‘Nothing,’ she said reading the message aloud and went inside the building with him.
‘Danny, do you think we all are striving in lives in our own little ways to derive more than what we need to live a decent life? Maybe 99 percent of the time, we don’t need something and are still ready to die to procure it in order to either stand out from the others or stand in with them?’ she said when they were in the elevator.
‘Why do you ask??’ he said.
She immediately knew she shouldn’t have asked him this.
‘Nothing. Just leave it?’
‘I think,’ he said, ‘It’s an individual who decides how much he needs. This thing called need is subjective, right? Sometimes we confuse need and necessity, I guess.’
‘Necessity is common to all but need is person-specific. Like a simple kurti would pacify my necessity of covering up but a kurti from BIBA would satisfy my need for affluent brands, of looking high-maintenance. The latter is an innate need for city-bred girls like me who grow amid a bombardment of advertisements, fashion, and materialism.’ A pause later she added, ‘Though for some, necessity and need is one and the same thing and that’s when we lose our depth I guess.’
‘We lose our worth,’ Danny corrected her. The word ‘worth’ reminded her of one of stranger’s early messages: Know your worth Mini.
If Rivanah was honest with herself, then the untouched and pure faces of the kids that day actually made her realize maybe she did take a little more than what she needed to live in peace. And to top it, she also took her need to be a necessity.
‘It’s the same in show-business,’ Danny said.
‘I think every business is show-business today, if you know what I mean. We are taught Moral Science lessons in junior school but it is Market Science that we need to handle all our life as a grown up.’
‘Actually!’ Danny agreed.
The next Saturday Danny had a shoot for a print advertisement and so he couldn’t accompany her. This time Rivanah went with ten fresh alphabet books and distributed them among the kids along with basic stationery like pencils, erasers, and pencil-cutters. Teaching those kids connected her to an unprecedented freedom in her which allowed her to forget herself, her irks, and her own complaints from life. She felt like floating when she was with Mini’s Magic 10 whereas otherwise she fought hard to swim in the sea of life.
Rivanah also made sure she interacted with the kids beyond her academic involvement. She asked those kids about their background, where they came from and also listened to their innocent dreams. One kid had an alcoholic good-for-nothing father and a mother who worked hard cleaning people’s houses and all he dreamt of was to see his mother spend twenty-four hours with him. A girl had both her parents working hard as daytime labourers at a construction site and she believed they were actually building a palace for her because she was their princess. Their aspirations, their zeal, and their will to smile amidst their grave reality taught Rivanah more than she taught them. She could forget neither the kids nor their stories. Over weeks, they became a part of her.
‘I wish I could make you meet my kids?’ she told her mother one night over phone.
‘Your kids?’ Her mother sounded scandalized.
‘The ones I teach mumma.’
‘You gave me a heart attack. First you changed from Ekansh to Danny and now suddenly these kids.’ Her mother tried to calm herself down.
‘I didn’t change Ekansh. It didn’t work out. Anyway.’
‘I’m happy you are teaching poor kids. Last week your pishi and pisha had come with Mou and Bunty. I told them that you do a lot of things in Mumbai like working in an American-based company and teach poor kids as well.’
‘Why do you have to advertise what I do to everyone?’ Rivanah sounded crossed.
‘What’s the harm? People should know about it.’
Rivanah knew that the real reason behind such advertisement was to project her as someone better than her cousins.
‘Do you know why they were here?’ Mrs Bannerjee asked sounding mischievous.
‘Who? Pishi and Pisha? Why?’
‘Yes, yes. They were here to invite us for Mou’s wedding.’
‘Mou’s wedding? What are you saying? She is only...’
‘Twenty!’ her mother said completing her sentence. ‘But they said they got a bright boy who is working in Singapore and is from a good family so they couldn’t say no. In fact your pishi was taunting that Mou is getting married before you.’
‘I don’t care how much she taunts me but I’m not getting married so don’t ask me about it either.’
