Jules loved James. And she loved him ferociously. It was their first Valentine’s day post wedding. There were many choices to pick from but she decided to try out his favourite. And that was Princess Leia of Star Wars. The exotic prisoner was a big hit among the nerds. And James was a nerd by every definition of the word. Dressed in a boring housecoat, she cuddled up next to him and watched the episode where Leia makes the entrance. She paused the CD, stood in front of him and said, “Are you ready for something hot”? 

It was 4pm as Keertana stepped out of her college hostel. It was broiling hot in Chennai at  40C.  The tar was melting on the road making your chappal stick to it and creating a slurpy sound every time you peeled it off the road. She never wore sunscreen. Ever. She squinted into the blinding light and quickly dug into her bag for her sunglasses. As she sauntered into the neighbourhood Saravana bhavan to meet her friend and sat down in the non a/c section, a waiter almost instantly appeared.  One piping hot filter coffee, she ordered.

Melwah trudged on reluctantly. The heat rose in waves around him and the mirages in the desert were making him dizzy. The sun shone bright directly above him, making him sweat profusely. His humps were aching with all the bags of dates strapped to them. At the far end of the dune, he caught sight of the Bedouin camp. He would finally get some shade and water there. At the tent, the man got off and led the camel to a large tank of water. Melwah happily lapped at the water and recoiled immediately. It was hot!