She showed him a
room adjacent to hers. It was huge and beautifully decorated. There was an
inviting poster-bed with satin sheets, a couch with floral print, a desk and a
chair, side-tables with table-lamps and an attached bathroom. Soft lights shone
their mellow beams on the bed, from concealed lighting in the false ceiling.
Samaira was
watching his expression of delight on seeing the well-appointed room. She was
imagining being on that bed with him! But she couldn’t make the first move,
hence waited expectantly, with bated breath, to let the serene and plush
surroundings assail his senses and overwhelm him, so that he made the first
move. By now, she was finely attuned to men and their behavior. They just
couldn’t resist temptation and were wont to make hay while the sun shone!
That day, a
yellow, full moon was shining outside and the breeze was cool; a perfect
setting for a rendezvous. Would he bite the bait?
She was jolted
out of her romantic reverie by his words, “O.K. then, Samaira, good night.” The
finality in his words shocked her. She felt as if she had been physically
slapped after his rebuttal. She could just manage to weakly say, “If you need
anything, just ring that bell,” indicating a switch beside the bed. “Hm, yes,”
he said, avoiding looking at her. If she
just went out, he’d be O.K.!
She walked to
the door and turned behind abruptly, and caught him staring at her. Why
couldn’t he ask her to stay? She thought crossly. He hurriedly averted his eyes
and pretended to be examining a vase on the side-table. When she couldn’t
dilly-dally any longer, she sighed and walked out, her head held high, even as
traitorous tears started welling up in her beautiful eyes. She felt rejected
and dejected! Wasn’t she worth even for a one-night stand? She longed to be in
the warmth of his strong hands, wanted to be comforted and loved, was it too
much to expect? The door closed behind her softly. She could hear the lights
being switched off. Now she was alone again.
Back in her
cozy room, decorated as tastefully as the one occupied by Rohan, she lay on the
couch in her satin negligee, staring at the ceiling, crying softly. After a
long time, she realized that it was 2 a.m. and she had to catch up on her
sleep, if she wanted to avoid dark circles under her eyes, the next day, during
shooting. Her eyes were already swollen and red due to crying. She dragged
herself to her bed. Involuntarily, her hands reached for the switch beside her
bed and pressed it.
Rohan jumped
from his sleep as the buzzer buzzed in his ears. Had he pressed the switch in
his sleep? He was sure he hadn’t. As his eyes opened slowly, he tried to get
his bearings. Where was he? As he focused his eyes on the contents of that
room, he remembered that he was in Samaira’s house. Had she pressed the buzzer
in her room? Did she need anything? He
decided to check out and make sure.
It was pitch-
dark. As he groped for the lights’ switch and switched on the light, he
realized that the lights had gone out. Maybe, Samaira had got scared of the
darkness and pressed the switch. But was she awake then? It was 2.15 a.m. With
a sense of foreboding, he knocked politely on her room’s door and asked softly,
“Samaira, do you need something?” There was no response. He of course, wouldn’t
know that she had taken a sleeping-pill and dozed off. After a few more knocks
and queries, he was tired and returned back to his room. He crashed on to the
bed and slept soundly till 8 a.m. when he heard the door-bell ringing
incessantly. It was the maid. He rushed down-stairs and opened the door for the
startled lady. She thought, “Hai Ram, had
this person stayed there over-night? Had her mistress and …..” She winced
as the thought struck her that he was Samaira’s brother-in-law. Had she become so desperate?
She instantly
became business-like and asked him if he would like to have tea or coffee. Mercifully,
he didn’t appear to be drunk. He told her that he’d freshen up and be back
downstairs in ten minutes. She couldn’t resist asking him about the whereabouts
of her mistress. “Where is Samaira Bibiji?
Is she still sleeping?” he shrugged and said, “Maybe, because her door is still
shut.” The maid inwardly heaved a huge sigh of relief. So they had slept in
different rooms; though it was none of her business! She now looked at Rohan respectfully.
Here was a real man with his values right in place. He wasn’t the one who took
advantage of nubile, lonely young girls.
Rohan went to his room, showered,
dressed and emerged, fresh and raring to go. He had to leave at least by 8.30
a.m., go to his friend’s place, take his luggage and rush to the station. His
train left at 10 a.m. As he looked at Samaira’s closed door, he sighed. Sleeping beauty, he thought naughtily.
Before, his thoughts could stray, he reined them firmly. He was relieved that
he had kept his sanity intact, last night. He conceded though, that it was only
due to that closed door. If that door had opened last night, when he knocked on
it, he wouldn’t have been able to look at himself in the mirror, ever! Nor into
Amisha’s eyes! She trusted him completely. He didn’t want to betray her trust.
And his faith!
To be continued...
The copyright of this story is with Mrs. Priya Ramesh Swaminathan.
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