Ordinary Miracles

Ordinary miracles

She was already more than ten minutes late, and was hoping that she wouldn’t miss him when she arrived at the Starbucks coffee shop behind Trident Hotel. Apparently she could not find him at once so she queued up to get herself a Hot Chocolate. When she found herself a table with 2 available chairs she looked around again, but still couldn‘t make him out in the Starbucks. Then her cell phone rang. “Hello Pia, you look damn good in your black tank top.”

“Hi Prashay, where are you? How do you know what I am wearing today?”

“I saw you leaving the cab, and it‘s not too difficult to make out a 150 year old woman who still looks as if she was almost 120 years younger, is it? I was at the Starbucks already before 6, but I couldn't get in.”

“Are you fishing for compliments here? What do you mean you couldn't get in?”

“They don't let young CA’s without a tie into the Starbucks. You know, when I got there I tried to get me a caramel frappuccino, they turned my request down and sent me away.”

“You are kidding, right? Don’t try to pull my leg for being a lil’ late.”

“No, I am serious, didn't you say yourself that young accountants should rather focus on work and be really efficient than spend their time entertaining senior citizens?”

“Alright, now, let‘s stop joking for a moment and tell me, where are you just now?”

“I‘m in my room of the Trident hotel. Isn‘t it a coincidence that the room number is exactly the date when we first met in College and it has the nice view of the Arabian sea.”

“I don‘t buy this Prashay, but anyway, will you come down now?”

“I can‘t, cos’ they won‘t let me in. But why don‘t you come up and meet me in my hotel room? If you get here even before 6.30, you can take a great shot of the sunset, you only get this great picture during a time slot of around 6.40 to 6.45 each day and only on sunny bright days as today.”

She gasped for a moment, then replied:

“Now, wait a minute,Prashay, wait a minute, are you asking me to come to your hotel room? Why should I do this? I mean, why do you believe I would do this?”

“Why you would do this? Oh, well, see, I just believe in Ordinary Miracles…”

“You believe in ordinary miracles?”

“Yeah, and oh, can I ask you a favor? Do bring me a tall Caramel Frappuccino from that Starbucks you are just now in. Please, I really love that stuff.”

A click, then he was off. She looked at her watch. It was 6.30 now, she still had a few minutes to consider what she would do. She felt a tickle in her stomach, yet at the same time a little uneasy, maybe it was because she felt she did not have everything under control, as she would usually have. But that tickle felt just like a thrill and she had always loved thrills more than being in a well protected, safe environment, so she quickly finished her own drink and then queued up again to get a tall Caramel Frappuccino to go.

A knock against the door. A voice that sounded familiar. Another knock. But it was not she who was knocking at his door, she suddenly realised when she heard the familiar voice of her Mom again: “Pia, its 5 already, didn‘t you want to go out at 6 PM today?”

“Thank you, Mom, yeah, I must have dozed off while working on this assignment, thanks for waking me up,” Pia said. It took her a few minutes to realize that she must have been dreaming of this date to come. She was a bit excited, but did not have any time to let this sentiment linger. She had to rush in order to make it on time to meet up with Prashay at the Starbuck‘s Café.

She got up, took a quick hot shower and rushed herself into some casual clothes. Should she wear the black tank top she was dreaming of? Not that she is superstitious but she knew it looked good on her, so she put it on. Now should she take her car and get into the hassle of finding a car park or just call a cab. Another look at the watch, it was 5.40 already, now she really had to run. So, she decided to get a cab. 

She was excited, as it was the first time she was dating a friend or should she call him her frenemy? As they used to fight and tease each other so much in college. And was she really dating him or was she only seeing him, meeting him? Not that she was neither unexperienced nor not mature enough to handle all kinds of situation, but she simply had no clue where this would lead her to.

She thought how a casual Diwali Wishes message had lead to this. After knowing each other for so long in college it was the first time they were meeting alone somewhere. What little she knew of him and still felt like she had known him for years. They had started to flirt via sms’s, a strange, yet unique experience to her.

The ride was smooth and she loved the evening sun, and the cool breeze of the Arabian sea. When she got off the cab it was already six past ten, she was late when she finally got to the Starbucks.

