

Kamini watched Noel interacting with his fans, a smile on his face as he patiently posed for pictures, and signed autographs for a new set of fans who had waylaid him.

She turned to Maria and with a comic look on her face said, ‘you know, Maria, never in a thousand years would I’ve thought that I would be watching a film actor at my nieces’ wedding, and envying my daughter!’

Maria broke into peals of laughter. ‘Kamini, you’d better not let Aditya hear that.’

‘Seriously, Maria. My Mitul’s a lucky girl that she found someone like Noel in her life.’

‘I think Noel is the lucky one. He picked a girl for her heart, not just for her looks.’ She put a hand on Kamini's hands.

‘I always worried about Mitul,’ Kamini said slowly. ‘Sometimes I wondered if Aditya and I let her have too much freedom, let her be too much her own person. She...’

‘She makes Noel happy,’ said Maria softly. ‘We haven’t see our son laugh like he does with her. You have a beautiful daughter, Kamini. I think our whole family fell in love with her when they met her.’

‘As we did with your son. Now if only they would ...’ Kamini didn’t finish her thought.

'Yes. we would like that ...,' Maria nodded and said.

They watched Noel as he looked around once in a while, looking for his girl. They watched as a smile lit up his face, as he spotted her walking in with Jiya. He excused himself from his fans, and walked over to her, said something to them, and both Jiya and Mitul smiled up at him.

Kamini looked at them together and said, ‘Maria. One thing though, they look like gulli-danda together.’ The two mothers burst out laughing. 'Noel is so tall and Mitul is so short. I mean look at her. Even with heels, she barely comes up to his shoulders!' She chuckled.

'But they do look good together, somehow,' Maria said, smiling as Noel's tall figure towered over Mitul's petite one.

Their laughter caught Noel’s ears, and he looked over, watching them giggle together, like teenagers. Carefully snagging Mitul’s hand under her sari, he bent down and said, ‘take a look.'

She followed his gaze and saw their mothers smiling. Seating Jiya near the mandap, the two of them made their way over.

Kamini and Maria got up as they approached. Maria hugged Mitul and took a good look at her. ‘Mitul! You look gorgeous, minha querida!’ she exclaimed, as Noel and Kamini looked on proudly.

‘Thank you, Tia,’ she replied, she held on to Maria’s hands. ‘I’m so glad you could make it. Where’s Te’o?’ she asked. With all the work she’d been doing behind the scenes, she hadn’t had a chance to properly meet Noel’s parents.

‘He’s somewhere around with your father, I think,’ Maria said.

‘Are you enjoying yourselves?’ Mitul asked with an anxious look at her mother.

‘Of course, we are, Mitul. Don’t worry about us,’ Maria waved a hand. 'Your parents have been taking very good care of us.'

‘Ma, please look after Tia,’ she said. ‘I’m going to go find Baba and Te’o.’

They nodded and watched as the two of them went looking for their fathers.

Kamini leaned over to Maria and murmured, ‘what does Tia mean?’

‘Aunty, in Portuguese. Noel must’ve taught her. What does Noel call you?’ she asked in turn.

‘Aunty,’ Kamini replied. 'You should have seen him the first time he came. He called Aditya 'Sir'! Can you imagine? Poor boy, he was so nervous.'

'He should be,' said Maria mock sternly.

They both giggled at that, but they stopped short as Kuntala suddenly appeared before them.

‘Didi, have you seen Dev?’ she asked.

Maria’s eyes widened, but she wisely held her peace.

‘I don’t know,’ Kamini said, she made to look over Kuntala’s shoulder, but in reality searching for Dev and Myna. They were nowhere to be seen. 'I can't see him. Must have gone out or something.'

‘Oh,’ said Kuntala, as she seated herself and sighed. She'd effectively shut down Maria and Kamini.

**** 

Noel and Mitul met their fathers, as well as Myna’s father, who was sitting with them. Once the greetings were over, and small talk started, Noel made a show of looking around and then he said, ‘Mitul, I think Jiya is looking for you.’

‘Really? I should go to her,’ she got up, took her leave, and started towards Jiya.

‘Follow me,’ Noel murmured as he went past her. They headed towards Jiya together, and then he made a detour, heading towards the darkened gardens. Mitul waited a full five minutes before she followed him through the same doors.

‘They think they’re so smart,’ Maria muttered under her breath, her eyes on her son and Mitul.

‘I know,’ Kamini equally softly, turning to her. They both grinned at each other, shaking their heads.

Mitul felt a hand grab her as soon as she stepped out into the gardens. She gasped as she was pulled along, the sari and heels slowing her down. ‘Noel, slow down,’ she said.

He stopped at one of the concealed seating areas, turning off the lamp in the space. In the diffused light from the hotel all she could see was the glitter in his eyes. He wrapped an arm around her waist, sitting down on a sofa, pulling between his legs, his hands finding the waistband. He looked up at her, seeing the seductive invitation in her eyes. She knew what he wanted. He pushed the sari aside, his eyes caught the sparkle of diamonds on her flat belly.

'Did you wear this to torture me?' he husked, his eyes narrowed as he looked up at her.

She laughed softly and in a low, sexy, rasp drawled, 'and why would I want to do that, Mr. Figueiredo?', her voice giving him goosebumps.

‘I don't know,’ he groaned softly, 'but it's driving me crazy.' He buried his lips on diamonds. He kissed her navel. Chocolate and cinnamon clouded his senses. His tongue took long, deep sips of it, his lips sucking on the skin around it. She gasped as his fingers traveled along the waistband. Her fingers tangled in his hair, caressing his ears, the back of his neck. Tiny mewling whimpers escaped from her throat, as she threw her head back. He felt her start to tremble as he continued to adore that navel, slowly turning her around as his tongue followed her waistband. He tugged it at her side.

She felt the tug all around her, shocks shooting from her navel to her core. And then his tongue found her spine, dipping, licking, sucking and kissing it, randomly flicking the band, never giving her a chance to get used to a caress, leaving her shaking in want. Her hands followed his as he dipped one hand inside her sari, sliding inside to find heated silk.

