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The Perfect Stranger
The day was hot and sultry. Greyish yellow clouds hung low over the valley. Wood smoke drifted from a nearby vineyard, burning off after the harvest. Guari finished drawing water from the pump in the courtyard. She lifted the heavy bucket with both hands and struggled inside with it. The heat was unbearable but it was too soon to expect the rains. Harvest was over and it had been a good one. The sugarcane had given her a fair price. Ram would have been proud of the way she had managed the business alone. The village workers came back year after year. Sometimes, she wondered if their loyalty was to her or to Ram, who had been a good employer for many years. Certainly, she had paid them fairly, but they gave her honest work in return. The fields were quiet. It would be lonely until the next monsoon. This was when she missed Ram most, when the harvest was over. Ram was the most handsome man Guari had ever seen. He was six feet tall with broad football shoulders and teasing grey eyes. Ram was the son of the village headman, and Guari was a farmer’s daughter. The two of them had met at a village festival, and fallen in love with each other. After a lot of opposition from both sides, they finally got married. Within a year of their marriage Ram had died in a road accident. Such a good man he had been. All the work and sweat that had gone into the earth had been for her, not for himself. For her and the sons they never had. Sometimes, when she lay awake in bed, she thought of Ram, thoughts she could never share with anyone. About her needs that only he could fill. She wished he was there with her, wished he had stayed. She missed him most in the long hours before dawn. Thinking of him, she was blinded by tears. Ram was gone forever. It was noon and she was preparing a simple meal for herself. As she went to wash at the pump and splashed the cool water on her face, she heard a noise behind her. She turned startled. A tall man stood by the edge of the courtyard, looking hot and dusty. The horse he led looked dusty too. His face was young, but weather-lined and showed the wear of pain and battle. He had spent almost half of his life fighting for the country’s independence. Born in a rich family, Vineet had left home to serve the country at the age of twenty. Now that the country had attained its independence, he was out to find a life of his own. ‘Forgive me, I did not mean to startle you’, Vineet said. Guari stared at the stranger. The accent in his voice told her he was not from these parts. ‘What brings you here?,” she asked as he moved towards her. ‘I’m looking for work. Do you know of anything available?’ His broad shoulders and lean body were obviously no strangers to hard work. ‘Perhaps, I can help you’, she said. ‘There are some chores to be done which have been neglected. Do you intend to stay long in these parts”? ‘I never try to plan the future’, was his reply. He watered his horse and she brought him some refreshments. While eating Vineet couldn’t help noticing how beautiful she was. Guari was tall, thin and serious, and very beautiful. She was wearing a white sari that almost swept the floor. The wind blew her sari against the shape of her figure and Vineet gave a mysterious smile. When he finished eating, Vineet immediately set about the work she had provided. Gauri busied herself preparing one of the labourer’s quarters for him. A week passed and then another, and still Vineet stayed. Guari enjoyed having him around and he seemed content enough with things as they were. Sometimes, when she took his meal to him, they would talk, laugh and joke. There was something about her which appealed to him a lot. He wanted to touch her, to hold her hand, to kiss her. As for her it was pleasant to have someone to talk to and cook for again. Towards the end of the third week, Guari hummed softly to herself as she took his meal to him. He kept his gaze averted as he said quietly ’I’ll be leaving soon’. Her heart skipped a beat. ‘When...? Why....?’ ‘Work’s almost finished’, was all Vineet said. No point in hurting her by repeating the village gossip about the widow and the stranger. There was no doubting that he was a handsome man who had already awakened feelings in her. ‘I wish you would change your mind’ Gauri spoke in a whisper. ‘There is always work to be done......’ ‘But’, Vineet answered softly, ‘It’s time’. The following day, Guari watched him go. He rode slowly and didn’t look back. The summer dragged on. The days became hotter and the red earth in the courtyard cracked in the blistering heat. The days seemed long and empty but the nights were the hardest to bear. Guari was tortured by restless dreams which excluded her beloved Ram. The only person who came in her dreams was the tall handsome stranger on the horse. The weeks dragged on into months. Life went on. In the courtyard one steamy afternoon, Guari felt the splash on her cheeks. She turned her face skywards in disbelief as the drops came faster. She dropped the basket she was carrying, stretched her arms upwards and abandoned herself to the delicious cool rains. It ran in rivulets down her face and neck. Her hair came undone and her sari clung to her. She closed her eyes. Nearby, a horse whinnied through the sound of the steady rain. Guari opened her eyes to see the tall figure approaching. She shivered as Vineet stopped before her, his eyes drinking thirstily of every detail. A long moment passed as they both searched for words. Slowly, Vineet spread his arms wide, ‘It looks like the drought is over, Guari’. His voice was hoarse; he had never used her name before. Guari smiled at him and went into his outstretched arms, ‘Yes, It’s over. It’s been a long time but now it’s over’. As they clung together he said, ‘I’m in love with you Guari, and I don’t care what people think, but I want to get married to you.’ She smiled with tears in her eyes. He was such a good man and she knew he would be wonderful to her for the rest of her life, but much more importantly she knew she was in love with him. As tears spilled onto Guari’s cheeks she nodded saying, ‘Yes’. ‘I love you, Guari’, Vineet said. Saying this, he sealed her lips with a kiss, and she could feel his heart pounding as he held her close to him, and they both knew with absolute certainty, this was forever.
Editor's note: Most articles submitted to Chillibreeze go through a selection process. Only 30 percent of submitted articles are accepted for publication on the Chillibreeze.com featured article list. All accepted articles are edited and proofread for glaring errors of punctuation and grammar. Sentence structure is changed in certain cases and sometimes, entire sections are rewritten. If you notice any errors that have slipped through the cracks, do let us know! (Email us at info at chillibreeze dot com). Chillibreeze's disclaimer: This is a contributed article and was published on Chillibreeze in August, 2010. The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the author(s) and do not reflect the views of Chillibreeze as a company. Chillibreeze has a strict anti-plagiarism policy. Please contact us to report any copyright issues related to this article. The relevance of the facts and figures cited (if any) could change after a period of time.
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