Adultery Awaited desires - Completed

[Haran000]

7. Question 

The vast, echoing halls of the university swallowed me whole. I found an attendant and mumbled my query about the first-year Physics classroom. He pointed vaguely, and I followed the direction, my footsteps strangely loud on the polished floors. The classroom was a sea of polished wood – about thirty benches, each a silent promise of knowledge, yet barely thirty souls occupied them. The first two benches were taken, but the third held a fellow whose face struck me as peculiar, so I veered off, finding refuge in the very last bench. It was a first for me, this act of rebellion, this embrace of the back row.

The lecturer arrived, a man of few words, or perhaps, no words at all. He launched into "Solid State Physics" with the dry cadence of someone reading a grocery list. No introductions, no pleasantries, just a monotone delivery that made the subject sound as engaging as a history lesson. Useless, I thought, a silent indictment against his pedagogical methods. A teacher should connect, not just recite. He droned on, then left, leaving behind a lingering sense of unfulfillment. My gaze swept the room, and I noticed the girls, all dutifully facing forward. I, on the other hand, had a newfound mission. Having rarely paid much attention to girls, I decided now was the time. I scanned each one, a critical eye assessing, but to my dismay, not a single face registered as even average beauty.

The second period brought a different kind of energy. Another lecturer, entered, a genial smile already gracing his lips. "Today," he announced, his voice warm and inviting, "let's get to know everyone's names. Then, I'll share a fascinating physics fact. Perhaps you know it, perhaps not." 

We all nodded in unison, a collective anticipation building. "My name is Muralidharan," he declared, a small, cheerful laugh punctuating his introduction. 

A voice, I think from the third bench, chimed in, "Mutthayya Muralidharan," followed by a ripple of laughter.

Murali Sir chuckled, a genuine, hearty sound. "Hahaha.... that's good. Cracking jokes like undergrads even in post-graduation means that youthful spirit hasn't gone yet, yes... that young spirit should always be with us." 

We stared at him, a collective assessment. He had truly taken it in stride, not a hint of annoyance tarnishing his jovial demeanor.

"Do you know something?" Murali Sir continued, his voice shifting, imbued with a deep reverence. "This subject, Physics, is like that. Those who love Physics, who have a passion and an intense desire for it, they have a curiosity. That curiosity to know something, to discover something, something else, something unknown that this universe holds, to search for it, that's what makes us like little children who don't understand what's in front of them, asking, 'Mommy, what is this?', 'Daddy, what is this?', 'Brother, why is it like this?'" We hung on his every word, captivated.

"The curiosity in Physics also makes you ask 'this is like this, like that, how?' just like small children. Those who study this are always like growing children." 

A quiet "Wow... what did sir say?" escaped my lips, unheard by others but resonating within me. How deeply he must love Physics to speak of it with such fervor. Truly, I resolved, when I become a Physics teacher, I must tell my students something like this.

The name-sharing commenced, first the girls, then the boys. Now, the promised physics fact loomed, a tantalizing mystery.

"Okay," Murali Sir began, a mischievous glint in his eye. "You all just said your names, but there's no guarantee I'll remember them. Hahaha..." His laughter was infectious, and a wave of chuckles swept through the room.

"You've all been studying science since childhood," he continued, "and you chose Physics because you like science. I expect many of you already know this fact."

Akhil, a bespectacled figure two rows ahead, raised his hand. "Sir, one moment. Sir, you haven't told us what you're going to talk about."

"Oh, right," Murali Sir said, a playful self-reprimand in his tone. "I'm your relative Physics professor. I'll be teaching you about gravitational force, space and time relativity, Einstein's general relativity theory, Newtonian and Einsteinian gravity, gravitational field properties, and the time paradox, all of which are in your syllabus."

Uff, a great sir like this for my favorite topics! I thought, a thrill of anticipation running through me.

