The Neighbor's Roof Adjacent to Ours
After a long time of marriage, I had returned to my parental home. My family home was in an old neighborhood of Patna, where it still exists. The houses are close together, just 6-7 feet apart in narrow lanes, with only 3-4 feet of distance between the roofs. My husband, Sankalp, had gone abroad for a trip, which happened 2-3 times a year. I was sitting on the roof with my mom in the evening. The neighbor's roof was right next to ours. A boy named Avinash lived in that house; he was 4-5 years older than me and studied in the same school. Suddenly, I remembered him and asked my mom, “Where is Avinash these days?”
“I don’t know anything about him. He left this house a few days before your wedding. He was a tenant here, came to Patna for studies.”
I went to the kitchen to make tea, but memories of the past began flooding back. I felt restless, unable to focus on anything. While straining the tea into the cup, half of it spilled outside. My mind kept wandering through the corridors of the past. Anyway, I made the tea and returned to the roof. My mom was talking to an aunt from the neighboring roof, with just 3 feet between them. I handed my tea to the aunt and said, “You both drink it. I’ll make some for myself later.”
I stood at the other corner of the roof, away from them. It was getting dark. When the electricity went out, the children came out making noise. Some came to their own roofs. During such times, Avinash would smile at me or wave his hand when I was on the roof. I was in the 8th grade then and often went up to dry clothes, and Avinash was usually there too, especially on holidays.
One day, while I was standing on the roof, the power went out, and it got a bit dark. Avinash came close, handed me a note, and then quickly ran away, smiling. I was very scared. I hid the note inside my kurta. The years between childhood and adolescence can be quite tumultuous for girls. Sometimes you feel like jumping with joy, and sometimes you fear growing up. Sometimes you want to embrace someone, and other times you wish to be embraced.
Later, I read the note. It said, “Deepa, you look very beautiful when you smile, and it makes me happy to see that.”
Time passed like this. My sister’s wedding was coming up, and there was a mehndi ceremony. I also got mehndi on both hands and went up to the roof in the evening. Avinash was on his roof too. He smiled and waved at me. I don’t know what came over me, but I raised my mehndi-covered hands in response. He gestured for me to come closer to the railing, and I was drawn to him. He immediately kissed my hands, and I pulled away quickly.
Whenever Avinash got a chance, he would secretly hand me a note. It would often say, “Just keep smiling.” I liked it, but I never responded or expressed anything back.
After completing my Plus Two, I joined college. Suddenly, my sister suggested a good match for me from her in-laws. I wanted to study further, but everyone unanimously insisted, “A good match has come to our doorstep. Don’t let this opportunity slip. You can finish your studies in your in-laws’ house.”
Preparations for my wedding were underway. Avinash sent me a note through a small child, wishing me congratulations on my wedding and advising me to keep smiling in my new home. He mentioned that he would miss seeing my mehndi-laden hands.
After my wedding, I moved to Indore with my husband, Sankalp. He is a good, decent man but often busy with work. When he gets free time, he watches cricket on TV or goes to his cricket club. I never complained about this.
My mom's voice broke my reverie, “Deepa, tomorrow is the mehndi ceremony for our neighbor Pradeep uncle's daughter Mohini, and there’s also a ladies’ sangeet. You know her; she was in your school, two classes behind you. She specifically asked for you to come along.”
The next evening, I went to Mohini’s place. I got mehndi applied on both hands up to my elbows and participated in the ladies’ sangeet for a while. When the electricity went out, I returned home. Although the generator was running there, I couldn’t tolerate the loud music, so I left.
I went up to my roof and suddenly remembered Avinash. I waved my mehndi-covered hands in the air. The neighbor aunt saw me from her roof and thought I was showing my hands to her. She came closer to the railing and said, “Your mehndi looks very nice. The color has come out well. The groom must really love you.”
I shyly pulled my hands back. Later that night, I was online on my laptop when I unexpectedly saw Avinash's friend request and accepted it immediately. Shortly after, I received a message from him asking how I was and if my smile was still intact. “Sankalp must like your smile too,” he added.
I was astonished. How did he know about Sankalp? So, I asked, “How do you know him?”
“I’m a teacher at a central school in Dubai. Sankalp came to our school to set up the computer and Wi-Fi system. During our conversation, I found out he is your husband. He gave me your WhatsApp number.”
