Rameswaran and other names Professor Arindam mentioned are not among the names available on the electoral list. Checking with the local electoral officer has only caused disappointment to Seyon and Thiya.

"This leaves us in a pickle. We cannot even use Google maps. Although not every individual and business is listed on Google, but..."

Thiya trails off, looking at her phone that is devoid of signal. The second day of their road trip today; they have just passed a check post and are entering a new village.

Driving along the smooth highway is fine. Seyon still skilfully manoeuvres the car around the narrow roads, finding a safe spot to park their car. Traversing the crooked, rustic alleyways results in nothing but exhaustion and weird stares of the villagers. A few generous folks offer "free" lunch to the visiting guests, which is "edible," very much suiting the nonexistent tastebuds of a cop like her and Seyon. Is another disappointment ahead? Thiya is unsure.

Night falls as they drive along. A long day has ended. The only USP is the lush greenery, offering much needed relief from the otherwise blazing heat. Thiya keeps her eyes on the road with nothing else to do. Around 10:00 p.m. that night, yet another village-border falls into sight, and then it occurs to her.

"Seyon, you have been driving nonstop! The case is important, but I think we should rest for tonight. You should rest."

Seyon stops the car on the side of the road after hearing her voice. His eyes find hers under the dull amber illumination of the car lamp from a proximity within the car cabin. A brief silence follows. All around them there's silence and darkness unless a vehicle passes by. Thiya cannot understand what's going through Seyon's mind. The silence is suffocating,

"Uh... Rest, Seyon. Uttering the word has made me realise how exhausted I am. Funny, you must be more exhausted than me, yet I'm the one saying this."

Seyon chuckles lightly and agrees to take a break.

***

Krantipuram is a small village encompassing 40 houses, several acres of paddy fields lined with coconut trees, grassy patches on the outskirts, agricultural canals and miniature overbridges dotting the landscape here and there.

A few lively villagers — a bunch of young boys aged between in their late teens, show them the way, even tell them the inn rent amount so they won't be looted.

The inn is basically a two-storied house of the village head himself, a polite but money-hungry man in his sixties. Despite Thiya's objections and her reminding Seyon of the youngster's warnings, he pays the exorbitant amount.

Their car is parked within the spacious front yard of the village head's house, a barren land with a few shrubs and stoned pathways. Though not looking rich, the premises are decently maintained. The interiors, however, change this opinion of Thiya. Modern decor that includes abstract paintings, leather sofas apparently sent by the village head's son living in the states.

"His son lives in the state's?" Thiya murmurs aloud as she climbs the steps after Seyon. The village head and his wife showed them the way up, said, "two rooms on the first floor. Choose whichever you want." That was the end of their hospitality.

"Judging by the way they left us to our devices, Seyon, nothing of value exists upstairs. Well, at least this gives us privacy. It's a relief they're not overly curious about our identities. But all they want is money! Though they aren't poor! Twenty thousand rent for one night is exorbitant!"

"Well, we're taking two rooms."

"Yeah, but it's for one night."

"They are offering us free meals. I can't wait to get my hands on some hazelnut coffee. Hm here we are. Left or right? Which room will you take?"

Do you think you can find hazelnut coffee here in a village? Before Thiya can say this, Seyon inspects both rooms and concludes the right one is suitable for a lady. Thiya chuckles in disbelief. Seyon watches her with a placid smile, then perfectly bending at the waist, one hand held to his chest. He points to the chosen room.

"Be at ease, my lady."

"Haha! You are quite the butler. Hmm, you even wear a nice suit."

Thiya's eyes briefly flicker to Seyon's outfit, to the s-lapel pin of his suit. Seyon kept the pin all these years. He had been wearing it. Which means... Thiya cuts the train of thought with a cough.

"Haha!" Seyon chuckles. "Well, I also carry a gun to protect my lady."

"Hmm... the lady also has her gun, recently got her license renewed, phew..."

