முதல் நீ முடிவும் நீ

~ Mudhal Nee Mudivum Nee ~

His fingers and palm pressed onto the brake on its own and he jerked a little to the front on the suddenness of his action. He made his way to the door of her house in a trance and his senses seemed to be stupefied even after he had pressed the doorbell twice. He was numb and was too afraid to think of anything that would follow. He neither knew what he would do when the door finally opened nor felt anticipating it would do him any good in this situation. While he was delving in his own state of stillness, the door moved inward to reveal his father-in-law who rubbed his eyes, his hands freezing in mid-air and his mouth gaped as his eyes fell on him. Kathir mustered up a lot of courage to give him a small smile while Murugan, bewildered to a very great extent, could hardly find words, "Maapala... neengala... inneram... vaanga Maapala ulla vaanga...". When his father-in-law finally flashed him his usual warm smile and welcomed him, Kathir had his first moment of relief after a very long time. He took a step in to see Parvathy standing on the other side of the hall with confusion written in bold letters on her entire face and his feet got rooted to the spot yet again.

He knew he couldn't face her nor talk to her right now after all that happened in the evening, he was drained and fed up hearing people complain about him. He had enough for the day and he was already planning a quick escape from her when the honey-dripping calm voice of his wife not only saved him at the right moment but also filled him with every warmth there is, to the full, "appa yaaru pa innerathula...", and her eyes met his to make her turn into a statue with tears immediately filling to cloud her vision. She blinked a few times and before she could look into him clearly, she felt something crashing onto her and she quickly shut her eyes tight, oblivion shrouding her from all sides. Only when she felt his arms enveloping her and his palms holding either of her shoulders, she realized he had hugged her. The sensation that realization birthed in her was utterly inexplicable, she knew she was still angry at him, at her too and the both of them together but keeping all that aside, to be in his hold that instant felt everything- every pain of hers, every tear she shed the past few days, every sleepless nights, was completely worth it. It was like she had found the reason she had been alive all these days, like her life got a meaning and all that she wanted now was this moment, the feelings she felt while in his arms, being frozen for eternity to come.

As for him, all he knew was the second she was within his sight- neatly draped in a black and white saree, her hair let down loose and her eyes puffed up in the heaviness her orbs held- he had run to her at lightning speed. He hardly cared where they were, who stood along with them but all that mattered to him was her and nothing else. Once he had pulled her into his embrace, his world refused to swirl round the sun, it stood still, contented with all that it did since the universe came into existence. It was like it had waited days and nights just for this moment and having found it, it refused to look ahead of it no matter how beautiful the future would be. Neither of them knew how many long minutes they stood hugging each other and her parents were too shocked to react or to move away giving them privacy. The hall captured no movement nor any sound except for the ticking of the wall clock. And then Mullai suddenly felt his face move along her cheeks and her eyes fluttered open when she heard him whisper into her ears, "Pirandhanaal vaazhthukal Mulla...", and the cuckoo in the clock peeked out to complete his wish with a melody as the clock struck 12, the unprecedented sound made them both jerk off taking a few steps away from each other.

Murugan and Parvathy wished they disappeared into thin air, seeing both Mullai and Kathir flustered up so much to look into their faces. They stood rooted all this while not knowing how to not do anything which would make it awkward for everyone and now they were embarrassed to an even greater extent to have not reacted before. Surprising even to himself, Kathir was the first to break the ice, "athu mama... enaku theriyala neenga anga varuveenga nu... naan... phone switch off aayiruchu... enaku unmaiya theriyala... therinjirundha kandipa vandhurupen...", he spoke looking into Murugan but in the end, his eyes rested on hers and she looked pale yet blank and he could hardly guess what was running in her head. Murugan shook his head, backing up on his son-in-law's side without second thoughts, "Parvathy sonna maapala... neenga Mullai ya paaka inga vandheeganu... Mullai anga vandhuruka nu vera iva sollama vitruka ungakitta... edho soolnilai maathi maathi thedirukom...". Mullai peered into his eyes without any reaction, what he did a few seconds back was still not syncing in her mind. She just blinked profusely as they both gazed at each other and the voice that sent shrills in either of them woke them up from their daze, "Mullai inga veetula irundha ivara vandhu paakamaiya irundhurupa... naan sonna thaan theriyuma ava inga illanu... summa enna korai sollatheenga ellathukum... avala paaka vandhen nu sollitu avaru paatuku kelambi engaiyo pona enna artham...".