Are you on Instagram?" Vijay asked, breaking the silence. Vrishali glanced at him and nodded. "Let's get connected."
"Sure." Vijay and Vrishali exchanged their usernames and followed each other. "Padmanabh is not on social media. He uses Whatsapp."
"Social media isn't everyone's cup of tea," Padmanabh replied and Harika just looked out of the window. Vijay went through some of the posts that Vrishali had posted, and they talked about them.
"Is this your first time visiting the south side of India?" Harika asked after a while. "Yes."
"Have you never been to South India?" Vijay asked. "No, I have never visited any state other than Rajasthan and Himachal Pradesh. Himachal Pradesh was a family trip when I was fourteen."
"That's a beautiful state. We have been to Bir for paragliding. Padmanabh did his paragliding flying courses for there." Vrishali looked at Padmanabh. She had gathered new information from Vijay. Vijay had been her giving her details about Padmanabh here and there.
"When we were in university. Padmanabh loved backpacking around Europe. I have joined him whenever I could," Vijay said. Vijay looked at Vrishali and Padmanabh. "You know, for a change in the routine— You two should backpack across India. I know Padmanabh is busy, but maybe you two can try to make it work."
Padmanabh looked at Vrishali at the same time she did. They shared a look before Padmanabh looked at Vijay. "Maybe."
Vijay smiled at Vrishali. "He is going to come around if you decide to backpack. He loves backpacking. . ."
"I will keep that in mind."
Harika remained silent, lost in her thoughts, as they roamed the vibrant streets of Thanjavur, adorned with colourful traditional architecture and bustling with life. The aroma of freshly brewed coffee wafted through the air as they stopped to enjoy their evening coffee and snacks, a delightful respite from their wanderings. Although Vijay hadn't planned to join them, Harika had different plans. Harika had particularly dragged him into this.
He made a genuine effort to keep Padmanabh and Vrishali alone, only stepping in when they welcomed him to join them. His instincts told him that Harika was stirring the pot, seeking to create friction between them, which he found quite unsettling.
Vrishali sipped her warm coffee, her gaze fixed on a lively family passing by on the street. They were adorned in vibrant traditional clothes that reflected their heritage. The boy, full of mischief, was playfully teasing his little sister, who responded with a frown and narrowed her eyes in irritation. Meanwhile, the father and mother engaged in a cheerful conversation, walking a few steps ahead of their children, radiating joy and connection.
Vrishali's lips softly smiled as she absorbed the warmth of the scene before her. Beside her, Padmanabh noticed her distraction, his eyes drifting to the family, particularly the animated children. A slight smile appeared on his face as he stood up, ready to settle their bill, the moment bringing a sense of contentment to his heart.
"Do you like Thanjavur?" Vijay asked. "I think I love it. They have beautiful architecture, and temples are beautiful, don't you think."
Vijay smiled. "Yes, working in South India and carrying the traditional architecture forward was a dream. Our company has its major projects in South India."
"That's amazing. Have you worked on any major projects that have traditional architecture?"
"Yes. . . I can show you some of my projects on my iPad."
"That would be nice." They stayed in the small coffee shop for a while before Vijay gave Padmanabh and Vrishali their space. "Harika and I should head back to that cafe, which had Wi-Fi. Our client wants to have a call."
"Call?" Harika asked, confused. Vijay turned to her. "Yes."
"You two, enjoy the evening. We will try to join you guys later." Before Padmanabh and Vrishali could say something. Vijay was already rushing with Harika.
"What do you want to do?" Padmananbh asked. Vrishali glanced at Padmanabh and said, "Hmm. I planned to take a few pictures inside the Brihadeeshwara temple."
Padmanabh nodded. "We can do that." Vrishali brushed her hair out of her face. "I mean, I want someone to click my pictures. I was going to ask Vijay about it, as he mentioned he was a photographer." Padmanabh didn't know how to respond.
"I'm not as good as Vijay, but I can try taking good pictures of you. You can always tell me if I don't click a good picture."
