HIS SOLACE HER ARMOR

CHAPTER 14- ANSWER

Time is very mystical. As much science and theory states that it's uniform, emotional parts of people would think that's absolutely crap. Sometimes time goes faster than ever. An hour seems like a minute and sometimes it feels so slow. Even a moment seems forever.

Tejasswi felt the same. The entire day flew in a whoosh. No clue about anything but that one moment froze her entire soul. Rooted her to her spot.

Will you be my girlfriend?

Shock was an understatement to what Tejasswi felt at that moment. Never in million years would she think that Karan would come out of the blue and ask her to be his girlfriend.

She was dreaming. She definitely was. She pinched herself and hoped that she would not feel the pain and she would wake up and laugh it off as a joke in her journal somewhere.

What she didn't expect was a shooting pain in her arms. That rose. At the exact spot she pinched herself. Her eyes widened and then she knew. At that moment she knew. This wasn't a dream. He had been really asking her. He really did ask it loud. He did ask her to be his girlfriend.

She turned towards him to find him looking at her. She focused on nothing but his eyes. There was concern and fear. She could see the perspiration from his forehead drip down despite the car being air conditioned. She looked keenly and saw something she hoped to not find.

She saw truth. The absolute truth reflecting in his eyes.

Realisation started to sink in. He wasn't joking. He really did want her to be his girlfriend. Not a single cell in him was joking about this and she understood that. Loud and clear.

The realisation soon became panic. Why her? Was it just a lapse of moment? He had a reputation for a Playboy so was it a one time thing or a temporary fling? What was it? She had no clue. As much as herself wanted to know this some part of her didn't. What if whatever she thought was right? She really wasn't perfect and she wasn't perfect girlfriend material either then how was she at this end of the question? And that too asked from her crush. What soup was she in?

"Why me?" The question slipped off her mouth. It was like a mere whisper that was left abandoned amidst the dominating voices of people yelling at each other and then the blaring horns. Karan yet never failed to not listen to her.

The moment the words left his lips, he cursed himself. Wasn't that just something he wanted to avoid? Wasn't that the thing he was afraid of? Wasn't it the fear of her slipping off his fingers that made his feelings go to the deepest pit. To be coffined forever.

No. A small trigger was enough. What surprised him was, it was her drinking water bottle? No-one asks someone to be their girlfriend like that. Everyone expects something magical something elegant. Not some words thrown at them. No-one would accept it in their right senses.

Why didn't he wait for any grand gesture? Why was it in midst of cars. It wasn't a public affair. It was as private and as simple as possible. Wasn't he the one who went all in? Where did all that go when he asked her? He has no clue.

Every inch of him shuddered as he looked into her eyes. The intensity it carried. The carefulness it held. The curiousity it lined up with made his gulp. His Adam apple bobbed and perspiration dripped down. He was terrified.

He wished he didn't tell her but what's the purpose? Kill him within and not bear the thought of her being nothing more to him? What basic sense did that make? Also he knew she was mature enough. She wouldn't leave him and go off just like that.

A part of his heart clenched. Though what she's mature? She has all the right to slap him hard across his face and walk out. The slapping part didn't freak him out. The walking away part did that job.