B.O.A.T - Brownest of All Time

Chapter 10

I return back to my seat after talking to James. It's 1:30 pm and I still haven't got the call.

The only way to distract myself is to speak to the infant but he looks very busy reading one of his self-help books very seriously. So, I cannot disturb him too.

I open Facebook to check what's going on there to find so many relatable sad posts. As I share each of them and keep scrolling down for more, I come across yet another relationship status update of my school mate Shani. Ugh!

Now, to my knowledge, this is the fifth time she has found true love. This girl falls in and out of love too quickly and that too in a series of steps.

The first step is uploading pictures with the guy calling him "my forever" on a daily basis. Then after sometime the pictures with him will be taken down and for a week or two, sad quotes get shared instead. By the third or fourth week, the sad quotes get replaced with quotes about girl power or how awesome it is to be single or some nonsense like that. And by the time a month passes by, there appears pictures of a new guy on my timeline with the same "my forever" caption and the whole cycle repeats all over again.

God! Some people are super annoying or stupid — I don't even know at this point. Generally this is  funny content for me. But maybe the fact that Sameer hasn't called yet has made me very cranky that I'm getting angry looking at this right now.

I mean, how do you even manage to find this many guys to fall in love with? I found one for the first time and even that ends up being an uncertain one.

Even the infant reading is irritating me. I feel like he's just doing it for show-off. Maybe he's really enjoying the book but for me it feels like a stunt he's pulling to appear matured and smart in front of others.

Maybe I should get the infant into an argument about the book title. I mean, who names books "Think and Grow Rich"? As if people could become rich just by thinking of it!

Oh and the cover says it's a bestseller too. Literally, which book written by a Native English speaker isn't a bestseller? Such lies!

Oh man! I know I'm being super cranky but I can't even stop at this point. It's like one of those period mood swings.

I keep muttering under my breath, "Stupid book! Stupid Saad! Stupid Sameer! Stupid Shani! Stupid life!" when my phone finally rings and IT IS HIM!

I quickly walk out and answer the call saying, "Hi Sameer!" and his manly voice replies, "Hi babe! How's the first day of virtual dating me going?"

Wow so he wasn't pranking after all! It's real. Very much real! I mean, he just addressed me as 'babe' and called it a 'virtual date' too! What more do I need to confirm our relationship?

I am so happy right now that I feel like I can't breathe. For any emotion felt excessively I also experience shortness of breath. My whole body is dramatic I guess.

"Going good! How are things with you?" I ask. "I've been very busy at work the whole day but not a second passed by without thinking of you. I love you so much Ilhaam" replies Sameer.

I don't even know how to respond at this point. I mean, this is all so new to me. I have never been in a relationship before. I have never heard a man say such nice things to me before.

I try to control my rollercoaster of emotions and endless smiles and finally manage to say, "I love you too Sameer! I wish you were here right now." Woah saying I-love-you over the phone feels super hard. Texting is much easier.

"Me too babe. I so regret being stuck here at this special point of my life" says Sameer and there's a genuine tone of sadness in his voice. Aww my poor baby. He really loves me.