Return To Innocence

Valentine's Day. The biggest celebration of love. The day you are supposed to love everything you cherish. And cherish everything you love. Family, relatives, pets, and even strangers.

Like most people, some of my fondest memories are of moments spent on Valentine's Day in the past. Moments made memorable by not just happiness and fun, but also by unique experiences, especially life-altering ones.

This Valentine's Day, as I take a trip down memory lane, I cannot help but wonder how my life would have unfolded without these life-changing experiences. And at the very top of the list would be the Valentine of 2021. I was all of 21 years of age at that time.

I was then toddling through the world of adulthood. One step at a time. Doing my MBA while staying alone in Delhi. And navigating the post-Covid world at the same time.

The neighbourhood seemed to be the best place to resume my interactions with society in a post-Covid world. And it was a very bustling neighbourhood indeed. Delhi is teeming with people, and my locality was no different. It was loud, noisy, dusty and lively.

Like all neighbourhoods, mine had its share of oddball characters. Society calls them misfits. Loners, drifters, individuals who try to avoid social contact and lead an isolated life. One such character lived right down the road, a stone's throw away from my apartment.

He was an old man, probably in his 70s. The house he lived in was an old but giant property. One of those decades-old structures that can still be found in the dark nooks and corners of every big Indian city. A house with history, but no future.

Nobody knew his name. Some addressed him as Guruji, others as Masterji. Rumour had it that he was an artist, a painter probably. Though none seemed to know what he painted, and when.

He interacted with no one. Was rarely seen in public. Except when he would go out to buy the newspaper every morning. And visit the local grocery shop to buy groceries once a week.

The French poet Jean de La Fontaine had once said, "A person often meets his destiny on the road he took to avoid it." I guess that would best explain my 1st encounter with this old man. How it turned out to be a twist of fate instead of a random event. And how it shaped my destiny forever.

Chapter 1 - The Stranger

It was a day in November, 2020. A good 3 months before Valentine's Day. The skies opened up one fine morning. And flooded the city in torrential rain.

I was returning to my apartment after my morning classes. My Honda Scooter broke down in the middle of the road. Right when the heavy downpour started. Right in front of the old house where the old man lived.

My flat was just a 5 minute walk away up the road. But there was no way I could have walked in that severe rain. I abandoned my Scooty in the middle of the road. And ran towards the old house to seek shelter under one of its ancient balconies.

I stood under a big 1st floor balcony, to escape the rain. That was when I first heard his voice.

"Don't leave your scooter in the middle of the road," said a voice from the balcony above. "A car might ram into it. Park it under this balcony, where you are standing."

I looked up and saw the old man standing on the balcony above holding an umbrella. His white hair swept across his forehead in the breeze. His white beard covered in droplets of rain.

I realised he was right. Leaving my Scooter in the middle of the road was risky. I ran out in the rain and somehow managed to push it all the way to the old man's house.

I was now totally drenched from head to toe. My wet hair clung to my shoulders and back like vines that grow on walls. My white top stuck to my skin and the bra I was wearing underneath.

"You are totally wet. Come in," he said as he opened the main door. "Let the rain stop. You could then call a mechanic to repair your scooter."

"No, it's ok. I will stay outside. Thanks," I replied politely. This was the 1st time I was interacting with him. And I was in no hurry to enter his big old house.

"Waiting inside would be better," he said again in his gravelly old voice. "You can't ride your scooter until it gets repaired."

"Actually, I stay just down the road," I told him. "All I have to do is push my scooter for 5 minutes once the rain stops."

"Fine. As you wish," I noticed a hint of annoyance in his voice. "Just so you know, I am not a crazy old man, " he added. "And this is not a haunted house either, irrespective of the stories you might have heard. You will be safe inside."

I felt embarrassed now. Here was a senior citizen opening his door and inviting me in to seek shelter from bad weather. And I was refusing him under some preconceived notions formed by rumours and neighbourhood gossip. I felt ashamed.

"Sorry, Sir. I meant no disrespect," I said apologetically. "Thank you for letting me in."

I entered the house along with him. And kept walking down a long corridor. It did look like a haunted house, though. Damp and dark, having a typical old-house smell.