Thiya exhales a soft sigh. Seyon gazes at her meaningfully. The minor exchange just now is bordering the companionship of two colleagues conversing lightly. It's been happening a lot. Their conversations have become... friendlier. Their conversations started to sound like one between lovers, despite the professional etiquette. Thiya looks away from Seyon again, scolding herself for treading down the unprofessional line of thought.

"Good to reaffirm," Seyon's voice is full of mirth, "I knew milady wasn't a damsel in distress."

"Seyon... Haha!"

Such a silly game of roleplaying. Highly stress-relieving. Seyon effortlessly dissolved the awkwardness in the air. "What makes this room suitable for a lady?" Thiya steps past Seyon into the room. He lingers behind her for a long moment, ensuring she's settled in, dropping her sling bag and phone on the side table. He's gone, the sound of closing the door alerting her to his departure.

Another soft click moments later; Seyon has gone into his room.

"Hehe, what a road trip."

Giggling to herself, Thiya takes off her cotton blazer. She has packed no pyjamas. Just an extra set of work clothes and inners to wash and reuse. Seyon also has minimal belongings in the back of his car in a duffle bag.

"For tonight I can rest in these." Thiya reconfirms her decision, looking at the light cotton shirt and trousers she's wearing. The fabric is soft and breathable. "Oh, there's the air cooler. Ahhh, feels heavenly."

The air cooler whizzes to life at the flick of a switch. Thiya talks to herself to keep her company through the quiet, to make up for losing hearing CB's rants. She lies on the bed and dozes off for a good twenty minutes, dreaming about her feathered friend.

Seyon arrives outside her door just when she stirs to consciousness. "Thiya!" Apprehensive about not receiving a reply, he barges in the door, the noise causing her to awaken fully. He heaves a sigh of relief. "Er, I thought you would like dinner."

Thiya feels recharged by the brief nap, but there's slight disappointment that it didn't last long. Many nights have gone by; she feels she has got no quality sleep ever since she was put on this case. And when she does, she is interrupted by none other than Seyon. He's quite the picture in his leisure wear tee and cotton jeans, bangs messed up, almost looking as young as he had back when they met. Ugh, just the magic of tweaking one's attire a bit, huh?

"Uh," Seyon reads the room. He has never been wrong to guess the thoughts of those close to him, especially Thiya's. "Uh.. I didn't think you would sleep early. It's only 8. I know you are a picky eater and you don't like to dine at just anybody's house, but we have no choice."

Thiya sighs. She adjusts the collar of her shirt, brushes the wrinkles on her pants. Slipping on her blazer, she bites her lip and looks at Seyon.

"Is the village head non-vegetarian?"

Seyon laughs, and shakes his head, "No..."

"How do you know?"

"I'm not sure. Haven't observed yet, but let's just stick to rice and curd?"

Thiya sighs again. The two of them lock their doors and head downstairs. Refreshing curd rice with zesty lemon pickle, a delightful reward after a tiring day of driving and fruitless searching in the scorching weather.

"I'm sorry," Thiya opens up about what's on her mind as she and Seyon go on a leisurely stroll through the village afterwards. On the village head's suggestion, they headed out alone; no guide needed, given how small the village was.

Despite his greed for money, the village head has some acceptable points. Thiya thinks and notices Seyon looking at her expectantly.

"You're sorry for what?"

"You had to drive non stop... only you. Because I don't own a driving license."

"It's okay. It's not your fault."

Seyon smiles at her. Looking at his lady nod half heartedly, he knows his words have not made their intended impact, but what else can he say?

"Why, you can always get one later, Thiya."

This makes her smile. Ugh, not fair. That smile is just as bright and soothing as the full moon. What a beautiful full moon night it is! Seyon cannot help but have this thought. It has been many, many nights since the moon felt this soothing. He knows this is because Thiya is with him and things between them are nearly mended. Yup, they are mended. What's next, getting together? Ugh, enough daydreaming, Seyon... uh, night-dreaming but...

"Seyon... What's wrong?" Thiya's voice pulls him out of his thoughts.

"Nothing," he chuckles and follows her. Village life differs from city life. It's almost a wonder how the rustic pureness of wilderness, the hint of traditions and culture is preserved even in this fast-paced era.

