The Wrong Number

53

Alankrita leaned against the wall and peered into the arch to the living room. She saw her parents and several other adults talking to each other, some with glasses of wine in their hands. She hoped she was out of view.

Every few months or so, her parents would host a potluck dinner and invite their friends and colleagues. Whenever they did so, her father would crack open a bottle or two from his vintage wine stash and her mother would try to outdo herself in the kitchen. However, whenever the guests came over, Alankrita would try her best to stay in her room without having to come out and talk to them. She didn't know why, but she found it quite intimidating to be bombarded with questions about her plans for the future by people who believed that the world's options were simply to become an engineer or a doctor or end up unemployed.

So far, she'd gotten through the night unnoticed by the guests, who had been told she was in her room studying for a 'very important test'. Before the guests had arrived, she'd convinced her mother to let her order a pizza for herself and was now waiting impatiently at the door for it to arrive.

Her stomach grumbled and as if on cue, the doorbell rang. She reached for the handle and pulled it open with a grin... only to have to have it shrink when she saw Ruhan at the door. "What are you doing here?" she asked confused, as they hadn't made plans to meet that day.

From the dining room she heard her mother say, "No, no, Alankrita will get the door. It's probably her pizza."

Ruhan must have picked up the disappointment in Alankrita's voice, because he said, "I can go if it's a bad time."

Alankrita shook her head and explained, "I just wasn't expecting you. Come in," she stepped aside and let him in. He was wearing a turtleneck sweater and some camouflage cargo pants, making her instantly regret her choice of hello kitty pajama bottoms. Hearing some conversation coming from the living room, he turned and raised an eyebrow at her questioningly. "My parents have guests over. If you tip toe we can make it to my room without being spotted."

He didn't question her orders and followed her quietly up the stairs and into her room. "Make yourself at home," she said, gesturing to her tidy-as-always room. Ruhan looked around, deciding where to sit, and settled on the chair next to her desk. She swung herself onto the bed and sat with her legs crossed, staring at him expectantly. "So..." she trailed off into silence.

He pursed his lips. He knew what she was wondering. He decided to put her mind at rest. "I just wanted to come over, you know?" he said, "I mean, I am your boyfriend so it's kind of weird if the only reason I come over is to study."
"Oh, yeah, I get it," she said, even though she hadn't the foggiest idea why he'd suddenly shown up at her place at that hour, "Isn't it too late for you to be out? How did your parents let you go out after seven?"

Ruhan's expression darkened and his gaze flickered from Alankrita to the floor and then back at her. "They don't really care as long as I'm home when they need me," he said bitterly, and she felt some regret tugging at her insides. For the first time since he showed up at her house, she actually observed him. There was something a little off about his posture- he was sitting too erect, his back too stiff to seem comfortable. "Are you sure you're alright? You seem kind of stiff," she remarked, wincing at him. He shook his head, but he did it carefully, as if he'd pulled a cord. "Basketball injury," he replied.

"Really?"
She received a nod from Ruhan, but she wasn't entirely convinced because he avoided her eyes the whole time. Just then, when he twitched his head to the left involuntarily, she caught sight of a little sliver of red skin peeping over the top of the neck of his sweater.

"Ruhan," she said, her eyes narrowing, "What's that on your neck?"
Ruhan played dumb and shook his head. She crossed her arms and frowned. Ruhan sighed. "Okay, you got me," he said in a low tone, "but what I show you is a secret, alright? You can't tell anyone."