“Don‘t be childish” she reminded herself and took a deep breath looking around to watch out for him. When she could not find him she just queued up to get herself a Hot Chocolate and found a table with 2 chairs by a window. She doublechecked that he still was not there and took the first sip when her cell phone rang. Then she heard his voice and she started getting goose bump when he said:

“Hello Pia, you look damn good in your black tank top..”

First Kiss

First Kiss

15th December, our first date. The rains had ruined all my plans. We were sitting in the car, in the back seats. It was a hatchback, a little cramped for the two of us.

The radio was playing nice vintage seventies songs. "Ek ajnabee haseena se, yun mulakaat ho gai; Fir kya hua? Ye na pucho, kuch aisi baat ho gai."  Neither I was Kishorkumar nor Mohammed Rafi, but I could sing all their songs in her ears, slowly.

She liked it, I knew.

I could see her smile, hidden behind the silky strands covering her face. Her smile, it made my heart skip a beat. She said, "I have to leave."

"No, wait." I replied.

"What’s the matter?" she asked.

"I thought we had some more time. I mean, I haven't yet said everything I wanted to say. It’s been on my mind for long but there was no time to say."

"What do you want to say?"

"I Love You, I wanted to say I Love You," and with great courage I somehow managed to hold her hand, actually just her ring finger. She smiled at me with innocence. That look, I could not resist and leaned to kiss her. Our first kiss and it started raining again.

The Fence

The Fence

She walks forward with the wind to her face as the tears run down her cheeks. She walks with no strength. There is No graceful swift in the hair blowing up at her face. Nothing like what's seen in the movies, or what's written in books. She doesn't wear a light flowing dress of cotton, but she is bare footed with tethered clothes walking towards the edge of death and beyond hell. She is real. She is what can't be imagined.

Beauty isn't a factor. She doesn't have those deep green emerald eyes that can tangle someone in luxury. Her nails are white and almost gone. Biting has brought blood. This blood is a new wonder to someone who never left comfort, not till now. This woman isn't a little innocent girl or a beautiful damsel in distress. The event of her suicide isn't like 1857 Revolution or the Jallianwala Bagh massacre. It's a thing of rejoice.

She loves. She cares and holds what is true to her heart. The woman is Pia Khan. Short hair. No exotic colors just plain black. Her lips trembled as she sobbed loudly. Torned Salwar-Kameez covered her body. Dirt stains imprinted on it randomly. Teary eyed she walked towards the fence. Barbed wire entwined it.

Warning signs of not crossing the LOC is spread across the fence.

On the other side of the fence is a man in a white Kurta-Pyjama. He too is walking towards the fence with a sad look on his thinned face. A sad smile crosses his face when he sees Pia. This man is Prashay Singh.

He walks slowly, as though it pains him to move. He stops in mid stride and coughs violently. Pia runs to him with  fear embedded in the lines of her face. She stops when she reaches the fence making sure not to touch it. Prashay too attempts to run, he reaches the fence and looks at Pia. He sighs. Light is lit in the hollow holes of his eyes.

"You look beautiful Pia." utters the man.

Pia looks at Prashay. Tears flowing from her eyes. She loves hearing his voice;  loves the way his lips form the words and the deep soft melody they made. Her heart races watching him stand so near but so far, she wishes she could hold him once more.

Now, she remembers the plan. The plan that will make them together forever. An endless life together in the land of God. Hand-in-hand. Heart-to-heart. Forever.

"I love you." He doesn't know what to do. Prashay's heart breaks in two. He wishes to hold her soft hands that always brought him to the luxury of no fear and worry. He misses his Pia. The division of counrty has broken many spirits, and so has the rioters killing. Prashay cries, tears breaking lose from the fold of his eye lids.

"I love you too Prashay. We will stay together in the hands of God. No one will keep us apart. Neither India nor Pakistan and neither this fence."

They stepped closer to the fence. Prashay falls to his knees and stares at Pia.

Pia wiped away her tears. She bent her head down to the fence. Prashay does the same. They move their hands to the fence close together and cross the fence to the vast stretch of emptiness between them. Sirens are rung, warning Pia and Prashay to stop moving.

