Short story: ‘Sainyam’

They were 8 people in the team, 4 girls and 4 boys. The project needed them to travel in pairs to various parts of rural India collecting data, conducting interviews etc. It was a very interesting job one of the best Padmaja ever had. 

In Padmaja’s eyes Uday was the least attractive of the 4 boys in the team. She cannot stand lean bodied men and Uday was lean and fragile. Politically he was inclined towards Hindutva and came across as a patriarchal person. He would talk about Indian culture and tradition all the time and would frown at modernization and westernization. He spoke in pure Hindi more often than required. 

There were enough reasons to repel Padmaja though she didn’t exactly hate him. She just knew she couldn’t be friends with him too easily. 

In between their travel the team used to meet in the project office, share with each other their field experience, submit reports and plan their next tour. Shuffling of the pairs was essential for many reasons. Each person was selected with different skill set and the combinations were meticulously designed as per skills. 

So when the tour was to Rajasthan Uday was the first choice given his prior experience of extensive work at the grass root level in Rajasthan. But he had mostly worked with rural men so it was important that his partner was a female with deep understanding of women issues. Thus the team to Rajasthan was made of Padmaja and Uday. 

Uday like the other 3 men was fascinated by Padmaja from the very start. He had felt that thing in his pants way too many times already. Like every time she would wear a deep neck kurta, every time she sat on the discussion table with her chin resting on her fist making her cleavage deeper and darker. 

Padmaja’s sex appeal is something that is extremely intoxicating yet subtle. Like vodka it hits you slowly. Besides the obviousness of her body the other thing that men find most attractive about her is the effortless way she holds herself. She is debarred of inhibitions about her body but she knows exactly where her guards are. For example if you are taking a walk with her she would walk close enough so you can smell the perfume she is wearing but she would never be too close and never brush herself against you. The undercurrent of her being near and yet too far is what makes men yearn for her. 

Uday and Padmaja were to travel quite a few cities through Rajasthan. The first stop was Jodhpur. Uday had been long wondering if it would be safe to make a move towards her. He knew she didn’t have many hang ups and perhaps wouldn’t mind a fling but he was caught in between his own principles of self control taught to him by his gurus at the Ashram. The virtues of being celibate until you are married, the virtue of monogamy and all that. 

They reached Jodhpur in the morning around 6 am and took a cab to the hotel. Padmaja was wearing a jeans, a see through chiffon kurta and a spaghetti top under it. Uday noticed a dark mole on her right shoulder near the line where her breast begins. He saw it when she was sleeping in the cab in a relaxed state hanging her hands lose on the seat leaning her head backwards. Wind blew the hair off her face and the V neck Kurta showed her cleavage. 

Padmaja has a well endowed body typical of an Indian goddess-the traditional 36-26-36 types. She tries to maintain it but its always a few inches here and there. She likes to wear clothes that defined and sometimes enhanced her shape, let’s just say she is aware of her sex appeal and she likes to flaunt it. She finds a great pleasure in knowing that every man she comes across wants to lay hands on her but none of them can get her. It’s her way of enforcing her superiority over men.   

Uday stared at her big firm breasts and cleavage for at least 3 minutes, he almost felt like grabbing them but he knew this wasn’t the right time or place.

The first day of the tours were usually to just get to know the place, take a transact walk get a hang of the language and dialect of the people around etc. Interviews and surveys are scheduled for the next day. So basically they had the whole day to themselves with no interviews or surveys to do. Uday knew this was the time. 

After hotel check-in Padmaja went to her room to take a shower and then they met at the hotel lobby for breakfast. Uday noticed she didn’t change. The perfectly round and firm pair invited him over and over again. He wanted to take her to his room but didn’t know how to say it. 

“Padmaja ji if you want to take a transact walk you can go ahead I would be up in my room, am not feeling very well, will take rest.” Uday said as they finished breakfast and he hoped it work. 

“Oh is it. What happened, headache or something?” She was as always effortless. “But if you are not going for the walk I will skip it too, it’s very boring to do it alone”

 

“Ok then do you wanna go take some rest too? Or if you want we can sit in my room and discuss the interview schedules perhaps?” 

Padmaja sensed something but pretended otherwise. She wanted to play with his mind herself. “Ya let’s discuss the interview schedule.” 

They sat on different sofas at a safe distance of about 5 feet. She lit up a smoke and started talking, “You don’t smoke I believe, it’s against Indian culture right?” 

“Sometimes I do.” Said Uday leaning forward to pick up one for himself. 

“You know Padmaja ji Indian culture isn’t so simple that you can define it in a few commandments of dos and don’ts. It is much deeper than that.” 

Padmaja started to pick up the rules of the game. She knew exactly how to play it. Uday’s predictabiilty and vulnerability amused her. 

“Uday, how many times I told you not to prefix a ‘Ji’ to my name? It sounds so artificial. So you do smoke. The team needs to know that.” She chuckled. “What else do you do that we thought you don’t do.” The hints were very obvious in her tone. As she said it she picked up the TV remote and switched it on. 

“You know Padmaja that reminds me, the other day I was flipping channels till late night and realized the local cable guy at my place plays porn at night. I was so shocked.” 

