chapter 4

Part 4: Rain, umbrella and a moment— “Some moments hide the deepest secrets of life, without saying a single word.”Two days had passed after their group activity, but that one day had awakened a different feeling in Riya's heart. She remembered that moment every time - Dhirav's calm voice, their small conversation, and that understanding in the eyes. Maybe this was the first step of an unknown friendship.Today the weather had changed.The clouds had become dense, and there was a coolness in the wind which was giving a hint of the arrival of rain.  Riya had forgotten to take a umbrella while going to school – as if her heart wanted it to rain… and that someone should be with her.When the bell rang after school, it started to rain heavily. The children stopped in the corridor, everyone was waiting for their parents or were going out of the shade. Riya was standing in a corner, bag on her shoulder and a little heaviness in her eyes.Just then a voice came from behind, "Don't you have a  umbrella?"Riya turned and looked – Dhirav.He had a parasol in his hand and the same calm expression on his face.Riya - (a little shy) “No… I forgot.”Dhirav - “Come, I will drop you. We are going from the same side, right?”Without thinking, Riya nodded in agreement. And for the first time, both of them walked on the same path, under the same roof.The rain was falling near them, but under the roof was a different world – where there were only Riya and Dhirav, a light, silent music of the rain, and a moment that hid their restlessness.Dhirav - “I like the rain… it washes away everything.”Riya - “And it also brings some memories alive.”Both smiled a little. They kept talking about small things - favorite books, favorite subjects, and a little bit about dreams.Then Dhirav softly asked,“You write, right?”Riya - (getting a little nervous as her hair was wet) “Yes… how do you know?”Dhirav - “Your eyes tell a story. People who feel it… writing becomes an addiction for them.”Riya became quiet at that moment.That was the moment when someone had taken away the softest corner of her heart, without saying much. While walking, Riya reached home. Riya - “Thank you, seriously.”Dhirav - “Sometimes a connection is formed through a friend.”He smiled slightly and closed the umbrella.Riya started to move away from him, but with every step there was a strange warmth in her heart.That night Riya wrote in her diary:“Today the rain was also like that - calm, deep and capable of saying everything. A friend perhaps started a new relationship between us… there is no name of this relationship, but the feeling is complete.”