With no prompting
from me, she frequently came to my room on the first floor often of her own
accord. Most of her visits were for fleeting glances except once or twice a day
she lingered close to me for a long time. The joy on her face was evident when
she was with me. I just reciprocated her warmth in equal measure to her great
glee.
She was a beautiful
young woman with large eyes that fluttered for no reason in my presence. She
was playful by nature revelling in making faces at me, sometimes narrowing her eyes or winking, occasionally twisting her nose, frequently pouting her wet rosy lips and mostly
smiling at me. I just watched her antics with interest whenever she showed off
her beautiful figure, but never responded overtly to her overtures. But she was
the type who never gave up.
She came to this
house only six months back after marrying into the family. Her husband left for
the office early only to return late in the night. She had not taken up any job
and after finishing the morning chores, she had nothing much to do. Leaving her
aged in-laws, who could not climb in the ground floor, she rushed to my room
on the first floor at the earliest opportunity. This has been going on uninterrupted
till yesterday
It was 4 pm. She
seemed to be happy and in a great mood. She was dressed in style and wore
matching jewellery. Maybe she was attending some function and possibly
expecting to return only late at night. She came to me seeking my confirmation that
she looked extremely attractive. When I remained silent, on an impulse she
kissed me hard leaving a prominent mark of lipstick on my face. When she saw me
looking at her in utter credulity, like a crazy woman she pressed her lips repeatedly
on me leaving red marks all over my face.
Suddenly and
unexpectedly, the door opened and her husband walked in silently. Even as she
was busy smooching me, he came behind her and wound his arms tightly around her.
”Hey, have you
gone nuts? What are you doing?” he asked her. As she froze in embarrassment, he
taunted her “You have never been so generous with me like this.”
Even as she, a
bit ashamed, started wiping hurriedly the smudges from my face, he laughingly said
“I am extremely jealous. Beware, I might just break your mirror one day”
I felt he spoke
in jest and meant no real harm to me.
A good one. Appreciate the way you narrate.
ReplyDeleteI could make out that the event will turn like this But I mistook it for a pet. Good.
ReplyDeleteVery nicely narrated
ReplyDeleteRamakrishnan.
Wow! That took me some time to get but one of the most creative stories I've read! Deserves to be submitted to a short story competition!
ReplyDeleteI did not realize it would be a mirror. I thought it would be a small child. I was also thinking about jokingly giving you an advice. Don't go for it but if it comes in your way, don't back out. No it is a moot point.
ReplyDeleteI guessed it could be a mirror but towards the end before hubby's entry. Good one Kp. Loved it. But cleaning the mirror is not so easy. 😀
ReplyDeleteWow. Loved it! Getting younger by the day KP!!! Janardhan
ReplyDeleteGood one!
ReplyDeleteHa ha ha ha Good one
ReplyDeleteChitra
Interesting. Loved the way it is written!
ReplyDeleteLove the story, yes me too like others thought of a pet or a child, but mirror did not occur!
ReplyDeleteHang on and keep reflecting (JJ)
ReplyDeleteI thought it was a dog from the first 2/3 lines:) Good narration, Kp ....Sandhya
ReplyDeleteI was thinking it would be a Golden Retriever or a baby but did not think it would be a mirror 😊 Regards - Mahesh
ReplyDeleteThat was a great twist, but what a narcissist! I was expecting it to be a pet but half way through realised it was not!
ReplyDeleteIt took some time to understand 😃
ReplyDeleteThe curiosity of the reader is kept alive superbly till the end, only when it becomes clear that it was the reflection on the mirror that was telling the story of Madam Narcissus!
ReplyDeleteHa ha. I was thinking you are the house cat !!
ReplyDeleteRama Sampath Kumar: As usual a lovely narrative and somehow knowing your style guessed the husband would walk in at an inappropriate moment. Athimber some of your short stories take me back to some incident or story although the similarities are not quite exact. This piece reminds me of Karna and Bhanumathy, wife of Dhuryodhana, playing dice and suddenly seeing her husband come , she gets up, Karna thinks she is going away because she was losing and pulls her back… her pearls all scatter on the floor : Dhuryodhana says "Should I just collect the beads, or string them as well."
ReplyDeleteBoth Bhanumati and Karna had misjudged him. He had implicit faith and great love for his queen and greater was his faith on his friend Karna. He does not suspect or get angry with Karna but instead helps him in picking up the pearls.
Great story with a wonderful twist in the end. Like others, I too was expecting a pet!!
ReplyDeleteThe way you thought to make the story is wonderful. So many different thoughts when each line is passed. No one will think that it's a mirror until that is spelt out that I will break your mirror one day. Very jealous husband. Regards P K Ramachandran
ReplyDeleteHa ha! Good one:-))
ReplyDeleteHahaha :) Loved the twist.
ReplyDeleteHmm.... Mirror, yeah? Disappointing 😃😎
ReplyDeleteBest wishes and warm regards
Hemantha Kumar Pamarthy
Lovely... True KP genre!
ReplyDeleteHahaha. Couldn't guess it would be a mirror.
ReplyDeleteWow! Beautiful surprise! I was expecting a twist, but not this!!
ReplyDeleteSrikanth
The girl needs a psychic treatment for her desperation to smooch the inert body like mirror due to lack of diverse activity to engage herself in a more fruitful creative work. Husband too is not appreciative of her inner feelings is faulting the mirror. Both are made for each other!
ReplyDeleteAre there partners in real life like them?
Jagadeesan