"In May 1919," Murali Sir continued, his voice dropping to a conspiratorial whisper, "there was a total solar eclipse. Einstein had two astronomical photographers, one in Princeton, Africa, and the other in Sobral, Brazil, take photos of that eclipse. In those eclipse photos, the moon completely covered the sun, and only the corona—not that virus corona, but the sun's surface, the corona—was visible. It appeared like a ring. Small stars were also visible in the rest of the photo. Then, using a photographic micro-filter measuring equipment, when they compared the same stars in a photo taken at night when the sun wasn't there, with the same stars visible during the solar eclipse, they appeared to have shifted slightly. That is, the stars that should have been there at night seemed to have deviated a bit; they weren't in their expected place. Why?"

A hush fell over the classroom, a profound silence. Hehe... I knew the answer. But I looked around, hoping someone else would vocalize it.
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The silence in the classroom was palpable, a heavy blanket that smothered any lingering sounds. I was baffled. Were these students truly engrossed in their academic texts, oblivious to the fascinating saga of physics' past? My own evenings were often spent lost in the YouTube, of scientific giants – Newton, Einstein, the polymath Da Vinci.

Murali Sir’s voice cut through the quiet, a playful prod. "No sound is coming." He paused, a theatrical beat. "The brain is thinking. The brain is processing. The brain is not giving an answer."

A ripple of laughter spread through the room as he repeated the phrase.

"Oh, doesn't anyone know?" Murali Sir finally asked, a feigned exasperation in his tone.

"Sir, I'll tell," I blurted out, a sudden rush of confidence.

"Yo… tell me," he encouraged, and I rose to my feet.

"Sir, due to the Sun's gravitational force, the light rays from those stars, when traveling past the Sun towards Earth, bend at a very small angle." I delivered the explanation with a proud flourish.

Murali Sir’s response was immediate and dismissive. "Light travels straight; light has no mass. There is no gravitational force on an object with no mass. How can it bend like that, hero? There's no logic at all." His words, laced with mockery, stung.

Then, from somewhere in those benches, a familiar, sneering voice echoed Murali Sir's derision. "You got punched, sit down, topper." I did know who it was, but the audacity ignited a fire within me.

I couldn't bite my tongue. "I haven't given the full answer. Be ready for a punch, third bench..."

Heads swiveled. Every eye in the room, even the girls', fixed on me, and I felt a flicker of unease. My gaze met Sir’s. I had to finish this.

"Sir, with Newtonian gravity, that's the limit. However, with Einstein's General Relativity, what was proven by the experiment you mentioned is that..."

"Hmm... can you give the formulation?" Murali Sir interjected, his curiosity piqued.

"No, Sir, I read this on YouTube and in some articles. It's not the light rays that bend there. Due to the weight of our Sun, a dip forms on the spacetime fabric. That is, space gets distorted. Because of that, space curves." The words tumbled out, each one a revelation.

"Explain it simply, okay."

The room was utterly silent, every student hanging on my every word, as if I were reciting sacred hymns.

"Anything in our universe exists in this space. Matter has mass. If everything travels in this space in a certain direction, meaning a vector, with a velocity and acceleration, then it travels on space itself. For example, if a car is going on a highway and there's a downward curve in the road, the car also goes on that curve, it doesn't fly straight in the air, right? Similarly, a straight-traveling light ray travels on the curve of space created by the Sun at that spot. That means it's not the light that bends there; space itself is curved."

A wave of astonishment swept through my classmates. I doubted any of them had encountered this concept before.

"Super Harikiran. You explained it very well," Murali Sir praised, a genuine smile on his face.

"Thanks, Sir, but my name is Harikrishna."

"Oh, okay, okay." He chuckled. "Alright, see you tomorrow."

The remaining periods felt uneventful after that intellectual sparring match. After lunch, as I walked into the campus, I noticed three seniors under a tree, a junior boy standing before them, undergoing some sort of interrogation.

The afternoon held only one more class, then the freedom of going home. As I crossed the corridor and emerged from the building, I saw them again, still by the same tree. I pulled out my phone, checked the time, idly scrolled through Instagram, and casually walked past them.

"Hey... Black T-shirt," a voice called out.

I turned back. " yes bro...?"

The speaker was as tall as I, with a well-built physique that suggested regular gym visits.

"What, you're here and you're just walking by, engrossed in your phone, ignoring us?"

"What phone, brother...?" I feigned innocence. "I didn't bring my phone, it's not allowed in class, right?"

