Nancy’s departure from Haresh/Harry’s life was not easy on him. Every so often he would visualise her enticing bare body. When Nancy had tickled his little one, the sensation hadn’t been half as much as he felt now, just thinking about it. Earthly pleasures were never guilt-free, only the memories were.

Memories were all he had to cling to, and fantasising was the only means to enjoy them. Hence, self-indulgence was the only way out.

When Harry’s family shifted to a three-bedroom apartment in Park Circus, Harry’s 28-year old uncle Hashu and his newly-wedded wife Bumblee moved in with them. Their room was next to Harry’s. One day he could not resist watching his uncle and aunt in the nude from behind the curtains, as the adjoining rooms shared a common balcony. This makes me a Peeping Tom, thought Harry. But, for that matter, millions who watch porn secretly fall in that category.

As he would fiddle with himself, his little one began to grow. He would imagine himself on top of Nancy, imitating his uncle atop his aunt. In the absence of porn sites or sex toys in those days, he had to make do with innovation, such as the use of pillows and towels.

One day he was caught in the act by his uncle, who was rough on him. Hashu considered masturbation immoral. Further harm was inflicted when he took his nephew for a walk in the park to impart some sex education. In an authoritative tone he told Harry to refrain from masturbation as one drop of semen was equivalent to ten glasses of milk. It would result in his blood drying up and him becoming weak and diseased. 

Harry stopped masturbating and fantasising about Nancy despite the strong urge for it. His wet dreams turned into nightmares.

The harm would have been permanent had Dilip Dada not convinced him otherwise. One day when Dilip happened to come home to meet him, Hashu, who was a habitual show-off and proud of his strength, commanded Dilip, a lad of fourteen, to a bout of arm-wrestling, which he lost miserably. This made him all the angrier and he tried every possible way to pin Dilip down, but was completely exhausted in the process and collapsed. 

Dilip, who looked quite amused, lifted Hashu from the carpet and placed him on the bed. He opened the windows to let in the fresh air and turned on the fan. After he had put a glass of water in Hashu’s hand, Dilip left the room, leaving the uncle alone to swallow his pride.

Overjoyed at the outcome, Harry followed Dilip out of the house. On being told that his uncle had little strength, Harry enquired whether it was so on account of his uncle masturbating a lot as a growing boy. Not at all, said Dilip, adding that he himself masturbated every day. Dilip had a hearty laugh when Harry recalled his uncle’s views on the subject. 

Wiser, Harry discovered new ways of masturbating. One of his favourites was under a tap with gushing water for stimulation. The discharge became thicker and opaque white. He started fantasising about his sexy aunt. His frequent Peeping Tom acts revealed all the moves she deployed to entice her husband. This made her all the more desirable.

He looked up with a start as someone appeared. Amrita, the air hostess was back with the breakfast tray. She smiled and he smiled back. His thoughts returned to his sultry-looking aunt.

To be continued…