*But you won't know that I am standing behind the door,' I whispered.

*And I will push the door and go straight ahead,' she too started whispering.

*The moment you go two steps ahead, I will grab you from behind.'

I don't know what was happening to us. Was it the fruit of spending those weeknights without talking to each other, or something else?

Outside, it had started raining, adding to the sensation of the moment. I could hear the rain spattering on the ground, and the cold breeze blew open the windows and came into my room that night.

*Shona!' she cried my name with pleasure.

*And grabbing you from behind, I will take you and lock you in my arms.' I closed my eyes. And maybe she did the same when she said, *Shona!' again, very slowly, full of love, taking a deep breath.

*And with my hand I will bring your long hair in front of your left shoulder and I will bring my face very close to your neck on the right, with my other hand playing on your bare waist ...'

I tried to keep my emotions in check because I did not want to scare my sweetheart too much, so early. She didn't say anything for a while, but our breaths were getting louder. My own heart was pounding inside me with pleasure.

*And then?' she finally asked. I understood her state of mind, the ripples, the troughs and crests in her heart. But, above all, she wanted to enjoy that moment with me.

And I answered her, *And then you will feel my lips behind your right ear, on your neck.'

*Mmm,' she murmured, breathing heavily.

*I am feeling something so different at this moment. Are you?' I asked her very silently.

*Yes, something very different. What are you feeling?'

*With you in my arms, I am able to smell the cologne that you are wearing, your sweet feminine fragrance. I feel my lips kissing your shoulder and going down your back, licking the slightest sweat adhering to you ...' By this time, even my voice had started shaking. I asked her, *Tell me, what are you feeling?'

*I feel ...' she was struggling to complete her sentence and I could still hear her breath loud and clear.

She hesitated. I waited.

*I ... I feel,' she paused and then tried again, *I feel as if you are hypnotizing me, casting a magic spell that I don't want to come out of.'

She was breathing faster now, shivering. Her pa.s.sionate voice was stimulating me further.

*Now my other hand is moving on your waist. And then ...' I paused.

*And then ...?' she insisted I go on.

*And then, all of a sudden, it has started raining,' I brought the rain from outside my window into our sweet dream.

*Mmm ... And then ...?'

Very slowly, I whispered, *And then, I have turned you towards me. We are wet from the rain. I am watching you in your wet sari which is sticking to your body. I am seeing the raindrops falling on your forehead, running down your nose and hanging on your lips for a while before running further down your body. Strands of your wet hair are glued to your cheek.'

*And then ...?' She started whispering again.

*You are looking down, somewhere on my shirt, too shy to look into my eyes. I am raising your chin, to help you look into and read my eyes which are staring at you.'

*A ... n ... d ... t ... h ... e ... n ...?' she was hardly able to speak any more and was losing her words.

*With our heads tilted slightly, my lips feel the raindrops sticking to your lips, swallowing them, further discovering the softness of your lips ...' And that pa.s.sionate kiss which I described to her lasted for quite a while. That was the first time, I felt, she allowed me to cross a few boundaries. Miles apart from each other, we felt each and every shiver of that moment.

We were lost in each other when, suddenly, she turned mischievous. *Hey! People down there will be looking for us. I have to rush before my parents come upstairs, searching for me,' she shouted.

I wonder how she collected her energy and, more than that, how she remembered the fake people in the fake rain, on that fake engagement night (though it was to come true, in a few months).

*Aah! The people down there will be happy with their food,' I tried to convince her.

*Nah ... please. Come on dear, now open your arms. We have to go and change our clothes before they see us,' she urged, laughing at the virtual reality we were in.

*Ok. But on one condition.'

*And what's that?'

*I want to see you while you change.'

*Oh ... ho ... ho ... tumhe ungli kya pakdaai, tum to pura haath pakdna chahte ho. Zyaada galat fehmiyaan mat paalo,' she warned me with a little laugh.

*Haath pakdna? Not just the hand, I want to hold all of you!' I responded. I tried hard to convince her, but she didn't allow me, even though it was only make believe.