"Stop or you will be shot." Warns the soldiers.

"Pia. I am glad I got to die with the one I love. I know now that you're safe from with me."

They run towards each-other while the soldiers of both countries set them ablaze with guns. Blood spilled, legs shivered and they fell. Their hands stretching towards each-other.

They lost. Their Love lost. The Hate had finally divided a country in two.

The Hanged Lovers

The Hanged Lovers

I did not utter a word when I was pushed in the back seat of a car by the guards; from the room in which i was locked with no light and food since three days. Still, it was not quite with me that this would be the penultimate day for me here on earth. In few hours I would not be much more than a life less meat hanging from a rope. "Soon everything will be over" was my thought before the car started whose windows were tinted black. Inside the car, Pia was already sitting with her hands tied. "Prashay," she said weakly as she recognized me. I pulled my tied hands and tried to stretch forward to touch her but couldn't and at least feel her skin for one last time.

 Maybe, I would remember her in the next life and love her again as now, I thought. This I knew. I would pray to our God for her soul and wait for her to find me in the next world. There we could be together forever. How careless we were when we fell in love with each other.  A Brahmin Hindu and a Sunni Muslim. This could not be, and would never be tolerated. Neither by the Hindus nor the Muslims. So it did not matter where we were at this moment; caught by the Hindus or Muslims? We would be done one way or the other. Either way we were dead.

"Please let it go quickly" was my thought before I locked my memory of this cruel world. It just worked somehow. No fear, no thoughts, no pain. If I could only maintain this condition when I will soon be hanged. "Are you scared?" Pia asked me. I shook my head. In the dark interior of the car, our breath and Pia's voice were all I could see. The world around us was forgotten. I would soon see her for the last time. Suddenly the car stopped. I felt tears gather in my eyes. Then the door was opened. The guards took us out. There was a ring around the crowd, both Hindus and Muslims. They formed a large circle around the tree. There was also a covered platform on which the Hindu Sarpanch and the Muslim Imam sat. At least Our Love had brought our communities together for this act, to kill us. We were led by our guards to the tree. Then we had to kneel down with our heads down. Then, for a while it remained perfectly quiet.

I wondered if they would give us an opportunity for last words with each other. At the same moment large black cloths were pulled up on our faces. "Prashay," Pia said to me, "Whatever happens. Stay close to me. I'll wait for you in the next world." "Yes," I replied, "But please promise me the same."

Suddenly I was grabbed on the arm and pulled up, even before I could hear her answer. I could feel the rope's noose being tied around my neck. The same happened with her. Only now did I notice that the tears rolled over my face. I was more afraid than I had imagined. I had sworn to keep my mind shut until it was over. We were standing side by side, only a few yards from each other, and still light years far from each other. I felt like the rope tied around the neck so tight that it choked my eyes out. My legs were just tied to the ankles. I closed my eyes as I heard from the far end of the square the loud noise of drums, it was drums of death for us and became faster and faster. Then the drumming suddenly stopped as fast as it had begun.

A soft cracking signaled to me that the stool below our legs were dropped. The tears began to roll over my face. After a few moments of shock, I gave it up. I knew that I would not be able to free myself either way and all in all: Why should I fight against my predestined fate? All that mattered at the moment was that I was with Pia. We would die together, this was my consolation at this moment. I was not afraid anymore.

As the light before my eyes faded I could see myself drawn into darkness. Everything was black. No light. No noise. Only silent darkness. I treaded slowly in the darkness trying to find my way and suddenly I saw a flash of light. End of this dark tunnel.

And finally in this bright light I saw her. We could be finally together.

The Beautiful Princess

The Beautiful Princess

Once upon a time, long ago in another place, far away from here, lived a beautiful Princess named Pia. She was the only child of her parents, who ruled over a small but very prosperous Kingdom. Since birth the People of the Kingdom had been captivated by her beauty. They could not turn away their eyes from her, from her eyes that resembled a bottomless lake.

