11. Hold My Hands, Walk With Me

Kris was taken aback. Everybody roared with laughter as they saw his stupefied expression.

"To the convenience store, you." Mira added. "We need more beer."

"Earth to Kris," Sive grinned.

Kris scratched his head, embarrassed.

Mira pulled at his shirt sleeves and then got up.

"You guys finish the remaining two, we'll get back with more."

"Yeah, go quickly. It's a Saturday night. They might run out of stock."

"Yup."

Mira pulled Kris along. When the reached the road, she let go of his shirt. Her long curly hair looked like a dream to Kris. It was unusual to see women grow their hair out, these days, Kris thought. Mira was smiling to herself. Kris stared at her shamelessly that he missed the biker pedalling his way in high speed. Mira suddenly turned towards him and pushed him to the side of the road. Kris held her tight even after the biker had passed. He didn't want to go anywhere; he didn't want to let her go. He gazed deep into the windows to her soul.

"Kris, it hurts. Don't be afraid, it's ok. Nothing happened." Because of that Pootna incident, Mira imagined Kris to be a sensitive, fearful young man. Kris chuckled upon hearing this and let go of her. He started walking towards the convenience store. Mira was lost for a few seconds but quickly regained herself to follow Kris.

In the convenience store, they bought a couple of dozens of beer and were just looking for other essentials for home. Kris pulled the trolley and Mira chose. They looked like a couple doing there weekend shopping. They reached the personal hygiene / health care section and Mira grew a little uncomfortable. She wanted to get some sanitary pads. Kris smiled and picked a couple of brands and asked,

"Which do you prefer?"

Mira pointed to the black cover. Kris picked up two packets and moved ahead. He turned back to ask,

"do we need these?" Mira looked at what he had in his hands. "Climax delay, dotted condoms. Available in 12 flavours." Mira blushed a rare shade of crimson. The store manager, who was standing behind Kris guffawed and his staff giggled with him. Kris felt satisfied and he smiled like a kid who just got himself a candy. Kris grabbed a banana flavoured packet and hummed a happy tune.

Once they got out of the store, Mira slapped his arms,

"Why did you do that? They practically see me all the time. They'd think we're sleeping together."

"So what? Why do you have to be embarrassed? You're not answerable to anybody. We may be sleeping together. Good for us, if that's the case. It doesn't matter to these people or any third person for that matter."

"What about Pama? It'd matter to her. Don't think it's all about yourself, Kris. Life is about caring for others, too. It's not a solitary journey."

If only she knew whom she was in conversation with..

"It wouldn't matter to Pama. Trust me. She's had other relationships too, over these years. We haven't been together in ages. We are nothing but friends, now."

"Do you have other wives? Or girlfriends?"

Kris inhaled deeply. How could he explain everything to her? Back in the day, it was normal to have many wives. It was, in fact, more of a political liability than a personal one. Most of his 8 wives (the major ones) were part of political alliances.

"I did. But they're all gone. I've had happy relationships with them all. We separated cordially."

Mira didn't like the sound of it. If she were to ever break up, it'd be heart-shattering. She needs to be careful, therefore.

"Why are we even discussing this? It's not like something would happen between us." Mira closed the case. They had reached the doorstep so she bolted to open the door for Kris. He carried the beer cartons inside.

Inside, Pama and Sive were involved in an argument regarding poetry. The names they mentioned were alien to Mira, so she shut her mind down and thought about that recent conversation with Kris. Her cheeks burned as blood rushed to her head. Did he really mean it when he joked around like that? He was probably pulling her legs, but she felt something stir deep down. She should be on her guard. She was after all a virgin, unfamiliar with the nuances of a serious relationship. And he was a player, looks like. She frowned.

Meanwhile Kris immersed himself into the argument and the three of them chatted away. When Pama turned to Mira for an opinion, they realised that the human girl was fast asleep on the table. Pama offered to carry her to the room. The men realized it was time they said goodbyes.

"It was nice to have spent time together, Sive. I know I've burdened you with a lot of work, but I'll definitely help out too, even if I can't stay in heaven and be actively involved. Just give me a call and I'll be willing to lend a hand in anything except for an orgy. "

Sive grinned at Kris's wicked humour. By now, he knew it was harmless twittering and nothing offensive. He actually preferred this goofy Kris to his other, more grim avatars.

" Pama has invited me to the grand opening, by the way. Do you think if it's okay for me to come? "

" Of course. It'd be fantastic to have you there. "

The exchanged smiles and hugs. Sive vanished in the midst of such warmth. Kris smiled : he had a brother by his side.

By the time he went inside, Pama was already back after putting Mira to bed.

" Hey Pama, I have a question. "

Pama smiled. " What is it?"

"Say, if I were to have a relationship with someone : X, Y, Z... Will that be okay with you and the others?"

Pama's smile broadened. "Krsna, we have seen worse that X, Y, Z or M", she winked at him, "and this one, I particularly like her. You should give it a try. Although you kept us all happy, I know each of your relationships were turbulent for you and on your mind. Now that you're free from all that, you should give it a try, really. It's time you experienced a normal lifetime. "

Kris felt emotional. Pama reached out to pat his shoulders as she left the place.