CHEEK TO CHEEK\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0
\n Vengrai Parthasarathy<\/p>\n
The story I am about to tell opens on a gold-framed mirror in an apartment.<\/p>\n
Arjun stared at the mirror for one full minute, He could not believe what he saw. It was not there the previous day.\u00a0\u00a0The pink dot. He got up on his toes for a closer look. Yeah, it was there now .A pimple. He ran his finger tentatively over it. A slight bump, acne or pustule, doctors call it. He did not like what he saw, not one bit. \u00a0God,\u00a0why now? The mardi gras\u00a0dance event was coming up in a few days. Arjun was a lucky guy. Blessed with the good looks of his mother and his father\u2019s ruggedness he was a hunk of a lad. Special attention came to him unsought. At the top of the list of\u00a0\u00a0girls\u00a0\u00a0who gave him the glad\u00a0\u00a0eye was Ashwini, the\u00a0\u00a0chocolate-complexioned\u2019 svelte beauty of the college..<\/p>\n
Arjun\u00a0\u00a0had no trouble getting Ashwini to be his\u00a0\u00a0partner\u00a0\u00a0at the gala dance event. It was a privilege to be paired with Ashwini..\u2018How is it that he always gets the best of everything\u2019, his friends would\u00a0\u00a0mumble. But then Arjun was Arjun., .athlete.debater.and\u00a0\u00a0a sort of Romeo.<\/p>\n
.And now this blessed pink spot at the most inconvenient time. Arjun sat wondering what to do. He saw no point in moping.. .But\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0beset by worry he was.. Being\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0a pragmatic chap, he analyzed\u00a0\u00a0the situation mentally. There was no escaping\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0the fact that the red pimple just cannot be wished away After going through the pros and cons of every alternative he said to himself.\u2019 I just can\u2019t afford to sit on my rump waiting for some sort of divine miracle.<\/p>\n
Arjun then took out his Vespa and went straight to the Colony\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Pharmacy . Wash your face twice or thrice with a mild soap and apply this water-based gel before going to bed. It will be okay in a week or ten days. It has Benzyl\u00a0\u00a0Peroxide , and it\u2019s not rich like lanolin. All adolescents go through this phase, son ;don\u2019t worry… See me again after a week\u2019\u00a0\u00a0Muttering\u00a0\u00a0to himself \u2018this guy belongs to the last century. I want an instant remedy, man\u2019 ;he wended his way back home.<\/p>\n
Pimple still there.<\/p>\n
The next two days went by slowly. .His friend Gopal dropped in. .\u2018Squeeze it out, man.\u2019\u00a0\u00a0What a friend”\u00a0There was no way Arjun would attempt any such fool-hardy thing and make it redder and septic. He started ruminating.\u00a0\u00a0Main question on his mind was: \u2019What\u00a0\u00a0would Ashwini\u2019s reaction be? Will\u00a0\u00a0she cool off?\u00a0\u00a0Many\u00a0thoughts criss-crossed his mind.<\/p>\n
One more day to go but the pimple wouldn\u2019t go..<\/p>\n
After what seemed like a century, the great day came. With diminished enthusiasm Arjun got dressed up. And went to the quadrangle\u00a0\u00a0in the University quadrangle. Usually gregarious, this day\u00a0\u00a0Arjun was not in a mood for company. He sought out a quiet spot\u00a0\u00a0hoping that it would soon get dark.<\/p>\n
As he sat there ruminating, some thing came over Arjun.. He braced himself. \u2018What the hell.. I am what I am. Why fret about a tiny pimple of all things. I have the rest of me, haven\u2019t I\u2019, he said\u00a0\u00a0to himself and started moving\u00a0\u00a0in the direction of\u00a0\u00a0the other boys. Suddenly, he stopped in his tracks\u00a0\u00a0seeing all heads turned towards the entrance. She\u00a0\u00a0(there was only one \u2018she\u2019 in his mind)\u00a0\u00a0emerged\u00a0\u00a0like a vision, like a Cinderella\u00a0 stepping out of a golden coach.\u00a0\u00a0Arjun held his breath. His unfaltering gaze was on Ashwini and it remained there. She was in a gorgeous blue dress and headed straight to him with a fetching\u00a0\u00a0smile .\u2019 My, how breath-taking she is\u2019, thought Arjun<\/p>\n
And when he saw her at closer quarters he was flummoxed.. Everything about her was gorgeous. Her\u00a0\u00a0dress.\u00a0\u00a0Her smile.. Her elegant style of moving\u00a0 CHEEK TO CHEEK\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Vengrai Parthasarathy The story I am about to tell opens on a gold-framed mirror in an apartment. Arjun stared at the mirror for one full minute, He could not believe what he saw. It was not there the previous day.\u00a0\u00a0The pink dot. He got up on his toes for a closer look.… <\/p>\n