Chapter 1

After the wedding reception, friends and relatives left after having a lip-smacking dinner.
Only their parents and close relatives remained in the marriage hall. Dora's father
decided to arrange for their nuptials on the same day of their marriage. Usually, it
happens at the bride's place only. Therefore, Vel accompanied Dora and her family to her
house.

Vel always talked a lot. Wherever he is, the entire place turned cheerful. However, on
that day, he did not utter a word. He felt nervous and delicate. He felt shy to face anyone
in Dora's family and he sheepishly smiled at everyone who wanted to exchange a word or
two with him.

Vinay has told Vel about his first-day experience at Saranya's place. He had told him,
how he felt nervous and shy at a new place where he does not know anyone except the
newly wedded wife, and she is completely new, and yet to be known better. Luckily, Vel
could see Vinu's brother Sakthi at Dora's house. He asked him to be with him for some
time.

After traditional rituals, Dora's grandparents blessed Dora and Vel. All the elders of the
family blessed them to have a happy married life. Dora in her new silk saree looked
gorgeous as a princess. Her long hair adorned with perfumed jasmines and roses added
charm to her already glowing beauty. Vel never believed Dora would look so
breathtakingly beautiful with a sweet charm that mesmerized him.

Sakthi took him to the specially decorated room and left with a smile. The room adorned
with strings of jasmine flowers across room spread the perfume far ahead. Vel sat on the
flower-decked cot and waited for Dora. Dora entered the room casually and smiled at
him. Vel could not tell if he felt nervous or it is Dora felt nervous. With his usual piercing
look, Vel looked at Dora. Dora also looked back at him boldly with a charming stare.

After a few moments of romantic glances, Dora took the first step to break the ice. She
sat near Vel and leaned on his shoulders with much love. Vel's hands lifted with much
hesitation and then he hugged Dora tightly. The tightness of the hug told Dora how much
he loved her and how much he yearned to be with her.

As it is the first time to be alone, it took some time for both of them to break the ice and
realize they have the liberty to be one together. No one can interfere in their space and
they can share their likes and dislikes with each other without any hesitation.
Dora did not want to let Vel's hands go off from her. With much joy, she cozily placed
her head on his broad shoulders and snuggled to him with much passion. Vel also felt the
same passion within him and he wished to have Dora with him in the same way. He
wished it would be a paradise if they were left like that locked together in a tight
embrace.

With an ever-growing fondness, Dora lifted her head and looked at the eyes of Vel. She
can see the fire of passion in those eyes and that made her shrug with the ultimate joy that
she could ever find in this world. The whole world looked beautiful and romantic and the
perfumed night helped them to drift into a world of love trance, where only love-making
mattered and nothing else.

The passionate kisses that Vel shared with Dora, made her feel his love for her deep in
his heart and she can also feel the sense of possession that ruled over Vel, which
ultimately made him take her into her tight embrace again and again.

Chapter 2

Morning dawned with much cheer. The clock showed 8 a.m. when Vel woke up the next
day. Dora entered the room dressed grandly but now she looked different. Her face and
her hands gleamed with the shine of fresh turmeric and her face glowed with the
happiness and cheer of a newly-married girl.

The neatly plaited hair decked with fresh jasmine spread an elegant perfume wherever
she walked. Neat little curls of hair on her forehead waved in the air and looked as if
inviting him to enjoy once again their marital bliss.

"Vel," Dora called him in a whisper. Vel slowly opened his eyes and pulled Dora into his
embrace once again.

"Get up. Look at the time. It is already 8 am. Everyone from your home has come for the
lunch."

"Oh," reluctantly, he got up from the bed and went into the bathroom to take his bath. He
did not take his usual time to take the bath. For the first time, he let off his luxurious bath
and finished taking bath within ten minutes. To his surprise, he found everything kept
ready in the bathroom.

Dora has placed the new bath towel in the bathroom. She has kept his new toothbrush
along with paste on the table of the room. When he came back after taking bath, he found
his neatly ironed new pants and shirt placed on the table. Appreciating Dora, he whistled
his favorite tune.

