‘Comfortable?’

‘Hm hm,’ I assented. What else could I have said? There was no way out. Even nodding my head was out of the question.

A last touch before I would be left alone. ‘I will be back,’ she announced.

I listened to her steps as she withdrew. I was on my own now, immobile and unseeing.

Faint noises could be heard. Here and there, voices of strangers. My head rested where she had told me to put it, drawn back at an uncomfortable angle. With my chin forced up, my throat felt uncannily exposed to those unseen surroundings.

What was she doing now? Was she just letting me stew while she enjoyed a drink? Was she with someone else perhaps, unseen by me, merely a few metres away but unreachable?

Where her hands had touched my body, they had left behind an unfamiliar feeling. Was this the dreaded burning sensation she had mentioned? No, it was nothing. My senses were playing tricks on me. No need to panic or cry for help.

I tried to relax and forget the growing stiffness in my limbs, forget about my helpless position in a strange place. My mind wandered, questioning my resolve yet again. Would it be worth it? Had it been a dumb idea? There was nothing for it but to wait. The seconds slowly melted away.

A movement. She was back. I heard her voice above me me.

‘It is time. Don’t get startled.’

I exhaled, and then I felt her gentle touch in those sensitive areas where strangers never touch strangers. Coolness. Delicate expertise. Almost no pressure.

‘Here,’ she said.

My fingers felt softness and moisture. Carefully, I repeated her gestures.

Finally I was able to open my eyes, blinking in the unaccustomed brightness.

I wiped once more on either side. Her hand appeared beside me and took the smeared cotton-wool away. In the mirror I made out a familiar face, eyes surrounded with dark, newly dyed eyelashes.


© 2005 Ranai Pahav. All rights reserved.