Just you and me, Bondita

Playful Fights

Bondita watched Anirudh leave with a gentle pout before turning to face her best friend who seemed to be very excited to meet her after all these days.

"Bharathi, you don't even know how happy I am right now! I still can't believe you're right in front of my eyes, that too in Tulsipur!!!" she squealed delightedly.

Bharathi contently smiled at her and nodded his head.

"I know right! But I'm not going to lie, at one point I thought I was going to get lost here! Every time I asked a stranger on the street for your address, they just stared back at me like I was some sort of an alien! At one point, I thought I was going to have a breakdown..." Bharathi lightheartedly stressed as he used his handkerchief to wipe his sweaty forehead.

Bondita softly giggled from hearing his struggles and explained, "Well that's maybe because they didn't understand what you were saying, dumbo! I mean, come on! You nearly triggered Kaka Sasurji as well today by speaking in English, but thank God I instantly recognised you."

"Haa... yes..." he gulped from remembering the way the old man nearly killed him with his death stares, "He honestly did seem to be quite pissed with me... But it wasn't my fault! I was politely asking for your whereabouts but he looked like he was ready to attack me with his wooden cane..."

Bondita watched the miserable expression her friend pulled, as he finished speaking, and she began to gently chuckle at his state.

"Awww Bharathi! You haven't even changed a single bit ever since I left! Look at you, still shivering on your seat for the slightest inconvenience!" she calmly  grinned, "But trust me, Kaka Sasurji may look quite strict but he's a very sweet soul, so don't worry about it."

Bharathi gave a grim smile in agitation as he took in her words before pausing to admire the young girl in front of him. Bondita noticed that he was staring at her with a blank expression and she quickly waved her hands in his face to grab his attention.

"What happened? Why are you staring at me like that?" she queried curiously.

"I don't know, Bondita..." Bharathi sighed quietly, "You mentioned how I'm still the same, but look at you... you've changed a lot..."

Bondita sat straight on the chair and readjusted herself with narrowed eyes.

"What do you mean? I haven't changed much.... right?..." she asked, slightly panicking now.

"I mean of course, you're still the annoying girl from 8 years ago..." Bharathi joked, causing Bondita to playfully frown and pinch his arm.

Bharathi paused to lightly giggle at her adorable reactions before carrying on with where he left.

"...But Bondita, to be frank, I didn't even recognise you today... I honestly couldn't believe my eyes when I saw you fully... I mean, when you were in London just a couple of months ago, you looked like a small kid who could barely even pass as an adult... But now, y-you look like a fully grown woman!... This saree... the vermillion on your forehead... all these gold jewellery... everything combined is making you look sooo mature!" Bharathi spoke in awe before dramatically gasping, "You even look older than me!!!"

Bondita snorted at his speech and began to chuckle hard. Oh she surely did miss interacting with her naive friend for all these days!

"Bharathi, I am older than you though!!!" she laughed merrily.

"Yes, but that's only by like what? A month, probably? I'm trying to say that you look older than me by years!!!" Bharathi emphasised.

Bondita now held on to her hips, whilst still being seated, and playfully squinted her eyes at the young man.