Colonel Rohan Singh had completed his last recce along the LOC, and returned to his bunker. It had been his home for three long years. His inexhaustible source of encouragement against the threat of terrorists on one hand and the blistering cold on the other, had come from the memory of a beautiful doe-eyed damsel. Night after night when the fear of militant guns kept him awake, he would conjure up the face of a feisty young woman, who had wrapped him around her little finger with her captivating voice and exuberance. Now that his battalion would be moving to warmer climes and to civilization, he would track her down.<\/p>\n
\u201cIf only I had a homing pigeon to carry a message telling her that she has never been out of my thoughts! For all I know, she would burst into peals of laughter and say \u2018Of all the modern contraptions available, must this romantic fool contact me through a pigeon?\u2019<\/em> I\u2019ll find her wherever she is and convince her that she\u2019s the girl for me.\u201d<\/p>\n Before this posting, Rohit had been A.D.C. to the Governor of Karnataka. He was the pick of the crop by virtue of his excellent work, charismatic personality and impeccable manners. Tall and well- built, with a well chiseled nose and features, he could have easily passed off as Nehru\u2019s progeny. That was what Aarthi had blurted out on their very first meeting.<\/p>\n \u201cGosh! If Nehru and Edwina had cohabited, I\u2019m sure they would have had a son just like you. Are you by any chance related to any one of them?\u201d<\/p>\n Rohan had been stunned speechless for a while. His face had coloured up like a beetroot.<\/p>\n \u201cIf only this cheeky girl wasn\u2019t the Governor\u2019s niece I\u2019d have tweaked her nose until it hurt. Doesn\u2019t she realise that I\u2019m not a playboy but a respected officer in the Army?\u201d<\/p>\n Then she had smiled, and that smile had erased every trace of impudence.<\/p>\n \u201cMy aunt says that when you are not dancing attendance on her, you\u2019ll be my escort for the duration of my stay in Bangalore. And I hope you\u2019re going to give me the time of my life. Or else\u2026\u2026..\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cOr else what?\u201d he challenged, deciding to treat her like the brat she was proving to be.<\/p>\n \u201cOr else it will be a waste of my precious holiday. I want to take my mind off my studies and just enjoy myself. This will be my last year at the Medical College in Nagpur.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cNagpur? Why did you choose such a hot and crowded place? It\u2019s only good for growing oranges.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cBecause I\u2019m not the brightest of students, and I couldn\u2019t get a seat anywhere else,\u201d she laughed.<\/p>\n Rohan had been very surprised when the Governor called him aside one day.<\/p>\n \u201cI want a favour from you Colonel. This is not part of your duty and if you don\u2019t feel up to it, feel free to refuse.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cAt your service Ma\u2019am,\u201d he said, hoping that it wouldn\u2019t be something that clashed with his code of ethics. Then he would have to refuse and perhaps incur her anger.<\/p>\n \u201cMy niece Aarthi will be arriving in a few days to spend her vacation here. She\u2019s like a daughter to me as she has lost both her parents. So I want this to be a happy interlude in her otherwise busy life. She works hard at her studies \u2013 a real bookworm! But she\u2019s warm and loving and can be gullible too. So keep her interested. Find something for her to do. And I trust you know where to draw the line.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cBut excuse me Ma\u2019am, where will I find time to chaperone her around?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cChaperone is the wrong word. She\u2019ll bristle up like a porcupine if you use that word. Be a friend or a comrade or a buddy. No, I don\u2019t want you to be her bodyguard around the clock. Take her out when you\u2019re off duty. That will do. Bangalore provides enough entertainment for young people \u2013 theatre, movies, any form of clean entertainment. No pubs, no drinks and definitely no intimacy,\u201d she warned, \u201cI\u2019ll meet all the expenses.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019ll do my best Ma\u2019am,\u201d Rohan promised.<\/p>\n But Rohan soon realised that the Governor had actually done him a favour. Aarthi was intelligent, knowledgeable and fun to be with.<\/p>\n \u201cWhere would you like to go?\u201d he asked.<\/p>\n \u201cTake me to all the places where my aunt won\u2019t go,\u201d she said, chuckling at her own joke.<\/p>\n \u201cAnd for goodness sake don\u2019t drive me around in a government vehicle. Do you have a motorbike?\u201d<\/p>\n Rohan did have one. It was his preferred mode of transport when off duty. No one gave them a second look when they had their helmets on. By the end of the week they had become friends.<\/p>\n \u201cToo much fraternizing isn\u2019t going to be good for either of us. She\u2019ll be gone in a couple of weeks. What then?\u201d he wondered.<\/p>\n But Aarthi had no qualms. Rohan was so different from her college mates \u2013 so well mannered and gentle. Yet, not sycophantic because she was the Governor\u2019s niece. He had a quiet dignity of his own, asserted himself when necessary and did not concur with some of her silly ideas. He was genuinely interested in her life at the Medical College, and listened when she shared her hopes, dreams and ambitions with him.<\/p>\n If only she knew what he wrote about her in his personal diary! Rohan loved poetry and used a quote from a lesser known poet.<\/p>\n \u201cA woman of her gentle sex, a seeming paragon<\/em><\/p>\n The better elements and kindly stars have given<\/em><\/p>\n A form so fair that like the air,<\/em><\/p>\n \u2018Tis less of earth than heaven.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n Aarthi seemed very happy with the arrangement and the Governor was relieved.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m enjoying my holiday so much that it will be difficult to get back into the studying mode,\u201d Aarthi said.<\/p>\n \u201cIs the Colonel good company?\u201d the Governor asked.<\/p>\n \u201cYou couldn\u2019t have chosen better, Aunty. He\u2019s so mature. Not like some of the egoistic swollen heads I have for classmates or the giddy goats who ogle anything that passes in a skirt.