Married in Love

4. The First Night

*Purely Fictional Story*

__________________

The marriage was a splendid affair. Everyone present genuinely wished the couple and blessed them to have the future they dreamt of. Murali had been slightly tensed right before the muhurtham but was immediately comforted when Sandhya squeezed his elbow and held on tight to him. Radha wore a big bright smile and thanked the gods for the relief in her life - for her son was married, and to what seemed to be a sweet girl.

And to top it all, the food served was a superb hit - what more can you ask for in a wedding?

Well, the couple should be asked that, for they were craving for some alone time. They had not been able to have a full fledged conversation and had to settle for subtle glances at each other. Sometimes they were discreet, sometimes one caught the other - the crimson on their cheeks had found a permanent place the past two days since the wedding rituals had begun.

Sandhya had previously checked with Radha if their side had any ritual that the couples' first night should be spent only at the groom's house or if the couple could spend the night at the guesthouse alone. Radha had taken a couple of minutes to think it over - she could understand the innate need in the mother-Sandhya to ensure her daughter's comfort - and agreed that the newly wedded couple should have their privacy in the guesthouse. She also called a few of Ananth's friends to head over to the guesthouse after the wedding and get the place done up.

The sun had almost set when Radha served early dinner for the couple in the marriage hall. She instructed them to eat and leave for the guesthouse, and to return to their house the next day by lunch time. Sadhana's parents were going to stay the night at a nearby hotel and would be joining them for that lunch. Knowing that she was going to see her parents the very next day, Sadhana knew she had more time before she had to feel the anxiety of being away from her parents. Right now, there were other things on her mind.

She liked Ananth, no doubt. She did eventually want to get romantic. But what to expect of tonight? She had theoretical knowledge behind the biological expectations of the night. But would they need to do the practicals right away? She would give in if he asked for it, but given a choice, she would wait. What she did not know was whether she would be given that choice. Ananth was pleasing on the eyes, but did she know anything really about him beyond that? Was she already ready to take the next step?

It was as if the nuptial thread around her neck had made her more mature than she was a couple of days ago.

And her heart was swinging between the crimson on her cheeks and the anxiety about the night.

___________

Sandhya handed over a small bag with clothes for Sadhana while Radha did the same for Ananth. Saying their byes to the elders, Ananth and Sadhana got into the fiat car that Murali had insisted they use while in Madras. Sadhana put her head outside the window and kept waving till the car turned around a corner and her parents were no longer visible. Automatically, her face shrunk and her heart became tighter. Given a minute more, her lips would have started to tremble but on cue, Ananth caught her attention.

"Dinner proper a saaptiya? Orey oru dosai dhan saapte?" He turned his face to her and softly asked her. Pushing the anxiety to the background, Sadhana responded "Saapten. Adhuku mela onnum erangala".

Ananth gazed into her naive eyes before he had to turn his attention to the road. He could sense she was scared maybe? His peripheral vision told him that her fingers were busy either pulling the strings off the tassel in her saree or were playing with the ring he had put on her finger the day before. To him, she looked like a deer caught in the headlights. And that's when he reminded himself that him being older to her would come in handy - it would be on him to make her feel comfortable and relaxed.