Vel looked at his appearance in the mirror and felt much impressed.
 "Oh, boy, what a perfect appearance" The dress looked fitting on him, and Vel felt a lift
to his handsome look.

"Dora, who selected this dress?" Vel asked her curiously.

"Why, it is me only?"

"You, I like this. It is so fitting and perfect." Vel once again took her into his tight
embrace and kissed her on his forehead with much love. Dora looked at him and gave
him a mischievous smile. She could now find a different Vel.

"What are you thinking, my love?" Vel asked her with the same mischievous smile.

"I am just thinking, how you looked earlier, and how you are looking now."

"That means." Vel could not understand what Dora meant.

"I mean when you were at work."

"That is different. Don't relate me now to that kind of behavior."

Someone knocked at the door and asked Dora if both of them are ready. Reluctantly, Vel
let Dora go and open the door. He silently wished for the time when they will be once
again left to be alone. Marriage has changed Vel in a day, and he desperately yearned to
be always with Dora and enjoy life to the maximum.

Dora's father wanted both of them to visit a famous temple near Kanyakumari, and at the
same time, Vel wanted to go for a honeymoon trip to Kodaikanal. However, Dora wanted
to celebrate their honeymoon in a place, which is not much visited by people and where
they can spend their time by being alone without any disturbance. Dora selected to stay at
Sirumalai hills.

Dora's father remarked to her that it is a foolish decision, and why she has not selected to
visit Kodaikanal. As Dora kept on insisting to stay at Sirumalai hills, he has to give in. He
managed to find out a guesthouse at Sirumalai hills where Dora and Vel can spend their
time together at least for a week as their honeymoon trip.

Dora told Vel that it would be nice to visit a place where many have not visited and it
will be fun to explore the place on their own. The trip will also provide them ample time
to understand each other without interference from anyone. Dora's father booked an AC
coupe for both of them in the Vaigai Express that goes until Madurai.

Chapter 3

The Vaigai reached Dindigul in the evening around 7 pm. The evening has set in and
Dora can feel the chillness in the air. Dora clutched Vel's right hand tightly to feel warm
and protect against chillness. The darkness that has set in made Vel feel to be together in
a single shawl and feel the warmth of their bodies against each other. Vel could help
feeling other than anything that is connected to romantic feelings.

Is it so with all the people who are recently married? Will all people feel the same way?
Feel romance at every step you take, every mouthful of food you eat, and every moment
you are together with your spouse. Whatever it may be, Vel now felt so romantic and felt
the high and low ebb of strong emotions that stirred him with much love toward Dora.

Vel has read in books that the emotional attachment toward one's spouse will be high
during the early days of marriage and it will slowly go down after some time. After
reaching a period of the plateau, it will once again grow and reach the peak. As it is said,
Vel felt his love to be at its peak and wished it to remain forever in the same mode.

With so many thoughts in their minds, they entered the exit gate of the railway station.
Dora with a shiver moved closely to Vel to feel herself warm. Vel with a smile let her
move toward him more closely, and that is what he also wanted at that moment.

From November to January, the nights at Dindigul are chilly and the temperature went
down to make the coconut oil freeze like butter. The glass bottles filled with coconut oil
became chilly and the thin coconut oil turned into a solid like butter. There is no need for
any refrigerator as the water also turned cold and chilly.

The temperature will not go down to freezing level but made the people there shivering in
the chilly morning breeze. The days are usually hot and the summer seasons are the
hottest. Along with the hottest days, scarcity of water also threatened people, and it
turned the lives of people more miserable.

Vel and Dora reached the three-star hotel in which their accommodation was booked.
After having the late-night dinner, both of them reached their room. Dora has to wear the
sweaters as she could not manage the cold winds of the night, and the slight drizzle at
night made it even chillier.

The next day dawned with even more chillness. Dora could not touch the water from the
tap and she has to ask for some warm water even to brush her teeth. They started around
7 am at the guesthouse at Sirumalai hills.

Sirumalai hill is a small hill station 20 km away from Dindigul. The hill is 1200m in
height and spreads over 60,000 acres. The altitude of Sirumalai hill ranges from 3,000
feet to 4,600 feet. This hill is a rich abode of birds and animals.