‘Alright I won’t. Do what you feel like but come down for Mou’s marriage in February, okay?’
‘Yeah, okay.’
‘By the way who gave you the idea of teaching the kids Mini?’ her mother asked. It was then she realized she hadn’t talked to the stranger for some weeks now.
‘A friend,’ she said and quickly added, ‘I’ll call you later mumma.’ She cut the line and typed on her phone: Thanks. She sent it to the stranger’s last unknown number.
What for? prompt came the reply.
By now Rivanah had stopped being baffled at the prompt responses.
For letting me teach the kids. It’s one of the best things that has happened to me, she messaged back.
I told you before. I’m not important, you are.
Why do you say that? Why am I so important to you?
Not to me. You are important to yourself.
Everyone is important to his or her own self.
But not everyone knows it. All our life we destroy and waste ourselves the most.
Why don’t you show yourself? I would really appreciate it if you meet me once. Like seriously.
No reply came for two hours. Then five minutes before midnight, her phone beeped with a message from an unknown number:
Meet me tomorrow at Tiger Point in Lonavla. 8 pm sharp.
Tomorrow is my birthday! she messaged back immediately.
No more reply came.
Answer me.
Still no reply. Rivanah wondered if the stranger really meant what he said. Was he actually going to meet her?
At 12 am sharp, Danny called her.
‘Happy birthday babe.’
‘Thanks baby.’
‘Sorry, I couldn’t be with you right now but let’s plan something for tomorrow.’
If the stranger really was going to meet her this time, she wouldn’t let the opportunity go for anybody.
‘Umm, baby actually I need to go for an office meet to Pune tomorrow. Can we please meet the day after? I know it’s my birthday but this office thing…’ Rivanah was upset about lying to Danny but she thought she would tell him everything once she met the stranger. An instinct told her if she took Danny with her, the stranger may not reveal himself.
‘Oh! But I thought we would have fun and...’
‘We definitely would baby. Don’t be sad. It’s just a matter of one day. Even I’ll miss you.’ Rivanah consoled Danny and convinced him they would party whole night once she was back. He agreed. She had to end the call sooner than she would have liked because her parents’ call was on waiting. She took their call and birthday wishes. On a whim she checked her message, whatsapp, Facebook, and email. Last year Ekansh had flooded her Facebook inbox, Whatsapp, and email with all sorts of birthday messages, e-cards but this year there was nothing. Suddenly she realized Ekansh wasn’t there in her life anymore. She was finding it difficult to accept the fact that from now onward he won’t ever wish her on her birthday. For reasons unknown to her, she logged on to her Facebook account from her laptop and unblocked Ekansh after a long time. She wanted to give him a chance to get to her if he wished to on this day. Rivanah checked his profile picture on Facebook once and immediately logged out.
Rivanah was thankful that her roommates where not there to wish her. It was her first birthday where she just wanted to be by herself. Since the break-up Ekansh, more than just bein
g a past, had become an experience for her. And when someone becomes an experience, it becomes difficult to severe oneself from it.
The next day, after Rivanah learnt that Danny would be at his flat in the afternoon, she moved out early lest he saw her at her flat instead of the false office meeting she told him about. She hired a cab early in the evening which drove her to Tiger Point. Just to be safe, she had messaged Ishita before leaving.
I’m going to Tiger Point in Lonavla to meet the stranger. Don’t tell anybody.
OMG! Best of luck girl. Be safe, Ishita replied.
When Rivanah stepped out of the cab, she could still see tourists loitering around the point clicking pictures and having fun among themselves. As per the deal, the cab was supposed to wait till ten after which it would take her back to Mumbai. The driver moved out while she went to sit on a plastic stool by a small shop selling corn. She passed her time by receiving calls wishing her birthday from distant friends and relatives and then answering messages on Facebook. She kept refreshing her Facebook inbox, but no message came from Ekansh. Feeling stupid to have unblocked him, she blocked him again. With time, the other tourists went away and the corn stall too shut down. By seven in the evening, there were only the cab driver and Rivanah in sight around Tiger Point.