She gasped as he pulled her on his lap, almost in tears. Fully dressed, incredibly aroused, his other hand closed around her breast, surrounded by him.

She opened her eyes, and looked around, suddenly realizing they were in a very public area, doing extremely private things!

‘Noel!’ she said urgently. ‘Noel, Stop! Stop, Please!’ She tugged on his hair.

‘No,’ he protested, but took his lips off her shoulder nevertheless. ‘Yes,’ he was gulping for air. Gently he turned her so she was sitting sideways on his lap. He kissed her softly, then. She wrapped her arms around him and answered his kiss with one of her own.

‘I missed you so much,’ he whispered.

‘I missed you, too,’ she whispered back, her eyes looking drugged from the assault on her senses, her pulses still racing as she struggled to calm down. She could feel he was equally aroused, and that wasn’t doing anything to help.

They sat there, wrapped in each other’s arms for a couple more minutes, before they got up and headed back to the crowds, hand in hand.

***** 

Myna walked onto the terrace first, glowing with happiness. She slid into the seat next to Jiya and began talking to her, since Rajan was no where to be seen.

Dev walked in two minutes after her. He sauntered in, looking around for Noel and was surprised not to see him anywhere. He saw Kamini sitting with another lady, Noel’s mother nowhere in sight. He looked around for Noel’s father, walking along as he searched for him.

Kuntala got up as she saw Dev moving through the crowds. Kamini had, unfortunately, missed his entrance.

‘I’ll be right back,’ Kuntala told her. She sauntered off, cutting a line across the terrace to intercept Dev. She kept her eyes on him.

He was lost in thoughts of Myna, when suddenly he was accosted by a lady that he’d never seen before. ‘Excuse me,’ he said, making to go around her.

‘Aren’t you here with Noel?’ she asked.

Stifling an inner groan he turned back to her. Really? Noel had middle-aged women chasing him now? ‘Yes?’ he said politely.

‘You’re Noel’s friend, right?’ she asked again.

‘Yes, I am,’ he kept a straight face.

‘See, don’t get me wrong, I was looking for you for quite some time,’ she said confidentially.

‘Huh? I mean, why?’ he asked. Did she have a daughter that wanted to enter movies now?

‘I wanted to get to know you a little more,’ she went on, completely misreading his blank face. ‘You see, I wanted to introduce you to my daughter. I think you two would look so good together. She’s a very beautiful girl, of course. Now let me see, where IS she?’

Dev stared at her horrified! What on earth was she talking about?! Not the movies, for sure!

Kamini was looking around idly when she spotted Kuntala talking to Dev. She also saw Dev's expression and with a gasp of horror she began making her way towards them.

‘Ah! I ... er ...’ Dev stammered.

Kuntala clamped a hand on his arm, making it impossible for him to move. She’s gotta be mad! he thought frantically to himself, looking for help. But alas! none was forthcoming! He couldn’t see a single known face! He would KILL Noel. Where was he, anyway?

‘See, I have this daughter, and if you meet her once, I am sure you will agree she is the most beautiful girl here. I am looking for a good boy, and I’ve heard so many good things about you. I will of course, talk to your parents, first,’ she added. 'But if you met my daughter first, that would make it easier, na?'

‘Kuntala?’

He closed his eyes in relief as he heard a familiar voice.

‘Oh, Didi, good you came. See, I found Dev and I was just telling him about Myna,’ she said cheerfully.

‘Dev,’ Kamini laid a hand on his arm, and smiled sweetly at him. ‘Meet my sister-in-law, Kuntala,’ she blinked at him, turned to Kuntala and said, ‘where’s Myna?’

His head spun, as he tried to breathe. ‘Oh! Namastey, aunty,’ he croaked. Myna’s mother? he thought. Myna’s MOTHER??! No wonder she had all those hang-ups, he thought. But one thing she was right about. Her daughter was really the most beautiful girl in the world.

‘Dev, have you seen Noel?’ Kamini said the first thing that came into her head.

He looked around and spotted a slightly flushed looking Noel heading towards his father. ‘There he is, aunty,’ he said. ‘Excuse me,’ and he fled as fast as he could decently, without actually running away.

At this point, all social exchanges came to a halt as Piya arrived on the terrace, and the wedding of Piya and Anuj finally started. Everyone gathered around the mandap and blessed the beautiful couple. No one enjoyed it more than her newly married twin, Jiya and her new Jijaji, Rajan.

Well, two more couples did as well, although for completely different reasons, of course.

For this wedding, Noel stood across from Mitul for all the rituals, observing her closely, mirroring each of her actions, and smirking as she got flustered every time she met his gaze.

Dev stood across from Myna, smiling as he watched her participate in the rituals, content just to watch her beautiful face, that seemed to have an added natural rosy hue on her cheeks. She sparkled and he took pleasure in seeing that glow on her face, knowing it was he who had put it there.

Kamini watched Myna and noticed where her gaze seemed to be most of the time. The smile she saw on Dev's face was her answer. Her other little girl had also found her heart.

****** 

With all the excitement of the wedding over, life went back to its steady rhythm again.

Myna’s parents went back to Pune, much to her relief. Her mother’s constant paeans to Dev was beginning to get on her nerves. Thank God for Badi-Ma and Mitul Di, who kept her sane and diverted her mother every time she started off.

Mitul got back to the biography with a vengeance. Some evenings she spent with Noel, and when he worked late, they made do with long telephone calls. The henna on her hands was almost faded. But she fondly traced the tiny NJF that had been woven into the pattern.

Noel took her on interesting dates - karaoke, paintball, roller blading. And sometimes, they just spent it lazily in bed. For now, they were content with just enjoying each other.

*****

Myna had been surprised to receive a call from Dev on the Tuesday after the wedding. For the first time, she could feel her heart beating as she picked up the phone and said, ‘hello? Who’s this?’

‘Someone who feels like he should know you,’ he said, hiding a smile as he leant against the car, outside her office building.

‘You mean that age-old pick up line actually works on some girls?’ she asked, grinning.