He glanced at my hand. Indeed, my phone was nowhere in sight. It was a small trick I’d mastered – making my phone vanish into my back pocket in a blink, only to reappear at my stomach if viewed from the back. I had executed the maneuver as I turned.

His surprise was evident. "Just now you were walking with your phone. You must have put it in your pockets just now, take it out."

"No, bro, I didn't bring my phone at all. You're mistaking someone else for me."

He turned to the guy beside him. "Hey Karthik, this guy was walking with his phone just now, you saw it, right?"

"Yes. Hey, take out your phone, man. Don't you have respect for seniors? Don't you know you should greet them and then go?" Karthik chimed in.

"Seriously, bro. I didn't bring my phone." My voice was earnest.

He then addressed the third person. "Srujan, check his pockets."

Srujan, a shorter boy, approached and began searching my pockets. Nothing. He came up empty-handed. A silent laugh bubbled up within me.

His hands continued to pat my pockets, shoulders, and waist. "Brother, what is this? I thought it was ragging, but what is this... sexual harassment to me?" I blurted out, a hint of outrage in my voice.

"Hey, let him go, you go," they finally said, dismissing me.

"Brother, what's your name?" I asked before leaving.

"My name is Mahesh."

"Okay, brother, I'll go."

By the time I reached home, Peddamma was already there. Vadina, and Vedanth were nowhere to be seen. I washed my face and feet, shed my jeans, and slipped into comfortable track pants.

"Peddamma, did you drink tea?" I asked.

"I'll make it, wait, I'm coming," Rajamani replied.

"Should I make it?"

"Can you make it or will you mess something up? Vadina will scold you when she comes back."

"Ha, I'll do it, you sit. By the way, where did Vadina go?"

"She said she'd go to her aunt's house and come back, dear. Karimnagar."

"Oh, she didn't tell me then. If she had told me, I would have met her there, right?"

"I don't know, dear. She said she'd come by the time brother arrived."

"Ha, okay."

"There's milk in the big pot. First, heat the big pot, pour some into the small pot, and make tea," Peddamma instructed.

"Ha, I know."

I strode into the kitchen, lit the stove, and placed the large pot of milk on it. For two minutes, my attention drifted to my phone. The milk was hot. I ladled some into the smaller pot, enough for Peddamma and me. Lighting the second burner, I placed the small pot on it. Both pots simmered and began to boil.

Then, I reached for the tea powder, opened the lid, and with a confident scoop, dumped a spoonful into the first, larger pot.

I bit my tongue, a wave of dread washing over me. Now, Peddamma would surely turn my asscheeks into parathas.

"Hasn't the tea been made yet, dear?" Rajamani’s voice, closer than I expected, sounded the alarm.

I’m done for.. She was here.

One doesn't need grand reasons to commit suicide, this was enough. I imagined myself diving into that enormous pot of milk and ending it all.

"Why are you not making any sound, dear?" she pressed.

"It's just Peddamma, I, tea powder, accidentally put too much in the milk," I stammered, pointing to the colossal tea-in-the-making.

Her gaze hardened, an angry glint in her eyes. "Are you making tea for just us two, or did the whole neighborhood say they're coming to our house for tea?"

"That's not it..." My explanation trailed off as she spotted the phone in my hand.

"You're holding that wretched phone, looking at it, standing there."

"Oh, I didn't see?" I mumbled, a pathetic attempt at deflection.

"What do you mean you didn't see? You're old enough to get married, and when I tell you to make tea, you put so much milk and tea powder like it's for relatives? Now who will drink all that tea?"

An intense wave of annoyance washed over me, directed solely at myself. "Hey, go away, you. When Vadina and they come, they'll drink it, it'll be fine."

"That's not it, these days, kids get married and raise children. You don't even know how to make tea. What will you feed and give your wife then?"

"My goodness, what's your fuss? I said it was an accident, and you're talking about marriage and children. You... go away. You confused me with the small pot and big pot."

"Ha, you get confused by such a small thing, what are you even studying then?"

"Did you ever teach me to make tea when I wanted to do chores since childhood? Vadina is there, you are there. Now you're old. What should I do?"

