Chapter 9 - (Part I)

The Black Australian:

Rajini

After Siri's return from Singapore, on a Sunday afternoon, two thoughts kept coming to his mind like repetitive advertisements on commercial television.

The first thought was of the young woman who recited the Sri Lankan and Singaporean national anthems at the Sri Lankan Independence Day celebration.

The second was the conversation about the weapons deal which Siri had overheard accidentally.

The journey to Singapore had brought back two kinds of memories that he wanted to leave behind. First was his love and affection for Anula, which haunted him still, and second, the civil war which ravaged his country. The conversation on the weapons deal made him not only angry, but nauseous, when he thought of ongoing corruptions in Sri Lanka. He recalled his last husband-wife conversation with Rajini on a similarly emotive issue - the war in Sri Lanka.

Yes, Rajini was right about Tamil Tigers! They also have their sentiments and justifications. The Tigers are not the only party to reap benefits from this nasty war. There are others too!

Sitting in his lounge room, Siri listened to a song by Amaradeva to sooth his aching soul. He moved to the balcony and watched the evening sun fading over the Swan River. The last glow of the sunset was still visible. A few dark clouds were floating above the river. Through them he saw a faded bright star on the distant horizon.

Siri took a deep breath and wondered how good it would be to have someone to talk to and share his life with. Yet, he was not sure that just having a partner would chase away the loneliness that overwhelmed him like the growing darkness inside the house.

Well, what would the situation be today had Rajini stayed a few more years, or perhaps a bit longer?

It was almost two years since Siri met Rajini. She came and vanished like an evening twilight but never to reappear in the horizon again. They had met at another Sri Lankan Independence Day celebration held in Perth. To Siri, it was like remembering a short story he had read with a bad plot.

It was one of those evenings. After a hard day at work, Siri came home to do nothing but watch the day fading over the river. A few minutes later, the telephone rang. A voice from his past filled the room as it spoke into the answering machine.

"Hello, is Siri there? I'm Dr Malini Gamage. We're organising an Independence Day celebration for the Sri Lankan Society .Hello Siri, are you there?"

Although Siri really did not want to get involved with the Sri Lankan Society any more, he could not help but answer the phone as he was drawn to the voice like a needle to a magnet.

"Yes, Dr Gamage, do I know you?" Siri asked in an abrupt, but friendly voice.

"I don't think that a fellow Sri Lankan needs to know another to talk to him," she giggled and asked: "Is that you Siri?"

"Yes, Siri Wickramasinghe is speaking."

"Well, we haven't met yet, but I know you through two sources. First, from the Sri Lankan Society's newsletters you edited some years ago. Second, through my partner Jay. In fact, I got your business card from him, where you have scribbled your home phone number!"

Siri interrupted Malini.

"I'm sorry, I don't know anyone called 'Jay', nor have I met anyone with that name! Yes, it's true that I edited the Sri Lankan Society's newsletter.

That's history! I've nothing to do with the Sri Lankan Society anymore." Siri changed his tone thinking that the woman at the other end wanted a contribution for wounded Sri Lankan soldiers, or similar cause.

"Well, don't get so defensive. You sound angry! Getting angry is no good for your health!" She giggled again. It occurred to him that he had heard a similar giggle a long time ago. It sounded just like Anula's!

"Well, you may not know 'Jay', but you should know 'Jayadeva Gamage', my partner."

"Oh, Jayadeva! Yes, I met him in Mandurah. In fact, he may be cross with me because he wanted a paper I gave at a conference last month. It was a very bad paper and I promised him an updated version but I couldn't do it."

"I don't know about your conference paper, but Jay is an admirer of your contributions, poems and translations you published when you were the editor of the Society. He edits the newsletter now and whinges that he can't maintain the standards you have set. We're living very close by, but we haven't invited you even for a bar-be-cue! Anyway, I called to invite you to a function. We are planning to celebrate the Sri Lankan Independence Day by organising a dinner dance." Malini explained the details.

