it's okay if it's you | ishman ✓

CH: 7

"you know how they say if you spend too much time with someone, you can telepathize with them."

"no one has ever said that, ishan."

"i did. just now."

shubman stirs his coffee, not really wanting to face ishan right now. the latter seems to have no idea about the 'post-embarrassment' embarrassment that shubman's feeling right now. his brain keeps replaying the moment, dramatizing it each time just to make him suffer.

"sorry for...back there," he mumbles incoherently.

it takes ishan a moment to get what shubman's saying. "it's cool. we gang, we tight."

shubman scoffs at his ever so unserious best friend. "yeah, still. i feel bad for cockblocking."

"not your first time this week," ishan mutters.

"huh?"

"nevermind."

it's actually quite sweet of ishan to be having coffee with shubman because- "you said earlier that you wanted to have coffee, right?"

ishan would be a good boyfriend, shubman thinks. he'd never forget promises and try to make it up to you if he ever did. small things mattered to him.

"why were you going to kiss her?" shubman asks. he doesn't know where that came from, don't ask him.

ishan looks at him with amusement. "why does anyone ever kiss someone, shubman?"

"yeah, why?"

ishan pauses. "well, because...you know, for the...vibes?"

shuban almost snorts out loud. "my, my, you're a total amateur, ishu. what are you, asexual?"

ishan rolls his eyes. "and what are you, a manwhore?"

shubman gasps. "you take that back! i am not-!"

ishan shrugs and takes a sip of his americano. it's just a running joke between them, his best friend is a very nice young man, ladies.

"you're just jealous you don't have charishma like me," shubman adds.

ishan laughs. "what charishma? as if being six feet and having dimples isn't the most basic starter pack for charisma."

shubman gives ishan his best smile, putting up finger hearts. "it's alright, ishu, i love you even though you are built like a chihuahua and are three apples tall!" he says cheerfully.

ishan gives a sarcastic smile. "careful there, your words will bewitch me and make me kiss you."

shubman leans forward on his elbows. "well, what's stopping you?"

the sudden forwardness catches ishan a little off-guard. he laughs and backs away. "is that a challenge?"

shubman feels his ears growing warm. this is normal, this is normal. good old friendly banter.

"don't tempt me to make it one," he says, ignoring the weird feeling in his stomach.

ishan looks up at shubman, who's looking at him with an underlying intensity in his eyes.

what's the sudden shift in air?

as if on cue, shubman lets out a laugh.
"we have such a burning chemistry, don't we?"

ishan feels a weird sense of relief. he nods, chuckling. "putting everyone else to shame."

shubman holds out his phone to click a picture of ishan. "twitter's gonna love this. date with @ishankishan51, heart emoji, moan emoji," he says, typing.