‘I’m not trying to pick you up. I just feel like I’ve met you before,’ his voice caressed her.

‘Hmmm... I wonder where?’ she asked, feeling little butterflies in her stomach as she flirted with him.

‘How about we figure that out over lunch?’ he asked.

‘Lunch?’ she was surprised.

‘Yeah. You know, that meal people have around twelve in the afternoon everyday,’ he goaded.

‘Oh! THAT kind of lunch,’ she said.

‘Yes, THAT kind of lunch. Why? What did you think I meant, Ms. Imani?’ he sounded shocked, mocking her.

‘With you, I can think of a lot of things,’ she bit her lip.

‘In that case, why don’t you come downstairs, and let me know what else you think?’ he said.

‘Downstairs?’ she was surprised.

‘Hmm. Right outside your office,’ he looked up at the tower, wondering which floor she was on. He’d find that out later, he decided.

‘Oh!’ she peered out of the fifth floor window, and saw him standing down by his car. ‘I’ll be right there,’ she said breathlessly. Grabbing her bag, she ran to the elevators.

He watched her swinging out of the revolving doors and gracefully stepping down the stairs, longing to throw open his arms and hold her close. Instead he held the door open, holding her hand to help her in. Sitting behind the wheel, he took her hand again, and brought it to his lips. Planting a soft kiss on it, he said a simple, ‘thank you!’ before starting the car.

And so, began a string of lunches and dates, as Dev and Myna got to know each other in their own unique way.

He refused to push the boundaries, for once content to just be with her, spend time with her, listen to her, fascinated by how her day went, encouraging every step she took. Sometimes, he’d offer her an opinion in how to deal with office politics, guiding her, but never forcing his thoughts on her. He was amazed at how quickly she absorbed things, learnt them. But then, he’d known she was smart. Now, she was using those smarts and blossoming, and he watched the process, mesmerized by it.

Myna on the other hand, was finding out for the first time how good it was to have a friend. Someone who wouldn’t hesitate to call her out when she made a mistake, someone that spent time with her, because he wanted to spend it with her. Someone who made her laugh, and someone who didn’t hesitate to laugh at her. Now he was the one she called when she wanted to vent, or talk something over. He didn't always give in to everything she wanted. And if it was something he didn't agree with, he put his foot down and told her no. Here was a man who refused to be wrapped around her little finger. And she found that she liked this masterful side of him - a lot.

She learnt more about him, about the work he did. She listened when he wanted to talk, slowly understanding his world, and learning about it.

And he never ever smoked again.

The only thing she had a problem with, though she would be the last to admit it, was that he made no move to kiss her, or hug her, unless she initiated it. It was almost like he was waiting on something, some sign from her. In a way, she understood. He was keeping to his promise, so her respect for him grew with each passing day.

In other news. 

Her mother had stopped talking marriage for now. For whatever reason. And she was extremely glad of it.

***** 

Mitul finally finished the first draft of the biography that had started her on this journey. With a pleased sigh, she typed, ‘THE END’ and saved the file. Tomorrow she would be meeting with Joyce to give her the draft, as well as a copy to Dev. She transferred the protected files onto two flash drives and put them away.

With a happy sigh, she looked at the time. He was shooting nights most days now, which made meeting up difficult. This was the last block of shooting that needed to be completed before the film went into post-production. Which meant he would have more free time on his hands. Dev had already been scouting around for new projects for him, but he needed a break and he was going to take it. Soon.

Despite the late hour, she sent him a text anyway. He would call her, she knew. And if she guessed correctly, her phone would probably ring at, as he called it, their ‘witching hour’. She thought about that for a minute and made a mental note to look up what it meant. Whatever it was, for Noel and her, it was always five-thirty a.m.

******

Five-Thirty AM - XL

Piya and Jiya’s wedding day was finally here.

The marriage was taking place at a hotel, since there were two weddings that would take place one after another, and there were two baraats that would be coming to claim their brides today.

The brides - Piya and Jiya - were dressed in lehengas - identical in every way, except in the colors. Jiya being the older chose traditional red for her color. Rajan wore a gold sherwani to complement her. Piya being the younger chose a burnt orange for her colors, and Anuj dressed in a deep hunter green to contrast with her flaming colors. Their jewelry was identical. Their mehendi however differed as each girl preferred to choose a design that matched their personality. While Jiya sported an ‘R’ boldly in her palm, Piya hid the ‘A’ on hers so that Anuj would have to look for it.

There was an hour between the two wedding ceremonies, so each of the girls could attend the other’s ceremony. The post-wedding reception and traditional rituals would be held together, allowing all the guests to mingle and participate in the celebrations. The night would close with fireworks before the brides went on their way to their separate in-law’s places. Of course, they’d even planned their honeymoon together, and would be traveling back to Canada together.

Jiya had been dressed and was waiting to be called down for the ceremony any time. Piya was dressed to attend Jiya’s wedding. She would change after that ceremony into her own bridal dress. Mitul and she hovered over Jiya helping her put on the last of her elaborate jewelry. There was a sense of sadness, of anticipation, of excitement, of emptiness.

Myna came barging into the room, ‘Jiya, they’ve arrived! Are you ready to go?’

Jiya nodded nervously. She headed to the mandap, surrounded by Mitul, Piya and Myna, leading her out.

As they came onto the open terrace where the wedding would be held, Mitul looked around to see if Noel had arrived. She saw him standing with their parents - his and hers, towering over almost everybody else. He wore an olive green sherwani, embellished with intricate silk embroidery at the throat and sleeves. His eyes were fixed on her.

Next to him stood Dev, dressed in a midnight blue sherwani and looking very uncomfortable in it. She glanced across at Myna to see if she’d noticed him. But Myna was fully focused on Jiya.

As Noel watched Mitul help her sister to the mandap, his eyes greedily drank her up. She was dressed in a pale copper sari, with olive green accents, almost the same color as his sherwani, with delicate silver embroidery along the borders and the free end. Since he’d seen her on Wednesday, the only contact they’d had, had been on the phone. She had been too busy with all the pre-wedding rituals. Frustrating as it was, he’d understood that family came first, for now. He expected to change all that soon, very soon.