"Please wait here," he told me at the end of the never-ending walk down the corridor. There was a hall surrounded by rooms on either side. He opened the door to one of those rooms and disappeared inside.

He emerged soon after and handed me a dry towel and a set of neatly ironed clothes. "Here, change into these," he said. "I am afraid I don't have any women's clothes. These are mine."

I looked at the clothes. It was a set of kurta and pajama. Both were white and ironed. And both looked too large for my size.

"Sir, there's no need. I am fine," I replied gratefully. "Thank you for your generosity."

"You will catch a cold if you keep wearing those wet clothes," he said in that same sombre tone of his. "You have no reason to worry. There is nobody here except me. You can change in that room. Lock the door from inside."

I entered the room and locked the door. I took off my top and jeans. As well as my bra and panty. All were soaking wet. And put on the kurta and pajama over my naked body.

Both the kurta and pajama were too large and voluminous for my delicate petite frame. The neckline of the kurta was so deep that it revealed half of my cleavage. The neck opening was so wide that my shoulders were visible.

I came out of the room holding my wet clothes and the towel in one hand. And tugging at the shoulder of the kurta with the other. I kept the wet bra and panty in the side pocket of the kurta.

"Sir, can I hang these somewhere to dry?" I asked him and pointed to the wet clothes.

"I will take care of these," he took the wet clothes and towel from my hands.

"Have some hot tea," he gestured to the table in the middle of the hall. There were 2 teacups and a teapot on it. "I just made some for myself."

"It's a very big house," I tried to engage in small talk while sipping tea. "Must be very old."

"Yes. 130 years," he said. "It was built by my great-grandfather. My wife passed away 20 years ago. We were then living abroad. After her death, I returned to this ancestral house. Now I live alone."

In between taking sips of tea, I noticed him glancing at my cleavage, now fully visible from the open neckline of the kurta. My dark nipples were also poking out under the light white fabric. There was no bra to protect my modesty. And no buttons on the kurta either.

"I think I should leave now. Thank you for the clothes and tea," I tried to get up and leave.

"It's still raining," he said, "but I could give you a tour of the house if you are ok with it."

A tour of an ancient house? Why not? Sounded like a nice way to bide some time. I agreed immediately.

He showed me all the rooms, one by one. There were so many that I lost count. But there was one on the 1st floor which was locked. He didn't show me that one.

"What is that room for?" I was curious to know.

"My work," he replied softly. "My studio."

"A studio?" My curiosity increased. "An art studio? Can I see it?"

He looked at me with his old dark eyes. "You can. But you can't talk about what you see in that room to anyone. I mean it."

"I promise," I blurted out without thinking.

He opened the heavy padlock and pushed the giant wooden doors. The 1st thing I noticed was a strong smell. Of paint, or something similar. And then I stood spellbound in the middle of the room.

Surrounding me on all sides of the room were big canvasses. All over the floor, along the walls, and in every corner. There were hundreds of them. All covered by big white sheets of fabric.

The smell and the appearance of these canvasses implied one thing only. That hidden under those white sheets were paintings. Artworks. So many that any museum would be proud to have these.

"You are an artist!" I exclaimed. The neighbourhood gossip was right. "That's why they call you Guruji."

"You cannot tell anyone about this," he reminded me of my promise. "This is my life's work. And I don't want anyone to see what's underneath those sheets."

"But I want to," I was more excited than curious now. "Please, Guruji. Can I see the paintings?"

He nodded yes. I removed the cover from the nearest canvas. And stood frozen in awe and shock. It was not what I thought it would be.

I expected to find a landscape or something similar. What I found instead was a nude painting! A woman lying on the sofa, fully nude, appearing to be asleep. Painted in vivid and bold colours.

Her big fleshy thighs were slightly parted. Her private parts were slightly visible. Her ample breasts were coloured in milky white. With dark chocolate erect nipples.

I felt squeamish, hot, and slightly aroused.

Chapter 2 - The Artist

The old man took off the sheets one by one. Revealing hundreds of nude paintings. Some were in colour, while others were pencil sketches. They were in all sizes, big and small.

All the paintings showed women in different stages of undress. Some had a fully nude woman, while some depicted partial nudity. The women were also different from one portrait to another.