It was around 8:30 pm but there was still no sign of the stranger. The silence and emptiness of the place made her heart race. Though Rivanah had dared to come far from the city, standing alone at a distance from Tiger Point she realized perhaps she shouldn’t have. She wanted to call Danny but messaged the stranger instead.
Are you coming? I’m already here.
There was no reply. Fifteen minutes later, she noticed a Xylo take a turn and approach her. Rivanah swallowed a lump as the headlights fell on her eyes, blinding her. She blocked her eyes with her hands. The next instant, the lights went off. She strained her eyes to see who it was but it was pitch black. Slowly, she saw a man walking towards her with a bouquet in his hands and a smile on his face. As he reached closer, she could tell it was a smell she had inhaled before.
‘Happy birthday baby,’ the man wished.
As his face became clear, an astonished Rivanah blurted ‘Danny?’
20
‘What?’ Danny said. ‘Don’t tell me you came here without knowing it was me. I wanted to surprise you, but I knew you had understood my prank.’
No, she didn’t know it was him. The message had come from an unknown number like always and there was no way she could guess it was a prank.
‘Now will you take these?’ Danny urged forwarding the bouquet to her. She took it with an expression unlike the one Danny was expecting.
‘What’s wrong?’ he asked. Rivanah realized she would have to think of an excuse fast. She immediately hugged him tightly and whispered in his ear, ‘I was feeling scared.’
Danny hugged her back and said, ‘I was watching you all along, so there was nothing to worry about.’
‘Did you follow me here?’
Danny broke the embrace and gave her a you-caught-me smile. ‘How did you guess it was me who messaged you from an unknown number?’ he asked.
‘Who else could it be?’ she quipped and gave him a forced smile.
‘Yeah! It was actually Nitya’s number. When you lied to me on the phone that you were going to Pune, I knew you were playing smart.’ She smelled his deodorant again.
‘New deodorant?’
‘Yes. “Just Different,” by Hugo Boss, he said. ‘How is it?’
‘I like it.’ The same deodorant was of course a coincidence, she told herself and said aloud, ‘By the way whose car is that?’ she said eyeing the Xylo.
‘A friend’s.’
‘One second,’ Rivanah went to the cab driver and asked him to leave after paying his dues. She came back to Danny and said, ‘Why Tiger Point?’ Switching on the car’s headlights they leaned on the front of the car, looking at each other.
‘I wanted to be away from everything today except you. I was here a month back for a short film and that’s when I had decided we would celebrate your birthday here in the serenity and silence of the night.’
‘Celebrate?’
Danny gave her an amused smile, went back to open the car’s door, and brought out a cake, two glasses and a bottle of champagne. He placed them on the car’s bonnet. She glanced at the cake, the champagne, and then at Danny. Why did she subject herself to momentary depression when she had such a caring boyfriend? She could have cried seeing Danny fixing two small candles making up the number 16 on the cake and then light them with a lighter.
‘Blow them,’ he said.
‘Why sixteen?’
‘My love for you shall be forever young, that’s why.’
Wearing a white round-neck tee and jeans Danny looked his most handsome self in the aura of the candle light. Rivanah came forward, blew the candle, and cut a piece with the plastic knife. She picked up the piece and brought it close to Danny’s mouth. He took the piece from her hand and pushed it back in her mouth instead, taking a bite from the other end and licking every bit of it from around her mouth just like she did from around his.
Then they poured some champagne in the glasses and sipped on it sitting in front of the car by the edge of Tiger Point as Danny briefed her about his meeting with a film producer who was willing to give him a chance in a regional film. Rivanah was more relieved than happy to hear it. She had decided that once Danny had signed a film, she would discuss marriage plans with him before telling her parents about it. Her mother did have a point when she said that sometimes one should know the current status of a relationship and the direction towards which it is headed.