"That's why I asked if I should make it," she retorted, her voice laced with triumph.

"Oh, go away, you. I'll get the tea."

She muttered something unintelligible and retreated to the living room. I added sugar and three more spoons of tea powder to the voluminous milk, transforming the entire pot into tea. Now, even if four of us drank this tea, it wouldn't be finished.

If Anna, ever found out, he'd just look at me and say, "You’re done for my brother, Vadina will give you a good one."

Coincidentally, an hour later, Anna arrived home with three other people. Seeing that Vadina wasn't there, he asked me to make tea. I simply reheated the existing concoction and served it to them.

Peddamma approached me, a whispered conspiracy in her voice. "You survived, son."

"Don't tell Vadina, please," I pleaded.

After his guests left, Anna received a phone call. Vadina was at the bus stop, and he needed to pick her up on his bike.

"Hari, Vadina got off at the bus stop. Go pick her up. I'll wash my face." He tossed me the bike keys.

I rode the bike and pulled up in front of Vadina. She was radiant in a yellow churidar. It had been ages since I’d seen her in one. She placed her hand on my shoulder and swung her leg over, not sitting sideways, but with both legs straddling the seat. I positioned Ved on the tank in front and began to drive.

On the way home, as I slightly slowed the bike, I felt it from behind, on my back... Uff... You understand, right? My pants tightened.

The sensation was so pleasant that I deliberately applied a small brake again and released it. It touched again.

Ah...

A hard knock landed on the back of my head. Oh no, what if she hits me even harder next time? I resolved to be careful. But it was unavoidable. A speed breaker lay at the turn near our house. As the bike went over it, Vadina's breast pressed against my back. It felt incredibly good, soft, warm, oh, something inexplicable stirred within me.

I stopped in front of the house. Vadina dismounted. I helped Ved get off. I thought of getting off myself. Oh no... no no.... if I stood up, it would be truly bad.

"Put the bike inside the gate, I'll close the gate," Sandhya said.

Now, how could I get off the bike? Damn.

"Vadina, I'll go out for a bit, tell Anna. I'll be back in ten minutes."

"Son, you go wash your feet..."

Ved, meanwhile, toddled towards Peddamma, calling her grandmaa.

"To smoke?" Sandhya asked, a hint of amusement in her voice.

"No, no, just to meet a friend."

"Okay, go..."

I had no destination in mind, so I just took a roundabout trip to the bus stop and returned. 

By then, things had cooled down.

After dinner, I sat with Anna on chairs on the veranda in front of the house. "You got good marks, why did you choose Karimnagar for your college, I wanted to ask you the other day but let it go, thinking it was your choice."

"Anna, I want to become a college lecturer. I don't desire any other job. I don't want anything grand. I'll just do this PG here and get a job as a government college teacher."

"Hmm... If not, are you not doing something because you think your education will be too expensive?" Anna probed.

That was a thought I had entertained a year ago. Back then, I'd even harbored a desire to study abroad. But I no longer felt the need to restrain myself simply because Anna had a good job. "No, Anna. I told you, I just like being a teacher."

"Hmm... Okay, your wish. But..." Anna placed his hand on my shoulder.

"What is it, Anna?"

"If father was here, he would have been so happy, dear. He used to say I studied well and that there were no degree holders in our family. I didn't even pass. You went up to PG."

"It's okay, Anna. You have a good job. What are we lacking now? Besides, how am I even doing PG, tell me? You didn't pass your degree, but you looked after me until I could study PG."

"Hmm... Go to sleep."

I went into the house, and Vedanth and I played for a while. Anna came and took him to sleep. After coming home, Vadina hadn't spoken to me for some reason.

Vadina and Peddamma watched something on TV. I was in my room, the door ajar. After the TV was turned off, Peddamma went to her room. Vadina talked to Anna, put Ved to sleep, and then, while I was watching YouTube and pacing around, she entered my room.

She was in a nighty, her braid falling forward, resting on her left breast. I caught a glimpse, quickly averted my gaze, and met her eyes.

"Hari, I thought of calling you when I came to Karimnagar, but then I thought, why bother you coming here from college?"

"I would have come, Vadina, you should have called."