***

(ii)

Thiya returns to her room at half-past one. Seyon and she chatted about random things and case details for so long, forgetting this night was for rest. They covered more distance than the distance they covered on foot, making enquiries in the day.

"But had been a soothing stroll. One to reset our minds. The exhaustion is pleasant," Thiya murmurs, once again feeling sleepy.

"Strange, sleep eluded me when I was with Seyon."

She chuckles lightly. Admitting her true feelings aloud has turned her bashful and excited. Hells, even nervous.

"Oh God, this feels familiar! These are exactly the same feelings I used to have when we were together. Seyon... Do you... also think we should..."

Get together... she doesn't finish her sentence and shakes her head. No, daydreaming, Thiya... yep, night-dreaming but... hmm...

Unable to sleep, she opens her notebook. Probably it's Seyon's cute smile from earlier that is distracting her. Whenever she closed her eyes lying on the bed, she saw his perfect face, eyes full of affection resting on her. And poof, her sleep just vanished.

"This is awful... Huh, I even doodled his face! I can't review case facts and aren't I supposed to rest tonight? Ugh..."

Cursing herself, she flips through her notebook-slash-sketchbook.

To review case details, what we found so far..." she reads the content aloud so she can't get distracted.

"No new leads from the current enquiry. This morning, Seyon received a call from Soham. Kavya's parents are back and the actress is sick. Kavya and Mira's dolls are bugged. Strangely, Aran's handprints weren't found on Mira's doll. With permission from the DCP, the police are now tapping Aran's phone and the local civil police are made to co-operate with the SIT. Soham, Mira have finished hearing the tapes and found nothing. Aran isn't in contact with any strange, shady person, which proves he is acting alone. Again, not a significant finding related to the case. Hit a deadend again, huh? Mira's psychoanalysis is our sole hope."

Just as she finishes organising her thoughts and case findings, she hears a dull thud against her window. And then another.

"Huh?"

As she scans the room, she spots a crumpled ball of paper that entered through the open window and struck her on the head.

"Huh... such a precise hit! Seyon?"

She opens the paper ball, and sure enough, Seyon's crisp writing reads, "hello."

Running to the window, she looks down at him standing in the yard, dressed as before. The lighting is dim, but that's definitely him.

What? She gestures, stopping herself from shouting out aloud. The surroundings are quiet and it is a late hour. She doesn't want to attract unwanted attention through this conversation. She is not annoyed, though. Barely holding herself from grinning widely, she manages a smile, one that satisfies Seyon, unbeknownst to her. His smile in response is bedazzling.

She gestures to her watch and then back towards the room. Meeting his eyes, waves her hands some more.

Why are you here, Seyon? I thought you must be sleeping in your room...

Seyon understands her message. It's strange. Years later, the strange telepathic understanding is still strong between two estranged lovers. He gestures his hands towards himself and chuckles.

Can't sleep. Out for another stroll.

Thiya frowns, having understood what he said. She gestures to her watch and closes her eyes, pillowing her head on her joined palms for Seyon to see. A smile involuntarily lights up her face.

Seyon, you should sleep.

Haha! Seyon laughs lightly and shakes his head. They continue converging in sign language.

You should sleep too, Thiya.

Yep...

So...

So??

If anything happens... I mean, if you need me... Just call...

Seyon makes the call sign with his hands and pulls a sheepish face. Thiya laughs so hard, she is afraid someone might overhear and mistake her for a cackling witch.

"Huh?" From below Seyon rumbles she can hear his soft voice saying, "don't laugh. This is not funny. I'm only worried about you because you are alone in a strange place. You're a woman, even if you're a cop. And I... worry for you..."

"Oh, Seyon... that's..."

Thiya trials off. Seyon heard her faint voice. This time they are conversing using their voice.

"Seyon, that's sweet, thank you. Sure, if trouble mounts, you'll be the one I can count on."