As her 18th birthday approached, the King decided that it is now time to seek an appropriate groom for his daughter. He sent spies to distant lands whose job was to find out how an ideal princess was perceived in his Kingdom. "Tall and thin," said the Rajputas who lived far to the north of the country. "Small and round," said the Nagrajs who lived seven nights and seven days away to the south of the Kingdom. "She can have by no means a big nose," said the Singhas who populated the west of the country. "She must have absolutely tiny feet and have large ears," said the Manglikas who lived far to the east.

When the King heard what strange ideas were represented for an ideal princess in his Kingdom, he was very irritated. He told his daughter about it, which made her sad. And with every passing day the Princess grew sadder and sadder. "I'll never find a Prince!" She wailed. She did not even noticed the longing glances of the men she met. "I am much too big, my ears are too small and my stomach is too fat!" She worried and  ordered all the mirrors in the castle destroyed, because she found herself uglier. And so it went, day after day, and gradually the Princess fell in depression.

Her despair became so great that one day she decided to leave the Kingdom and her parents in order to spare them from dishonour because of her ugliness. She pulled a large cloak and crept quietly in the dark, starless night out of the castle. When the King and Queen came to know about the Princess disappearance the fell in grief. They sent out spies all around the Kingdom to find the Princess. 

Princess Pia, however, wandered from country to country, crossing mountains and rivers without end away from her parents. In her journey every person she met, especially the men, were impressed by her beauty. The children ran after her and sang songs. But the Princess felt small, stupid and ugly, thinking that all the people she met were nice to her because she was the Princess.

One day, after five months erring through all areas of the Kingdom, the Princess reached to the entrance of a cave, the existence of which had never ever experienced a person. She hesitated for a moment but was too tired from the rigours of the journey, so she entered the cave to rest. Suddenly she heard a slight noise, far back in the cave. It was like the rustling of leaves in the wind. She advanced carefully to where the noise was coming from. And there he sat. A Man or Beast, she did not know, covered in blackness, a shadow.

"Good day, dear," said the princess with anxious voice. "Who's there? Who bothers me?" Thundered the Cave-man back with deep, massive voice. "I... it's just me, Pia, The Princess from the Shemlans-Empire, I did not want to disrupt you, I'm sorry. I'm going already," she turned to leave. "Wait! Stay!" said the stranger's voice, now much smoother. "I want to see you!" and the Cave-Man came quite close to her and patted her face with his fine and delicate hands. The Cave-Man did not have eyes. He could only "see" with his hands, as he was blind.

For a long time the Cave-Man held her face, he felt the gentle curve of her nose, the shape of her eyes and the position of their ears. Suddenly he began to cry and said, "How beautiful you are! Never have my hands seen anything so beautiful, never have my ears heard a more beautiful sound than your voice. Never has my soul perceived a more beautiful soul than yours! Who are you?" He asked again. And suddenly all the sadness which had accompanied the Princess for so long faded away. She suddenly felt her inner and outer beauty, her eyes got back its shine and she replied in a firm voice: "I? I'm me!"

Deeply moved from the Cave-Man's soul mirror, the Princess saw his beautiful soul. She fell in love with his soul's beauty and kissed him gently. Suddenly there was light in the cave. The light engulfed the Cave-Man, and there was a flash. A beautiful Prince came out of the Light. The Princess fell in shock but the Prince caught her. "Who are you?" questioned the Princess. "I'm Prince Prashay from the Daagnan-Empire. I was trapped in this cave by a wicked witch since childhood. Thank-you Princess you saved me. Your love saved me," explained the Prince.

The Princess had finally found her Prince. She went back to her parents, to her Kingdom and told the King and Queen everything she experienced. A few months later, in a grandeur ceremony the Princess finally married her Prince. Her Prince who had taught her true love. And they lived happily ever-after.

Always by your side.

Always by your side.

A snowflake landed right on her head, at the very moment when she opened her eyes. She lifted her head a little, trying to see where she was, but her vision was blurred. The snow is red, she thought a little surprised and let her head fall back into the cold pillow of snow, her eyes looking at the red area.