"We've a day event for the general community but this is a special function as not many people will be able to attend the dinner. The tickets are expensive; one hundred fifty dollars a head. As this is an expensive event, we are counting on the people who can come. We expect about a hundred or one hundred and fifty people. All the proceeds will be sent to the Children's Hospital and orphaned children in camps in Sri Lanka. It's a good contribution for a national cause," she emphasised with a serious voice.

"Look, how can we talk about a national cause when we have deserted the country? If we were really committed, then we would go back and work to end this bloody war!" Siri responded angrily.

"Well, it's good logic, but let's be realistic, Siri. We want you to come, please. This will be a different function as we have invited all sorts of people representing the community: Sinhalese, Tamils, Muslims and Burghers.

We'd also like a few who have been associated with the Society in the past to join us. Jay would be really happy to see you there. In fact, I'm doing all these because of his involvement with the Society. This dinner will be held on a Sunday as we can't find a venue for Saturday. This will force us to make it short and everything will be over before midnight."

The conversation ended when Malini persuaded Siri to attend the function which was to be held at an Italian Community Welfare Center away from the city. Siri had finally surrendered to that strange melody of Malini's voice that reminded him so much of Anula.

Siri was late and had difficulties finding a spot to park his sporty red Mazda MX5. He thought only a few people would be there, but the large number of parked cars indicated a big function. He drove up and down the street to find a vacant spot near the venue. At one point he thought of going back home, but a distant voice - rising to the tune of a familiar Sinhala song - call him into the crowded function.

At the entrance, he was greeted by a woman who wore a dark green Kandyan sari with a gold border and a matching but a very short hatte.

"Hi, I'm Malini. You are Mr ...? "

"Hello, I'm Siri."

"Oh, Siri! Thanks for coming. I'm Malini." She shook hands with Siri as if she had known him for years. Siri took a deep breath and realised that Malini looked much younger than her age, especially when compared to her husband - Jayadeva. She not only looked youthful but was also attractive. He looked at her low-cut Kandyan hatte which exposed a good part of her waist and also her cleavage.

She looks so young for a mother of two teenagers. Jayadeva is a very lucky man!

"Where's Jayadeva?" Siri asked, still admiring her beauty.

"I think they are just finishing the final rehearsals of Namo Namo Matha. Some of the kids who are singing can't pronounce all the words.

The advantage of growing up in Australia!" Malini beamed cheerily.

"Well, why not recite only 'Advance Australia Fair' instead of having two national anthems?" Siri replied sarcastically.

"Mister Wickramasinghe, don't you realise that we need to live a double life and maintain a dual culture as Sri Lankans in Australia?" Malini giggled.

Siri's mind floated back to his past again. Every time when Malini giggled, it brought him the memories of Anula.

Malini called a young woman who was sitting at the other end reception table counting money. She had a darker complexion than Malini and but dressed in an Indian Sari. The dress increased her natural beauty displaying her slender body, yet it was evident she was not comfortable with her eastern dress. Unlike Malini, she wore a sleeveless jacket. She was tall, brown and had very short black hair with a blonde stripe through it.

"Rajini, meet one of Perth's eligible bachelors! This is Siri. I think you are going to sit together and you'd better take care of him." As a few other late comers were queuing up behind Siri, Malini asked Rajini to accompany him into the hall.

"Hi, you can call me Raji," the younger woman said. As they shook hands, Siri breathed in strong perfume emanating from her body.

There was covert coyness in her manners, but by the time they reached their designated table, Siri had realised that she was a very sociable person. Rajini left him there and went outside again. She came back a few minutes later with a few more people who sat at a table nearby. This time Rajini sat next to Siri and started a conversation.

"Well, Perth is very different to Melbourne. But I love your beaches, the Indian Ocean and Rottnest Island. It's a great place for snorkelling." Siri immediately noticed her Aussie accent.

"So, you are not from Perth, right?" Siri asked.

"No, I'm from Melbourne, your arch rival when it comes to *Aussie Rules Footy!* I'm not a West Coast Eagles supporter either. I support the Essendon Bombers!."

"So what are you doing in Perth?"

"Actually, I'm here on a company seminar and Malini invited me. My appa [1] is known to Jay through some past contacts in Sri Lanka. So I ended up with Perth partygoers! I arrived yesterday, and today I went snorkelling.