She looked gorgeous, he thought. Earthy tones looked absolutely perfect on her. The darker tan she’d acquired in Goa, showing off the colors to perfection. The simple copper embellished jewelry she’d added, highlighted the copper in the sari. Her hair was plaited in a french braid, with tiny curls that danced around her face with each movement of her head. As she bent to help Jiya sit at the sacred fire, he noticed the glittering silver band around her waist. She stood up and for a minute, as she adjusted the end of her sari, he saw that the waistband had been wound through a glittering diamond studded ring in her belly, that had replaced the silver one. The waistband split into three separate strands that hugged her waist and hips over the sari.

He drew in a sharp breath as his eyes feasted on the ring, before he met her gaze over everyone’s heads. Her lips parted as her eyes met his, a jolt of something like electricity slashing through her. He dropped his eyes to the diamonds again, telling her what he wanted, his fingertips tingling with the need to touch it right then and there. She licked her lips, dropped her eyes, and gracefully arranged her sari, so it covered her up. He gave her a disappointed look. She smiled impishly, and then focused back on the couple in front of the fire.

Dev meanwhile was glad, so glad he’d accompanied Noel today. Myna looked like a vision to him. Her tall willowy figure draped in a pale yellow sari, delicately embroidered with silver work. It was the choli that almost made his jaw drop. The front was modest enough, but when she turned around, he saw the full expanse of her back from neck to hip, exposed to the world, thin strings of silver glittering on her sleek back holding the front in place. He swallowed as he looked at her, his heart aching as he saw the slight dark circles under her beautiful eyes. Her smile was still as beautiful, but the fire in her eyes was damped.

He still hadn’t figured out what he was going to do today, but he had to find some alone time with her. That was the only thing he was sure of.

The first wedding was over soon, with Rajan placing sindoor in Jiya’s parting, while she smiled shyly, her eyes lowered modestly.

The guests went out to snack at the buffet, while the couple and their entourages went inside to get ready for the next wedding.

Noel and Dev sat talking quietly, and the former could see that his friend was very, very strung up. Well, it was all up to Dev now. Everything else was ready. Now, if only Myna would say yes.

Kuntala, in the meantime caught up with Kamini and said, ‘is that Dev, sitting with Noel?’

Kamini looked over. ‘Yes, it is,’ she answered and turned a disinterested shoulder away.

‘He’s good looking,’ said Kuntala.

‘Hmmm... maybe,’ Kamini feigned indifference, before walking away.

Myna in the meantime, was trying to hide her nervousness, by keeping uber busy helping Piya dress. She had seen Dev standing with Noel and it had been a shock to her. She didn’t know he’d been invited! So now, she was jabbering non-stop until Piya took hold of her hands and said, ‘Myna, will you stop with the chatter? You sound like you’re the one getting married and not me.’

‘What?’ Myna was startled. ‘No. No. Why would I be the one getting married? You are, right? So let’s get this jewelry on you,’ she said, bringing up an armful of jewelry boxes to Piya.

Piya took the boxes and sat them down on the dressing table. She caught Myna’s hands in hers and decided it was time someone told her some truths.

‘You’re nervous about Dev being here, isn’t it?’ she asked.

Myna’s eyes flew to hers, startled. ‘How did you know?’ she whispered.

‘We all know, Myna. The man’s crazy about you. So how about giving him a little chance, hmm?’ she smiled gently.

‘I don’t know, Piya,’ she muttered. ‘He’s so arrogant, and rude, and brash...’

‘So were you,’ Piya pointed out. ‘Now go talk to him. Put him out of his misery and let me get dressed in peace,’ she laughingly pushed Myna out of the room. ‘And send Sami in here, first, I need help with all this,’ she added.

Myna found Sami and a few more of Piya’s friends and sent them back to her before heading to the reception area. Her heart was hammering, threatening to choke her, she felt nauseous, and feverish, her hands were cold, her cheeks were hot. But she was going to do this. She was, after all, Myna Imani. She straightened her back, lifted her chin, and walked in.

Dev sat beside Noel barely listening to what he had to say. His eyes were scanning the room continuously and but he couldn’t see her. He turned his head to look at Noel, wondering how he could be so at ease, when he himself was finding it hard to sit still. The craving for a smoke began clawing at him.

‘Noel,’ he said, ‘I need a smoke. I’m going around to the back.’

Noel nodded as Dev got up and made his way through the crowd, heading to the dimly lit pathways in the gardens behind the hotel.

Myna spotted him standing up and saying something to Noel, before he turned and began moving away through the crowds. She looked around to see if she could see her mother. She needed to make this getaway before her mother got hold of her. Feeling relieved when she couldn’t spot her, she followed the route that Dev had taken.

The pathways were lit by garden lights along the sides, and Dev walked slowly along. He reached a little clearing with some garden couches grouped around a table, comfortable cushions inviting people to sit and talk. An ashtray stood on the table, indicating it was okay to smoke here. A group of shrubbery offered a modicum of privacy around the table, and a lamp at the center threw out a warm glow. He sat down on one of the couches, and dug in his sherwani pocket for his cigarettes. He took out the packet and pulled out a cigarette, placing it in his mouth, before patting his pockets for his Zippo.

He found it and flicked it open, striking a flame, and was just about to touch it to the cigarette, when he heard a low voice say, ‘I hate the smell of cigarettes.’

*****

Noel grinned as he watched Myna follow Dev’s path. For God’s sake, Dev! he thought. Don’t fuck it up this time, too!

With that little prayer sent, he went looking for Mitul. He found Kamini instead.

‘Hi, Aunty,’ he greeted her.

‘Looking for Mitul?’ she asked him.

‘Yes,’ he answered. It was amazing how at ease with her he now was. ‘Where’s she?’

‘Mitul’s helping Jiya change, so she’s going to take a little while.’

‘Oh,’ he felt disappointed and it showed on his face. She patted his back, and he blushed.

