A Clandestine Network

She was the mother of artistic thoughts, creativity, and futuristic events. Her voice was razor sharp, brittle and crystal clear. Her ideas were crisp and innovative but nonchalant. She was influential and made captives in her own galaxy, where it was difficult to depart. She was a tornado, engulfing everything that came in her way. She was a poem, difficult to decipher. She had her own world of emotions, revolving around in the orbit of her conscience. She was carefree, never limiting herself to her own realm of thoughts. She wanted to fly and wasn’t afraid of falling. She had falcon wings and could fly to great heights, but she never did. She liked messing up her hair, trying different, extraordinary styles and transforming them into statements. She was judgmental but leaped towards emotional attachments as if she knew everything about the world.

It mattered to her, the thoughts of her paramour, the gravity of his temptations, the color of his vision and the taste of his wine. Contrary to being an Indian, she was inclined towards French and followed soccer religiously. To her, strengthening the bond and loving endlessly was the only ambition. For him, she was his life. He enjoyed clipping her nails with his fingers, penetrating his fingers deep in her wavy, fidgety hair, straightening her curls, staring at her endlessly, marinating her half cooked chicken, holding hands with her, making her roll on the floor and laugh, writing his erotic thoughts in the language of her desires and making her feel better. He wanted to keep her away from the evil desires of the world, and he succeeded, making it beautiful for both of them.

Her eyes glinted and spoke of love, whenever he stared her and wanted to make her his own. It was more of a commitment than a relationship. She knew that she would fall but never took a step back. She followed the track and let her feelings flow. She was the center of attention, a blooming flower, and a fascinating being.

Samika, that’s what people called her. This rare, unique, Bengali name was bestowed upon her by her Kashmiri clan, specifically by her mother who made every single effort to expedite the process of making her only child extraordinary. She was born talented, and this made him drawn towards her.

Studded with accolades and laurels, he focused on his sea career being a final year Engineering student, more than any other deviation or distraction. He was practical and believed that having sex was better than squandering time on porn. He played with alphabets as writing expressions was his only passion. He tried his luck at poetry too and got appreciated for his commendable strokes. He wrote about unimaginable things, about the elliptical orbits in which humans evolve, about women, their fortune, their dreams, their mood swings, their thoughts about men and the society.

Sharda, the only ideal who was a nut to his bolt, introduced Samika to him. She was an HR manager who got inspired by the 20-year-old playwright in his Engineering College. He had a peculiar inclination towards her that made him leave his path and spend hours talking to her about life, about the past that could never be re-returned, about love, how it spoiled the life of the generation, about menstruation, homosexuality, and the world chasing women and money. They mingled together like lost friends and forgot the difference in their ages. They enjoyed the company and lighted up whenever they met each other. That was not accepted by the society as it wasn’t the case of curious Benjamin which could let them live together forever. She was 40, twice of what he actually was, but it didn’t matter to him. All he wanted was, to be with her.

Then one fine day when the sun rose up like never before, she made him meet Samika. He saw the reflection of her mother in her. He called her a clone and wary of her thoughts, kept his distance. To the constant nagging of his ideal Sharda, he taught that school girl. He made her solve equations, numericals, calculate the complex compound interest, contemplate her poetry and the paraphrase. To be fair and square he considered her as his sister, but the emotions grew up more than he thought.

He couldn’t equate what was going on and was skeptical about everything. He just followed his instinct, nothing else. He had always been secretive, and she, on the contrary, told him everything about herself. They frequented their meeting schedules with the excuse of studying and started to blush at the sights of each other. Their love grew like an abnormal growth of cells in leukemia. It was essential for the love birds to understand the quality of love they possessed.

“Hey! Saraj Bhaiya”, she muttered when she saw him, and he heard the bells ringing from the paradise. He even followed her silhouette when she strolled with him in her break. Such was the influence. His ideal Sharda made everything happen, and he was grateful to her. She wore her best in class perfume for him, and he shaved everyday to a mirror finish and smeared with chunks of After Shave to get her in his claws. They accepted and surrendered themselves to each other, saying the three golden words.

They often met with the permission of her mom, Sharda and kept the enterprise among themselves. They planned to spectacle a movie and succeeded in picking up intensity and passion to touch each other before the screen in the dark. They were in their own world, forgetting about the people nearby, touching, arousing and making feel each other better. Their pleasure meant more than what was going on the screen. They accepted it and secretly walked past the exit to exchange the salivary glands. Their bond grew stronger than the strongest adhesive on earth. The texted whole day and wailed when either of them lost their internet connectivity. Still, they never left a stone unturned. They won competitions, scored well, did wonders and loved each other. Nothing could separate them. Such was their bond. 

He graduated and she stepped up the ladder. He got his sponsorship, and she got her recognition. Saraj eventually had to leave for sea as a Marine Engineer, and she had to stay longing for her never ending desires. They still had months to be together and wander as one soul but the good times don’t last forever.

Saraj had to take up the daunting task of leaving for 6 months long contract onboard, and she had to die in solitude. She was losing the grip and could feel the rope slipping from her fist. He was flying to the west, thousands of miles away from her with no contact for next six months. It was weird for a couple to keep away from all contacts who shared every bit of their life. But then the truth was stranger than fiction.

He departed, leaving behind everything. Every single thing. Especially memories. She dropped him to the airport and bid him adieu kissing his cheek and hugging him as if it was the last day on earth. They sobbed and started wailing soon, and it was the day they discovered that they were weaker than they thought. They were fragile and not strong. They boasted of their strength but couldn’t endure the pain of leaving each other. It was justified to be weak, especially because of the bond they shared. She called out loud “Bon Voyage” and left. With tears in her eyes, she left her strength, her weakness and resolved not to look back. She tried hard, but she ran back to hug one last time and say goodbye. That was all.

Days passed and months, they talked over emails and texted whenever Saraj got the internet connectivity. His contract was about to end, and her heart thumped with every single day getting near. She managed to keep her calm but couldn’t.  She got excited and started fidgeting with the thoughts of being with him again.

She willed herself not to check her phone to see if he had replied. It had been about three days now. She hated that she was constantly checking his 'last seen at' status and yes, he had logged in just five minutes ago. She couldn't stop herself. This sinking feeling to find absolutely no communication from him was becoming unbearable, almost torturous.

And then, just as she sat down in her chair, her phone vibrated. With her heart thudding in her ear, she unlocked her phone and stared at the screen. Finally! It was his message.

But when she opened it and read it, she nearly stopped breathing. She didn't know if he was joking or not. What was this?

He surprised her with a screenshot of his flight tickets. She inhaled deep, filling her lungs to the brim and inflated her diaphragm as it would burst. She nurtured her thoughts of receiving him at the airport with a kiss. Heavens showered on the scheduled day, and she wore her best of accessories to look elegant.

Finally! They met and sealed themselves, shoving the guilt of leaving each other in solitude.