'Oh, waves! Why do you meet the shore if you have to leave her the next moment and return to the place where you belong? Don't you know that the shore falls in love with you each time you caress it lovingly with your gentle touch?' Such romantic were the thoughts of Aishwarya, as she stood watching the tiny waves that politely hit her feet. Legs buried deep inside the sand, sandals strewn away and a handbag on her shoulder, she was immersed in her own imaginary world. A shiny fuchsia salwar-kameez with a puffed sleeve and a dupatta finely pinned to both sides adorned her. She had a porcelain skin tone coupled with almond shaped bespectacled eyes that contained honey brown eyeballs. Her pink lips were full and pouted. She tucked a tendril of hair behind her right ear as the sea breeze blew wildly. Well polished nails crowned the tips of her fingers and a large circle shaped maroon bindi designed the space between her crescent eyebrows. She had tied her pitch black hair into a single plait.

Watching the beauty of the morning sun, she silently plopped down on the sand. From a nearby tea shop, she could listen to Ilaya Nila, an Ilaiyaraaja's classic which was released a year ago. At that very moment, she realized that time had flew rather speedily. She couldn't believe that it was 1983 and she was 21 years old. Girls of her age were being married off and yet she was in the last of the league. Though she was in love with her 26 year old cousin Manohar, her parents hadn't begun talks about her marriage. Neither did his parents. Her life was rather moving in a snail pace. As she was thinking about all those, she was approached by a young boy, who was a sundal (boiled chickpeas) seller in the beach.

"Akka, do you need some sundal?" he asked in his childish voice.

"Hey, have you started to sell sundal in the mornings too? Where are your parents?" she asked him back in a gentle tone.

"That tea shop is my parents'. My mom has been noticing you for the past three days. You have been visiting this beach before going to work. So she made some fresh sundal for you." Saying so, he stretched out a small lunch box at her.

"Thank you so much. I would like to meet your mom in the evening. Here take this!" She smiled at him and held out a ten rupee note.

"Aiyo akka, I don't want. Amma will shout."

"Don't you want to go to school, study well, and earn for your parents?"

"Yes, I would love to."

"Then, don't decline this. Save it for your education."

The boy gleamed at her and received the note with immense happiness. He then skipped his way back to the tea stall, produced the note to his mom, and started to get ready to school. Aishwarya too felt happy that her simple gesture had made a boy's day. Picking up her sandals and handbag, she began walking towards the main road. It was her daily routine to visit the Besant Nagar beach in the mornings and evenings. Looking at the sea calmed her senses and whisked her away from the myriad of stressful thoughts that passed through her complicated mind. Within a few minutes, she reached the bus stand and hailed a Pallavan Transport Corporation bus to her office in Velachery. She was interning in Unity Insurance Company Ltd on her father's recommendation. It has been three days since she had joined and she was already beginning to love her job.

Once she reached the office, she was warmly received by her trainer.

"Good morning, Aishwarya." He flashed a pearly smile at her.

"Good morning, Rajesh sir," she replied in a jocular manner.

"Had your breakfast?" He asked, while pulling out a chair to sit beside her.

"Yes, sir, Amma prepared a sumptuous breakfast of idli and sambar. What about you?"

"I had dosa with coconut chutney. Of course, prepared by my loving wife." He chuckled to himself. "Well, we will begin our training session today at 10.30 AM. We have yet another new trainee. He will be joining you in another ten minutes," he continued.

"Okay, sir, I will wait."

She then placed her handbag on her cabin desk, looked around and greeted a few employees whom she had befriended the previous day.

'So, it's going to be a male colleague. I wonder who he might be.' She thought. Though she was conservative and rarely talked to boys (except Manohar), for some strange reason, she was eager to know who her colleague might be. 'As if I would talk to him,' she added to her thoughts.

A mild ruffle of footsteps from her next cabin brought her back to senses. Turning around, her eyes fell upon a fair skinned guy. He was of medium height, and had his wavy hair neatly combed. Perfect for a first day impression. Rajesh was talking to him animatedly and he was listening intently with his bushy eyebrows dancing up and down. After a few minutes of conversation, they walked towards Aishwarya's cabin.

"Ummm...Aishwarya...meet Adhitya. He is also 21 years old. Completed his B.Sc in Maths. Now he is here for clerical training along with you. Hope you both get along well." After the initial pleasantries, he left them alone in the cabin.

An awkward silence hung between them as they fidgeted with their fingers and turned around in the wooden chairs. It was Adhitya who spoke first.

"In what discipline are you graduated, Aishwarya?" he put forth, rather carefully.

"The same. B.Sc. Maths." She replied and the next moment, she bent her face down.

Another round of silence followed.

"Where are you staying?"

"Aaaahhh!"Aishwarya gasped. Adhitya was taken aback at her reaction.

"What happened? Did I ask something wrong?" His gentlemanly tone came to the fore.

"Don't you know that it is wrong to ask about a girl's staying place?"

"Hey, come on, I didn't ask your address. I just asked the area where you are staying."

"Oh! I am sorry. I stay in Besant Nagar."

"Wow! I stay there, too. Which street?" Adhitya jumped up in excitement.

"That's enough, Adhitya. Soon, you will ask my entire address. It's fate that we have been put up as colleagues, but that doesn't mean we should chatter away. We can be quiet too and mind our own work."

Adhitya was shocked beyond words. Though he hadn't spoken to girls much, he thought he could befriend her as she looked polite.

"I didn't mean to ask your address, Aishwarya. I am sorry about that. I thought I could become your friend, since we are going to work together for another six months."

"That's fine. I am okay with occasional talks, but we cannot become friends."

"Why so?"

"Be - because you - you are too fair. Fair beyond imagination. If someone notices me talking to you all the time, they would spread rumours about me. They would think that I am enchanted by a fair skinned guy. I don't want that to happen." She rolled her eyes at him.

"Oh my god! I know that girls are conservative. But I didn't imagine that it would be to this degree. Do you speak to people based on their skin colour?" Adhitya sounded offended.

"No. There is a correction. I didn't mean people in general. I meant boys."

"What is that you find so dangerous in fair skinned boys?"

"They are hard to talk to. They might enchant girls with their looks and hypnotize them. I don't want to fall prey to all....."

"Do you think I would do such a thing?" he interrupted her.

"I don't know."

"I do follow my culture. I do have my limits, Aishwarya. I am here to work. Not to enchant you. Forget that I tried to be your friend. Just forget!" Pissed off by her words, he stood up to move away from her cabin.

"Hey, hairy fellow, wait a minute!"

Adhitya turned around, surprised.

"What did you call me?"

"Hairy fellow. Your hair is long for a boy."

"I have a name."

"I know that. But friends address friends with nicknames. Don't you know that?" She smiled with a mischievous grin.

It took only a minute for Adhitya to comprehend her sentence. The next minute, he held out his hand to shake with hers. Though she was reluctant to shake hands with him, she decided to break the gender barrier around her and give it a try. It was a warm handshake. But, did they feel a mild tinge when their hands met?

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