‘I have had many girlfriends in the past, but they meant nothing to me. You are slowly becoming my everything, Rivanah,’ he said after a prolonged silence. They had switched off the car’s headlights. Under the soft romantic moonlight, he resembled the Prince she had dreamt about as a kid and believed some day would come and sweep her off her feet. Did she deserve such goodness? The break up with Ekansh had somehow convinced her nothing good would ever happen to her. Though Danny’s presence proved otherwise, she wasn’t sure. When you have seen dry days for too long it becomes difficult to believe that rain is awaiting you. And even if you see a rain-laden cloud all you tell yourself is perhaps it is an illusion.
To blur the line between illusion and reality, Rivanah leaned towards him and locked her lips with his. Danny responded by sucking her lips hard. She soon felt his big hands on her breasts over her white shirt. His demeanour told her he wanted control and she willingly gave him that. With his tongue licking the cavity of her mouth and her hands around his neck, Danny picked her up in a flash. The power with which he did so acted as an aphrodisiac for Rivanah.
Once the smooch broke, Danny placed her on the roof of the Xylo and looked arrow straight at her as he doffed his tee, shoes, jeans, and socks. This was the first time she was seeing him in his briefs. She missed a heartbeat as he climbed up to the car’s roof to join her.
The trees and the other surrounding flora started to dance to a mild breeze. Rivanah’s mind went numb as he stripped her off her shirt, trousers, undergarments; one at a time. Every touch of his was also stripping the clothes of hurt from her soul. Soon she felt his bare skin rubbing her bare body. As they smooched again her heart gave her a hint in the form of two tear drops that she was finally happy after a long time.
For a moment Danny stopped and glanced at her inquiringly. She nodded bringing herself even closer to him and continuing to kiss him all over his face. In no time, her hand went down and grabbed his hard penis along with his taut balls while he cupped her breasts and caressed her erect nipples with his thumb. The cold car’s roof and the warm grab of his hands took her sexual itch to a certain level which turned her into an immoral beast. Rivanah pushed Danny and made him lie down flat on the car’s roof. She carefully put his hands above his head.
‘Don’t move,’ she said and started kissing her w
ay down. Her hair glided over his skin as she moved down, pushing his erection to the maximum. She tugged down his underwear and sucked him for long after which she rode him with her legs on either side of his waist, guiding his hard penis inside her puffy and wet vagina with ease.
Rivanah moaned out as the thick penis entered her tight vaginal walls. As she started subtly bouncing on it, the car made a funny creaking noise feeling their movement. They exchanged a smile as Danny, still inside her, flipped Rivanah to come on top of her.
She felt like she was flying as he looked straight into her eyes while she held on to him tight. Though she was enjoying herself, soon the car’s surface started to hurt her back. Danny understood her dilemma and, once again, changed position. Placing his hand on her butt, he sat up stretching his legs. They both were now sitting up with Rivanah on his lap with her inner thighs wrapping his waist. As she started to ride him, she put her hands around his neck. The position made him hit spots inside her which had never been probed before. And it released unprecedented pleasure. Her breasts rubbed his face every time she went up and down. Danny’s above average strength that lasted for more than an hour gave her the first real orgasm of her life. Rivanah moaned out loud in ecstasy, feeling all her muscles curl-in together. During the orgasm, she felt her soul leaving her, traversing the entire cosmos, and then return to her, gravid with everything she ever desired. Danny held her butt and stood up on the car’s roof along with her. He then allowed her to keep her feet down and then flipped her without warning. He placed his hands on her breasts and took her from behind. She actually felt she would die of pleasure and knew well that this pleasure death would be her real birth.
Danny came thrice that night, while Rivanah orgasmed twice. She couldn’t believe how exhausted she was once they were eventually done. Lying naked on the car’s roof in Danny’s strong arms and staring at the star studded night sky, she couldn’t believe what had just happened.
‘I didn’t tell you this but I dreamt of making love to you like this.’
‘When did that happen?’ Rivanah sounded surprised.
Marry Me, Stranger Page 14