"Hmm, okay, but how's college?"

"It's fine."

"Your college is quite far from the bus stand, right? My uncle told me. But you said you'd walk."

"Yes, it's far, but I can walk, Vadina, it's not so far that I need to take an auto."

She took a step closer. For some inexplicable reason, my gaze drifted towards their room. The door was still slightly ajar. She came even closer, a small smile playing on her lips. "So, did you like any girl, maridhee? I'll ask your brother to arrange a marriage at her house."

I laughed. "Until recently, I was the one making jokes, now you've started, Vadina. Do girls just fall for me at first sight? I even feel awkward just looking at them."

"What's wrong with my maridhee?"

"It's not that anything's wrong." I looked at Vadina and smiled. "There are no faces there as beautiful as your maridhee would like."

"Oh, really... How many are there?"

"About twelve, thirteen."

"So few?"

"Well, there are fewer girls who study physics, right?"

"Hmm... Not even one is good-looking?"

"It's not like that, maybe I just didn't like them."

"Oh, why..."

I didn't know if it was wise to be so direct, but the words tumbled out. I leaned down and looked naughtily into Vadina's beautiful eyes. "Maybe because I see such a beautiful Vadina at home every day, they don't seem that appealing to me."

Vadina's cheeks flushed a delicate pink. "Oh, you're flattering your vadhina quite well."

"But don't you know, Vadina..."

"That's right, there's no shortage of sneaky glances," she finished, a playful glint in her eyes.

"Haha..." We both stood opposite the door, leaning against the wall.

"Am I really that beautiful, dear?" she asked, her voice soft.

"You also ask intentionally, Vadina. Do you even know how you looked on your wedding day? Bring a girl who looks like that for your maridhee, and I'll marry her."

She pinched my cheek, a playful punishment. "Donkey. Chee. What are you saying?"

"What did I say now, Vadina?"

"Enough, your words are quite something. I thought my maridhee only knew how to study."

"Oh Vadina, I didn't say anything. Don't make up all these stories." I moved closer to Vadina, my gaze fixed on her eyes.

For a few moments, silence enveloped us, broken only by the hum of the fan. I leaned down and brought my face close to her ear. The fragrance of her hair was intoxicating. "To be honest, I'm very jealous of Annayya”.

She looked at me shyly, nodding her head as if to ask, "Oh, really?"

"Hmm..." I murmured, and then, slowly, my palm encircled her neck. Perhaps my touch warmed her, for she blinked her eyelashes once.

"How much do you like me, dear?" she whispered.

"Let's talk tomorrow, Vadina." I took a step back.

But she grabbed the collar of my T-shirt and pulled. My face stopped inches from hers. "Tell me first."

I don't know what intoxicating breeze had enveloped us both. I rubbed my nose against her nose. Vadina didn't respond. With lips close to lips, I whispered, "Your lips."

"And..." she breathed, anticipation in her voice.

"Your eyes." We gazed deeply into each other’s eyes. As my gaze fell to her lips, a strange spell seemed to take hold. I instinctively bent my neck, about to claim her lips, I don't even know.

A sharp slap landed on my cheek. "Donkey... What is this? Move aside."

I stumbled back, disoriented. Not knowing what to say, I turned my face away like before.

She grabbed my shoulder and spun me around. "Are you getting tempted...?"

"No, no," I mumbled, though my racing heart betrayed me.

"Stop your crazy thoughts and go to sleep."

"Hmm... Okay, Vadina."

As she turned to leave, I called out. "Vadina..."

She turned back. "What?"

"I want to sleep next to you today too."

She came closer and hugged me, her warm softness pressing against my chest. "Not today, okay?"

"Why, did you give Anna an appointment?"

She elbowed me in the back. "Chee, naughty. Don't say whatever comes to your mind. Go to sleep. Good night."

"Vadina.... You're so adorable. Can I have one kiss?" The question slipped from my lips, unbidden. My legs trembled, and a cold sweat broke out.

"My dear maridhee wants a kiss, go, go find a girl in your college and ask her."


But Vadina merely said it naughtily, a playful glint in her eyes, and walked away. 

“I want answer for my question, one kiss or beyond.”

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