By your side

Chapter 5 - Jack and Jill went up the hill

With an inquisitive expression on his face, the new guy narrowed his eyes and peered at me. He had a commanding presence because he was tall, had broad shoulders, and looked gorgeous. He stood out because he was wearing a white t-shirt. I had the impression I'd seen him before. I was so engrossed in staring at him that I didn't realise someone was introducing us.

He reached out his hand. "My name is Ishaan Shekhawat."

"Adya Mathur," I said.

"Nice to meet you," he said with a smile.

Suddenly, I recognised him. That flawless jawline was impossible to forget. He turned out to be the same person I'd seen in Phoenix a few months before. I hadn't had the chance to look into his eyes when we last spoke, and I didn't want to take my gaze away from him now. He had the most beautiful hazel-coloured eyes.

"I know you," I couldn't help but say.

He had a wicked grin on his face. "Please excuse me. Do you know who I am? I had the impression that we just met."

"You look familiar." I stammered.

"Interesting." His smile grew wider. "Perhaps you saw me in your dream?"

When I realised I had been staring at him for too long, my cheeks flushed with embarrassment. "No, sorry," I replied, hoping to hide my nervousness. "Perhaps I am mistaken."

Shweta intervened before I could make a bigger fool of myself.

"I know Adya is nice, but we need to move out."

I noticed we were still holding hands. When I realised this, he almost immediately let go of my hand, and we quickly left the house.

Shweta uttered to me in a low tone, "Damm, he is a walking wet dream."

I couldn't help but laugh at Shweta's comment. "Shhhh, keep it low."

"I'm willing to bet that Priya, our resident boy magnet, will have her eyes on him."

"Good for her." I gave a curt reply. I didn't like that idea.

Our eventual stop was the Singhgarh fort. I was sitting in the back seat of someone's car. Ishaan was travelling on a bike. And Priya was in the passenger seat.

"Did you see the way she jumped on his bike?" Shweta grumbled. "How desperate."

I had no interest in Shweta at all. I was thinking of different ways to identify him. Would it be strange if I introduced myself as the person whom he saved from a weirdo?

If he were not the correct guy, this conversation would seem absurd and embarrassing.

We soon arrived at the Sinhgad Mountains' base. A day at Singhal Fort is like a day at the park. The ascent is easy, and on a nice day, there are many hikers moving up and down the trail in both directions.

The sky was cloudy, and the vegetation was lush and vibrant because of the weather. Our group's members were scattered throughout the trail. Ishaan appeared to have travelled quite a distance ahead of me on the trail. He was the type of person who would easily stand out in a crowd. I could hear him giggling and cracking jokes with Gaurav ahead of me.

"It's actually a blessing that he's not with Priya!" My feelings of envy surprised me.

I made it all the way up the hill without incident. Despite catching Ishaan looking at me frequently, I could not engage him in conversation. We eventually made it to the top, but it was drizzling by then. We were exhausted and panting the entire journey. As I looked down, I noticed the breathtaking view below.