Smriti

Chapter-6

The carriage trotted on the dry sandy road leading to the exterior gates of Avanti. Smriti and her family had decided to leave as soon as the sun rose in the sky. Four stops across Rajagriha, Mekalagiri, Toshali and Sesharam were needed to reach Kashi. As their journey started from Avanti, they had to reach Rajagriha by tonight and resume their journey to Mekalagiri after one day of rest.

The family of four had booked two carriages - one for Smriti and Saadhvi, and the other for their parents. Both the sisters had chatted for a long time until they got bored. Saadhvi had dozed off by laying her head against a soft pillow she always carried herself with. Smriti, on the other hand, was busy with her musings about Ekaksh.

Her hand unknowingly caressed the painting that Ekaksh had gifted her. She still couldn't believe that someone who had met her only for a few days made a painting of her while she danced. And the sweet kiss? Smriti couldn't help but smile at the memory. The sun was up in the sky, its glare still not strong enough to blind the sky. Smriti moved her head out of the carriage window and showed her face to the sun while muttering a small wish to the sky.

"Krishna, destiny or not, please let me meet him again."

Getting some of the warm sunshine on her face felt good to her. She moved her head inside and peeled the cover from her painting. She raked her eyes over her figure in the painting. Ekaksh had even sketched the slight dip in her waist. It looked good, yes, but for a while, she wondered, how deep did he observe her to draw her so accurately.

Saadhvi had begun snoring, which caused Smriti to chuckle. Her sister had always denied the fact that she snored, but everybody knew that if you were sleeping with Saadhvi, you were bound to hear her melodious snores.

By the second hour of the afternoon prahar, the carriage was brought to a halt for lunch. Anuvrata, Smriti's father, knew a roadside lodge where they could have lunch and rest for an hour before resuming their journey to Rajagriha. Smriti checked her reflection in the small mirror she always carried with herself. Silently groaning, she said, "I hate how dull I look now. This is why I hate travelling sometimes." Touching her cheeks, she muttered under her breath, "I will apply a paste of cool sandalwood once I get home."

The family, after freshening up enjoyed a hearty meal of rice, lentils and kheer and spicy pickles. Saadhvi always preferred to eat a less amount of food than her usual diet while travelling for fear of vomiting all of it later on. Her sister, on the other hand, preferred to eat a lot of sweets and cool drinks to not let the heat affect her health.

Chugging up her second bowl of kheer, she wiped a drop that dribbled down the corner of her lips. "The kheer is so delicious, isn't it?" She asked her mother, who nodded her head.

Later, the sisters went back to their carriage and immediately dozed off under the afternoon sun as the sound of the bullock hooves lulled them to sleep.

Smriti covered her face with her pallu to shield the sunrays that entered through the carriage window. Once again, her mind wandered to Ekaksh, wishing to see him in her dreams.

***

As Smriti made her journey back home with Ekaksh in her dreams, our darling prince of Avanti was busy in the thoughts of a girl who had stolen his heart within a span of a few weeks. Ekaksh looked at the crescent jewel of the night sky. The nightly breeze made the curtains fly around him as Ekaksh thought of Smriti.

The moon soon went into hiding under the veil of a group of large clouds. He touched his cheek, where Smriti had laden a sweet goodbye kiss. A warm feeling engulfed his heart, which soon turned into a yearning. He could hear a group of bards sing a love song about a traveller staring at the moon, thinking of his beloved waiting for him at home.