Many species of snakes, mongoose, fox, jackal, wild boar, rabbit, and Indian bison can be
seen in Sirumalai hill. It is also a wonderful place to go trekking for young people. The
thick forest on this hill is full of rosewood, silver oak, eucalyptus, and gooseberry trees.
Different varieties of medicinal plants are also grown on this hill.
Dora and Vel reached the guesthouse around 8 am in the tourist car arranged by the hotel.
After having breakfast at the guesthouse, they decided to go for a short walk and explore
the place. The place surrounding the guesthouse looked breathtakingly beautiful. They
can see drifting clouds on the hilltops. Morning birds constantly sang and their chorus
seemed to invite them also to join their love songs.

The moment they decided to spend their honeymoon there, Dora made a perfect schedule
for the time to be spent there. As she knew morning hours are worth watching birds in
that area, she planned to spend the time exclusively in bird watching. Vinay gave Vel his
digital camera to capture the precious moments spent together during their honeymoon
trip.

Dora's excitement in watching birds did not affect Vel in any way. He just wanted to be
near her and feel her warmth and the perfume from the sweet-smelling flowers on her
thick, long hair.

Even when watching birds, his eyes looked only at pairs of birds who sang beautiful
songs or snuggled to each other and played a game of love. Vel showed Dora a pair of
mountain squirrels who chased each other and played with one another. It clearly showed
that they are playing the love game.

A little boy volunteered to go with them, as the place is new to them. The road stretched
and went winding up. In case if they lost the route, things may not be fair. Therefore, the
guard at the guesthouse insisted they take the little boy along with them. Though the little
boy looked puny, he told them that he is 12 years old. Being born and brought up in the
hills, he looked very much familiar with all the places in the hilly regions.

After ten minutes of walk, Vel started to feel the little boy as a disturbance. He has to
keep his distance from Dora and he could not pull her into his embrace whenever he
wanted to do so. Rose bushes with flowers lined the slopes of the hills. The wild rose
plants with their thick stems and well-grown thorns bloomed with big roses with rich
color.

Vel wanted to pluck one of those roses and pin it on the hair of Dora. Though the little
boy walked quite a distance away, still he felt shy to do so. However, Dora looked very
unaware of the emotions that ruled Vel at that moment. She looked deeply engrossed in
the moving clouds, birds, and the rich greenery of the Sirumalai hills.

The winding path that climbed up the hill looked lonely and serene. Dora and Vel can
hear the sweet songs of birds and the chirping sounds of small insects from the bushes on
the sliding slopes of the hills. While both of them walked on the path, more than two
snakes slid hurriedly without taking any notice of them.

Suddenly, the little boy called them and asked them to walk faster.

"Anna, walk faster. It will rain soon. We have to go and come back soon."
"Boy, we think it is enough for the day. We want to go back to the room."

"Why?" Dora asked Vel with a puzzle.

"Enough for the day," Vel answered her in a strict tone. Telling her, he started to walk
toward the guesthouse where they stayed. Both Dora and the little boy followed him
wondering what happened to him so suddenly.

"Anna, do you want me to pluck those sweet-smelling flowers." The little boy asked Vel.

"Yes, pluck them faster." The little boy slowly climbed the rock at the side of the
winding path and reached the plant with sweet-smelling flowers. Within minutes, he
reached the bush and plucked all the flowers.

Dora filled the bag she carried with those flowers. The flowers looked like jasmine that
bloomed in the climbers at her home and the flowers smelt so strong like French perfume
and made Vel once again yearn for Dora.

Unmindful of the little boy with them, he clutched the hands of Dora and locked them
tightly in his. Dora followed Vel toward the guesthouse reluctantly, and though she knew
what he wanted at that moment, she still wanted to spend some time on the hilly slopes
and enjoy nature. Yet, she followed Vel without any complaints.

Once they reached the room, Vel caught hold of Dora once again in his tight embrace and
planted a wild kiss on her lips. She reciprocated his passionate love in the way he wanted.
Dora could not stop thinking, how marriage changed men and women. Marriage gives
freedom to men to enjoy marital bliss whenever they wanted.

