Arjunsangini - An Ardi Novel

The Wrong Throw and the Secret to Perfect Skin

If not for the knife in her hand she would have looked like a celibate immersed in deep thought. Her eyes were closed and the eyeballs underneath the eyelids unmoving. She was sitting under the shade of the large banyan tree in a lotus position. Her hair was tied in a tight bun atop her head but nevertheless, a strand had escaped. No matter how hard Prishati tried to attach it back to the bun it wouldn't budge, so over time, she had learned to ignore it. Her lips were closed, she was taking in regular breaths through her long sharp nose. Not too fast. Not to slow. Just normal. Her torso was covered with only a mauve blouse as she had discarded her cream angavastram so that it wouldn't interfere with her. Her mauve dhoti fluttered in the soft breeze, but till the time Prishati had zoned it out. Her left hand was kept nonchalantly beside her and her right one was alert but still, holding a knife. It wasn't very large, but its edge could kill if the thrower wanted to. Luckily for any passerby, Prishati was in a good mood today. She fought the urge to smirk when she heard a familiar sound. A sound she had been waiting to hear. She waited for the right moment. And thwack. She smiled. Right on target. Then she heard a more familiar voice, or shriek to be precise. She opened her eyes, the smile never leaving her face. She leaned back resting her back on the trunk of the tree. 

"When I said you could kill someone in your sleep I didn't literally mean it." Parth yelled, a little scared but humour apparent in his tone. 

His beige angavastram was attached to the trunk of the tree nearest to him with the help of Prishati's knife. Though startled he detached the knife from the trunk, examined his angavastram and walked towards the grinning Prishati with a pout. 

"You ruined it!" he said whining, holding out his torn angavastram. 

"Wear another! What the big deal?" 

"Big deal! Big deal? It was the only beige one I had!" he said whining again, now taking a seat beside Prishati.

"I will stitch it for you." Prishati offered, smiling sympathetically.

"No thank you, I rather get it done from your rogue brother!" Parth said a smile on his face.

"Come on, he is not that bad!"

"Maybe. But he is not as good as me." his smirk was wiped off his face when he heard Prishati snort.

"What you don't think so?" he asked raising his eyebrow.

"You want to know what I think?" asked Prishati innocently. Parth nodded eagerly.

"I think... I think you have an ego the size of the earth." she said softly.

"Aghhhh!" Parth had launched herself on her, holding her stomach from the back and tickling her unmerciful.

"Take it back!" he said trying not to laugh.

"What the truth?" Prishati barely let out in between waves of laughter. To which Parth responded with even more tickling.

"Okay! Okay, I take it back!" Prishati shrieked in laughter. Parth sat back beside her with a satisfied smile on his face.

"Oh God! I feel so sleepy all of a sudden!" Prishati said yawning.

"Oh! It is so not sudden, don't you think I know you stayed up all night?" Paarth said looking at a distance. Prishati's head snapped towards him, shock writ on her face.

"Don't look at me like that it is your morning grouchiness that gave it away!" Parth said smiling. Prishati didn't say anything and just rested her head on his shoulder. 

"You know I would kill to let you sleep on my shoulder but you need to feed something to that stomach of yours." Parth said softly as he placed Prishati head on the trunk getting up.