Stories Varied - A book of short stories

“Yet you may remarry, why scar your body?” I said to test the waters.

“I told you I’m not inclined,” she said.

“But it’s difficult to resist a right guy, right.”

“Maybe, but …?” she sounded tentative.

“Didn’t Oscar Wilde say the only way to get rid of a temptation is to yield to it?” I said invitingly.

“A tempting proposition from a temptress,” she said laughingly.

“Wordplay apart…” I began tentatively

“Why beat around the bush,” she said meaningfully

“Who’s doing that?” I said looking straight into her yes.

“Both of us I suppose,” she said caressing my head.

“Who’s to break the ice?” I said.

“It’s my turn I think,” she said leading me into her chamber.

She confessed that it’s the intimacy my post-operative care afforded her that came to induce lesbian leanings in her. Though she envisioned our union as her life time solution, given my situation, she hid her enamour, clothing it in camaraderie. So she sought my professional assistance at the hospital and friendly closeness at home as a prelude to our lesbian bonding. When I grabbed both with both hands, she was wondering how to play her hand. Well my full disclosure provided her the trump card.

“What a hearty turn?” I said spreading my arms in invitation.

“Until death us part,” she said sinking in my embrace that I tightened symbolically.

Durjoy Datta’s prompt [*] for “Write India Campaign of Times of India” 2015