Yet, women's expectations are different from men. 'When men wanted some space to
enjoy the marital bliss, the women needed a reason to enjoy the marital bliss. When Dora
remembered this remark from a famous doctor about enjoying marital bliss, she could not
avoid smiling. Vel took this smile as a sign of acceptance and pulled down the blinds of
the windows. Dora locked the room by turning in the key and joined Vel at the sprawling
bed with love.

Chapter 4

Dora loved afternoons even in Chennai. Afternoons at Sirumalai hills turned out to be
more pleasant. The breeze that blows from the trees made the warm afternoon less hot.

Vel usually loves to take afternoon naps. After he started to sleep, Dora slowly walked
down the portico of the guesthouse and reached the sprawling garden at the right side of
the guesthouse.
The gardener who lived in the guesthouse loved his plants more than anything else did in
the world. He took the maximum care to tend all the plants there. Due to his careful
tending, all the flowering plants bloomed with flowers. People who lived at Sirumalai
hills never plucked the flowers from their garden.

The flowers are always left on the plant to dry and wither. The slopes of the hills are
always covered with all kinds of wildflowers and wild rose plants, and so little girls and
women plucked those flowers only. Some little boys, who are bold enough to climb the
rocks on the winding path, climbed the rocks and plucked sweetly perfumed flowers from
the top of the bushes and trees.

With the fiber taken from the stem of the banana plant, the women at home strew the
flowers into garlands and long strands of flowers and sold the flowers to the tourists and
other people who visited Sirumalai hills. The little boy who accompanied Dora and Vel
brought her a long strand of jasmine and asked Dora to wear it on her hair.

"Akka, amma (mother) asked me to give these flowers to you." The little boy gave her
the flowers. The strand of flowers looked thick without any gap. As the buds in the strand
have started to unfurl slowly, it sent its sweet fragrance everywhere. Dora took the
flowers happily, as she loved to wear thick strands of flowers on her long plait of hair.

"How much does it cost?" Dora asked the boy curiously. "Nothing, I don't want money
for this. My mother asked me to give it to you."

"Why?" Dora could not understand why she gave her flowers.

"Are you newly married?" the little boy asked her with a smile.

"Yes." With a blushing smile, Dora replied. "So only she asked me to give you the
flowers. Here it is a custom to bless so with flowers."

"Is it so?" Dora did not reply to him. Now only she remembered why her mother always
gave flowers to the newly married girls who lived near her house. "Thank God, you
reminded me of the tradition." Dora thanked him once again with a smile.

When Vel got up from his afternoon nap, the evening has started to set in. Dora went to
the kitchen and prepared their evening tea with cardamom. Vel loved to have tea with
cardamom and he will always drink his tea by sipping slowly only. When Dora
volunteered to prepare the tea and brought it to him, he rarely believed that Dora could
make a good cup of tea.

After drinking the tea, Vel learned that Dora, apart from being a wonderful partner to
enjoy his life, is a wonderful cook also, and she can bring heaven to him right from the
skies.
With the taste of the tea lingering on his tongue, he looked at Dora with his usual
mischievous look. "No way," Dora replied curtly to his invitation. "Get up, let us go for a
walk now. See, how beautiful the sun looks."

Vel with a smile replied, 'But for me, you are more beautiful than anything."

"Hmm. I know that, Get up wash your face, and join me in another ten minutes."

Vel laughed loudly hearing Dora. "Yes, Mam, I am at your service." With his loud
laughter, he pulled Dora and gave her a warm tight hug. The fresh flowers on Dora's hair
have started to bloom and they sent across the room, a strong perfume that can make any
man passionate.

Holding Dora within his strong arms, he planted a kiss on one of her small ears, and
whispered with love, "My little princess, will you be always with me like this." "Ok, Ok."
With a force, Dora freed herself from Vel and pushed him toward the bathroom to have
his evening bath.

After having their hot evening tea, Vel and Dora decided to go for a stroll. They did not
want to walk a long distance as it started to get dark even by 5 o'clock in the evening.
Dora took her sweater and shawl along with her. The chilly breeze made her shiver. The
evening sun rays could not wipe away the cold with its warm rays.

