Love In Two Cities [COMPLETED]

7-Guilty?

'Are you Pud-Jaa?' The short white kid with apple cheeks and curly hair looks up at Pooja.

'Yes...' she puts on her best possible smile. 'And you are...?'

'This is for you' he smiles, revealing his gaped front teeth, holding out a pretty golden colour bakery parcel box. She takes it doubtfully. Before she can ask the kid anything, he runs across the garden and is out of her sight.

Pooja frowns, slumping her shoulders slightly, and looks at the box. It has a postcard size handmade lavender paper stuck on it with crawly letters scribbled in unruly form.

Hey,

Well, you didn't have your dessert yesterday.

Phelan

She pulls out the paper which reveals the calligraphy letters printed on the box in deep purple.

Rolls n' Cream

Inside it is the most delicious-looking red velvet cake slice ever.

She immediately straightens up.

What a cheek! She fumes. Sending this to my doorstep, that too by some random kid. As if it is a cute patch-up gift or something!

Her first thought is to fling it so far across the road that it lands at the Anderson's doorstep. Instead, she clutches the box tighter, and closes the door. She enters the kitchen, finds out that her aunt isn't lodging there, and opens the fridge. It is closed quickly after pushing the cake box into the innards of the refrigerator, behind the huge plastic bag of yellow and green bell peppers.

And just then, the landline rings. Pooja walks over, wondering who is the one to call at eight in the morning, and picks up the cordless receiver. 'Hello?'

'Hey' the rich, velvet voice on the other side is unmistakable.

She gasps just a little, looks around, and whispers into the microphone. 'You?'

'How are you sure about me being the "you"?'

A million thoughts dart at her at once. Should she just bang the receiver down? No, he might think I'm a coward. Or a sulky idiot. He shouldn't know that I cried. Well, he should right? He has to feel sorry. Wait, how does it even matter to me if he does? Oh, I'm going crazy. First, let Dhruva not appear now and start smirking at me, on top of everything.

'Wait' she says as she flings the front door open and gets into the garden. Lounging near the window of the living room, she demands, 'What?'

'Did you receive the parcel?'

'Yes' her voice is stiff. 'I'm not touching your little peace offering, if you think I'm going to eat it or something'

'Look, apparently, things didn't turn out good yesterday' he says politely. 'I was irritated for some reason, I was drunk..'

'So you do such things when you are drunk?'

'Pud-Ja, you need to listen' Phelan says calmly.

'My name is Pooja. P-O-O-J-A. Pooja. And why should I listen? I cried the entire night because of you and got swollen eyes. Had to apply kajal before getting out of my room, even before taking a bath, so that Saru doesn't find out' she blurts out before she can stop herself.

'You had to what?' he sounds adorably confused.

Pooja wants to strangle him that very instant. 'Forget it. What do you want?'

'Bella dumped me for that shortie brother of yours. Something had gotten over me. I just wanted to make her regret it'

'First of all, my brother isn't short!' Pooja is incredulous. 'He 5'5". And you are not 6'2" or something!'