‘Take it easy, my son, she’s not running away from you,’ she grinned at him. ‘Help yourself to some food,’ she added, before walking away.

Only to run into Kuntala.

‘Didi, where is Dev?’ she asked. Kamini was taken aback. Uh-oh! Like Noel, she’d noticed Dev and Myna make their separate ways out. Mitul had pointed him out to her earlier. This was so not the time for Kuntala to go looking for him, especially when Dev had no clue who Kamini was!

‘He was sitting with Noel.’ She pretended to look for him and then said, ‘must have gone to the bathroom or something. I don’t see him.’

‘Oh!’

‘Yeah. Why don’t we go sit down somewhere, and when I see him, I’ll introduce you to him,’ she promised. ‘There’s such a crowd here, it’s a mercy you can find anybody in it.’ she added for good measure, while leading her sister-in-law away in the opposite direction.




*****

He shut the lighter, stood up and turned around. She stood there in the gloaming, lit by the lamp that shone on her face, the yellow of her sari turning into a golden pool, shimmering with silver. She looked like something out of a painting, her exquisite beauty bringing a lump to his throat. Her eyes were wide, as she walked towards him, stopping a few feet away. She must be wearing lenses, he thought in a very abstract part of his brain.

He realized that he still had the cigarette in his mouth. He tossed it into the ashtray. Picked up the packet next to it, crumpled it and threw it in the bin.

She frowned, puzzled.

‘If you don’t like it, I won’t do it,’ he answered her unspoken question.

She recoiled at that. ‘Why does my liking or not liking something make any difference to you?’

He stared at her for a moment. This was so not how he’d planned it. He knew he was going to have to wing it now!

‘It. Does. And don’t pretend you don’t know what I’m talking about, Myna,’ his voice was low, gravelly.

‘I don’t have a clue,’ she said firmly. She turned around.

And then he heard himself say, ‘So what’s he like?’ What?! Had he just said that? he thought incredulously.

‘What’s who like?’ she asked, puzzled, turning back to face him again.

‘Oh! now you’re going to tell me you don’t know WHO I’m talking about, Myna? The man you met this week. The NRI. The one you’re marrying,’ his tone accusatory. He couldn’t believe the words coming out of his mouth! He had no control over his feelings where she was concerned and it seemed like, neither did his mouth!

‘I don’t see how it’s any of your business,’ she snapped at him, her eyes glittering with anger in the dim light. ‘My marriage has nothing to do with you.’

He walked over to her, stood very close. She didn’t back down, holding his eyes as tiny red flags flamed on her cheeks.

The back of his fingers brushed against them. Her eyelids dropped, but she wouldn’t close her eyes. His fingers trailed to her lips, stopped, as his thumb traced their soft, full outline. She parted them, as she drew a quick breath. He could see her eyes darken, but she continued looking at him.

‘It is my business,’ he whispered against her lips, before he bent down and touched her lips with his.

It was nothing like their first kiss. There was no anger, no frustration. Just a deep want to show her what she meant to him, and a little bit of desperation. To keep her with him. No other man was going to touch her the way he wanted to.

He didn’t hold her, didn’t touch her. Their only point of contact was their lips. She was free to leave if she wanted to, if she didn’t want this. She didn’t draw back.

He brushed her lips with his again, swallowing as he tasted the raspberry flavor of her gloss. He was never going to eat raspberries again! He sucked her lower lip into his mouth, learning the softness of it with his tongue. Licking each tiny corner.

Her hands came up clutching at his sherwani collar, her knees barely holding her up, her heart jack hammering in her chest. He clenched his fists with the need to hold her. But he kept his hands at his sides.

He pulled at her upper lip, tugging it lightly with his teeth. His open mouth closed over hers, tongue slipping between them, only to find hers open and waiting. The tip of his tongue touched hers, and she crumbled!

She moaned into his mouth, and his hands came up to her waist. His fingers dug into it, before soothing the pain of his grip with his fingertips. Her back beckoned him. He flattened his hands so he could feel her skin on every inch of his palms.

This might be the last time he kissed her. The thought of that sent him plunging his tongue into her mouth, desperately trying to make a memory of it. Tasting every bit of her. Every nook and cranny. Until her tongue stroked his, soothing him. Taking a taste of him, tentatively, then more boldly. Telling him that she wanted to make a memory of him, too, as her hands around his neck urged him closer. He pulled her to him, wrapped her in his arms, his hips pushing into hers. Showing her, letting her feel his need for her, as his tongue plundered her mouth.

They drew back slowly, gasping for air. He let his hands trail down her arms, memorizing the feel of her skin. He stepped back. Looked at her face for one long instant, before he said in a voice hoarse with pain.

‘Now tell me you’ll be able to kiss your husband like that.’ He turned around and walked away.

She stood stunned for a moment, her fingers against her lips. Then she said, ‘I’m not marrying him.’

He stopped. She saw his shoulders straighten, and swallowed, praying he wouldn’t walk away this time. He turned around slowly, and then came back towards her with urgent steps. He gripped her upper arms and pulled her close.

‘Explain,’ he gritted, his brown eyes narrowed in an unnamed emotion, burning into hers.

‘I’m not marrying him. I’m not marrying anybody. I’d already said no,’ she said, no longer frightened of the look on his face. Instead, she was exhilarated as she stared at him, the adrenaline rushing through her veins, a slow smile forming on her face.

‘Why?’ he breathed.

She placed her hands on his chest, glorying in the racing heartbeat she found, knowing she was the reason it beat so fast. ‘I need to find myself first, Dev. For too long, I’ve been living as a taker. I expected the world to fall at my feet. I was told that if I wanted to have something, I had to reach out my hand and it would be mine. But now,’ she shook her head.

‘Now?’ he asked, tentatively. What did this mean to them? this thing between them?

‘I realized that I have to work to get what I want. And the first thing I want is to understand who I am. So I finally got this job. I’ve started working at a small design firm. I’m finding it a challenge to work for what I want, use the talents that I’ve been given to get it. Not have it drop into my lap. And I’m loving it. I want... no, I need to do this for myself. I need to prove to myself that I am worth something!’ she looked at him with pleading eyes, hoping he would understand.