Looking at the beautiful evening sun, both of them started to walk. Down the path near
the turning, Vel asked Dora to sit on the culvert. Sitting there for a while, they watched
the sunset. The horizon painted in hues of pink, rose and white made the entire place look
more beautiful.

People who went into the forests high up in the hill returned one by one with their
collected firewood. These people lived a simple life and they looked happy always. They
do not have much to worry about except during the days of illness. They have to go down
the hill to see the doctor at the Primary Health Centre. They have to wait for a van or the
bus, and every van and bus started only after 45 minutes after reaching the place at the
top hill.

The bus and van have to take a rest for a while to cool off their engines. During
emergencies, they did not wait for any bus or van. They will take their bicycles and ride
down the hill to meet the doctor.

Dora promised them that she would go and meet the persons who are responsible at the
Secretariat and help them to have a Primary Health Centre at their place itself. Though
many doctors are not willing to work in a place like that, still some doctors wanted to
serve people who are in need.

The little village in the Sirumalai hills does not have much fun to enjoy in life. Yet, it can
provide life with peace and comfort. When some people tried to bring modernity into
their way of living, a section of people living there objected to that. They do not want to
get the air polluted.

With a few important gadgets that modern life has introduced, they wanted to stick to the
old way of living. That only has helped them to live a healthy life and it helped them to
do all types of manual work available.

Vel and Dora silently watched the people coming down from the hills. They can even
spot a few varieties of snakes. The people who passed by told them about the names of
the snakes and asked them to get back to the guest house soon before six, in the evening.

The mist started to cover the entire place and so one could not see the other person
standing before. As wild dogs started to roam around at the start of the evening, they
have to return to the guesthouse exactly by six in the evening.

Around 8 pm after having dinner, Dora and Vel wanted to relax for a while by sitting at
the portico. Early night in the hilly places is always a treat to the eyes and ears. The
nocturnal birds and animals start their life only during the night, and it is quite interesting
to hear the sounds made by them.

The big neem trees in the portico stood tall. Varieties of grasshoppers peculiar to the
hilly region started to screech and it continued in the chorus for more than an hour. Dora
can hear the flapping wings of some birds, but could not see them in the dark. She can
hear the rustling sound of snakes that moved fast on the ground. Occasionally she heard
the sound of a frog being caught by a snake. Dora had seen only rats. However, here she
can see large bandicoots, which looked like small kittens.

Wild cats roamed free in the space around the guesthouse. However, the cat at the
guesthouse cozily slept on the sofa of the drawing-room. Big male cats chased the rats for
a while and then caught them as their food. To see a cat hunting for its prey reminded
Dora of seeing a wild tiger hunting its prey in the forests.

The cook at the guesthouse told Dora about a cheetah hunting deer in the forest uphill. It
is quite dangerous to live uphill. It is because, tigers, wild boars, deer, foxes, and pythons
still roamed freely in the wild forest. Despite all dangers, some young boys always come
there for trekking and they walked to the waterfalls in the forest.

If you are lucky you can see a wild boar or a wild dog, and it is not advisable to walk in
the evening. Taking bath in the falls is also restricted as it has no safety limits and
nothing has been done to secure a safe bath for the people who want to take bath in the
falls.

There are many types of trees around the guesthouse. At the entrance of the guesthouse
stood a tall tree with the creeper manoranjitham entwined on it. Manoranjitham flowers
smelt so strong and its perfume even invited snakes to have a sniff. As the creeper has
grown high up in the tree, no one can climb up the tree and pluck some flowers. The
unpicked blooms spread its perfume and filled the air with a romantic charm.

'She, look there,' the cook pointed to the manoranjitham tree. A huge cobra stood on the
branch of the tree and it stood tall with its hood straight. They can even hear the hissing
noise of the cobra. Dora and Vel watched the snake without making any noise.

The cobra slowly moved down the tree and caught a frog at the bottom of the tree. The
smallmouth of the snake widened to help the snake to swallow the fat frog. A shiver
went through Dora, and she clutched the hand of Vel in fear. Vel could feel her shiver.

'Hi, what is this, you are trembling?' he whispered.

'Let us go inside.' Without waiting for his answer, Dora got up and went inside the
guesthouse.