First Date to Forever...

Melting Down

    Sometimes our emotions overpower our capability to think. No logic , no rational thinking can control our actions the way our emotions and our heart does. It was such a moment for Shonali. All the farewell fuss made her very emotional and she realised Sujay would be leaving soon, very soon .

    She was having a flashback of events when her first love moved to a different city and we all know how that ended. She was going through an internal battle but right now somehow her heart had convinced her that a hug from Sujay will provide her comfort and she listened!!
  
      Standing in the dimlit parking , Sujay happily took Shonali in his arms . He asked no questions and showed no surprise when she asked him to hug her. He knew it must have taken all her courage to get that guard down and ask him for a hug.

    Standing there in his embrace Shonali felt at peace. For once her mind was silent. The warmth made her feel at home. For Sujay he could not ask for anything else right now. He felt as if this was the best day of his life. He inhaled her perfume as if it was the drug his life depended on.

     After what felt like eternity they broke the hug and Sujay looked at Shonali. He noticed she had tears in her eyes. He again took her in his embrace with one hand and wiped her tears with the other one.

"Shh ! Don't cry Shonali. It will all be okay. I know it feels too much right now..." he said softly while caressing her head.

Shonali looked up at him in surprise. She hasn't said anything to him , how did he know why she was being emotional? Can he read minds ?

       After few minutes, she composed herself and wiped her eyes while Sujay gave her some water to drink. She gave a small smile to him ..

    "Sorry , I did not mean to end such a nice day like this . Its just all the farewell speech and the good byes ... They make me emotional. "

      "It's okay Shonali , infact I am happy you chose to share your feelings with me instead of hiding from me. How are you feeling now?"

"Much better. I really needed that hug. I think we should leave now . It's getting late otherwise my warden will lock me out of the hostel ! " she tried to lighten the mood.

     They sat in the car and left towards the college campus. The mood in the car was very quiet. Both of them were full of emotions. Sujay knowing he was in love had so much to say to her but he knew now was not the time . Shonali was finally accepting she has feelings for him but the fact that he was leaving was preventing her from taking any step towards him.

"So when are you leaving ? " Shonali broke the silence .

"Saturday... "
" Oh so you have only 5 days left here .."
"Yes"
" How's the packing going on ? "
"Good"

    There was silence in the car again . Both of them had so much to say , to ask but had no idea how to start.

"Will you be coming to college this week ? I mean you must have a lot to get done before leaving.."

"Do you want me to come ? " Sujay asked curiously.

Seeing a surprised Shonali he quickly added " Just kidding! But I will have to come down to submit some assignments for our Indian credits this semester. Other than that I won't have to attend any lectures so I am not sure if I will come everyday this week...."

"Ohh.. " Shonali replied softly. Something had changed in her today. She wanted to spend more time with him but her mind was stopping her.
     Sujay let out a sigh knowing well that the current mood needs to be changed else they will spend the entire ride back in silence or small talk.

" Do you want me to bring anything for you ? Sarika has provided a huge list but I am sure we will be able to pick up few things for you ! " He joked .

Shonali chuckled at his comment.
" No no , I am sure she is going to keep adding to her list so you won't have place for your own stuff forget bringing something for anyone else ! "

They both had a good laugh at this.

"It was nice meeting your sister today Sujay. I didn't feel like I was meeting her for the first time."

"Oh please ! I am so sorry I know she made you uncomfortable. She just loves troubling me . I shouldn't have told her anything !" he said the last line more to himself .

"I found it amusing !" Shonali chuckled . "You must miss her alot ? I could see how happy you were in her presence."

Sujay smiled at her comment. If only she knew the real reason for his happiness.
" I do miss her sometimes. She is fun to be around if she is not taking my case ! " He chuckled .

"Why is she not staying at home if she works in the same city ? " She asked absentmindedly and then she soon realised maybe she is prying too much.

" Oh I am so sorry I didn't mean to ask that, you don't have to answer that. " She quickly added.
She could see his expressions had changed. He really do miss her and the reason for her to leave her own house must be hard for him to get over. Everything was going fine you had to ruin it Shonali, she scolded herself mentally.

"No , it's okay. I think it was for the better that she moved out. She had a major argument with my dad. She is very ambitious you know. She has her own startup with one of her friends and they have managed to bring in good investments . You should really ask her about her work. You will see a different shine in her eyes... "
Shonali could see how proud Sujay is of his sister.
"Unfortunately my dad cannot see this. He thinks she is a girl after all, she is supposed to get settled and have a family and not run after investors and attend business meetings. I mean we both love our dad and we appreciate all he has done for us but he could never really accept what we want for ourselves. He already has our lives planned out for us ..." he sighed.

     "Parents are difficult to understand. They love us to no limits but sometimes they may fail to see why we want something for ourselves. I think part of it is that they do not want to accept that their kids aren't really 'kids' anymore." Shonali tried to reason with him.
      "But what Shruti is doing is commendable and also she has this amazing brother to support her! I am sure one day uncle will also see her efforts and realise how wrong he is in underestimating her and that day he may surpass you as her biggest cheerleader! " She tried to calm the situation.

Sujay smiled at her optimism,  " I hope that day comes soon .."
"Your hostel is here .. " He said while bringing the car to a halt. They did not realize they had reached the destination.

Both of them did not want to leave yet. Surprisingly even Shonali wanted to spend more time with him. Her plan to stay away from him was out of the window for today it seems.
" I don't want to go back to the hostel today .." She said dejectedly.
"Then don't go !" Sujay immediately exclaimed.

They both looked at each other as if trying to have a mental conversation. Shonali was torn between her heart and her mind and Sujay had this longing in his face as if he would die if she left today !!

Shonali sighed and picked up her phone "Give me a minute " she said and stepped out from the car while leaving an impatient Sujay inside ....