Coimbatore, 2013
What can the two birds really do, if they are destined to be killed by the arrow of a hunter? Now, we will not talk about the hunter. It is not our concern whether the hunter was cursed by the great sage Valmiki or not. We are going to talk about the two birds, or perhaps one of the two birds who was separated from its mate by the cruel destiny.
Eight years had passed, since Ratneshwari left Shivan. She was living in Coimbatore all by herself with none but God as her companion.
It was 2 o'clock in the afternoon. Ratneshwari was sitting in a bus and returning home. She used to teach in a government school. The salary was more than enough for her as she was living alone and her needs were less. Her parents and brother had also left a lot of money for her. She was not facing any scarcity. But, what about the emptiness in her heart? How will she fill it?
The bus stopped and Ratneshwari got down. It was a sunny day. Ratneshwari started walking towards her home.
She reached home and unlocked the door. The house was quite big.
She took off her sari and unbuttoned her blouse. After taking off her clothes she stepped into the shower. The cold water washed her sweaty body. The water washed her dark skin and her long black hair. It was cold enough to cool her body.
After bathing, she cooked dosa for herself. While she was having her food, she could hear the music that was being played in the neighbourhood. It was the marriage of her neighbour's daughter. They had invited her but she decided not to attend the wedding. Such functions only saddened her. She finished her food fast as she had to set the question paper for the upcoming exams in her school.
She unchained her side-bag and took out a diary, a notebook and her stationeries. She was about to keep the bag on the shelf, when something fell from the bag. It was a card which said 'Have a nice day'. She remembered that, a young man had handed the card to her the previous week.
It was a rainy day. Ratneshwari was standing near a shop and waiting for the rain to stop. She saw a man riding a motorcycle without a raincoat. The man stopped his vehicle and hurried towards the place where Ratneshwari was standing. They had been standing there for a long time but the rain did not seem to stop. Ratneshwari did not even look at that man.
Ratneshwari was not like that. Once, she had been a cheerful girl and she would have given a pain in the man's ears by talking with him continuously. But, that Ratneshwari was lost somewhere. Perhaps, she ran away. Her husband's betrayal and loneliness had shattered her and taken away her smile. She was no longer the girl who was always eager to make friends. The new Ratneshwari detested people. She used to go to the school, teach the students and come back. She even avoided talking to her colleagues.
The man looked at her. He saw her wet face and beautiful eyes. "She is charming.", he thought. He cleared his throat, intending to start a conversation. Ratneshwari looked at him. After sometime, he cleared his throat again. This time, he said to her,"When will the rain stop? We have been waiting here for a long time. But the rain doesn't seem to stop." Ratneshwari looked at him but did not say anything.
The man noticed that Ratneshwari was struggling with something. He saw that the chain in her bag was stuck. Ratneshwari was trying to fix the chain. Just then, the man saw a cow running towards them. Ratneshwari, who was busy fixing the chain did not notice the cow. The man stepped back and saved himself and then, pulled back Ratneshwari too. The cow had frightened Ratneshwari. Her heart was beating fast. She saw the cow running away and thanked God for saving her. Then, she turned towards the man and said,"Thank you for saving me." The man said,"No need to thank me. I was just helping you as a human." The man tried to initiate the conversation once again.
"My name is Dhrvan. I teach history in PSG College of Arts and Science. What is your name?"
"My name is Ratneshwari. I teach in Government Primary School."
"That's good. Do you live in Coimbatore?"
"Yes."
"Are you m........"
"The rain has stopped. I think I should go before it starts raining again."
"Wait a minute. So, we are meeting each other for the first time today. It was nice to meet you. I have a card. Take this."
"Thanks"
Ratneshwari kept the card on the shelf and sat down at the study table. She opened her diary. She had kept Shivan's picture in it. She looked at the picture and her eyes became moist. She said,"If you had accepted me, life would have been very different." She closed the diary and sighed.
She opened a book and took the previous year's question paper. She chose some questions and wrote them on a piece of paper.