 

It was her blood that had stained the snow, but she did not know. Just as she did not know that her body lay in the middle of snow, while the icy cold crept into her bones. She did not feel it. All she felt was the fatigue that had spread over her body and invited her to sleep. She closed her eyes .

 

"Pia, wake up. Please! Pia." She heard the voice but tried to ignore it, but like a stubborn child he repeated the words again and again and urged her continuously. She opened her eyes and tried to figure out where the voice came from, but then closed it again when she did not succeed. "Pia, open your eyes! You can not fall asleep, do you hear me?"

 

Her eyelids opened as she recognized the voice. She wanted to reply but could not. "Prashay." She was not sure if she had actually said his name or whether the word was still caught between her lips, so she said it again. "Prashay."

 

"I'm here, Pia. You can not fall asleep! You'll freeze to death, you understand me? You have to get up and go back into the car."

She blinked a few times, and slowly the fog before her eyes disappeared and the image of the man bending over her, became clearer and clearer. Pia wanted to reach out to him and touch his face , but she could not.

 

"Rise! Pia, please." Prashay said insistently to her, again and again. She wanted to comply with his request, but had no strength to do so. "So tired." she managed to say.

"I know you're tired, but you can not fall asleep, not here! You have to go back in the car until help comes," he urged.

 

Pia knew she could not, but she could neither disappoint the man who meant everything to her.

She could not close her eyes now, she could not fall asleep, even if her body asked for it. " That's it, I know you can do it! Until the car. It is just a few steps and I'm there, I will help you."

Prashay did not stop to encourage her. It were his words that gave her courage and slowly she stood up, walking like a small child, ignoring the pain in her head.

 

Prashay was at her side, he talked constantly to her, inspired her and drove her to force the most out of  her body to reach the car. And by some miracle she managed to climb into the interior of the car.

"Prashay?" She wanted to show him that she had done it, she had reached the car. But more than anything, she wanted to see that, that desperate fear had disappeared from his eyes.

 

Prashay was sitting there, in the driver's seat. He watched, as her body trembled with cold, while a single tear slowly ran down his cheek. "What has happened?" Pia murmured and slowly leaned back in the seat. "We had an accident. We wanted to see the frozen lake, remember?"

 

Images flickered before her mind's eye. She saw herself insisting asking to see the frozen lake, while Prashay asked for directions to the Hotel Manager.

"On the snowy road, I lost control of the car and we got off the road. The door at your side opened somehow and you were thrown out. You were not wearing a seatbelt." She heard the words, but could not recall what had happened.

 

"You?" was all she managed to ask. He understood. In so many years of knowing each other, they built their love so strong and secure that it defied all external influences. They understood, every little gesture of the other and interpret it into words.

 

" I'm fine, Pia." he replied. He closed his eyes , partly to repress his tears and partly to prevent her from seeing the truth in them.

 

"Someone will come and help you. You just have to wait. Your head wound needs to be treated." " Yes," she replied.

 

"I love you." he whispered in a shaky voice. "Love you too," murmured Pia and took his hand.

 

"You're going to endure, promise me. Help will come soon. I love you. I wanted to give you something. It was supposed to be a surprise. It's in the glove compartment." She tried to reply but no sound came from her mouth, so she squeezed his hand lightly to signal her that she understood.

"I'm so sorry, Pia." he whispered as tears fell from his eyes.

He repeated the words again and again, but Pia did not hear.

******

A loud knock on the window woke Pia, she tried to raise her head, but could not. A man shouted, "Ma'am, are you hurt?"

 

"Prashay, they are here! Someone has come.." she said, squeezing his cold hand, but received no response.

 

The driver's door was flung open and immediately, several hands were there to help her out of the car. "Ma'am, you have to let go." One of the men pointed to her hand, which was still entangled with Prashay's hand.

 

"Prashay." she cried and tried to touch his face, but the paramedics carried her out of the car, while she desperately stretched out her arms to him and repeatedly called his name. She expected that Prashay would turn his face to her and give her a reassuring smile, but the seated figure in the driver's seat remained motionless.

 

The paramedics took care of her wounds and spoke soothingly to her. Someone asked her how the accident occurred, but she answered  unclearly and repeatedly tried to raise her head to see Prashay, but each time the paramedics would push her back on the bed.

