This left Maliha, to get up and fend for herself in Kit’s apartment. She got up and fixed herself some breakfast and decided to venture out to buy herself some canvas. She could not carry this along with her where ever she went so that meant she would go and buy what was available in the city she was in.

She was not too far from an area that sold all sorts of things like this. She took the umbrella that Kit had left outside her room, before she left and set out into the city for the first time since she had arrived. She had been here before and had lived in another area, but she could manage her way around the city. She walked on the wet pavement; her bright yellow top was the only spot of colour on that road, gloomy from the shadows cast by the sky, heavy with rain clouds. She walked with a little bounce in her step as though there was a song playing and she was moving to the beat. But there was a song playing...it was in her head. She then took a deep breath and thought about her dad. This happened often, she would be totally engaged in everyday life but her mind would suddenly feel the force of a ton of bricks, sending a part of her back to the time she had just lost her parents, and she felt like she could not breathe. The moment would pass, leaving her with the exercise of getting back to her usual energetic self, but no one ever noticed her go through this.

This was her reality, and no one could understand, they would never feel her pain, that crushing sense of loss, that hit her when she was just catching herself feeling happy… no one had known what to say to her, a month after the loss. The consolations and empathy came with a shelf life. Some listened to her if she spoke but never reacted, while others changed the subject, disguising their discomfort in listening any further with their insensitive conversation switch as if doing her the favour of avoiding a painful topic. At some point Maliha had made her peace with all these people in her world, she had to appreciate them for being there at least, she had started to tell herself. No one ever said that life would be easy; a loss is a loss is a loss…

She had come so far since. She had learned to restrict these small intervals from normal ‘Mali’ behaviour, restrict it for her own sake. She did do it with a little help from her artistic expressiveness. Her paintings, sculptures and any other medium she chose to use were all her way of channelling her energy into something constructive. She had healed herself with art. And now she was leading a life where she had ‘family’ members far and wide and spent her time doing what gave her life meaning, she thought.

She was walking on auto pilot, lost in thoughts and not really there, she bumped right into a man on his cycle and laughed out loud as she apologized to him! She then decided to be alert and find this shop she was looking for. In her head she remembered what it looked like, and before long she had reached.

The shop was crowded with students and some ‘grown-ups’ in their overused khadi kurtas, but she could already see the things she needed stacked on a shelf on the left corner behind the counter. She called out to one of the shopkeepers, whose attention she got right as she walked through the door. Normal for Maliha. What she did not notice is as she had walked in her bag had knocked over an open can of paint, that had now fallen on the almost bare feet of a not-so-happy fellow shopper. “Excuse me! But do you think you could leave your luggage outside when you get into shop like this, there’s hardly enough room for us in here, let alone your bag!” said a bald, green footed man in his late twenties. Maliha burst into laughter and the man had no choice but let his irritation dissolve in it and join in. “well maybe this colour is not so bad, it covers my very pale feet!”. “I think we got off on the wrong ‘foot’, I’m Jagan!.. and you?”, said Jagan. “Maliha, and I’m really sorry about the paint, I guess I do carry around a lot of baggage!! Let me make it up to you, how about a nice bottle of paint thinner!” she said with a little twinkle in her eye, part flirty part trying to be funny.

“Well as amazing as that offer sounds...NOT! My director will kill me if I’m late. I am designing the sets for a play that shows in two days and if I delay even a minute longer we may not be ready for the opening!” said Jagan.

“ Ah well, invite me for the opening , I will make it up to you then? Unless of course you’re scared my big bag will do more damage?” said Mali with a laugh. “Ok, consider yourself invited! Here’s the flyer!” bring a friend or three!” he said as he was rushing out the door, “See you there Maliha, hopefully without that bag. And my number’s on the back of the flyer, ummm.. Just in case!”

“Will do, and yes I’ll get someone or maybe even two along, that play better blow my mind” she winked. She went on to buy the supplies she needed.

She was going to paint a large canvas this time. And work on it at Kirtana’s home. Kit was going to be her inspiration for this one.

She walked back home, and made it in just before it started to rain heavily.

*******

Kirtana was stuck in traffic. Yes she had left early, not early enough. What was worse was that she was stuck with the client’s new assistant and was forced to make small talk. And how Kirtana hated small talk. The topics were restricted to the weather, how bad the traffic was and how the city was getting too expensive to live in anymore. And worse still there were these awkward silences and pauses that were only disturbed by the ringing of one of their cell phones.

Kit had had almost enough by the time they reached the office site. Cranky and little hungry from having eaten too little, her head ached slightly. This was going to be a great day, she thought sarcastically. Well you win some you lose some, she added to herself.

She made her way up to the office building. ‘He’ was going to join her there. She had not thought about him since the railway station, but now she could feel her heart racing as she approached the building. Knowing already that he would be there, she caught her reflection in the glass door on her way in...Not too bad she thought, could be better, way better. She entered and straightened up, took bigger strides , but before she knew if she was falling face first onto the dust covered work-in-progress office floor!!! She had been so worried about the way she looked and thinking about seeing him, she did not see the wooden beam near the entrance, and was taking a great big dive...about to bite into some serious floor dust, all in front of him and the clients! This day was getting better by the minute! Kirtana heard something rip as he fell... just what she needed!!