Dawn

Chapter 14 - Incandescence

Piya basanti re 

Kaahe sataye aaja

Jaane kya jaadoo kiya

Pyar ki dhun chede jiya ho

Kaahe sataaye aaja

Incandescence

[noun]

glowing, luminous

Aryan and Imlie settled once more into an unspoken schedule. Aryan had chosen to work from home for the week while he healed from the surgery. He didn't fancy going into the office the first few days when the swelling was still evident.

Then, after making peace with Imlie, he simply wanted to stick around for a bit longer. He told himself it was because he needed to heal. Not because Imlie was studying from home on account of her school being on a break. On the fifth day, when Arpita enquired as to his return to the office, he'd bluffed his way through a reason, unable to meet his sisters' teasing gaze beside Imlie's oblivious ones.

Their week was thus spent with Aryan and Imlie sequestered in the library, taking breaks for meals, tea times, a quick walk and occasionally, a funny video that Imlie absolutely needed him to see, forcing him to crack a smile more often out of enjoyment at her boisterous and open laughter than anything else.

Their evenings were a mix of cozy silence and discussions on politics, Imlie's schooling, daily news, and anything else that came to mind. They were comfortable being themselves with each other and it seemed evident that these evenings were meant for them alone.

Not that either one of them had expressly said it, but neither Narmada nor Arpita intruded, happy that these two had worked out whatever bump they'd encountered.

Aryan was calmer, happier and more himself. And Imlie's smiles reached her eyes once more.

One such evening, Aryan was sitting on the couch, busy reading the papers in his hand and marking down notes systematically, while Imlie paced back and forth behind him, nearly biting her nails off in nervousness.

She'd asked Aryan if she could start working at Bhaskar Times on a part time basis, and in preparation, he'd suggested she write an article for him to review instead so that he could guage her readiness. Given that there was no dearth of topics to write about, she'd focused on public schooling and the lack of funding there, especially in rural areas. She'd been through the system and had her own experiences to draw on, but had tried her best to keep a neutral voice so as to give the readers a chance to form their own opinions.

"Are yo..."

"Not yet, jungli," Aryan interrupted in a bored voice, not bothering to pause his perusal of the article.

Imlie stuck her tongue out towards the back of Aryan's head, keeping mum immediately. She'd talked incessantly after handing him the paper in an attempt to tamp down her nervousness, climbing up the couch, walking across it before jumping back down as she rattled of nonsensical doubts she'd had causing Aryan to finally suggest that if she's going to behave like a jungli monkey, she should go elsewhere so he could review her work in peace.

A few moments later, Aryan finished reading, impressed at the fresh take Imlie had presented on a topic that had been well explored. She was coming into her own. He had no doubts that given time, she would make a name for herself in her chosen field.

He looked up at her and nodded at the seat next to him. For the next several minutes, they worked through Aryan's recommendations on her article and discussed appropriate changes that could be made. As they sat back with a sigh, satisfied with a job well done, Aryan passed a casual remark on something Imlie had written.