That night, we slept quite late. No, it wasn't night. I guess it was close to sunrise when we finally hung up.

I stared at my cellphone and, rising from my bed, I walked to the window. I noticed that the rain had stopped by then. I was tired and hungry, so I picked up an apple from the kitchen and, munching on it, I lay down on my bed. Then I went over our conversation again, over all that had happened, every detail ... I don't know when I fell asleep and started dreaming ...

The next morning was beautiful, with the sunrays bouncing into my room through the window. The mornings after a rainy night are really pleasant. With my eyes partially open, I smiled to myself, recalling the previous night. I managed to pull myself up, sat on the bed and turned to see myself in the mirror, still smiling. Then I asked my reflection, *Still in her hangover, haan?'

And what a night it was. If a hypothetical kiss could give so much a pleasure, what would a practical one be like, I wondered. Then I decided to call her up-to tease her for all she ended up doing the night before.

She picked up the phone in her sleep and asked, *Mera baby uth gaya?'

*Aah ... You kill me when you talk so sweet.'

*Really?'

*Hmm ...'

*But I am still sleepy and want to return to my dreams again,' she said.

Mischievously, I shouted at her, *Sleep? I am here to wake you up! Do you even remember what all you said to a guy last night? I mean, I wonder how you could be so open and bold, forcing me to say all that. You know, I was struggling to get over the embarra.s.sment. I never thought you would cross all the boundaries of shyness, ethical values ...'

I had not yet finished my speech when she woke up completely and shouted back at me, *Aaye-haye ... haye ... You guys! How cunning you are, my G.o.d! All you boys are alike. The lines you said just now should be mine actually. You stole my lines just because I was sleepy. You crossed all your boundaries and pulled me to the other side as well. How could you do that? You guys play so smart with innocent girls like me ...'

*Hey,' I said, interrupting, trying to calm her down. But she kept going like an opposition party's representative on NDTV's Big Fight.

*... All you guys are like chameleons, changing your colour when required ... You ...'

And I was trying to recall where I had heard about chameleons.

Probably in Biology. Was it some kind of flower which changed colour at night and returned to its original colour in the morning? I think it was something else. I wasn't that good with Bio.

Keeping the chameleon at bay, I tried to interrupt again, *Achcha baba, listen to me.'

*... And only you boys want to talk like this, we girls never ...' She was not through yet.

*Hey, Khushi ...'I said, but she was completely ignoring me. *... And you know what? All you boys ...'

*OK ENOUGH!' I shouted, *YOU KNOW WHAT? THAT HALF AN HOUR LAST NIGHT IS SO PRECIOUS TO ME, THAT I AM READY TO DIE A HUNDRED DEATHS TO ENJOY THAT AGAIN WITH YOU ... AND JUST YOU.' This time, she heard every word loud and clear. I continued, *Because it was so sweet, so loving, and so beautiful. And I am so happy that you trust me enough to allow me to get so close toy ou. And I want to say that ... I love you so much.'

And she melted like an ice-cream in summer.

*Sachhi?' Her innocent, sweet voice was calm now.

*Muchhi. I will wait for our engagement evening to come true this way. Just make sure that you don't put on a lot of lipstick.'

*Shut up,' she said shyly.

All day I waited for the confirmation of news which would have been good, if it had been at another time. Unfortunately, I got the confirmation and I had to tell her and my family too. I wondered if she would be happy when she found out, or sad.

Still, without thinking any further, I called her up to tell her. When she did not pick her phone, I got back to my studies. Five minutes later, I heard my cellphone ringing. I could see her name flashing on the screen.

I picked up the phone and said, *Hi, Jaaaaaaaaaan,' very romantically, with a small kiss.

*Uh ... Hi.'

d.a.m.n! It was Neeru, her younger sister. What a blunder. What should I say now? Should I talk or should I just disconnect? I was panicking. With the kind of image I had projected to her family, that first line would have been a shock for sure.

*How are you?' Neeru asked me, breaking the silence.

