Peacock...

45

Vetri

I had somehow convinced my father through the telephone. Initially, he acted tough, but with my confident talks, I made him approve of my words. Following that, without wasting a second, I and my mother approach Mayil's house to converse with her father and settle the matter.

As soon as mom and I enter their house, I witness Mayil's mom raising her hands to slap my Mayil. "Stop!" Her mother freezes halfway and turns to look at me.

"How can you beat a grown-up girl!" she frowns, confused. "Who are you to question me!?" she explodes, fixating her attention entirely on me.

"Your soon-to-be son-in-law," she blinks in disbelief and averts her eyes to her husband who seems stressed. Meanwhile, Mayil has her eyes bulged in surprise.

"Did you heed to what he said!?" She asks her husband, furiously. He just nods back and gives her a look that renders her understand the situation. A speechless reaction crosses her face and she remains silent for a while...

Taking that opportunity, my mother begins to speak. "My son intends on marrying your daughter...can we please talk maturely and proceed with this?" Her polite query urges Mayil's dad to respond.

"Our status is poles apart. We can't offer you the dowry you demand. Besides, what assurance do we have that you wouldn't torture our daughter mentally and physically after marriage, just because she is from a poor family? With such a possibility, how can we, her parents, ever be at peace without worrying about her happiness? This just wouldn't work..." He states, as If it's a matter of fact.

"We demand no dowry from you. We came here to ask for Mayil's hand in marriage and she alone is enough for us. I can understand your worries about her welfare in our home but I can assure you that I'm no evil person to torment her." My mother says with utmost sincerity which wavers his persistence.

"You can trust me with her happiness," I further adduce and he looks to be in a state of uncertainty.

"Shall we proceed?" My mother inquires again, darting her eyes between Mayil's mom and dad. "My daughter will enter into marriage only after completing her school," Her mom says sternly. "If you can wait for that long, then we can proceed," at her statement, her husband glances at her, stunned.

"Do you not understand the risks in this marriage?" He questions her, rather irritated. "They seem genuine and truthful," instead of replying to her, he just sighs and judgingly gazes at me. The concern on his face clearly showcases his inner turmoil. I know he wonders whether I will live up to my word of keeping her delighted.

To console him, I lend him an earnest nod...

"Fine, but as my wife said, the marriage would be held only after she finishes her studies. We can conduct an engagement to confirm it now..." I smile heartfully at his words and peer at Mayil who has become a statue.

"We will talk to our family astrologer and fix the date for the engagement," my mother blurts out and my soon-to-be in-laws agree.

"Then we will be excusing ourselves," my mother smiles towards them and exits the house while they follow her to see her off. On the other hand, I send a wink to my Mayil who has come back to the world before I vacate the residence.

As I hop on the bike and Mother perches behind, I look at the entrance of the house where Mayil has also joined her parents. She smiles at me timidly and waves her hands as I drive off.

Finally, everything is sorted out. It feels like a storm has passed by our life...

On the subsequent day, Mayil attends school as usual. After the noon break, I'm assigned to the 10th grade. As I intrude into the class, my eyes instantly fall on my Mayil.

She looks afresh, with sparkling eyes and glowing countenance. "Good afternoon sir!" Everyone says in chorus."Good afternoon students," I signal the students to perch back on their respective seats.

"I'm in a good mood today...so I'll let you all have a free period. Do whatever you want, but don't make too much noise," I announce, placing my book on the desk and reclining on the chair.

The student's faces emit a jovial smile before they start to converse excitedly with each other.

Mayil also begins to communicate with Harini intently but offers me frequent glances now and then. However, a few moments later, I concentrate my interest on the English textbook, as it is not the appropriate place to watch my Mayil.

At the end of the class, the students greet me with 'Thank you sir' and I steal a slight glance at Mayil before walking out. I'm dying to get her alone with me! I just want to hug her and feel that warmth inside my chest.

Impatiently, I wait for the school to terminate and once it does, I hastily ride to my home and refresh, decking on a blue t-shirt and grey pants.

Sharply at 4.45 pm, Mayil arrives at my home and I quickly guide her to the upstairs. Once I have her inside the room, I lock the door and twirl around to meet her.

She has worn a light green button shirt and a dull white skirt. Her hair is sprawled out, and that has my hormones messed up. Add in her kajal-coated eyes and those kissable lips...

"Mudila Mayil, (I can't, Mayil)" I admit, taking a step towards her while she backs off with a teasing smile.

"Why sir?" She asks, dragging her back again as I move forward. "You know the reason," she pauses as she hits the rim of the desk and I cage her from the front.

"I swear, I don't know," She shrugs, pouting innocently. Looking down at her, I pull her hair back, and tilt her head up.

"Liar," I capture her lips within mine. She kisses me back and drops her bag on the desk, wrapping her hands around my torso. I grip her tightly by her waist and deepen the kiss, prying her lips open and invading her mouth.

My heart beats faster and syncs with her similar organ as I insert my tongue into her mouth and lick around. Mayil doesn't respond back and just stiffens at my action. But I continue disturbing her tongue which seems to hide away from mine. After a few minutes, as I break our kiss, the trembling Mayil of mine retains her gaze on my chest and doesn't look into my eyes due to her timidness.

Smiling to myself, I lean down to her face level and she suddenly hugs me, burying her head on my chest.

More than a million words in this world, yet I can't find a perfect one to describe my love for this girl, my Mayil...

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