Chapter 11

twerping

@twerping

Raman watched as Ruhi clung to Ishita who was now bent over the bed, trying to talk Ruhi into falling asleep. Thanks to Ruhi Bhalla's drowsy tantrum, Ishita Iyer was now in his apartment. At the door of the Iyer's apartment, when Raman had tried to leave with Ruhi, the child had cried enough to have Vandita, Ishita's sister-in-law, exclaim that Ishu really should see that child to bed. 

Now, he got to drink in the scene before him. Ishita's long hair had been plaited with a gajra entwined in it and he imagined he could smell the faint fragrance it emitted. Her saree was heavy, silken and purple. Raman had never liked the colour but he couldn't help but admire the way it lay next to her skin, adding a lustre to it. He sat next to the two on the bed, completely oblivious to the fact that Ishita was finding his intense gaze quite unsettling. She found her present task of taking her leave from Ruhi complicated by the disconcerting awareness of the father's eyes on her. She stumbled through her words, made promises she ought not to and when finally Ruhi did close her eyes and it stayed shut, she got up with a jerk. Raman was beside her in a flash.

"Thanks," he said, trying to curb the disappointment of her leaving quite so soon.

She nodded her head and turned to go. Raman called out. 

"Ishita."

She stilled at the sound of her name on his lips. It sounded strange, foreign. He pronounced it different to the way her family did, adding the peculiarly Delhi brand of Punjabiness to it coupled with something more elusive. 

"Ishita," he said again, now walking up till he was standing before her. "I want to thank you for what you have done for Ruhi," he said. When the words came, Raman surprised himself at the genuineness of the sentiment attached to it. He wasn't lying. He didn't need to. "Since my divorce, it has been difficult. I have tried --" 

Here he paused suddenly at the recollection of Shagun's face, her angry hurtful words as she left him. He focused on Ishita. Her brown eyes that even then were watching him with a curious intelligence. He was taken aback at the way the bitterness of the past washed away under the swell of the desires of the present.

"I have never seen Ruhi happier than she has been since she met you," he finished, somewhat distracted.

Ishita tried to smile but it was a fragile one. "Ruhi has her entire family here with her. Of course, she will be happy here. I am simply-"

Raman stopped her by placing his hands on her shoulders. Ishita felt a quiver start somewhere deep within her. She desperately wanted to run away. 

"It's not that. In you, Ruhi has found someone who is both a friend and a role model. The child adores you!" He had not reached out for her intentionally. The look of utter desolation in her eyes had pushed him over the edge. He remembered himself and withdrew his hands. Ishita let out the breath she had been unconsciously holding.

Raman tried to ignore the need he felt to draw closer to her and continued, "I just thought that you should know this. I don't want you thinking that I do not appreciate what you are doing for my daughter." 

He emphasised on the "I" and Ishita wasn't quite able to tame the crimson flush that betrayed her. 

He watched the colour spread across her cheeks with a fascination he had not felt in years. He longed to reach out and trace its journey. 

"I should be getting back," she spoke softy, edging away from him. Raman wished he could pull her back till she crashed against his chest leaving him free to bask in her softness. It was such an irrational almost childish desire that he grinned despite himself.

She stopped, curiosity overcoming her wish to flee. "What?" she asked a mirroring smile blooming on her lips. Raman Kumar Bhalla when he was smiling could be quite contagious. 

He shook his head though the grin widened and she moved forward. "What is so funny?" Ishita's query was laden with the natural curiosity of someone who wants in on the joke.

"Is it something Ruhi said?!" she tried to guess.

When he didn't reply, her eyes widened and she exclaimed, "Oh! Is it about the thing with the dog, the policeman and the traffic cone!" 

Raman stared at her wide-eyed for a moment before bursting into laughter. "No!" he managed to say out loud.

Ishita watched him bemused and declared, "You are a little weird."

"Says the lady who talks about dogs, policemen and traffic cones in the same breath," pat came Raman's reply.

Ishita laughed too and Raman watched as she visibly relaxed before him. 

"Good to hear that Ruhi keeps her secrets!" she said, her eyes dancing with suppressed glee.

Her eyes sparkled and she seemed to glow. Raman wondered why she didn't laugh more often. It was positively a bewitching sight. Unknown to him, his eyes darkened. Ishita didn't notice at first but when she did, her laughter came to an abrupt halt. 

It was as they stood caught in silence too fraught to dispel with mere words that Neelu chose to enter.

"Didi, they are calling you," said the maid. 

Both Raman and Ishita gave a start of surprise. It was as if for a moment, they had somehow entered a place where the world around them had ceased to exist. Ishita left soon after. 

It was as Raman had almost fallen asleep that night that he realised something. He had actually enjoyed himself in the brief time he spent with Ishita Iyer.

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