Falling In Love With You

Chapter-36

The early morning Sun shined brightly over the undulations of the seven steep peaks of the Velliangiri Hills, the lush vegetative plains of Coimbatore bordering along its eastern boundary. The bright greenery of the peaks a stark contrast to the cerulean blues of the sky and with the soft fluffiness of the cotton clouds that were slathered along its steep slopes, it felt like as if they were trying to form a truce between the two contradictory wonders of nature. The rich earthy scent of the red tilthy soil and the dense waterlogged black terrain along the base of the plush vegetative land painted a scenic vision that was in absolute disparity with the tall buildings and noisy traffic of the city lanes soothed the eyes and bestowed a calmness to the heart.
                    The bountiful flourishment of the variety of crops such as cotton, sugarcane, pulses, groundnut, spices and a variety of fruits and vegetables with its heavy drooping foliage of diverse tones unfolded like a myriad of glittering emeralds against the radiant beams of the Sun over the vast expanse of the fertile lands. The numerous agricultural crops along the fields, selfish as they were, soaked up in the rich nutrients of the fertile terraine and from the deposition of loamy soil along the riverbeds of the Noyyal river that originates from the hills itself and of the Bhavani river- a tributary of the Cauvery; transforms the foodplains along the base of the mountain into something of an enchanted painting that had been breathed into life with a secret spell casted by a skillful Wizard.
                    The vista of the countryside with its captivating juxtaposition of delicate cultivation and the majestic peaks that rolls past the wanderers and the pilgrims as they travel the muddy roads bewitches them into believing that indeed the Ardhanarishvara had chosen the right place to impart serenity and calmness to his subjects with the aid of the cool and quiet tranquillity of the mountains.
                     With the perfect blend of natural' resources, the immortal rivers and tributaries along the sacred ascent of Velliangiri, the thoughtfulness in utilising the natural gifts in the form of dams and reservoirs along the foodplains, the vast expanse of verdant agriculture with abundant nutrients beneath and the sanctity one feels with a mere inhalation of the fresh breeze as it delicately caresses the heart proves itself to be a land that must be revered for its divinity and holiness. These were the fascinating scenes that captivated Vasudha's attention throughout the entire thirty minute journey from her husband's house in the town to their countryside ancestral home.
                   It was almost quarter past six in the morning, each and every other family member was only half awake as they climbed down the cars after their cramped up nap during the whole ride, however Vasudha's heart strummed with nervous energy during the entire thirty minutes because she kept wondering to herself as to what awaited her at the end of her journey. She tried to gather up her courage and willpower to fight yet another delicate battle for the one person she had bared her heart and soul to for as long as she can remember. Even though he was not in the car with her, she felt his presence and deep down in her heart she knew... she knew that he was right beside her fighting the same battle as she, with her and for her and for the very first time in her life she didn't feel alone in her battles.
                     After what almost felt like an eternity, everyone of the family members finally gained some amount of their wakefulness as they all gathered before the most acclaimed ancestral house of the family. When Vasudha looked up, the scene that unfolded before her eyes somehow made her to wonder whether she had been teleported into one of those village melodramas of Tamil Cinema of the late 90s and early 2000s, back when life was simple and the neighbouring families gathered around the television to watch popular serials and movies, a time when cassette tapes and early cell phones ruled the local market with the buzz of globalization as the traditional and modern coalesced together with Carnatic music blaring off of the cable TV, while the scent of filter coffee lingered in the air. It literally took a moment for Vasudha to shake off that impression from her mind and imprint the exquisite vision before her into her mind. The richness of the bold red clay tiles that covered the roof of the abode in the front porch with its immaculately sculpted majestic terracotta pillars with traditional reliefs and motifs added a glamorous elegance to the portico.
                      As Vasudha kept admiring the beauty of the age old architecture before her, a dozen people came rushing out of the house, the bright smiles on their faces making the wrinkles and creases of time and toil glow in the golden hour of daylight but at the same time she heard a weak rumbling of a motorbike behind her. She almost had her hands to her mouth from gasping out aloud on coming face to face with her deliciously handsome husband as he climbed down the motorbike he rode; formal and clean shaven Pallavan was alright but this virile man with his thick beard framing his strong jawline, the unruly windswept hair from his ride made her poor heart to do a series of somersaults and his ruggedness added a sophisticated yet mysterious edge to his already commanding presence.
                       The dark curls on his chest played peek-a-boo with her, the top buttons of his shirt that were left open revealed some of his sculpted muscles and they very callously teased her feminine senses and the way his perfectly tailored slacks clung to his strong thighs was a dangerous threat to any young maiden and the way he owned that ruthless handsomeness made it absolutely impossible for her to avert her gaze from his person. She felt her common sense drifting away and abandoning her with every step her husband took towards her. She couldn't understand how her heart and body teamed up against her common sense and were betraying her in such a brutal way. It must have something to do with the air, Vasudha tried to reason with herself.
