Ting. I glanced at my mailbox. It was Trisha. It was a year that I had first met her in the woods of Meghalaya.
âHappy New Year, Tiara. Just thought you might be interested in another story?â she wrote. I smiled, and continued reading.
November. Trivandrum. The cyclonic storm had dashed all her leisure plans. Trisha gazed at the ceiling of her cozy hotel room. âDamn this weather!â, she said to herself. She scrolled through the bright sunny pictures of Varkala beach on her phone. She gave a sigh and throwing the covers away, she jumped out of bed.
Trisha had been traveling on work for quite some time and was set to fly back home the next day. She quickly got dressed, picked her umbrella and sling bag and walked out of the room.
âMaâam, are you sure? Please do not venture out too far.â The front desk guy cautioned, a look of concern on his face.
Trisha smiled. âSure, I will take care. Thank you so much.â
Stepping out, Trisha braced herself with nothing to expect. Earlier, from her room window, she had spotted a church next to the hotel. She walked till the gates and entered. She could hear prayers. As softly as she could, she walked inside. It was beautiful. Placing her umbrella inside a bucket kept at the corner, she positioned herself in one of the seats at the back and folded her hands. She did not understand the language, yet there was something she could feel. Peace, maybe? The lady next to her signaled her to cover her head. Trisha quickly obliged by pulling her stole and wrapped it around her head.
Ten minutes later, she glanced at her watch and decided to move out. She needed to get some stuff for home. An auto ride later, she was at one of the most popular departmental stores in town. The place looked resplendent with Christmas decoration. She picked up a few Kerala sarees for home and headed back.
The rain had intensified. Luckily, she found an auto just outside the store.
The front desk guy was clearly relieved on seeing her arrive. Trisha went straight to the restaurant for dinner.
Being a solo traveler, especially a woman, has its perks. The restaurant manager took special care of Trishaâs needs including getting her plain khichdi when her tummy played truant the previous night. Flashing a smile, he welcomed her.
Trisha chose a seat right in front of the stage, where a performer was singing Phil Collinsâ âAnother Day in Paradiseâ. The attendant took her order and she settled for a relaxed time. There was no one except her in the restaurant.
The singer looked somewhat like Hariharan, thought Trisha. As if reading her mind, he glanced at her. He had just completed a number.
âYou traveling alone?â He asked her.
âYeah, on workâ, Trisha replied.
âWhatâs your name, young lady?â
âTrisha.â
âHi, I am Malcolm. I sing here every eveningâ.
âHello Malcolm. Youâre really good!â Trisha said.
âAre you married?â He went on.
âNo, why do you ask?â Trisha was amused.
âI will pray to the Lord that by this time next year, you come across your life partner and you return here with him.â
Trisha did not know how to react. Finding strange people on her trips was not new to her! Maybe she was strange, so she attracted weird experiences! Â
Trying hard to suppress her laughter, she said â âOkay, thank you so much.â
The mobile rang. It was Prashant, her colleague and friend. Trisha took the call.
âHello Madam! Howâs Trivandrum treating the daredevil?â
âItâs raining ya.â
âOh, so no pleasure? Only business?â
Trisha laughed. Prashant always had a way to lighten things up.
âCome back soon, youâre being missed.â
Trisha smiled. Pausing a bit, she added â âI will see you guys soon.â
The smile was intact even as she disconnected the phone.
âBoyfriend?â It was Malcolm.
âFriend.â Trisha corrected him.
Soon, the food arrived. The rest of the evening was good with Malcolm singing a few more songs.
As she rose to leave, she went up to Malcolm and said âThank You, it was great meeting you, Malcolm. Keep rocking. By the way, since you do pray, do you really believe in God?â
âYes, I do.â
âWell then, would it be difficult for you to understand when I say that not everyone wants or needs a life partner whoâs other than themselves? I am happily self-partnered Malcolm. Pray that I always be so, irrespective of whether I ever want or have another person in my life as a partner or not.â
Malcolm looked at her intently. He nodded and smiled.
âIf thatâs what you truly believe Trisha, then I consider myself fortunate to have met someone like you. Not everyone can think like that. God bless you. I will pray that all your dreams come true.â
âThanks again, take care.â
They shook hands. Trisha walked away.
I looked at the last phrase that Trisha had written. Happily self-partnered. Wow. That IS something. âHappy New Year, Trishaâ, I emailed her back.
(This is a work of fiction and is not intended to resemble anyone in real life. Stories and pictures used are copyright to the author)