\u201d<\/p>\n The days passed swiftly in a flurry of activity. She liked being in the company of this strapping young man. Rohan too was conscious of her nearness. He had never been so close to any girl before. His job had taken up all his time and energy. However there was nothing romantic in their behaviour towards each other. Most people took them for siblings.<\/p>\n Rohan had shown her everything that was worth seeing in Bangalore \u2013 the Vidhan Soudha, Lalbagh, Bannerghatta, a play at Chowdiah Memorial Hall and a musical concert at Alliance Francais. They strolled through Cubbon Park when the evening shadows fell, and sipped Espresso Coffee at Barista\u2019s. He took her through the crowds of shoppers on Commercial Street and watched as she bought junk jewellery from the roadside stalls.<\/p>\n \u201cHow she delights in little things!\u201d Rohan observed, \u201cI wish she could stay here for a few more weeks. She has made me sensitive to the things that I never bothered about before.\u201d<\/p>\n Three weeks had flown by so quickly. It was Aarthi\u2019s last day in Bangalore.<\/p>\n \u201cCan I treat you to dinner tonight?\u201d Rohan asked, \u201cIt will be a kind of farewell party.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThat will be wonderful. Will you take me to your favourite restaurant?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cYes, it\u2019s definitely my favourite eating place. But don\u2019t expect the Taj. This is a cozy place called Red Rooster, which serves the finest tongue tickling cuisine. You\u2019ll never forget the place.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cNo, I\u2019ll never forget,\u201d she said, looking straight into his eyes, \u201cI have much to remember.\u201d<\/p>\n Rohan looked down at his fingers. \u201cI feel like I\u2019m having a raging fever,\u201d he thought. \u201cIs this love or lust or plain infatuation? I\u2019m praying that I\u2019ll be true to the promise I made to the Governor. No intimacy, she had warned.\u201d<\/p>\n But Aarthi had not restricted herself by promises to her aunt.<\/p>\n \u201cThis is the best place to say Goodbye,\u201d she said, throwing her arms around him and planting a kiss on his cheeks. \u201cThanks for everything. I\u2019ll always remember you.\u201d<\/p>\n Rohan\u2019s tenure as A.D.C soon drew to a close. The Governor\u2019s report was highly commendatory. Someone at head Quarters frowned at the kudos he had received.<\/p>\n \u201cThis guy has had a cushy posting in Bangalore. Now let\u2019s put him in charge of a battalion and shunt him out to the border.\u201d<\/p>\n Rohan Singh and his men were glad to be back in Delhi after three long years. He was due for leave and would put it to good use. He must find Aarthi. He had carried her picture too long in his heart.<\/p>\n \u201cWill I be too late?\u201d he wondered, \u201cWould she have forgotten me? An attractive girl like her must be mobbed by eligible bachelors. She may even be married for all I know.\u201d<\/p>\n Only recently he had read \u201cThe Tale of Two Cities.\u201d Though he had been impressed by barrister Sydney Carton who had loved and lost, and thought nothing of sacrificing himself for the happiness of a woman he loved, Rohan didn\u2019t think he would do the same.<\/p>\n \u201cMarried or not, I\u2019ll find her and wean her away from the guy. If worst comes to worst, I\u2019ll kidnap her and elope even if I have to carry her in my arms.\u201d<\/p>\n Rohan found the address and telephone number of her college and hospital. Then he dialed the number on his mobile.<\/p>\n \u201cSorry,\u201d the answer came, \u201cDr. Aarthi is not working here anymore. She may be at Jaslok Hospital in Mumbai. You can enquire there.\u201d<\/p>\n Rohan boarded the train to Mumbai. It took a while to find the place and confirm that Aarthi was working there. The moral police were nowhere in sight and the shops were filled with young people buying Valentine cards and gifts. Rohan picked up a beautiful card.<\/p>\n \u201cWill she? Won\u2019t she?\u201d he wondered, as he prevailed upon a peon to take his card to Aarthi.<\/p>\n \u201cWill you be my Valentine?\u201d he had scribbled inside and also given his mobile number.<\/p>\n Then he sat in the waiting area, with a bunch or red roses in his hand.<\/p>\n She looked very professional in her while coat and stethoscope dangling from her neck. Her hair was bunched up in a pony tail. Her eyes lit up when she saw him and she made one sprint across, waving the card and shouting for everyone to hear, \u201cOf course I will, Of course I will.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cLove knows no bounds of time or distance,\u201d Rohan thought, his body trembling with anticipation of a new and exciting phase in his life.<\/p>\n He thrust the roses into her hand, and as their fragrance engulfed them, he whispered,<\/p>\n \u201cMy lovely Valentine!\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Colonel Rohan Singh had completed his last recce along the LOC, and returned to his bunker. It had been his home for three long years. His inexhaustible source of encouragement against the threat of terrorists on one hand and the blistering cold on the other, had come from the memory of a beautiful doe-eyed damsel. … Continue reading “Top 5 in LKNB: Love Knows No Bounds by Eva Bell”<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"spay_email":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_is_tweetstorm":false},"categories":[2],"tags":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p7vAZr-cC","jetpack-related-posts":[],"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/pothi.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/782"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/pothi.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/pothi.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pothi.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pothi.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=782"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/pothi.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/782\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/pothi.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=782"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pothi.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=782"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pothi.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=782"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}