“Huh, what’s there to be shocked? All cable guys do that. So did you watch? I bet you didn’t you don’t seem to be that kind of person.” 

“What do you mean?” 

“I mean you really come across as the celibate types you know. One can tell that you really believe in those principles. They are not just random words for you. I am sure you truly practice self control.” 

“Oh ok! Ya well that I do. Self control is important. My Swamiji used to say you should have such self control that even if a woman is standing naked in front of you that should not have any effect on you.” 

“Ok that’s a bit too much c’mon!” As she said the last words she gave a look at his manhood and held herself in a more relaxing position spreading out on the sofa.

“No I am not exeggerating. Its possible Padmaja ji, it’s all about yoga. You can achieve it too if you practice the yoga. You see there are these pressure points in our body which controls our urges. By yoga you can learn to control those points.”

“Ah the ‘ji’ is back. Anyway, look I don’t really buy all that.” 

“No really, I can show you a few asans. You would realize yourself, trust me. You’ll feel the difference instantly. You’ll see how your mind gets calm and settled.” Uday wasn’t sure why he was so keen but he figured this might lead to something interesting.

“I wouldn’t feel anything I can assure you that. I don’t believe in Yoga.”

“Ok just try a few steps please. You are not afraid to try are you?”

“No! What’s there to be afraid of? Am just saying it wouldn’t make any difference to me.” 

“Ok so lets try and then you tell, sit on the bed in the Padmasan, you know with your legs crossed back bone erect.” 

“Ya I know padmasan.” Padmaja was intrigued as to where was this going. She put off her cigarette and sat on the bed.  

The bed was just next to the sofa Uday was sitting on. She sat at a safe distance again. She knew he was looking but pretended she didn’t notice. “Ok so what next?” She asked with a smile.

Uday wanted to just pounce upon her but he was scared. Scared how she would react. “She seems to be doing this because she trusts me of having the self control that we are talking about. If I make a wrong move that trust would break and then how will I explain?” He thought and decided to take one small step at a time to see where it leads. 

“Ok see the pressure points are your forehead, the centre of your…err…breasts the bottom of your…breast and your back bone. So close your eyes raise your hands, and put your fingers on each one of them for 10 counts. And while you do that try not to think about anything at all and take deep breathes.” 

Padmaja shrugged a bit, gave a dismissive smile and put her hands on her forehead. As she closed her eyes Uday stared at her breast going up and down along with the deep breathe. Then she put her hands on her cleavage. After 10 count she opened her eyes and said, “I don’t feel anything.” 

Uday couldn’t say or do anything. He knew he couldn’t take the risk of breaking her trust at this point but he wanted to really look at her, he looked at her like he has never seen a woman before. “Arre keep doing, do it a few more times, don’t you feel your mind is getting relaxed, don’t you feel the tension is released?” He said with his eyes fixed on her breasts. 

“I don’t feel any such thing am telling you.” She put her left hand under the left breast and held it up. 

Uday now thought of an excuse to touch her. He said, “Ok let’s go towards the back. Turn around and let me put the pressure on your backbone.”

He climbed on the bed. His hands were shaking and he was breathing heavily. He started rubbing his shaky fingers along her back bone. He could feel the smoothness of her skin from over the clothes; her body was like dough. His warm breath fell upon her shoulder, she started moaning. Uday could hardly keep his excitement in control. He was thinking what to do next when she said, “aah that’s a nice massage, but that’s all it is” and leaned backwards closer to his chest. 

Uday could hardly speak. He moved his hands sideways so she could rest upon his chest. “I don’t know may be you are not concentrating, may be you are having other thoughts in your mind that’s why you don’t feel the difference.” 

“Or may be it just doesn’t work Uday. I am feeling tired though.” She leaned back pushed her waist forward and lay down on his lap. He saw that coming, said, “Ok lie down.” He then put his hands on her forehead and caressed her face and hair. They both looked straight at each other’s eyes. 

“You don’t believe it but it’s true. See now you are lying on my lap but I don’t feel anything. Even if I touch you and caress you I don’t feel anything.” Uday at least had an excuse to feel her up. 

As he spoke his hands slid under the kurta and moved towards her breasts. His palm was warm and fingres shaky and his breath was now moan. He then went deeper and grabbed her right breast and said, “See there even if I touch it and fondle it I don’t feel anything” 

She looked in his eyes, grabbed his hand and paused. Then she took it down on her belly button, guided him through her body to reach the panty line. Then she sat up pushing her self on to his thing and whispered, “Dig deep Uday there’s treasure down there.” 

“Oh Padmaja” Uday moaned and reached down. She moaned too until she reached orgasm. 

“Phew! Uday! You are right. Such extra ordinary self control you have, I am so impressed. You just earned yourself a whole lot of my respect.” She said while she sat up adjusting her bra, panty, kurta, shrugging off the bed’s dust from her shoulder and hair. 

Then she got down from the bed put on her slippers and said, “Well, I think am gonna go take that transact walk anyway, you take rest, alright. Bye.” She slammed the door behind her. 

Uday had never felt more stupid and embarrassed in his life before. She just couldn’t’ stop laughing in her head. She walked out of that room feeling victorious smiling and hoping to have the next tour with Brajesh.