Destiny

2. A Step Closer to Reality

As soon as Anand's head touched the pillow, he heard a sweet voice say, "Darling, you are handsome and irresistible... you are the very picture of Manmatha. When I saw you today, through the branches of the Parijata Tree, I fell in love with you immediately.

(A/n - Manmatha, in Sanskrit, means God of Love)

Anand was dumbstruck and equally stunned. For a minute he thought, that, his mind is playing tricks on him. He could make out from the voice, that the person who had spoken was a young women, and he was so startled with what he had heard, that he became wide awake now. He looked around, but found nobody.

Anand was tall and fair, and had curly hair and a charming smile. His cousin Siddhi, his junior in college, often came home and told the stories about Anand that were being circulated in the girls' room of the college. Girls, would follow him, to just talk to him. He had every quality, that a young girl would desire. He was not only handsome, but well-bred and intelligent too.

Anand, smiled looking at himself in the mirror. Who could have seen him there, near the Parijata Tree and fallen in love with him, in the first sight?

Outside, the birds were chirping, and the mild fragrance of The Parijata Tree wafted in, through the windows.

Anand, sat on the bed crossing his legs, and waited for the voice to resume speaking. But, there was absolute silence. He was ashamed of his presumptuousness. . . how could he ever imagine, that someone, who he has never seen, can fall in love with him?

He was about to lie down, but he heard that clear and sweet voice again, "I feel, I have been waiting for you since may lifetimes. You are my ideal man".

Now, Anand was sure, that he was not imagining things, somebody was talking to him. The words were coming from the other side of the hall. The woman, perhaps, was explaining how he had fallen in love with Anand to a friend. But, he could not hear the other person's reply. He felt a little awkward hearing this, but maybe this is how girls conversed with each other...he was not sure.

His sister, Aadya, was always so aggressive and wrapped up in her own world of friends, that they were hardly close. Anand, rarely had even, a casual conversation with her.

He quickly got off the bed and stood with his ear, very close to the wall, so that he could hear even the softest whisper from the other side. He assumed, that, a couple of girls were discussing about him. . .

"Love is not an object that can be bought after putting it into test. It is not a thing that can be bought, after consulting others. It is not a commodity that can be sold in the market for money. When you see a man and your pulse starts racing, heartbeats start beating up faster, your blood begins to sing and at last you yearn to spend the rest of your life with only him, sharing with him your joys and sorrow, is what we call Love. It is imperishable; it cannot be crushed under any circumstances. Who he is, or what his family is, or where he works, is immaterial to me. He may not even be aware that there is someone who loves him so much. But, my love for him is as firm as the Himalayas and as clear as the waters of the Mansarovar."I

The declaration of The definition of Love seemed so theatrical, that for a moment Anand was astonished.

In a voice filled with sadness, the girl appealed humbly,

"Like Rukmini to Krishna, like Lakshmi to Narayan, am I to him. Just, as a creeper depends on a tree, I depend on him. I cannot live without him, and for his sake, I am ready to renounce everything. Let society say anything it wants to, I do not care...."

In between the conversations, he could hear the clinging of bangles. As far he knew, Dr. Desai, only had one son who was married and lived in USA. From the voice, he had just heard, he assumed that the girl was in her mid-twenties. There were no girls in Dr. Desai's house. In the hope of hearing more, he again waited a little longer, but there was complete silence.

Anand stepped away from the wall, and went towards the adjacent room, hoping to see lovestruck girl. The door was closed but not latched. With great hesitation, he pushed it open. But to his surprise, there was nobody there! There was not even a trace of anyone being there, few minutes ago!

Disappointed, he walked back to his room. His sleep had vanished completely now. So, he sat on the bad, recalling what had happened.