Vrishali smiled. "Sure." They left the shop and walked down the street to the temple lane. There, they saw local flower and coconut vendors. They stopped at places where Vrishali wanted her pictures to be taken. Padmanabh was awkward, but he wouldn't tell or let her notice his awkwardness.
She handed him her Sony camera. "Do you see the temple in the background?" Padmanabh nodded. "That's nice. I want the focus on me and the temple in the background."
"Okay." It was new to both of them. He had never clicked any pictures for anyone except for his sister. They roamed around the temple streets for the rest of the evening. They had a small talk in between, and Vrishali loved it.
They stopped at a potter store. Padmanabh watched Vrishali while she watched the potter. "Do you want to buy the pottery items? They— They are beautiful."
"No, I mean they are beautiful but I was admiring his craft and hands." Vrishali glanced at Padmanabh before looking at the potter. "When I was a kid, I wanted to join pottery classes, but they were expensive in New York. I had to join some other course."
"It isn't too late to learn pottery."
"Yes, but I got my assignments and projects. Maybe I will be able to join them in my holidays."
*
Padmanabh and Vrishali took the backseat as Vijay insisted that he would drive, and Harika was in the passenger seat. It had started drizzling. It would take them two hours to reach the heritage home, where they stayed for three days.
"What have you two done while we were gone?" Vijay asked. We explored the temple and streets, taking pictures before stopping at the potter's shop.
"That's amazing. Did you buy something?" Vrishali pointed to the bag beside her. "We bought some decoration pieces for the home."
Padmanabh glanced at Harika, who had been quiet the whole day. He knew there was a call from her parents in the morning.
"Well, Harika is leaving for London in two days."
"Is there an emergency?" Padmanabh asked. Harika glanced at him and Vrishali before shaking her head. "No, my parents are hosting a family dinner. My elder brother is taking over the company."
"And you heard about it today?" Padmanabh asked. Harika responded with a brief nod. Silence enveloped the car; everyone understood it was a sensitive topic. Harika had been so preoccupied with her family's concerns that she overlooked Diya Kumari's request entirely.
The car ride fell into silence with music playing in the background. After an hour, it started drizzling. "Do you want to shift?" Padmanabh asked. Vijay glanced at the road. "I can manage driving for now. If the rain gets heavy, let's change."
"Okay." Vijay wasn't a fan of driving in the rain. He gets tense when driving a vehicle in heavy downpours. Vrishali got hold of her pendant. She played with her pendant while looking out of the window. It was a highway.
Padmanabh didn't realize he had taken Vrishali's water bottle instead of his own. Vrishali gazed at the bottle Padmanabh held but didn't tell him it was hers. There was a call from Narendra Singh and Bhawani Singh.
Harika played on her phone. Padmanabh looked at the maps and the weather report. There was a warning that it would be pouring down heavily. They should be reaching their heritage hotel in time.
Vijay continued driving for about thirty minutes before Padmanabh shifted to the driving seat. Vijay took the passenger seat while Harika got into the back seat. Soon, Harika drifted off to sleep while Vrishali glanced out the window, even though she couldn't see anything properly.
Padmanabh was cautious; their original plan included stopping for dinner, but they chose against it due to the drastic weather change. It was already late when they arrived at the heritage hotel. Narendra, Diya Kumari, and Bhawani Singh waited for them in the living area.
"Are you guys okay?" Narendra asked. "Yes." Harika excused herself and went straight to her room. "The dinner is being served in the dining hall." Bhawani Singh said.
Vrishali and Padmanabh entered their suite. She went to the restroom while he checked Vijay's messages. He was unsure about Harika; only Vijay could ask her. His calendar had work emails and reminders. Vrishali rejoined him in the living room.
"Is Harika okay? She was silent most of the time."
"She must be tired, and it's a sensitive topic when it comes to her parents." Vrishali didn't ask anything. She waited for Padmanabh as he used the restroom before they went to the dining hall for dinner.