"Are these real-life models?" I asked naively.

"Yes. All of them. They were all my students. And my inspirations too," he replied.

I was stunned. So many models? All were students? And they all posed nude for him? Why?

"It's not what you think," he said as if he could read my thoughts. "They were never paid to pose. They did it voluntarily. Our relationships were based on mutual respect. I was the artist and they were my inspirations. It's a sacred bond."

I have seen many nudes in my life. Both male and female. But those were mostly porn. This was art.

"Let me know if you are feeling uncomfortable," he said. "I don't know why I showed these to you. Maybe because you have something in common with them."

"Something in common? What would that be?" I was surprised.

"They were all naive and curious like you when they first walked in," he replied. "And they all had an innocent charm and tender youth like yours."

He walked towards me and suddenly, caught hold of the placket of my kurta and opened up the neckline. My entire cleavage was now bare before him. I could not react.

"You look much younger than any of them," he said with his gaze fixed on my boobs. "And curvier too. How old are you, dear?"

"I am... um...21," I replied hesitantly.

"21! That makes you younger than all of them.," he said. "Can I make a portrait of yours? Now? It won't take long."

"Mine? No," I panicked. "I think I should leave now."

"Don't worry," he held my hands. "You don't have to undress. Just stand here like this for a few minutes. I promise I will not touch you."

His voice was gravelly, his tone was sombre. His words were reassuring, and his look was gentle and kind. I could not say no.

"The artist and the model never touch each other. As I said, it's a sacred bond," he added.

He mounted a large canvas on a wooden stand. I would come to know later that the wooden stand is called an easel. He started sketching on the canvas with a pencil. And I stood in the middle of the room with my cleavage exposed.

A few minutes later, he again walked up to me. "I am not going to touch you. But I have to do something to make the portrait perfect," he said.

I was not sure what he meant. Or what he was about to do. So, when he did it, I was left speechless. And numb.

He took a dry paintbrush and inserted it through the open neckline of the kurta. The brush gently caressed my boobs and settled on my flat nipples. Then he began to stimulate my nipples with the tip of that brush. Slowly and sensually.

My nipples had never been touched like that before. The bristles on the brush tickled, prickled, stroked and titillated them. Until they were fully erect. Until they were poking out under the fabric.

A gasp escaped from my mouth. That was when he withdrew the brush and resumed sketching.

"I hope you didn't mind," he said without looking at me. "It was necessary for the sake of the portrait."

He showed me the rough pencil sketch after sometime. I was amazed at how dazzling I looked on the canvas. My wet hair and open cleavage looked more ravishing than they did in reality. And my dark nipples looked simply luscious.

The rain had stopped by then. It was time for me to leave. He asked me to go home wearing his kurta and pajama. And return the next day to collect my clothes and Scooter.

I agreed, but not before asking him a question that was nagging me for quite sometime. "Sir, what happened to these women? Your students? Where are they now?"

"They do not visit me anymore," he replied with a dark look and in a darker voice. "They have all got married and moved out of the city. They have families now. Nobody has time for me."

His words hurt me as much as they hurt him. I kept thinking about him on the short walk home. And all night. Until I returned to his house the next morning.

"Your clothes are ready, dried and ironed," he told me. "And so is the portrait. Would you like to see it?"

The portrait turned out to be half complete. Or unfinished. The upper body was fully sketched out. But there was nothing below the waist.

"No legs?" I asked innocently.

"I focussed on your upper body only yesterday," he replied. "Do you want the rest to be completed?"

"Yes," I replied. "Of course."

"Then you have to pose again, dear. In the same clothes you were wearing yesterday. And no undergarments," he said. "It would look better without the pajama, though. You have such a tender body. The pajama hides all that beauty."

"Sir, I can't pose naked," I told him hesitantly.

"You don't have to expose yourself fully," he assured me. "Keep your private parts covered with your hands. But let me draw the rest."

I was not sure what to say. So I said nothing. A part of me wanted to say yes. The other part wanted to say no. In the end, I nodded my head.

I changed into the same kurta pajama as the previous day. Without undergarments. He stepped forward and pulled the drawstring of the pajama. Instinctively, my palms moved towards my crotch.