 

"I want to see my husband." she cried, and looked pleadingly at the man, who avoided her gaze. She grabbed his wrist and repeated her request with more emphasis.

 

" Ma'am " began the younger of the two and put a hand on her shoulder. It was a gesture that somehow seemed helpless and Pia could feel her heart becoming numb.

 

She heard the words that her ears could not hear, she saw an expression on their faces that her eyes could not see, and she wished the sentences that were spoken to go away , but the words were ruthless, merciless.

 

"Ma'am, your husband is dead,  he died when the car roll over. His neck.."

 

Ignoring the pain, she cried loudly, "No, you are lying. He is not dead, he helped me to get back into it. He stood next to me.."

 

" Ma'am," the voice was low and calm but firm. "That can not be, your husband is.."

 

"No," Pia interrupted him with a high-pitched voice. " You are wrong, he is not dead. He got out of the car to help me. How could he do that if he's dead? How? How? You tell me! I want to see, please!"

 

They pushed her forcibly back to the bed and tried to calm the woman staring at them with an expression of pure horror.

 

One of them left the ambulance and returned a few moments later to quietly say, " You can clearly see the place where you fell, as you were thrown out of the car. You can also see your footsteps in the snow, when you are returned to the car. But, you can only see your footsteps. If your husband had helped you, then there should be traces to see. Ma'am, you have to.."

 

He stopped when he saw that the woman's eyes were filled with tears as she whispered, barely audible, "He said I have to get up. He said, I'll freeze to death. He.. He.. Oh please it can not be... " The tears ran down her pale cheeks as she repeated one word over and over:

 

"Prashay.."

 

 

*******

 

  

It was dark in the room. She stared blankly out the window into the night.

 

She had no more tears to cry.

She just felt cold and empty, as if all her energy, everything that identified her, everything she had once been, with her tears flowed away.

 

Her thoughts were always about what had happened after she had been thrown away from the car.

 

Prashay was dead and she would never see his face again, his eyes that she loved more than anything in this world, his lips so soft and sensual as he had kissed her countless times. Dark , thick hair that she would always play with.

She would now, never feel his arms again, never again feel his warmth.

She would never hear, "I love you," and feel his touch.

 

The questions of why Prashay had not supported her on the way to car and asked her to walk were answered.

 

He was already dead when she landed in the snow and yet he had saved her, had ensured that she climbed out of the deadly cold in the protective warmth of the car. Prashay was there, she had seen him, heard his words.

 

Everything was suddenly clear. 

And yet nothing made sense.

 

*********

One of the nurses had done her a favour and handed her the packet,

"I hope this is what you wanted. It was the only thing in the glove compartment."

 

She thanked her and turned the small package in her hands back and forth, before she dared to open it. The nurse left the room and closed the door quietly behind her.

 

When the paper was removed, a box appeared. With trembling fingers, Pia opened the box and saw a silver ring inside.

 

She took it out, put it carefully in her palm and closed her fingers around it.

 

She felt strangely warm. For the first time since she had been taken to the hospital, she felt something. The emptiness in her heart was filled with a warm feeling.

 

A note was folded into the box and as she read it, her eyes filled with tears.

 

Pia,

I belong to you, just as you belong to me. I will always be there for you, always be by your side, just as you are to me. You are the missing piece that completes my soul.

I love you.

Prashay.

 

She opened her fist and looked at the inscription that was engraved inside the ring:

"Always By Your Side"

 

It hurt her, so infinite and at the same time nothing had ever felt so wonderful. And she knew, she could do it. She would live.

Because Prashay wanted her to.

And because they would be reunited.

Eventually.

Someday.

Someday maybe..!!

Dark red roses

Dark red roses

 

 

"Two years had already passed since the wedding", Pia shook her dark black hair in amazement. An elegant bunch of curls flying through the air, tickling her husband's face. An incredulous laugh followed the movement of her head. Prashay looked at her in astonishment. He admired his beautiful wife, loved every movement of her body.

With dreamy eyes, he looked at the face of his beloved life partner. Her alluring brown-black eyes, which with a certain mocking smile looked at him.