There are some lovely spots in Perth. I love the sea and snorkelling is one of my hobbies."

"Are you afraid of the land?" asked Siri.

"Do you mean to say, why I love the sea?" clarified Rajini. "Don't you know that I was born in an island? Anyway, we are at a party not at sea! So, you are a real partygoer, aren't you?" She giggled.

"Normally I don't attend this kind of parties. I'm not a partygoer!" Siri responded, innocently.

"Then what are you doing here?" Rajini giggled again.

Siri smelt the strong perfume.

"Oh, Malini harassed me and insisted that I join their Independence Day celebrations!"

Their conversation halted as the function formally started. Siri spied Jayadeva rushing around and realised that he would have no time to entertain any visitors.

The ceremony opened with the two national anthems: first the Australian anthem followed by the Sri Lankan anthem. Rajini sat next to Siri, an innocent arrangement made by Malini. When they got up to sing the anthems, Siri had a good look at Rajini and noted a lusciousness hidden in her slender frame. Her face looked innocent.

A typical, pretty Sri Lankan face!

It occurred to him that he had seen a somewhat similar face in the past.

Instantly, memories of attending a function with Anula in Sri Lanka came flooding back. Siri's mind recalled the engineering faculty's annual dinner dance held at Suisse Hotel in Kandy many years ago. He had attended that function three times with Anula.

Does Rajini look like Anula? No, Anula is very different! In which way?

Rajini's perfume settled in his lungs and it etherised his body. For a few seconds he felt as if he was floating like a trainee astronaut going through a body weightlessness exercise inside a gravity controlled laboratory.

The preliminary routines of the ceremony were completed in minutes and followed by some old favourite Sri Lankan songs. He recognised a line from the song, 'Mali, the dream maker, the bride with a smiling face...'

After dinner, couples started moving onto the dance floor and danced to western tunes. The Sinhala pop music played earlier was replaced with western music that Siri knew nothing about. A new Australian addition to Sri Lankan culture!

"What are you thinking Siri? Oh, those Sri Lankan curries are too hot for me!" Complained Rajini and asked for another serve of ice cream. "I want to burn all the hot curries! Let's dance," she said excitedly.

"The curries were great for me, though! I told you, I'm not a party person! I don't know much about dancing either," Siri protested.

"You don't need to know how to dance perfectly! Come on, let's give it a go.

Get a life, Mate!" For a few moments, his mind flew back to the past. Siri recalled what happened to his partner Anula, when he refused to dance with her at the Engineering Faculty dinner dance when they attended it for the last time. Another student dragged her to the dance floor and ended up stealing her away to be his lifelong partner!

"What are you thinking? I'm not going to eat you after that *hot* dinner!" Rajini giggled again.

She led him to the stage. Siri followed her this time without resentment.

Rajini held his hand and got him to put his right hand behind her waist.

When Rajini moved forward Siri's mind was again flooded with her exotic scent. As the dance floor was full, Siri managed to just move forward and backward rhythmically while holding Rajini close to him.

His fingers slipped over her exposed waistline several times but Rajini did not even bother to move his hands away. Siri wanted to hold her firmly in his arms. Being so close to her, he suddenly felt fearless. Rajini's perfume etherised his mind but he continued to hold her.

Siri held Rajini's hand as they walked to the table and he saw the eagle eyes of Sri Lankans gazing at them. He recognised one couple who were keen for him to accept an arranged marriage, with a huge dowry, to one of their nieces in Sri Lanka.

"Siri, where do you live in Perth?" Rajini asked, looking at her watch.

"I live almost in the City."

"Could you please give me a lift back to my hotel? I'm staying at the Hyatt.

Is it on your way? Otherwise, I could go with Malini and Jay, but I think they are going to be held up here after the function. I don't know any other people here to ask for a lift. I've a very early session tomorrow and I must go to bed. It's almost midnight."

"No worries! I'll drive you. It'll be my pleasure," Siri responded gallantly.

(To be continued)

(Disclaimer: All the people's names and places appearing in this chapter are fictional and they do not represent anyone living or dead.)

Footnotes

[1] Appa - Tamil word for father