The pajama fell down silently on the floor. I kept both my palms closed together to cover my groin. He resumed his sketching. And I stood nervously in the middle of the studio.

It took him a long time to finish the rough sketch. By the time it was ready, my hands had started aching. He left the room to give me privacy. I quickly put on the pajama and looked at the canvas.

The old man sure knew his art. He turned an average girl like me into a sensual erotic creature. The portrait oozed oomph from every curve of the body. The strokes of his pencil made me look sultry and sizzling.

I kept waiting for him to return to the studio. But he did not. After 10-odd minutes or so, I went out to find him. And stood frozen right around the corner of the staircase.

There was a bathroom in that corner. Its door was open. And standing inside was the old man, stark naked. His right hand was moving back and forth in his crotch area. He was jerking off!

I was so shocked by that sight that I dashed back into the studio, picked up my bag, and ran out of the house. I forgot to pick up my clothes. I pushed the Scooty all the way to my apartment building. And tried to come to terms with what I had just witnessed.

I did not go back to that house for the next 2 days. The image of the 70 year old masturbating was too overwhelming. Finally, after 2 days, I gathered some courage to go back. To return his clothes and collect mine.

No more posing or modelling, I told myself. Did he get aroused by me? I kept asking myself.

He opened the door and offered an apology. "I am so sorry for what you saw the other day. I did not want you to see that. Please forgive me."

"It's ok. I was not expecting to see what I ended up seeing," I replied curtly. "I trusted you."

"I apologise. I am old, I lose control over my impulses sometimes," his old voice quivered and trembled. "I never had any bad intention. I was just trying to feel young again, I guess."

He sounded full of remorse. I felt sorry for him. Maybe his intentions were not dirty. Maybe he got horny. I decided to give him a 2nd chance.

"Let's go inside and finish the portrait," I told him against my own advice. We went to the studio and I decided to pose for him again. He had finished the portrait yesterday itself and wanted to start a new one.

He asked me politely if I would pose topless for him. With one hand across my boobs covering my nipples. Today, I did not leave the studio to undress. I just turned around with my back facing him.

I removed the kurta. Placed my left hand across both breasts covering my nipples. And raised my right hand behind my head as he wanted.

This portrait turned out to be even more alluring than the last one. He made me look like a goddess. An enchantress. Not like a girl next door.

"Let's have another one," I said. I was now feeling much more comfortable and way too excited. I wanted to see more portraits of mine.

"Will you be offended if I ask you to pose in the nude for the next one?" he asked softly. "Covering your private parts, of course."

I thought for a second and then agreed. My comfort level with the artist was increasing by the minute. I turned around and loosened the drawstring of the pajama. And kept my palms on my crotch only, leaving my boobs bare.

I turned around to face him again. My 34DD perky tits jiggled before his eyes. Completely bare. My dark brown nipples attracted all his attention.

"Please sit down on that sofa. And slightly part your legs," he said.

I did as I was told. Sat down on the sofa, fully nude. Kept my crotch covered with my hands. And opened my legs slightly.

He started sketching furiously this time. The portrait was ready in no time. But he wanted to do another. "If you don't mind, this time I would like you to sit on the sofa and lift up your knees to your chin," he said.

Now, this was slightly awkward. Lifting up my knees to my chin would make my pussy visible. I did as he wanted, and kept my slit covered with my palms. Still, I felt he probably caught a glimpse of my pussy and ass while I was positioning myself.

It took him longer to finish this one. And once it was done, he left the studio to give me some privacy. Just like the 1st day. I got dressed and peeked at the 2 portraits he had just completed.

My jaw dropped at the way he had sketched me. So sensual and seductive, carnal and voluptuous. And yes, there was the slightest glimpse of my pussyhole peeking between my fingers. So beautifully hidden that you would not notice it unless you observed carefully.

I stepped out of the room to look for him. And found him at the same spot as last time. Inside the toilet at the corner of the staircase. Masturbating with the door open.

This time, I did not run away. I did not feel repulsed. Rather, a strange feeling of compassion and acceptance took over my senses. As if I could feel for him. As if I could feel him.