Night.

He called her out that night. And they met inside the thick bamboo groove below her home. They were silent for a while and could only look at each other happily. She started laughing softly in her bewildered happiness. He was here finally. There was so much she wanted to say to him and so many questions to ask. But no words came. She looked at him delightedly and took in the details of his handsome profile; sharp nose, high cheekbones, defined lips and hair slightly damp. He turned suddenly and found her looking at him. The look on her face was exquisite.

A serene calmness rested on her face and in her warm brown eyes, a knowing wisdom, belying her age and excitement bordering on something wild. Her beautiful lips curved into a shy smile at the same time. She was breathing fast and her heart thumped noisily in her ears. She wondered if he could hear them too. He smiled finally and his hands reached for hers. They were warm and slightly moist. ‘He is as nervous as I am’ she thought happily and it seemed to give her a confidence she didn’t know she had. The knowledge that she could affect him this way emboldened her to take the lead. She slipped her hands out of his and wound them around his waist. He paused for a brief moment and then sighing, he drew her closer to him. His hands reached up to cup her face and turned it to him. The face he knew so well. He had waited so long for this moment. She closed her eyes and waited for the sweet assault. ‘Open your eyes and look at me’ he whispered. 

She saw the love and passion in his eyes and surrendered to the flow. Tonight she would be anything he wanted her to be. She felt one with the swooshing river a few feet below where they were; she was one with the enveloping cloak of night, the rich earth beneath their feet, the endless expanse of skies with the twinkling diamonds and the knowing moon cooing them to find the music of their souls. Their lips met and she lost herself in the sensations of being loved and loving in return. She was fearless and tireless. She forgot her shyness and with great delight, discovered his secrets. Against the thick bamboos, he held her and she gave herself to him. Together, they found the ancient rhythm that would lead them to the release they both craved and discover the sweet mysteries of the universe.

And in the bamboo groove she used to play as a child, she became a woman.