*Uh ... I am fine. How are you? And how come you called up from her cell,' I asked, scratching my head and wondering whether she hadn't heard my previous line because of some chamatkaar or due to some fault in the phone or the network.

*I am fine. Actually, Khushi was in the washroom and I was about to take your call when the ring stopped. So I dialed the missed-call number. Well, here she is, back in this room. And now she is struggling with me to s.n.a.t.c.h her cellphone ...' and her voice faded into the background.

Finally, Khushi said, *Haan ... h.e.l.lo,' defending herself from her sister's punches. Neeru wanted to talk to me, and it was probably the only time when I felt uncomfortable talking to her, just because of the way the call started.

*Hey, thank G.o.d you came,' I said to her.

*Shona, ek minute,' she paused with that sentence to hear something which Neeru was trying to tell her at the other end. That *ek minute' lasted for five minutes and I realized how wrong I was to think of any chamatkaar.

*What?' Khushi shouted, amused, and laughed crazily.

*Hi, meri jaan!' Neeru shouted from behind and joined her sister's laughter.

*OH MY G.o.d!' I thought, feeling very embarra.s.sed.

But Khushi didn't come to my defence. Rather, she joined her sister in celebrating that moment.

*d.a.m.n!' I thought. *Her little sister talked to me as if she didn't hear anything and look at her now. Girls!' I now remembered what a chameleon was, and thought the a.n.a.logy suited girls even better-they change colours so fast.

So that was how I became a joke for the two sisters.

I almost forgot the reason I had called her, when Khushi came back at last, taking a break from her laughter.

*Yeah ... Tell me now. She's gone to another room.'

*Your sister is so cunning. She behaved as if she did not hear anything.'

*After all, she's my sister!'

*Now I won't be able to face her for the next few days.'

*Oh come on! After all you are her jiju, and such things keep happening between jiju and saali.'

*But, the next time, I won't begin with romantic lines, unless I make sure it's you on phone.'

*Ok baba, now tell me. What were you going to say?'

After a small pause, I said in a single go, *I need to go to the US for four weeks, for my project.'

*What?' Actually it was more like, *W-H-A-T?????' A single word with a thousand thoughts running through it, all in different directions.

*Yes.'

*Why so suddenly?' she asked impatiently.

*I knew that this thing was in the pipeline. But I was trying to avert it for the CAT in November. There isn't any escape from this now.'

*But ... you can make any high priority excuse, right?'

*Hmm ... But it's going to matter for my career too, dear. Listen. Please don't get angry. At this point, I am a little confused about how I will do this. I mean, leaving the IMS cla.s.ses, the mock-tests. I need your support.'

*IMS, mock-tests, career ... You remember everything, but what about me? Busy in our office, career and IMS cla.s.ses, we have not even seen each other yet. Ours is such a different story ... And now you're saying you are going to the States ...' She was about to cry.

*Hey ... But I have something to cheer you up.'

*What is it?'

*I will be boarding my plane from New Delhi. I'll take a day's leave so that I can spend an entire day with you. We'll finally be seeing each other! Isn't that something to cheer up about?'

Even I knew that it wasn't the perfect way to cheer her up-spending an entire day with her and then leaving the country for more than a month. But the fact that we would get to spend an entire day with each other gave some comfort to our hearts. It was not as if we had any option other than eagerly waiting for that day to arrive and then trying to make it last as long as a year.

What was surprising, though, was that an official, on-site trip was giving us the opportunity to see each other for the very first time. At times, we wondered how busy our life was: running from office to IMS, from career to family, but with no time to see the person with whom we were going to spend the rest of our lives.

Every pa.s.sing day was marked. And as time pa.s.sed, our feelings got stronger. The excitement was increasing, both, in the mind and in the heart. And finally, the day arrived when we met each other for the very first time.

It is a hot, sticky Sunday afternoon. We are watching the same movie on our televisions: she, in Faridabad; I, in Bhubaneswar. And I am doing this because she sent me an SMS, telling me to watch it.