He stood still for a moment. Then he lifted the palm that lay against his heart, and kissed it, a slow deep kiss that tingled all the way down to their toes.

‘I understand,’ he whispered against her palm. He held it close to his chest, before sliding his arms around her waist, tugging her in just a little closer.

‘And I want to be there, with you, for you, on that journey. By you, every step of the way.’ He paused. ‘That is, if you will let me?’

She nodded her head. She smiled, that million-watt smile of hers, dazzling him.

‘Yes, I would like that,’ she replied huskily.

He dipped his head and caught her mouth with a kiss that said thank you. He drew back.

He smiled at her, taking in the beautiful flush on her face, the hours and days of agony a thing of the past. He was okay with this. As long as she knew what he felt about her, he was okay with it. There would be no great declarations of love. When the time came and she was ready to hear it, he would give it to her. For now, he was willing to let her set the pace.

But first, some little rules needed to be set out, and he wanted her to set them.

‘Can I call you?’ he asked. She smiled and nodded.

‘Lunch next week?’ he pushed his luck.

She grinned at that. ‘Call me and we’ll see,’ she said saucily.

He laughed at that, tucking her hand in his arm, as he led her back.

‘And Dev,’ she added. He raised his eyebrows, what? ‘No more cigarettes,’ she admonished.

‘Why would I need a narcotic when I’ve got you?’ he quipped.

‘You don’t have me yet,’ she countered, as they walked back to the hotel.

*****

Five Thirty AM - XXXIX

(

Author’s Note: 

Mehal Kapoor’s tiny little love story is on this blog. Its called Ships in the Night - see the navigator bar to the right. Enjoy!!

)

It was Saturday evening, and Noel had told Mitul that they needed to go somewhere. She put on a pretty floral dress in a burst of colors, green being the predominant one. The full-skirted chiffon floated to about two inches above her knees, the three-quarter length sleeves caught with thin green ribbons at the elbows, that were echoed in the neckline. She slipped on her trusty pair of strappy heels, applied a copper colored lipstick and she was ready.

Noel was waiting for her, dressed in a pair of khaki cargo shorts and a black shirt. They waved goodbye to the others, as he led her out to the car. They would be meeting up with the other four sans kids, later on for dinner at a restaurant.

Noel started the car, and put on his sunglasses, making sure she was strapped in, before taking off.

‘Where’re we going, Noel?’ she asked him.

‘Dev’s parents house. I always visit them when I’m down here. They’re retired, like my parents, but ... you’ll see what I mean when we get there.’

They drove inland for about half an hour and came to a very posh residential area. Mitul looked about her interestedly. The houses were a mix of old and new, old trees lined the streets and there was an air of exclusiveness about the area.

Noel pulled up in front of a large house, one of the older ones on the street. They walked up the steps to the door and he rang the bell.

The door was opened by a man servant who gushed, ‘Noel baba, how are you?’ his lined face breaking up into a wide smile. He looked like the Shomu bhaiyya of this house, thought Mitul.

An older version of Dev, with no hair, no soulpatch and glasses walked into the marble floored hall and said, ‘Noel! Come in, come in!!’ Noel was hugged and then he looked at Mitul. He was clad in a simple cotton kurta pajama, and had a newspaper in one hand, obviously having been reading it before they arrived.

‘Who’s this?’ he asked in his gravelly voice.

‘This is Mitul, uncle,’ Noel introduced her, as she raised her hands in a namaste. ‘Mitul Imani.’

‘And she is?’ uncle’s eyes twinkled.

‘My ... girlfriend,’ Noel held her hand, and she was surprised to find his palms sweaty.

‘Bless you, my dear,’ he said with a warm smile and a hand placed over her head in benediction. ‘Now come on in, both of you. Your aunty has been baking all morning, since you called. So you’ll have to join us for tea,’ he said, leading them out to a terrace at the back of the house, that was shaded from the sun by tall trees around the back garden. Elegant wicker furniture stood at one corner, where they settled down.

A servant brought out a tray of baked goodies, and he was followed by an elegant lady in a crisp cotton sari, who held out her arms to Noel.

‘Noel! It’s been a long time since you visited,’ she scolded, before kissing him on both cheeks.

‘Sorry, aunty,’ he apologized, holding out a chair for her. ‘I was away in Canada and then US. Then the latest film shooting. It’s only now that I could take a weekend off.’

‘And who is this young lady?’ she asked turning to Mitul.

‘I’m Mitul,’ she said, raising her hands in a namaste again.

‘Noel’s girlfriend,’ Dev’s father supplied, with a big grin on his face.

‘Noel?’ Dev’s mother smiled at him. ‘She’s a very pretty girl and she must be special,’ she smiled artlessly at him, as his cheekbones turned a slight pink.

‘Yes, she is, aunty,’ Noel smiled at Mitul, holding her hand. Mitul ducked her head shyly, feeling the heat on her cheeks.

Thankfully, tea arrived just then, and the conversation turned to other matters.

And Dev.

‘He hasn’t called in the last few days,’ said his father thoughtfully.

‘Last time he called he seemed a bit ... quiet, I think,’ his mother added.

Noel was like a deer caught in the headlights.

Mitul quickly said, ‘he might be just busy, you know, aunty.’

‘Well, he should slow down a little. Time for him also to start thinking about settling down. After all, look at you two,’ Dev’s mother smiled blissfully.

Noel and Mitul exchanged a glance. ‘Aunty, we’ve just started dating, so right now ...’ he started.

‘Rubbish!’ she cut in. ‘You never bring a girl to Goa to your parents house if you don’t plan on making that permanent, Noel,’ she said.

Noel cleared his throat and said, ‘we were talking about Dev, isn’t it? I’ll tell him to call you,’ he offered.

‘And tell him we want him to settle down as well. Find a good girl for her, Noel. Someone like Mitul. What sort of friend are you?’ Dev’s mother added.

‘Aunty, Dev makes his own choices,’ clearly Noel was losing the battle in front of this steamroller.