                      "LIKE what you see, Ammadi ?" Pallavan's deep voice was low and sultry. The words were meant to be innocent and genuine but when he said it and the way it sounded in his deep voice was anything but innocent. He purposely toned down his voice just so only she could hear his words made her realise just how shamelessly she had been eyeing her own husband in broad daylight.
                      Clearing her throat and adamentally forcing herself to look ahead and knitting her brows together to try look as confused as one could be, Vasudha asked her husband nonchalantly, "Well... I wonder why would you want an answer to that question in particular... Mister?'' And tried not to react to that all-knowing smirk on her husband's face, so she tried or rather pretended to concentrate very keenly on the serious conversation that her Aththai and Mama were having with the people who work their fields and reside around their Periya Veedu .
                      "Oh....! No need to try so hard to maintain your composure over a simple question, Vasudha...! Unless... Unless my genuine interest in your liking got interpreted into something else entirely in your mind...?'' This guy sure does know how to pull her patience and shatter her composure in minutes without as much moving a single muscle in his body... Oh! how she wanted to wipe that arrogant smirk off of his face in that instant.
                     But Vasudha kept her cool, " Well...!Wha... What other meaning could possibly be there, Mister Pallavan! I absolutely have no idea what you are talking about...at all...! But since you are being so confident and sure about something that I have NO idea about... Please! Be my guest and enlighten me, My dear!... But frankly, as for your genuine interest over what I like, my answer would be... Yes! This really is a beautiful house...!" Vasudha knew she was failing miserably with her words but nonetheless she tried to turn the tables on him and managed to flash him a sweet innocent smile.
                      "Well! I think I should applaud your efforts, Vasudha! And you shouldn't take it personally. However, you should know this though, Vasudha! I feel terribly sorry for you... I really do, but I don't think you should try to take the frustration and revenge out on me for getting turned down last night... Ammadi!" Pallavan poked the already worked up bear beside him.
                      "Now... Now... I think it's time to set some records straight, my dear! I understand you are trying your very best to make the shame you faced last night disappear without a trace... But you should know... You have to level up your game to impress me, but I don't think you will meet up with the standards my husband had already set! So I guess you are in for a very tough competition, my dear!" Vasudha replied to Pallavan cheekily.
                       "Oh ! Is that how it is now...?!" Pallavan's tone dipped low in a momentary shock at her words. " Yep... That just happened for real, My dear idiot!" Vasudha emphasised the word just to remind him that that was the name she called him back when they first met, however his bewilderment persisted only for a moment, quickly he shook it off and caught up with his wife's shenanigans.
                       ''Well... If you hold your husband in such high regard... Why would you keep calling ME, ''My Dear" Vasudha? You could be honest with me, Vasudha! I can keep your secret..." Pallavan bent down and whispered way too close to her ear.
                        "And what would that secret be...?" Turning up slightly, Vasudha asked her husband while trying hard to keep that smile on her face to everyone around her.
                        "... That you find Me far more attractive and handsome than Your husband..." And before Pallavan could finish his sentence Vasudha turned to him, clenching her teeth and pointing a finger directly at him she hissed out the words in barely restrained anger, "Listen here, Mister! Do not try to provoke me... You wouldn't be able to handle the consequences..." Oh! How Pallavan loved to watch her lose control, "Hmm... That's new! I didn't know that you are that easily provoked, Miss Vasudha!" Pallavan was having the best time of his life.
                        ''Do not count on your luck so much, Mister..." Vasudha's words were barely audible over her anger. "Well! I would love to see your claws, my dear! That is if you have any in the first place...! Even if you have... I don't think it would be of any use against me in my own place...That would be very stupid of you and since I wish you well, I would advice you to tread very carefully around Me, Miss!" Any moment now Vasudha would have pulled her husband down by his collar in front of all those people but just before anything like that could happen, she heard Lalitha call out to her, "Vasudha! What are you doing there ? Come here for a moment now, would you...?!"
                         Fisting her hands in frustration and annoyed at herself for losing to her husband in their little one-on-one Vasudha turned around to go but as she stepped away from Pallavan she noticed Saravanan walking towards them after parking the motorbike they both came in with a black polythene bag in his hand. Not bothering to stop and inquire anything about it Vasudha crossed her cousin-in-law but noticed something leafy poking and stretching out the polythene bag, also her mind vaguely registered Saravanan handing that heavy plastic bag very carefully to her husband, however she dismissed the image from her mind without stressing much over it and caught up with her Mamiyar who was just about to enter the house.
                         Behind her Pallavan tried hard not to burst out laughing against the win over his wife...well we could say for now- at his silly triumph over his bride-to-be. This woman, Pallavan thought to himself, would keep him on his toes for the rest of his life. And Saravanan just had to know the reason for his cousin's idiotic smile.
                        "Why do you have that stupid smile on your face, Pallava? Has the lightning that struck you last night turned you completely into a lunatic?" Saravanan's reference to Pallavan and Vasudha chance meeting with his parents in the terrace dripped with sarcasm.
                         ''You know, Saravana! You should shut that stupid mouth of yours before my fist happens to make all those teeth fall out and shut it closed forever for you...!" Pallavan threatened his cousin without even trying to wipe the grin off of his face.