From Dawn To Dusk - A Rajveer Naina Short Story

Chapter - 1

"Love looks not with the eyes, but with the mind and therefore is winged Cupid painted blind"

He badly wanted to do something which would make her cherish the time spent on Point 1857 a bit more... and when she expressed her desire of not leaving this place, the idea of echoing their names came to his mind. Losing himself in the depth of her hazel eyes was so easy... forgetting that he was a strict army officer was even easier, the fact that she was his protégée didn't even cross his mind, that he was the murderer of her elder brother.. that he had violated her trust, had violated his honour.. that she had hated him once upon a time.. that he didn't deserve her company.. that he had been trying so hard to keep her away from his wretched self.... he forgot everything. He was not Captain Rajveer Singh Shekhawat here... Neither was she Cadet Naina Singh Ahluwalia.... Here they were just two individuals, Rajveer and Naina... who had come to this sacred place which was the meeting spot of true love.. It didn't matter that he was trying to keep his love hidden for the fear of retribution from the world...it didn't matter that she had no idea about his love for her... neither that she had no experience with romance... He just wanted to prolong that smile on her face.

Like a kid, he jumped up and pulled her by her wrist and almost dragged her to the Echo Point. When she echoed his name...he was spell bound.. He had no idea that she would call him by his name... hoped maybe... but... and oh...!!! It felt wonderful to hear his name from her lips. The expression on her face was bewitching and he couldn't stop looking at her.

She was clad in a simple white coloured salwar suit...something which many girls would not do, instead favouring gaudy colours and heavy ornaments... but she was just so different from the rest of her generation... Sweet, simple, temperamental... That was his cadet Naina Ah.. Singh. Just then a gust of breeze came rushing blowing her hair and her dupatta and she raised her right arm to hold the offending piece of garment. Mesmerized, he just kept watching her for some time and then with a sigh roused himself from this stupor. He knew he was chasing a fantasy... something which could never be his... which he could never let to be his.

Controlling himself with an effort, he turned back and said.. ""Chaliye Cadet Singh, ab hume chalna chahiye. Academy bhi to wapas jana hai...warna gates band ho jayenge to we will be stranded for the night."

She seemed to be lost in her thoughts... so much so that she didn't even pay attention to his stares. And that was certainly a good thing, for in between driving on the lonely road, he kept gazing at that beautiful profile... the beautiful, doe shaped eyes.. the shape of her nose, the curve of her lips, her strong cheek bones... for him she was the epitome of beauty and simplicity and the more time he spent with her, the more he started loving her...

They reached the academy gates and he applied the brakes a little hardly making the jeep jolt a bit. That brought her out of her reverie and she looked around, a bit stunned as if surprised to see her back in the academy so soon.

He couldn't help teasing her a bit.

Lagta hai aapko Point 1857 kuch jyada hi pasand aya Cadet Singh. Pure raaste aap khoyi rahin.. itna ki aapne koi sawal tak nahi kiya."

She blushed and tried to deny it and his eyebrow rose up at the way she tried to prevaricate... but then relented. The way she blushed and offered an explanation was too sweet... too cute. Pleasing as that may be, he still had work to do.. so he asked her to leave.

But he should have known... his cadet Singh could never keep quiet... never stop asking questions.. at least not for long. And she proved him true by asking whether he was coming or not. He smiled at her concern but didn't remark on that. Instead, what he said was different.