The boat glided steadily forward into the heart of the river's current, Their eyes began a silent conversation. All the pain and sorrow of the past months poured forth and dissolved in that gaze, as if cleansed by the holy waters of the Ganges. This unnamed bond grew even more sacred, sprinkled with the pure essence of the river.
Kavya gently clasped his arm. Amid the rocking waves and the soft sound of the oars, their breaths flowed in perfect harmony."Look, Arjun," she said softly, "every stroke of the oar leaves a story in the water. We too flow like the river… never pausing, always moving forward."
The water rose in gentle ripples, brushing against the sides of the boat and creating a sweet, melodic rhythm.
Arjun gazed into her eyes. The infinite blue depths of the sky and the endless waves of the river seemed to have merged within them. In that moment, they felt their meeting, their emotions, and their love deepening with every stroke of the oar.
The boat came to a gentle halt in the middle of the river. Arjun slowly took Kavya's hand and said, "Perhaps this is what life is… Every stroke, every wave, every splash is drawing us closer to each other."Kavya rested her head on his shoulder. The river's music, the sound of the oars, and the cool breeze wove together to create an unspoken, incomparable moment—one that words could never fully capture.
In that instant, they realized that love, like a river, flows—sometimes calm, sometimes fierce—yet always remains an essential part of life.The boatman guided the vessel from the shore toward the deeper currents.
Kavya lifted the brass plate holding the lit diya from her hands. Arjun too held his own plate, ready to set the floating diyas adrift.The melody of the waves sanctified the moment even further."Come," Kavya said, "let us release these diyas together once more—this year, with new meaning and new light."
After offering his diya, Arjun asked her softly, "What did you wish for?"
Kavya replied, "Your happiness… and that every year we may light and float these diyas together, just like this."
"And what did you wish for?" Kavya asked in return.
Arjun's voice was tender: "Your companionship… for the rest of my life."
Together, they gently placed their diyas on the water. For a few moments the diyas swayed, as if understanding old wounds, before drawing close to each other and floating away side by side.
Kavya smiled. "Look, Arjun… even the diyas know where they truly belong."
Arjun gazed at her, overwhelmed with emotion—whether he heard her or not, lost as he was in the river's murmur.
"And the heart…?" he asked.
Kavya's eyes welled with tears. Her voice trembled with feeling as a tear slipped down her cheek. "Hearts too find their way back… once sorrow has played its part."
Ahead lay the midstream, where the river ran deep. The heavy rains this year had swelled the Bhagirathi's waters, and darkness was now closing in.
"We must head back to the shore," the boatman said, turning the oars. "It's becoming dangerous."His voice carried a tremor on the wind. "I got so lost listening to you both that I didn't notice. The water level has risen sharply and the current is too strong now. We have to return."
The river suddenly seemed menacing. It roared like thunder. Clouds gathered overhead, and the air grew thick with damp tension. For a brief moment, Arjun and Kavya looked at each other. A quiet, wordless understanding passed between them—something only hearts could hear.
The boatman turned the oars, and the boat began to swing around slowly. The waves grew higher. Arjun steadied himself by gripping the open edge of the boat and glanced at Kavya. Her hair danced wildly in the wind, a half-formed smile lingered on her lips, and in her eyes there was a flicker—of gentle concern, or perhaps the quiet glow of an invisible pull toward him.
As the boat turned, the water's surface seemed to paint fresh patterns beneath them, and the distance between them shrank once more.
Kavya spoke softly, "Beautiful moments pass too quickly. Returning may be wise, yet this moment somehow feels incomplete."
Arjun smiled, a gentle curve touching his lips. "Sometimes the most beautiful moments are the incomplete ones, Kavya—unfinished moments, unfinished dreams, and people like us, still unfinished."
Kavya smiled at his words. The breeze lifted her dupatta and let it brush lightly against his face—a soft, tender caress.The boat rocked gently as it made its way back. The steady splash… splash… splash… of the oars echoed in rhythm, and with every stroke their eyes met for fleeting instants before drifting back to the river, as if both were silently holding the same question in their hearts: Was this merely a journey… or the beginning of something more?
Kavya whispered, "Arjun, if we can carry this moment back with us, then returning isn't so bad after all."
Arjun looked at her and replied, "Some moments refuse to let go even after we return. Perhaps this will be one of them."
The river's strengthening wind seemed to silence their words and pushed the boat firmly toward the shore… yet something deeper continued to flow between them.They sat together on the steps of the ghat. The air carried the earthy scent of wet soil. In the distance, people could be seen in the soft glow of floating diyas.
A few moments of silence passed. Then Arjun asked quietly, "Can we… begin again?"
Kavya looked deep into his eyes, as if reading the very depths of his soul."Arjun," she said gently, "love is not something we begin again. It is something we recognize once more… and remember its true importance in our lives."
He exhaled, a quiet relief settling in his chest—but before he could speak, Kavya looked away.
"But recognition doesn't always mean we get to keep it."
The wind stilled.
And for the first time that evening…
Arjun felt the river inside him stop flowing.
© Copyright Pushpa Chaturvedi
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