Manna from heaven. 

There prevailed a legend of a peacock with shimmering plumage; call it a blind belief or a fictional tale made by the indigenous inhabitants of that small village that lay on the banks of a green water lake adjacent to the gloomy backwoods. 

As stated in the legend, the peacock was visible only to the beings whose soul was diaphanous like a kosher drop of water falling from the haven and whose heart was like a barren white paper. 

As the sun was about to dip down from the sky aligned far in the west, he rode on his bicycle, peddling through the bumpy roads adjusting his balance, parallel to her. 

His eyes darted like the speed of light from the road ahead to her at his side. Her hairs were blown by the forcible frosty wind which tried to stop them but bending front, applying full energy they slay passed it. 

The flares of warm summer atmosphere falling onto the side of her face, illuminated a part of her with the loose strands of her hair shimmering in the waning sun light.

Careening the handle looking at each other and trying to compete each other, throwing a giggle and chuckle sporadically at each other, they peddled harder, until finally they applied the brakes and breathing heavily their feet touch the ground and they gazed at the backwoods in front of them. The light beams that sporadically broke into the woods through the gaps between the trees was descending as the sun was dipping gradually along with the passing time.

He glanced at her, he could see her chest rise and fall due to the hard peddling and the disheveled hair strands, some of which gathered onto her face.

She glanced at him, releasing her one hand eventually from the handle and calming her breaths, she tucked thehair strands  behind her ear. Her eyes flickered and she felt the blood gushing to her cheeks, as he stared at her painstakingly. 

A tinge of redness on her cheeks and she casted her eyes on the handle rod, he sighed a smile and his hand travelled to his hair. He looked down, then at her, so much drawn by her radiating beauty that he felt to notice the dipped sun with thin traces of orange sky and the wind that rustled the leaves of the new old trees, had a sudden temperature drop and though a summer eve, the cast turned to blue. 

She motioned at him to move ahead. He nodded with the never fading smile and his hand clenching around the handle, simultaneously as his leg pushed the peddle, they moved slowly from a thin muddy road, from the midst of the rustling jungle grass similar that to rice grass, that played with the spokes of the tires of their bikes and also some long grown, slapped their feet. 

He followed her, his eyes casted only onto her and her eyes darting into the dark woods, searching for the peacock. 

Upon reaching half way in the gloomy forest with no traces of light and a pristine smell that of hay and exquisite scent to the forest, both of the standing parallel to each other got down from their bikes and he shoved out a pocket torch from his back pocket and illuminated it to light, the near by areas.

Owls howled around and bats could be heard flying from a close proximity to them. Leaping their cycles to a tree, they made their way towards the lake, bending down from the forest strings obstructing them from going through.

There was an utter silence, so much that they heard each other respirate and he also heard her heart beat in the usual rhythm. His only wish was that she could listen to his heart to, which chanted her name.

Stepping over the heaps of dry leaves on the ground, a sound as if crumbling a hard plastic paper could be heard now and they headed ahead , stopping until they reached the lake with the crickets sound and night creepers sound as background scores.

As they moved closer to the lake bank, the highly serene water with no ripples on the surface reflected a small spot of the illuminating torch light. 

Breathing the fresh scent of meadow, their heads turned from left to right. Even after waiting for hours, they didn't saw any peacock their.

She sighed, he wished for some miracle but then miracles happen when you least expect them. 

He wanted to hold her shoulder and confront her, but then he avoided the touch, as he was not familiar with the fragility of her emotions.

He motioned her to go back, when she dashed with him in the dark light and the torch fell on the ground, facing towards the lake, making a ascending broad light reflection on the surface of the ripple free lake. 

He raised his hands in the air and smiled sheepishly and bent down to lift the torch, when he heard a sound of someone stepping onto the dry grass and his hand paused within inches of the light and his head turned with his eyes travelling gradually towards the ascending light wave reaching at the other side of the lake. His pupils adjusted to the light and her hand travelled to her chest and she held her breath. 

Leaving the torch down, he gradually raised his body up and stood next to her with their eyes mutually staring at two blinking eyes like stars at the eye sight, staring at them.

His hand slipped around her and she sniffled closer and they breath heavily. 

Another sound and a beak was scantily illuminated by the light of torch. Reflexively they stepped a little behind, when slowly the peacock stared at them and flowered his plumage, radiating a light similar that to the moon, and the plumage as it rustled, shimmered and the serene water had the ripples running to their direction with even the trees swaying along with the frosty wind that wafted the frenzy scent of unique to something undiscovered. 

As their eyes adjusted to the increasing light, she closed her eyes and burried her head into his arms with fear, and he raised his hand and cover his eyes with the back of his hand, still trying to sneak a look through his one eye as what that peacock looked like, failing to the attempt her held her close to him and in an entourage of the enchantment they found themselves to be connected to each other like never before. 

The eccentric occurrence lasted for a few seconds and they opened their eyes to the silence of the backwoods and seemingly everything serene. They sought for any clues with their messy minds. She still in his arms, he looked at her into the eyes.

So the legend was true, her heart is pure and her soul is clean, he thought with the every breath he took.

So the legend is true, his heart is pure and his soul is clean, she thought feeling the urge to blush and never step back from his arms encircled around her.

When he was least expecting, the innocent feelings of love were seeded into her heart. 

The ones who had walked in the backwoods as friends, walked out with a miracle stuck into their minds that came their way, beyond the anticipation of either.

After many years of their marriage, narrating the same story to their grandchildren they say, the have the same perspective of the story.

Weather or not that was a delusion but a miracle did came their way, their enduring relationship and a sacred bond of marriage.

- Hrishikesh J C