‘I think we should look for a girl ourselves. Enough of this independent thing.’ She turned to Mitul. ‘Do you have a sister, maybe?’

Noel choked, while Mitul thumped his back, thankfully turned away from aunty.

‘I’m an only child, aunty,’ she said, her thumping bringing tears to Noel’s eyes.

‘Enough, Mitul,’ he gasped in a hoarse voice.

‘Oh! Well. If you see a nice girl, think about Dev. Okay?’ Dev’s mother said.

Mitul nodded dumbly. ‘Yes, of course, aunty.’

They took their leave shortly, arms laden with boxes of baked goodies.

‘Whew!’ said Mitul, when they were on the road again. ‘That was close.’

Noel laughed out loud. ‘There Myna’s mother wants her to get married. And here Dev’s mother wants him to get married. And to someone like you, no less. It’s bloody ironic!’

Mitul turned slowly in her seat and stared at him. ‘Dammit! Noel, you’ve hit the nail on the head!’

‘What?’ he looked at her puzzled.

‘We need to get these two sets of parents together!’ she exclaimed.

‘You’ve forgotten, darling. The Kapoor guy is coming to meet Myna. Myna won’t talk to Dev. Dev doesn’t know how Myna feels and she doesn’t know how he feels.’ He sighed. ‘It’s complicated.’

‘I know,’ she said dejectedly, and slouched back into her seat.

******

Mitul and Noel returned to Mumbai on Sunday night.

Kuntala was scandalized at first that Mitul had spent three days away with Noel, but was then pacified to learn that it had been with his entire family.

‘Are they getting married?’ she asked Kamini sotto voce, when they were in the kitchen cooking.

‘They’ll decide if they want to get married or not,’ Kamini said. ‘They’re old enough.’

‘But, Didi, this going away with him, spending weekend with him...’ she left the sentence hanging.

‘Noel’s mother called and invited Mitul, asking permission from us,’ Kamini was busy shelling peas and was getting progressively more annoyed at Kuntala’s line of questioning. ‘There was no reason to say no.’

Kuntala nodded as she kneaded the flour. ‘There is that. But Didi, they’re Roman Catholics, aren’t they?’

Kamini finally had it. ‘Kuntala, it doesn’t matter to Noel, it doesn’t matter to Mitul, it doesn’t matter to Aditya or me or Noel’s parents. So why should it matter to anybody what God he prays to? For that matter, if you notice, Mitul is not much of a temple go-er or anything. So I don’t see a problem with it.’

Kuntala retreated. In truth, she was often intimidated by Kamini’s strong-willed ways. She often wished she was like that. Able to take a stand and stand by it. But she wasn’t. And she knew that.

She was in for another blow later in the week.

Tuesday morning, she received a phone call. Ten minutes later, she walked into the dining room in tears.

‘Kuntala, what happened?’ asked Kamini.

‘Mrs. Kapoor called,’ she sobbed and managed to speak all at the same time. ‘Mehal has met a girl in the US. He wants to marry her only. So they’re not coming to Mumbai anytime soon. And they’re very sorry about Myna, but what could they do? Mehal has made up his mind.’

‘Who’s Mehal?’

‘The boy! The NRI millionaire that Myna was going to marry,’ she wailed.

Kamini let out a deep sigh of relief. ‘So the marriage is off?’

‘Yes,’ sighed Kuntala wiping her eyes with the end of her sari. ‘Now where will I find another boy for her? And now she wants to work?’

‘Kuntala, listen,’ Kamini tried to make her see reason. ‘Everything happens for the best. Maybe there’s an even better boy out there for her.’ Crossing her fingers behind her back. ‘And when the time is right, he’ll be there. Why’re you fretting so much?’

‘Didi, do you see how old she’s becoming? And no future in sight for her!’ Kamini rolled her eyes at the dramatics, of course behind Kuntala’s back.

‘Mitul is older to her, and she hasn’t got married yet,’ she said, soothingly.

‘Yes, but Mitul is with an ACTOR now. A FILMSTAR.’ Like that was sure-fire sign of permanence. ‘Myna is with NOBODY,’ she sniffed.

Hopefully soon with somebody good, thought Kamini. She tsk-tsked, patted her sister-in-law’s back and walked off with a gleeful smile on her face.

*****

While Myna was understandably happy at this unexpected turn of events, Dev was still unaware of what she’d gone through.

She’d steadfastly refused to answer his calls and he was fast losing hope of ever seeing her again. The only light that he could see, was the wedding, and he knew that that was the one time he would have, and he would have to make it count. Make her see that they were meant for each other. He’d never been this obsessed with a woman before, but Myna Imani brought out something primitive in him, something that made him want to possess her and make her his. But if this arranged marriage thing were true, he’d have to come up with an alternate plan. Granted, he didn’t have much of a plan to begin with. How was he supposed to come up with an alternate one?

******

Noel came to pick up Mitul on Wednesday. He had grown a little more comfortable with Mitul’s parents, and he found he could talk easily to her father. Kamini brought him a cup of coffee saying that Mitul was delayed because she’d got stuck in traffic.

Since, Myna’s parents were in town, he was introduced to them.

Kuntala was thrilled. She was having a mental conversation in her head about how she would tell kitty party friends, very casually. ‘Oh you know, while I was in Mumbai, Noel had come over too. Noel? Oh you know, Noel James. Ya, Ya, the one that acts in movies and all. Such a nice boy. Actually, he’s my Jethji’s daughter’s boyfriend, na? He’s a very private person, so it’s like a big secret right now. But he is so nice. Swear to God, talks with such respect to elders. He even touched my feet, because see, I am his girlfriend’s chachi. So traditional.’

Myna came in, gave him a brief hug and said, ‘Hey Noel, did you guys have a good time in Goa?’ just to let him know that she was okay with him and Mitul.

He smiled back at her, a genuine smile and said, ‘yeah we did. By the way, congrats on the new job.’

She smiled at him, and he could see that without the arrogant mask, the sarcastic tone and the fake sophisticated outlook she’d presented before, she was actually a very pretty girl, and charming as well. No wonder Dev was running around chasing his tail.

