‘The television says that the rain will not stop today.’

‘Why believe the television?’ the girl asked.

‘That is also right. I too do not have absolute trust in the television,’ Asrar said.

The few sentences that the girl had spoken had given Asrar the courage to converse further. He asked her if she would stay or go back home, since the sun had set and the rain did not seem like it would stop.

The girl said that she was about to leave when he had come to her. She said, ‘I got so scared. I thought a djinn had come with an umbrella.’

‘How can a djinn enter a dargah?’

‘The pure and pious djinns do come,’ she said with a lot of confidence.

He agreed. He had heard since childhood that the pious djinns are present at all holy places and offer prayers.

It had stopped raining.

Both came out of the dargah and proceeded on the path covered by the sea. Asrar folded his umbrella. The girl said that her family was in the perfume and scent business. Asrar introduced himself as someone who worked in a jewel shop at the shopping mall. The girl told him that she had vowed to come to the dargah each Saturday.

‘But today is Wednesday.’

She smiled and said, ‘You were destined to meet me today.’

Asrar thought she was joking. She told him that she had come today for a specific purpose. In a while they reached the main road. It started raining heavily.

Asrar opened his umbrella and held it over the girl’s head.

‘Get drenched today. Who knows when we’ll meet in the rain,’ she said and looked at Asrar.

Asrar replied while he folded the umbrella, ‘You seem quite different.’

‘You too,’ she said.

‘Arey, I’m absolutely normal.’

‘You mean to say I’m not normal?’

‘No no, that is not what I meant …’

The girl smiled at his confusion. He stopped talking. The girl told him that her name was Hina. He told her his name and a little about his village. Hina was looking at him. Hina’s expression made him feel that he was unnecessarily talking about his village. He had nothing to talk about. Hina kept looking at him. He tried staring back but looked away. There was something in her eyes that did not give him the courage to look at them. Another reason was that he feared if he brought himself face to face with Hina’s eyes, the attraction would overpower his soul. The power of her eyes was so immense that he just couldn’t bring himself to look at her. Two minutes passed by while he was caught in this indecision. Meanwhile, a taxi stopped near the bus stop. She sat inside it and said to Asrar, who was standing at the door, ‘I liked the time we spent together.’

He said, ‘I’ll come to the dargah on Saturday.’

‘I know.’