Chapter 9

Suha Brar

I opened my eyes slowly. The dark shade of the night had faded away. The waves are flowing gently on the shore. Winter nights are just too slow. It was cold out there but there was an unusual warmth around me. It was the warmth Vihaan was providing me in his arms.

Wait a sec. It's about to be morning. I looked at my watch and it was 5 a.m. The milkman and newspapermen were already on the road. Vihaan was awake. His eyes demanded sleep but he forced them to stay put. He gave me a smile, "Good morning, Suha."

"When did I sleep," I mumbled trying to sit straight as he helped me.

"Around 2:15," came the answer.

"You should've woken me up."

"I couldn't. You look like a child cuddling in my arms, just adorable. Well, just not that. Something way better. I'll tell you when I find that word," he gave me a mischievous look. He looks so cute.

"I'm sorry... You shouldn't take so much trouble for me."

"Why shouldn't I?"

"I don't know... Maybe... Because... We barely know each other?"

"I know you pretty well. Not so well but well enough to hang out with you," he snapped back.

"Oh!"

"So I'm still a stranger?" he asked curiously.

"Not exactly. I'll give it a better name, I said brainstorming. "Umm, yea! We are... Late-night-marine-drive-buddies!

"That's cool LNMD buds, huh?"

"Yeah.."

LNMD buds? Like seriously? From where did that come? And did he just buy that? Wow! I just don't believe me! But I'm kinda glad that he didn't question me and played along with my lame game. I guess I was pretty creative, though.

"So, how are you going home," he asked in a low voice.

"My car," I pointed at a Prussian blue colored Volkswagen.

"You sure you'll drive your way back home?" I nodded. "Let Me drive you," he insisted.

"No, it's ok."

"Look at you... You need a driver. I don't need news flashing everywhere about a beautiful girl passing away in an accident on her way home," he chuckled. I handed him the keys with a few giggles.

Vihaan Kashyap

We reach her place after an hour's drive. Well, her house is a bungalow. One of the most beautiful ones I've ever seen. The gate of the bungalow opens as the watchmen salute her with a sly smile. The driveway has a beautiful verandah on either side. Trees bearing flowers are all I see.

Through the garden, there is a bungalow. It reminds me of my house back in Delhi but this one is definitely bigger than mine. "You've got a beautiful house," I said, still taking in the big beautiful picture of the place. 'She could be a rich brat,' I tell myself. She doesn't behave like one though. She's simple, cute, and bubbly.

"Thanks," she said.

I told her to hold on as I walked out of the car and opened the door for her. I gave her my hand and she held it while walking out. "Now, you're a gentleman," she winked.

"Always," I said, giving a tap on my imaginary hat. I'll thank my mum for my behavior. She made me do all the things a gentleman did and I thought it was a punishment. The worst was holding the doors for everyone till they entered especially the senior citizens because they are just so slow and I was a kid and way too restless. Hence, holding the car door for a lady was one of the mannerisms she taught us. I thought that I wouldn't use it in a way to impress a girl. I suppose my mum has brought up her kids very well.

I followed her to the front door which she opened with a key. "Why don't you ring the bell," I asked her.

"Because no one's home," she answers as the door finally opens. She brought me to her house when no one was at her place. She trusts me, I suppose.

We walked further in. "Make yourself at home," she said as she disappeared into a room while I was looking at the house. Her house is colored in the shades of white and cream and I suppose the whole furniture is made of wood. Mahogany maybe.

I walk into the living room where I see this huge frame. It's a selfie clicked by her having her parents in it. Next to this big frame, there are many others in different sizes and shapes. It's like a memory line. Her baby pictures. Her school pictures. Her teenage years. Her family and school trips. Man! Her parents have beautifully captured her whole life. Obviously, they love her to the core. She is their only child. She seems to be like a princess. Scratch that. She is a princess.

"That's our Photo gallery," she said coming to the hall with two coffee mugs. I can smell it till here.

"Is that you in the diapers," I asked pointing at one of the pictures.

"Yes," she said. I laughed. She giggled an embarrassed one.

"You're so cute in that. I mean. Look at you! You're so chubby. There's this red color on your cheek. That picture? That's a joker's nose, eh? Your curls! They suit you so well. I never thought they were original," I kept on saying. I just couldn't resist talking.

She stares at me with a smile pasted on her face.

"What," I ask her.

She shook her head, "Nothing." I took the coffee from her hand. "If Dev makes amazing tea then I make the best coffee. Try it. You'll love it," she said.