Suddenly, he felt two arms around his neck. His head was pulled down and Pia sought his lips with her mouth.

Middle of the sidewalk, between all the people who were around her, she kissed him passionately. Astonished eyes met those two. But they did not bother. Some people who walked past them smiled with a slightly dreamy look. Surely, they thought of their own love.

After the kiss Prashay looked surprised at his wife. "Why? Is there a special reason for your sudden shower of love?" he heard himself say. Damn, it flashed through his head, why couldn't he just enjoy this moment? It was yet again the scientist in him. He was angry on himself.

"Today, exactly two years before we were married, my dear," said his beloved Pia with a smiling undertone. Her voice still had the sound of bells, which Prashay loved more than anything. He felt a blush rose on his face.

Sure, on scientific formulas and the dates of certain important inventions and such things he could remember razor sharp. Essays of his colleagues, he knew almost by heart, especially if they contradicted his findings. But this important date, the day of his anniversary he could not remember. It was not stored in his scientific mind.

"You need not blush," laughed Pia.

"After all, you remembered it last. It was still quite a feat. So the first wedding anniversary is in your favour." Prashay broke his silence with a contrived smile from his inner solidification. "Honey," he said,"I always knew that you are superior to me. Wait a moment, please."

His eyes had discovered despite his surprise, the flower shop on the other side of the street. He looked a little embarrassed. With quick steps he crossed the road, did not hear the horns of motorists and almost bumped along another passerby before arriving at lightning speed in the flower shop.

Upon entering the store his eyes searched for the most beautiful roses. He knew his wife's favorite flowers. A bouquet of beautiful, dark red precious roses stood in a tub surrounded by other magnificent rose bouquets. This had to be it.

The case was clear for Prashay.

He turned to the clerk, a nice middle-aged woman.

"Please pack one of those beautiful roses. Just one, please. Yet it must be the most beautiful of all."

The saleswoman smiled.

"I highly recommend this," she said.

Prashay looked at it and agreed.

"I beg you, do it quickly. My wife is waiting outside."

"But of course, I understand you well,"

"The rest of the wonderful bouquet should be packed in a very nice flower arrangement and sent it in the next hour to our apartment at the following address. My maid will explain you where to place it."

He explained holding out his card.

"I would make you a beautiful flower arrangement right away, Sir," replied the saleswoman.

"Do you want to put a card in it?"

Prashay did not hesitate.

The card was at hand.

He drew two hearts and wrote the three words of love into it: "I love you, Prashay."

He paid for his purchases and thanked the saleswoman. Then hurried with the most beautiful rose from the bouquet to his beloved wife.

Pia saw him coming and laugh out loud. "You forgetful professor, you think you can make up for this with a Rose? I guess now you'll invite me to dinner."

"But of course, my favorite," said Prashay.

He took her to the best restaurant in town and ordered a delicious meal.

Prashay ordered a bottle of champagne to toast for more years of happiness with Pia. They ate and drank with great relish as the time flew by. The dark red rose stood in a matching vase in the middle of the table and gave the food a special flair.

Fully satisfied, they left the restaurant and went back home.

Prashay waited in great anticipation. He was curious as how Pia would react to the surprise. The way home was not too long and they soon reached their home.

Prashay said to Pia "Could you open the door, I drank a little too much champagne and am having trouble finding the keyhole." Pia laughed and immediately answered. "I will, my love." She opened the door of the house and climbed the stairs up to her room. She was a bit faster than her husband.

Prashay suddenly heard a little cry of surprise and saw his love, running towards him. She held him by the neck and covered his face with kisses and said,"You sweetheart, you still managed to surprise me."

She took the card from the wonderful bouquet of dark red roses and read it. Now she got the blush. The blush of happiness, it made her look more beautiful.

"I love you too," she whispered.

They took the bouquet of roses into their bedroom together and put the flowers in a beautiful vase.

Pia had a beautiful day and now was her turn to surprise him. She whispered something in Prashay's ear. He nodded and they both quickly disappeared in their bedroom.

And they celebrated their second wedding anniversary as their former wedding night.