This is a memory from the past... the year was 1990 and I had just crossed my 18th birthday. We lived in Bombay. The story that I am about to narrate is real...as real as the smell of Anuradha's body odour that coats my senses. as real as the taste of her pussy-juice on my lips.
Anuradha or Anu as we called her worked in our house she turned up regularly at 9.30 in the morning and cleaned swept and washed the clothes. This is a regular form of menial labour as found in any Indian city. My parents paid Anu 200 rupees for the work that she did and she had a few more similar jobs and earned enough to help her survive.
Anu was married and her husband was a no good drunkard who beat her and robbed her of her hard earned money. Anu was sweet and about 10 years older than me. Rather dark, she preferred gaudy saris. Her income and her liabilities compelled her to dress in cheap old hand me downs, which were given to her by her employers.
Even then Anu always looked attractive. However I never had a sexual thought in my mind about sweet Anu. She was like a member of the house.
Her husband's addiction got worst by the passing day and often Anu turned up with a black eye. When anyone would ask her she would always try to conceal her husband's vile acts by saying that she had accidentally hurt herself. But I could see beneath the plain exterior that sweet Anu was trying hard to protect her wife beating husband. I admired her more because of this and felt empathy towards her. At the same time I felt angry at a husband who treated such a nice woman so horribly. I could not even have imagined that soon Anu and I would be drawn closer than I could ever have imagined.
One evening I was alone in the house. The family had gone out to a cousin's marriage but I was studying for my college exams. The doorbell rang and when I went to answer I was surprised to see Anu standing I could see a welt on her face that she tried to hide with a corner of her sari. The welt was obviously an ugly one and I realised that her husband had thrashed her bad. Anu asked if my parents were home. When I told her that they were out I could feel the dejection in her voice.
I felt moved and asked her what she had come for. Anu composed herself and said that she had come to ask for a 100 rupee advance, as she needed the money urgently. I invited her in and went to my room and fetched my wallet I drew a 100 rupee note and handed it to her. She thanked me and asked me to tell my parents to cut the money from her next salary. I smiled. I knew that I really had no authority to give her an advance on her salary. I told her that I had paid her the money from my pocket money because I knew she needed it. Anu looked at me strangely she smiled and told me that she would personally return the money to me when she got her next salary. I told her I was in no hurry. Anu left leaving a faint whiff of cheap scent and sweat that always accompanied her.
The next time I saw Anu she was cleaning the floor one morning a few days later. I was alone in the house and I could see Anu's hesitation. She obviously wanted to tell me something.
I looked at her and asked her "Anu, why do I get the feeling that you want to tell me something". Hearing my words she kept the floor-cloth aside and came closer. She looked at me and said "The other day when I had come to ask for money my husband had asked me to bring the money or he had threatened to beat me more." I nodded and said that I knew. She was surprised. She had always felt that she was hiding her marital problems properly. Anu got back to cleaning the floor and I went back to my book.
After a few moments I went to the kitchen to grab a drink of water and was surprised to see Anu standing looking out of the window. It was obvious that she was lost in her thoughts. I approached her slowly and was shocked to see tears welling up from her eyes. Anu was deep in her own thoughts and hadn't noticed me. I extended a finger and picked a tear that was rolling down her cheek. This brought her out of her thoughts and she tried to wipe away her tears and explain them away. I kept looking at the tear drop that was still on my fingers and she had no words. She looked at me and said. "I haven't been able to pay you back the money that you had given" the money meant nothing to me as it was barely enough for a couple of film tickets but to her it meant a lot.
I waved her objections aside and told her that she could forget the money if only she agreed to cry no more. She looked at me and for the first time confessed that her husband was seeing another woman. Tears suddenly welling in her eyes and I knew that the moment had arrived where all compassion transforms into one blinding moment of passion. I extended my hand to console her and found Anu falling into my arms. Sobs racked her body and she was unable to control her emotions.