Seeing Sandhya still uneasy, he thought, ‘Haven’t I scared her unwittingly? This poor thing loves that lovely one so dearly. It is better that way, as it may be easier for her to be reconciled to our liaison, if it ever comes to that.’
Sandhya, meanwhile, tried to comprehend the situation with apprehension. ‘When it’s so distressing to imagine, how horrible could be the reality, if that were to happen?’ she began to think. ‘Could Roopa ever go astray? What he said could be true in general, but isn’t Roopa all so special? Why doubt that at all. She isn’t going to be the one to lose her head to some silly seducer. After all, won’t she keep vanity at bay? Surely, she would.’
Before she could put her doubts at rest, she remembered Roopa’s tryst with Ravi at Tara’s place that increased her fears about her mate’s fate.
‘Won’t that confirm Raja’s apprehension about her situation,’ she became doubtful. ‘Didn’t Roopa lose her head like it happened with me in the bus? Can she keep her cool when someone comes wooing her the next time? After all, Raja could be proved right.’
Convinced about her man’s reading of the situation, Sandhya sought to analyze her mate’s mind-set, ‘It’s clear that Sathyam’s love is of no avail to her and he hasn’t got the vigor to dispel the euphoric clouds from her lovesick eyes. Hasn’t his wit failed to cater to her innate romanticism, leaving her ever more in amorous want? Won’t that make her vulnerable to the misty looks of the fast guys? Why, hasn’t she taken to Raja though she tried to hide her feelings from me? Well, haven’t I felt her romantic impulses in spite of my own excitement? Surely, Raja wouldn’t have failed to notice Roopa’s infatuation for him. How could he when he was the object of her adoration. Perhaps, that was at the back of his mind when he voiced his fears about her possible fall.’
‘Would Roopa then become a target practice for assorted seducers?’ she thought worried. ‘Is she sauntering on the volcano of temptation to be swept away by the lava of illicit passion?’ As she shuddered to think further, she tried to push that thought away, only to get bogged down all the same.
‘But, how can I remain indifferent to her predicament given our own intimacy?’ she thought at length, overcome with empathy for her friend. ‘Could I ever let my treasure slip into the garbage of vice? Shouldn’t I go to lengths to see that she might not fall into the alien hands? Won’t her indulgence with assorted characters sour our own amour? Having tasted the sweetness of her ardor, how could I forego the joy of our intimacy? How can I let things foul-up at her end? No way.’