Under the relentless glare of the mid-day sun, Madhuri stood drained by, both, diaphoresis caused by the blazing glare of the Sun God, and the excruciating inadequacy brought upon by the judgmental stares of the Board interviewing her upon learning of her impending divorce.

"Sorry! You can try here after a couple of years when you complete your B. Ed!" they said, dashing her bullish hopes against the wall of reality.

The second rejection for the day had plunged her into the depths of despondency. Questions of self-worth, as sharp as daggers, whetted by the words uttered and acts committed by those with reckless abandon, tore apart the dream woven by her newfound optimism.

The latest blow to her confidence made her legs wobbly. She had always held onto someone - her mother, her friends, or her husband - whilst crossing the road. Vehicles zooming past her petrified her, especially after witnessing the death of her beloved calf, Shanti, because of the reckless driving of a truck.

Her legs refused to take a step towards the bus stand on the other side of the road, and her heart raced against the same automobiles that terrified her. The irritant exhaust from the vehicles and the merciless onslaught of emotions against her desolate heart evoked profuse lacrimal discharge from her irritated eyes.

The incessant honking and exchange of obscenities by the reckless drivers, oblivious to their own faults, only worsened her anxiety. Amidst the bustling streets of Delhi, the hurried pedestrians paid her no heed as she stood on the edge of the road, a fish out of water, gazing at the tumultuous flow of traffic with a mixture of wonder and terror.

"Madhuri! What are you doing here?"

The deep baritone voice snapped her out of her thoughts. She strained her neck to look sideways, and towards the owner of the voice. The sight of a curious Arjun Malhotra forced her to take a step backwards and pull the dupatta over her shoulders to cover her bosom in a more modest manner.

"Namaste! I-I, uh, came for an interview," she said, tugging at her dupatta and averting her nervous gaze from him.

Anupriya had busied herself in singing the praises of her attorney ever since she learned about Vartika's brother being The Arjun Malhotra. She felt herself shrinking into the ground, replaying the feats achieved by his remarkable prowess, and the sheer confidence he exuded made her express a wish to the Mother Earth to swallow her into her depths.

"I see! How did- "

"What are you doing here?" she asked, adjusting the sling of her handbag, and trying to tuck her already set hair behind her ear.

Her actions had made the answer to his unvoiced question more than clear. He flashed her a compassionate smile and a piteous glance. "I represent the school and the trust for their legal fights."

"Oh."

Her despair deepened at the realization of his connection to the school. She wondered if this astute man had judged her capabilities beneath the guise of understanding. Arjun observed her tense countenance and concluded that leaving her to her thoughts was preferable to making her uncomfortable.

"It was great to see you out and about, Madhuri! I'm thrilled you are already taking the reins of your life into your hands! I'll see you later," he said, beaming at her and giving her a curt nod.

Arjun did not expect to see her eyes twinkling with surprise and joy when he had completed his sentence. It did not take long for his sharp brain to connect the dots and identify the actual cause of her sour mood.

He had dismissed it as the usual disappointment associated with rejection, but her surprising delight at his remarks signaled at something else. It was not the thumbs down from the school that had thrown her down in the dumps; she had tied her satisfaction with that of those around her, and that was the reason for her dampened spirits.

"I don't know if it's my place to tell this or not, but it's just an interview. Sure, every incident can make or break your life, but only if you place that much of importance in a single incident of your life. You'll get there, Madhuri. Maybe not right away, but you will. Till then, all you can do is, don't give up. It may just be one step at a time, but at least, you won't regret not taking that step. All the best, Madhuri!" he said with a curt nod and an assuring smile.

She gave him a dazed nod, and he made his way through the entrance and into the school premises. She had regarded him as a cold and calculative individual, who could not care less about the emotional aspect of his cases. He was clinical about them, and all that mattered to him was ensuring his victory, or so she had believed.

Her gaze shifted towards the bustling street and the bus stand on the opposite side. What once seemed like an insurmountable barrier in times of uncertainty now felt like a steppingstone on her journey to conquer her fears. Observing the confident people navigating the busy road, she joined them, blending into the crowd.

A surge of adrenaline coursed through her veins as she stood amid the throng, caught between two paths. The traffic flowed in one direction, the crowd, mostly comprised of young people, a protective buffer. Her heart pounded with newfound determination, and she almost squealed with exhilaration as she reached the bus stop, baffling those around her.

One day she would cross the road on her own, without looking for the company of another person, and she relished the confidence the prospect breathed into her. She looked at the school building and realized that the regret associated with the appointment had dwindled down in the light of the meeting with Arjun and the consequences it entailed.

Between the pragmatic man noting her emotional turmoil, and the timid woman crossing the road without one of her own guiding her, Madhuri wondered, with a lopsided grin, about the direction of the rising of Sun that day, and she hoped the Sun would continue to rise in the same direction for the rest of her life.

****

"I owe you an apology, Aditya! You deserved to know about Aniket and me before anyone else, but you were one of the last people to learn about it," said Anupriya, shooting an apologetic glance in his direction.

A chuckle escaped Aditya's lips. "Mad girl! You don't owe me an apology for choosing yourself. At least one of us had the courage to choose their happiness instead of the ramblings of the neighbors," he said, leaning over the railing of the balcony and eying the crowd below with rapt attention.

Anupriya gave him a morose smile. "I wish it concerned only the two of us, Aditya. Both of us know it is because of my decision to elope with Aniket that forced your family to marry off Madhuri to that scumbag. I feel responsible for her fate..."

Aditya let out a vexed sigh. "Everyone's responsible for their own fate, Anu! My sister wanted your brother to fight for her, and he couldn't find the courage to proclaim his love. She could have fought for her love instead of choosing to 'push' him into action by agreeing to marry that idiot. I thought two people, who cannot fight for their love, don't deserve each other, and remained mum. And look where it brought us to!"

Anupriya shook her head with a wry smile stretching on her lips and eyed the setting sun between the tall skyscrapers. "I hope this time around, all of us choose courage when the time arrives."