CHAPTER 21 : THE LONG DRIVE

40 7 0
                                    

Chandu's point of view

We actually got holidays for 4 continuous days. I planned on going to my grandparents. It was still the first day on my holiday. I ate my lunch and went up to my room to pack my clothes. I put my bag on my bed and started stuffing it with things I need. I heard Karthik call me from the balcony. So I went out to see him leaning against the railing with his back to me. In the past few days he never bought up the topic of our dates, but it was still a little awkward for me. We sure have grown even closer after the dates. " Hey ". He turned around and gave me his signature smile and my heart fluttered at it. 

" Hey. Busy ? " " Not really. Why ? " " Just wanted to talk to you ". " Oh, okay ". " So anything special ? " " Nothing much. I thought I will pay my grandparents a visit, since I am free ". " That's nice ". " Do you have any plans ? " " No. I thought I will visit my friends, but too lazy to go that far ". I laughed at his comment. " Sure you are ". We became silent after that. Then an idea popped to my mind. " Will you come with me ? " He didn't expect me ask that question. I feel that the connection between my tongue and brain got cut, because words were flowing carelessly out of my mouth. Maybe I shouldn't have said that. " It is okay, if you don't want to ". " No. I will. If you are comfortable with it ? " " I would have never asked you if I feel uncomfortable ". " True though. So when are we leaving ? " 

" I actually planned on leaving this evening. So if you are fine with it, we can leave this evening ". " Sure. So how many days are we going to stay over there ? " " 3 days and 3 nights. 3 nights, I mean along with today. We will leave on the third day evening ". " Okay. But how are we going to go there ? " " I generally go on my bike. So if it is fine with you we can go on my bike. Because the bus takes the long route and it takes 5 to 6 hours. But on my bike I go in the shorter way, so it only takes 3 and a half to 4 hours. If you don't want to go on the bike, we can go for the bus ". " No. I am fine with going on the bike ". " Oh cool. But will it be fine ? It is a village actually. The facilities might not be that good ". It was actually a village on the rural side. My grandparents never really liked the pollution, so they opted to stay in the village after their retirement. Even I liked that place a lot. It was really peaceful. 

" Oh, come on. It is absolutely fine. I really wanted to visit a place like that. But I never really got a chance. I will really be pleased to go there ". " That's nice. Then can you be ready by 4 in the evening ? " " Yeah. I will also start packing ". " Come down by 4 then, even I'll be ready by then ". " Done ". He gave me a thumbs up and went inside. I came back to my room to continue packing. It was sure going to another new experience. It felt different to have company. I liked being alone after losing the most precious person. But he changed me, for a better cause and in a better way. I liked the change too. Since I used to go alone I preferred going on my bike, but now going with him was different. He was the first boy ever to get on my bike other than my father. It was rare that I ever gave rides to anyone, not even girls actually. Let's see where this journey is going to take me.

At 4 in the evening, I went downstairs. My mom came home early because I was leaving. I went out with my bag and parked my bike outside and closed the gate. As soon as I hopped on my bike, he came and stood beside me. " Ready to go ? " He nodded his head at me. He then sat on the back and my heart started to race equally with my bike's engine. I started the bike and there we started towards the road towards the highway and then to my grandparents house. It was not the first time that I gave him a ride, but this time was different than before. He put his hands on my shoulders and I had goose bumps all over my body at the little contact. He didn't seem to mind it. It was 8 o' clock by the time we reached my grandparents house. We had a break of 10 minutes in between, but the traffic was less. So we were able to reach on time. 

                                                          -MG  

From, to you to for you (unedited but completed)Where stories live. Discover now