“Oh god, please take care of her. She is weak and badly hurt. I know I was the sole reason for what happened to her but lord you know how it happened. I loved her very much but I really couldn’t do anything else. I hope she understands it one day. I know it in my heart that she is gonna get someone better in life. Please don’t make her life even more miserable than what she is going through now. She does not deserve it. At times all I wanted to do is to just go back to her, give a big smile and tell her how much I missed her for the last two months. It hurts me to act indifferent to her. All I hope is someday we can just sit together and laugh about the whole thing.”
“Dear Lord why is this happening to me? I know no relation is perfect but instead of sitting down and talking why did he have to leave me like that? I loved him with all my heart and this is what happens to me. Please make him stop acting so indifferent to me. I know deep within me he did the right thing but I cannot accept it. He said everything will be ok and it will take time and all. But it has been two months and I still miss him. I miss the good times we had. Again the fact that we wont have anything like that any more is hurting me. I know it is too much to ask but god can you help get over this? This is the worst time of my life. I don’t want to think about it anymore. I want to get angry at him but I can’t. Let him have a good life Lord.”
They met outside the church. Both of them looked at the dark monsoon clouds covering the sky. They did not look at each other. The crisp Sunday morning sun was covered with clouds and everything suddenly seemed very gloomy.
“It looks like rain.” John said after an awkward silence.
“I don’t have an umbrella” Anna replied.
John looked at his long umbrella and sighed. Walking under the umbrella with Anna was always special.
It started pouring.
John kept looking at the umbrella and the rain tempted to offer Anna a walk to the bus stop. He really did miss such walks.
With a sudden movement he walked into the rain saying “Good bye Anna”. He waited a moment to open the umbrella and walked.
Tears formed in her eyes. They welled up refusing to fall down, partially obscuring the vision of John walking away in the rain.
“Awesome rain is it not?”
Karthik came and stood next to Anna.
“Not when you don’t have an umbrella”
“Come with me then. The car is there.”
He opened his umbrella and started to the car. Anna hesitated for a moment and went with him.
“I always like walking in the rain, so no one can see me crying.” The famous line said by Charlie Chaplin kept repeating in John’s mind. He understood what Chaplin meant. He dropped his umbrella to let the rain mask his tears.
