You Fascinate Me

Viren gently brakes his Royal Enfield Continental, as he rides past the hoarding –Welcome to City Beautiful. His mind is still wandering through the lush vales, amidst the majestic deodars… surrounded by ‘her’ luscious fragrance.

Ah! the memory…

In the plush lobby of Radisson Jass, all members of the ‘5-day Motorbike Expedition for the Geriatric Millennials’ were completing the formalities for rental motorcycles for their tour to the hills… except Dr. Viren. He had his own racing bike. So he sat smugly sipping his macchiato, when a whiff of lavender gently tickled his nostrils. Viren looked around, and spotted a tall woman entering the restaurant –clad in a skin tight blue jeans paired with a loose beige sweatshirt and coral cloured plimsolls, her hair falling on her shoulders, the studs on her earlobes glinting now and then. She had a glass of fresh juice in one hand which Viren guessed was watermelon, her mobile phone in the other, and a tote bag on her shoulder. After she occupied a table, Viren rested his scrutinizing brown eyes on her placid face –tracing the fine lines under her eyes and around the lips –judging her on everything… from riding skills to marital status. He decided that she had average looks, and doubted that she could ride safely. But, he couldn’t take his eyes off her. Something conspicuous forced him to fix his attention on her. Her charm –subtle and irresistible –incited the vain Viren to beam at her.  She smiled back at him. The naïve smile engulfed him like a huge azure wave.

For the next five days, the group went whizzing through the twists and turns of the mysterious hill terrains. Amid the romance and adventure, Viren’s eyes closely followed Parneet –the woman more enigmatic than the misty landscapes. Everyone admired his riding expertise and his ritzy motorbike, but Parneet seemed to be lost in herself, totally mesmerized by the hills, seemingly oblivious of the fact that she had mesmerized the arrogant Dr. Viren.

Dr. Viren was judgmental, chauvinistic, and highly conceited about his profession.  In contrast, Parneet vibrated a strange tranquility, that seemed to be slowly submerging Viren and his flaws. At their last dinner together, Parneet intrigued everyone by raising a toast to Viren, “To the most intense pair of eyes….” Though embarrassed, Viren was impressed by her wit, as she discretely referred to his ogling her all these days. For the first time in his life, he was happy being beaten by a woman, that too, in Viren’s words, “a non-medico… a mere digital creator”!  He was dazed for a moment, as he suddenly felt Parneet’s face gleam like a huge emerald. 

He wanted to tell her how charismatic she looked when she mounted the bulky motorbike… how intoxicating the combination of her rugged beauty and lilting voice was... But, strangely, he found himself telling her that her presence soothed his soul. He was amazed at himself… “Did I actually use this word, ‘soul’?”

Before leaving for airport, she shook hands with everyone, and gave a decorous hug to Viren, as if she had read his mind, as if she knew he needed it to assuage his agitated soul. Viren was completely nonplussed as Parneet smiled at him warmly. He wanted to hold her close for a little more time… ask her why she made him feel so small… tell her that he was in love with something about her but did not exactly know what… and tell her how secure he felt with her around. but, tongue-tied, he just inhaled voraciously, absorbing her Oudh fragrance.  Viren hated the feeling of loss that seemed to snap all the arteries of his heart, as she got into the taxi. His eyes filled-up with tears.

Suddenly, he repented knowing her so very superficially –a mother of two… from Delhi… He had missed meeting the real person who exuded happiness in abundance. He had missed asking her what made her so calm and amiable. Though unwillingly, he had accepted her as a superior, for Parneet had subverted his materialistic outlook, and his chauvinistic credo in the subtlest possible way!

Ah! The memory.

As Viren parks his bike in the front yard, his son comes running towards him. Before holding him, Viren shuts his eyes, swallows the last traces of her fragrance on him, and mumbles, “You fascinate me!”