Her genuine thanks move Seyon's heart. With a sheepish yet satisfied smile, he runs his hands through his hair. What more should he say to Thiya? They both are here for a case. It's not a holiday yet... there's this desire in his heart to continue this conversation. Perhaps this is his thirst for making up for lost time.

What could a man do? Fault doesn't only lie with him. The way Thiya responds to his words and actions these days, the subtle affection in her gestures, drives him crazy. Does she share his feelings? How long will they keep dancing around the bushes? Ugh, ugh until we solve the case. The case is important, Seyon!

"Seyon!" Again Thiya's words break his bubble. "Go, sleep. I'll see you tomorrow. I will call you if I need anything... so get some sleep. We have to get going tomorrow."

With a laugh, Seyon retreats into the house. Thiya lies on bed smiling, recalling her entire exchange with him. The goofy grin soon turns into a fit of giggles. She quiets herself down so she can hear Seyon returning to his room. He does, a moment later, to her relief. The sound of the door to his room closing also makes her smile.

Just then, her phone buzzes with an incoming call. "Oh, the network is back. It's probably why Seyon asked me to call him! Although I'm sure we have our spy comm devices and none of them are needed when he is right across my room."

For a second, without reading the name on the phone's display, she thinks it's Seyon calling her. But it's the vet caretaker with CB!

"CB!" She exhales out of relief, looking at CB munching on his late-night snack, a healthy piece of broccoli.

"Oh, he's been eating well." The scene on Thiya's phone switches from CB on his perch to the vet caretaker, wearing a soft smile.

"He only screams for your nighttime embrace, but otherwise, our progress is good.He's such a good boy..."

"Oh, he is..." Thiya smiles. "CB is such a good boy. Thank you for taking care of him, Neela."

The vet assistant nods. Her laughter soon turns into shrieks of surprise. CB decided he'd photo-bomb the phone camera!

"He has heard your voice, Thiya, now he's pecking at your image on the screen!"

"Haha... I love you, CB... we'll meet soon. So don't trouble Neela too much."

CB stops the violent tapping of the screen. Thiya can see only his vibrant eye blinking on her phone. A moment passes in silence and then she hears him reply,

"I love you too..."

Ah, that cute raspy alligator-like voice! "Ahhh... this is enough to make me have pleasant dreams tonight... Thank you CB, Neela... and Seyon."

Thiya murmurs the last name to herself. After the call ends, she puts her phone aside. Hitting the bed, she falls into deep slumber.

***

Thiya is fast asleep on her bed under the covers when Seyon unlocks the door and enters her room to check on her. He suspected the room could be opened externally. And both rooms have the same key!

What if this village head or someone else has another duplicate key? He warned Thiya to be careful. Yet oblivious to a man's presence, she snoozes on her bed.

"Heh.. it's only me," Seyon chuckles in disbelief, "but... who can say? Anyone could have entered. Your careless actions make it impossible for me to sleep in my own room, Thiya. I would be too worried to sleep a wink. So I will just stay here. I hope you can forgive me when you find me dozing off in the chair tomorrow."

He sits on the chair next to her bed and looks around the sparsely furnished wishing room for a minute. Thiya kept the light on in her haste to sleep. The air cooler is running at its lowest. Comfortable, cold air caresses her face peeking out of the covers, and messes with her bangs. He turns off the light.

Moonlight from the window replaces the earlier artificial illumination. Seyon enjoys the calm night and Thiya's gentle breathing for a long while, a familiar comfort. Choosing sleepless nights over a case or his beloved — Seyon Harith isn't the guy to back off from either.

The case is still unsolved. Achieving the perfect work-life balance remains a goal, but he is confident in maintaining high standards, as always. So he has no worry proceeding along with his relationship with Thiya, both professional and personal in the coming years until eternity.

***
💫💛tbc💫💛

❣✍up next: I have not decided whether I will proceed with the psychoa-nalysis track or the road-trip track. Maybe I will switch between the two. stay tuned, vote and comment. the end is near...💛💫

Of course the couple of epilogs and bonus chapters will follow but even so 36 might be the last. or max 40