‘Thanks,’ she smiled at him. ‘I’ll go and tell Mitul Di you’re waiting,’ she told him before leaving the room.

Kamini was itching to talk to him. She’d heard about Dev’s parents from Mitul, but she really wanted to know more about Dev and his feelings. With Kuntala there, she had to resort to a little underhanded questioning.

‘So Mitul tells me you went to see Dev’s parents in Goa,’ she started. ‘I must tell them thank you for the lovely cookies they sent.’

‘Yes, we did,’ he replied, ‘and of course. Aunty always bakes up a storm if either of us are there.’ He was wondering where this conversation was going. Mitul’s mom obviously had an agenda of some sort. He leaned forward to put his coffee mug on the table.

‘How’s Dev?’ she asked.

The question startled him, but for once his actor’s training came in handy. He raised the mug, sipped from it, put it down, before raising guileless eyes to hers. ‘Aunty, he’s not doing too well. Well, you know what happened to him. He’s really upset about it. And he can’t even reach these people right now,’ an expression of worry and concern etched on his face.

‘Oh! That’s too bad,’ said Kamini, her face mirroring his concern.

Damn! He thought, Aunty is one fine actress!

‘Then I guess he’ll have to wait till they meet again, right?’ she continued. ‘I hope that won’t stop him from coming for the wedding?’

‘Oh! Of course he’ll be there, Aunty. After all, the twins are so looking forward to seeing him again, you know.’

Kuntala was trying to follow this completely incomprehensible conversation, until she could bear it no more. ‘Who’s Dev?’ she finally asked about this nebulous person whom everybody, except she seemed to know.

‘Oh! Dev’s my best friend. He’s also my manager,’ said Noel, politely.

If he’d understood it right, Aunty was throwing some sort of bait out there, and Myna’s mom seemed to be sniffing it!

Kuntala looked a bit bewildered at this. Why was Didi asking so many questions about Noel’s manager? ‘How do you know Dev?’ she asked Kamini.

‘Oh, he’s been here a few times,’ Kamini blatantly lied through her teeth, at which point, her husband excused himself to go find a place where he could chortle in peace.

Noel sat there poker-faced, playing the game with Kamini, both of them in complete understanding of each other.

Damn! Thought Kamini, he’d make a really good son-in-law. I could have fun with him!

‘Oh!’ Kuntala’s mouth rounded into an ‘O’. ‘So what does he do? Dev, I mean?’ she asked trying to look interested.

‘Oh, just manages me, my time, my finances, contracts. Things like that, you know,’ he said nonchalantly.

Kamini looked at him, her eyes speaking volumes. What are you doing?

Noel fluttered his eyelids and lowered his voice. ‘Aunty, the truth is, I may be an actor, but anytime, ANYTIME someone wants to work with me, they have to go through Dev. All the producers, directors - they go to HIM. He is the one with the real power. Thing is, Aunty, this is how it works in the Industry, you see,’ he stressed ‘Industry’ with a capital ‘I’, turning on the full force of his hypnotic voice on Kuntala.

‘I’ll tell you one more thing. I am not the only one that Dev manages. He manages ...,’ and here Noel inserted a few well-known names. It was the truth. Dev had taken managing careers to a whole new level, employing a staff of handpicked people to support him. However, Noel was the only one he managed personally.

Kamini raised an eyebrow wondering if Noel wasn’t going a little overboard with this hard sell. But Noel was in full-flow, so she didn’t interrupt. Kuntala was well and truly hooked!

‘In reality, Dev doesn’t need to work.’ He sat back, sipped his coffee. ‘He just does it for the challenge of it. Plus, he’s my friend, someone I trust very much. It’s because of him I am who I am,’ Noel shrugged his shoulders, leaving the thought hanging out there.

Kamini smiled at him. Good boy!

Mitul walked into the room, just then, and they left in a flurry of goodbyes.

Noel waited until they’d pulled away from her house before he said, ‘your mother is a star! She is fabulous!’ and broke into laughter.

‘Huh?’ Mitul looked at him like he’d gone stark raving mad. When he’d finally finished telling her how her mother had hooked her aunt, she was laughing along with him.

But they couldn’t tell Dev anything, yet. Not even to give him hope. Because ultimately, it all depended on Myna. And that they had no control over.

******

‘Didi,’ said Kuntala, busy shredding some cabbage. ‘Can I ask you something?’

‘Of course, Kuntala,’ Kamini said, ‘you don’t need my permission. What’s the matter?’

Her sister-in-law looked around to make sure everybody was out of earshot before she said, ‘This Dev boy you were talking about,’ she began.

‘Uh hunh?’ Kamini was determined not to give her an inch.

‘Ah. You said Mitul had gone to his parents house. Did she tell you what it was like?’ Kuntala asked.

‘She said, it looked like a very posh neighborhood, they had a big house, marble floors, two or three servants,’ Kamini said.

‘And what about him, where does he stay?’

‘Oh, he’s got a penthouse apartment in a high rise, here in Mumbai. He has his own car. He used to work for a mutli-national but gave it up to join Noel and help him,’ she said.

‘I’m thinking...,’ Kuntala said. ‘Never mind.’

‘Go on, tell me,’ she said.

‘I was wondering. Well, Noel and he are friends, so wouldn’t it be nice if Dev and Myna ...?’ she trailed off.

‘First of all, Noel and Mitul are not marrying yet. Secondly, you haven’t even met him or seen his photo, how can you think of taking a proposal to his family? Besides...’ she stopped. This was the fine line. She had to leave Kamini wanting more, but allow Myna to make the final decision.

‘Besides, what, Didi?’

‘Noel mentioned that there was a girl who broke Dev’s heart. So, in fact, he doesn’t want to marry anyone else right now,’ she added firmly.

Kuntala looked disappointed. But Kamini hid a smile as she could see the gears whirring in her head.

Kuntala had heard of a good boy, and she was definitely intrigued. Well, that was half the battle.

And now for Myna.

*****