Neel Kashyap developed a crush on Niyati Patel when he was in primary school. She was the one with the longest hair and he adored her curly mane. That crush however faded when Neel wrote his first love letter and it ended up reaching her brother.
A...
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It was one of those moments where everything else was quiet- everything, except for my stupid little heart. I could hear the rapid beating in my ears as if they were the drums played in a music concert. We were standing at the door of the ATM and I was panting like a dog. The cold wasn't helping either. It took everything in me to not chatter in front of Niyati. Because, in all honesty, she stood her ground and didn't seem bothered by the weather.
I took a minute to just stare at her and she did the same. A gust of wind blew past us and Niyati's ringlets danced to it. They weren't as black as they used to be, nevertheless they hadn't lost their charm.
But, her eyes. I remembered those eyes. They appeared to be black when they were actually dark brown. They were clear as crystals- like they had never cried or lost sleep. The eyes that only had dreams and were untouched by reality.
Niyati was intently staring at me. Curiously eyeing me up and down. What was she thinking, I wondered. Did she know the details about me the way I knew about her? Did she recognize the stitches on my forehead that appeared when I met with a road accident during college? Or the fact that my ring finger was cut off when I got bit by a snake? I guess not.
"That was a lot of effort you took to catch upto me." Her left hand hid the smile that crept on her lips.
"You have never been an easy one." I scratched my head awkwardly.
"As persistent as ever, I see." She shook her head mostly to herself.
"Old habits die hard," I shrugged.
"It is good to see you, Neel," she said. "We have a lot to catch up. You want to grab a coffee?"
I feigned to think about it for a while. Then, with a serious tone, I said, "This is one in a million situation where I am given an option to turn you down and we will be even." She furrowed her brows. "But, I'll never be able to do that. So where to, miss?" I laughed.
Her eyes grew wide as she realized what I had done. She smacked my arm as she said, "No wonder you were into theater those days!"
I chuckled.
"Come on, let's go." She pulled me by my arms to walk with her.
"Wait," I stopped her. "It is still raining. He is being as stubborn as you."
"Are you saying we wait here all day?" She looked through her phone for a minute before tucking it back into her bag. "Well, let's just take an auto. And, that rude remark you just made, I'll take it as a compliment."
"We will head back to the restaurant and pick my car. You didn't give me a chance to do it." We headed towards an auto that stood in front of the mall. "Atria?" I asked the driver and he nodded.
