The Roommate Agreement

Chapter 4

My routine was pretty simple, wake up, get ready for office, work, come back home, talk with mom, eat and sleep and of course REPEAT. Days and weeks passed like this. After 2 months I have almost known the areas, I have asked my colleague which area is better to stay nearby office, they suggest me Indiranagar, which is not far from the office and also nearby Jhanvi's house. Now it's time to go back to the notifications, I decide. In the evening I call on the number, a girl picks up and says "Hello", " Hi, I just saw your ad regarding roommate on the group, is it still available?", No sorry, you are late it is filled now, yesterday itself it got filled. Oh ok, no problem Thanks I say and cut it immediately. Then I dial the second number, no one picks up and I don't redial. I try the third one, "Hello", I repeat the same thing and the girl said someone is shifting today, but if any other occupancy she will let me know. I said thanks and cut the call. I feel bad, there were only 3 ads and none of them was available. Staying with relatives is not bad, even if you try hard you can't be in your own skin, you just need to pretend everything is good all the time. I came out of my comfort zone so I can live independently, I can't just live with someone who is always doing things for me, it feels an obligation already.

I reach home and rest myself on the couch, I get a notification on my phone, it's Veera, she invites me to her place for night out. Now I will have to first seek for my parent's permission and then Jhanvi and Niket's permission. I decided to call my Dad, he doesn't pick up. I call Mom she picked after a few rings, she is confused to see my phone at an unusual time. Hello, Baani is everything ok? What happened? Mom just calm down yourself first, nothing has happened. I want your permission for a night out, you know my friend Veera, she has invited me to her place, we are not clubbing, just staying at her place for tonight and tomorrow morning we all colleagues have planned to visit Nandi Hills, we will return by afternoon, will be at Jhanvi's place in the evening. Yes yes sure you can join, don't worry I will inform Dad, click some pictures and do send us. Yes definitely. I message Veera that I will reach in an hour, I inform Jhanvi not to prepare dinner for me and describe her about my short trip with colleagues, she is very happy. Also, I sense she and Niket will have some space now, after my arrival they both have been looking after me and I feel bad sometimes but now all is well.

I pack my clothes and other essentials. I book a cab for Marathalli, in the cab I think about how amazing this place is, people are cool, I have some good people around me, I feel blessed. I reach Veera's place, I ring the doorbell and find her in her black spaghetti top and denim shorts, I have never seen her like this, she looks beautiful, I praise her, Aha! Someone is looking different today, what happened to your casual look. Oh, that, it's just in the office, you have to look sober you know she winked. I place my bag in her room, her place has large windows, the view is very pleasing, she has made cold coffee for me, I just love it I said, I know babe she replied. After sipping the delicious coffee, there was a little chance of tete-a-tete with Veera. It included who is dating who in the office, her boyfriend living in Chennai, looking for an opportunity to move here. The first time they made love, how special it was, she asked me whether I have someone in life or not, I blushed a bit first, No I don't have any, I just had a crush on my classmate in school but he was in a relationship with someone else, so it's the end of the story. In college, some guys approached me, but I didn't date them, I was too consumed with studied. Oh never mind maybe here you can date them, just try a blind date or try some dating apps she recommended.

Ah! No Dating Apps, it's too confusing, can't decide anything with a left or right swipe. Everyone looks good in the picture and whatever they write, I mean everyone writes good things about oneself, even they don't mean it, so it's difficult to decide who is good and who is not. Oh, common Baani, you are getting too serious, just enjoy life sometimes, no harm in healthy flirting, I guess you like our team leader, why don't you ask him out for a coffee. Yes I like him, he is kind of attractive, whenever I look at him, he reminds me of Jamie Dornan, I love his biceps, his beard, his eyes are too intense to look in to. Woah! Someone has done some homework it seems, she nudges me. My other colleague Samir, messages in the group, a reminder to all of you please be ready by 5 AM, pick up point HAL Old Airport Road, everyone sends thumbs up in the group. We had Dosa and Sambhar, it was authentic in taste, the best Dosa I ever had. I draped quickly into track pant and sports tee, we set our alarm at 4 AM, wishes each other Good night.

The next morning we get ready, she wears black mid-rise jeans and a white tee, sports shoes, her hair open, she applies eyeliner and lip gloss. I wear a white crop top and black flowy pants. I don't tie my hair and keep them open. We get some selfies, she pouts in few and poses like a star. I have never tried pouting, I just smile that glitters our pictures. We reach the pickup point, our colleagues are waiting for us, our ride begins towards the hill. There is less traffic in the city, which lightens up everyone's faces. During the ride, some love mashups soothe our soul, we sing together, we laugh, we are about to reach Nandi Hills, the roads have sharp turns and steep sides, we keep our windows closed, my colleague said to be aware of monkeys, they are aggressive here.

We reach around 6:15 AM, we park the car at the top. The sun rises, it was the magnificent view sunrise between the clouds, we just can't take our eyes off, we silently enjoy the nature's blessing. I feel I am moving with clouds. I breathe in the fresh air, I wish to I could inject in this beautiful fresh wind in a bottle, pack it and keep it with me. We click a few selfies, some of them trying their photography skills and few of them taking pictures with sunrise and mountain. We all decided to wear white and black, we click group photos and few of them have already uploaded it on social media with filters and captions, people today are really good at using them, I and Veera smirked. We visit to temple and finish our trip having coffee and snacks at the restaurant. We enjoyed our trip to fullest, we grab our seats back in the car and leave back home. Once we reach the pickup point, I and Veera go back to her house, while the rest of the plans to visit the Mall. Once we reach her house, she asks me whether I got an apartment to stay or not, she suggests me to stay with her because her roommate anyways escapes to her boyfriend's place. I don't mind but let me first try if I don't then I will join you, also you can ask your roommate, I have met her once, she seems very self-centred but who cares when you are there for me. Yes, good idea I will ask her when she is back.

We relax, we play Sex Education Season 1 which is trending now on Netflix. We swoop ourselves in bed, relaxing our body and ready to go on another ride. The series is hilarious, there are some heartwarming, first pumping moments, whereas there some laugh out loud moments too. In the evening I book a cab and leave to my home, I get a notification on my phone. Please call on this number if you are looking for an apartment, a roommate needed, the house is Indiranagar, I click on the ad, the house seems perfect, it has 2 bedrooms, living room, kitchen, all amenities like Wifi and kitchen essentials placed. It seems God is showering blessings on me, I quickly save the number and decide to call after reaching home.