Intimate Encounters | ✓

one

Ananya was working on her first full-length novel.

She had read a shit ton of books that people told her would help in improving her craft, she had gone to writing workshops on the weekends and tried to write as many short stories as she could in her spare time at the office.

She still hadn't completed the first page of her novel though. It didn't look like much to people (not that she was planning on telling anyone before she at least had the first draft ready), but they didn't know all that went on behind the scenes.

She was looking forward to spending some time by herself, accompanied by warm ginger tea, cozy socks, and her worn blanket. She had chosen her retreat window carefully. Before the mandatory Christmas week leave began, her last day of working had ended on Friday. She took a day to pack for the retreat and then for her stay with her parents. Come Sunday morning, she was off on a plane to Pune, which she had pre-booked her ticket for, more than 2 months ago.

She landed in Pune at brunch time. Her phone's lock screen displayed 10:45 am. She had planned on booking an Airbnb once she landed in Pune. Or maybe one of the hostels that she had forgotten the name of. She had never done this before but had come to know that it was fairly easy to find an available Airbnb or a hostel room on the spot. She did have some acquaintances and friends in Pune, but she was trying to avoid all known human contact for the next 2 days, if possible.

A rickshaw took her from the airport to the area of the city she wanted to go in. She pulled her travel bag along with her as she settled in an old ratty chair in the middle of the crowded restaurant. Quickly ordering a dosa, she began her search for a good, non-suspicious looking Airbnb. Her dosa arrived fairly quickly, the banana leaf plate containing green coconut chutney too. A sudden "Hey!" made her look up from her phone and her plate; her body filling with dread and anticipation at the same time.

Amol Pandey had certainly aged well. Ananya remembered him as this scrawny kid who preferred to sit with his tight-knit group of 4 friends during lunch, and kept mostly to himself unless it was some fun arts and crafts activity. While they had been friends in school, they had briefly lost touch then reconnected via Instagram. She had seen his pictures on his Instagram, of course, but seeing him in person was charming in a different way altogether. The last conversation they probably had was a few days ago when he was telling her about an awkward date of his with a Delhi based travel vlogger.

She shook herself out of her stupor, her eyes still slightly wide as she looked at Amol a couple of tables away. He smiled at her as he requested the waiter in front of him to shift slightly to the right so he could squeeze through the narrow space between the chairs and tables to reach hers. She reminded herself to smile as he reached her table.

"Hi!" He smiled once more, his eyes wrinkling at the sides, beneath his glasses.

"Hey," She thought it was only polite to get up and motion for him to sit down on the other chair at her table. She still hadn't finished her dosa, so she even gestured to it as she continued, "Let's get something for you---"

"No, no, no. It's cool." He sat down on the chair opposite her, his jeans-clad knees brushing hers ever so slightly. "I actually had a late breakfast and was just out running some errands. I saw you through the window there and for a moment, I didn't know if it was really you. Aren't you currently in Bengaluru for your job?"

Ananya wiped her hands and mouth on a tissue paper, and nodded, "Yes, I'm currently in Bangalore for my job."

He sat back up straighter and frowned, "So you're here to visit family? Your parents?"

She shook her head, "No, they shifted to Nashik a year ago, actually. Said that's where most of our relatives are, and since I'm in Bangalore..." Her words trailed off, she didn't know why she felt the need to tell so many details.

He nodded in understanding, "Ah. That's cool. So..." He grinned at her slightly, shrugging his shoulders as if asking a silent question but not wanting to spell it out. Ananya found herself grinning too; confused. Amol chuckled, "What are you doing in Pune?"

"Oh," Ananya moved her gaze from his face to his hands, which were resting on the table, as she thought about how much she wanted to tell. "I'm just here...to get some writing done."

"Okay." He drew out the word, looking at her in amusement. "Either way, it's great to see you after a long time in person. It's been years, right?"

"Yeah. It's good to see you too." She sighed and smiled.

An awkward silence passed. There were seldom awkward silences when they talked on call or through chat. Ananya found herself asking, "Your photography business going well?"

He sighed and shrugged, "It's been going steady."

Another beat of silence passed. "You sure you don't want to order anything?"

He raised his eyebrows and looked at her half-eaten dosa, and shook his head, "No, thank you. But..." He pulled his lower lip with his teeth, contemplating something before blurting out a jumble of words. Ananya's eyebrows furrowed as she made the universal facial expression of I don't understand a word. He repeated, this time more slowly and clearly, "I live 5 minutes walking from here, uh, do you want to come up to my flat and catch up? I mean, I'd like it, we're meeting after years, after all. Talking on social media isn't the same." She didn't answer for a moment and he rushed to continue, "If you're not busy, of course."

She stumbled over her response, not knowing what to do or what to tell the man in front of her, "Uh...I was actually first planning on freshening up, and then getting lunch." At that moment, the butterflies in her stomach were more decisive than her brain.

"Oh." His gaze drifted to her travel bag that sat near her feet, "You came here directly from the airport?" She nodded. He continued, "Where are you planning on staying?"

"Uh. I haven't yet decided that. I was actually just looking at some affordable options on Airbnb."

He chuckled and looked at her with a cocked eyebrow, "Why are you searching for an Airbnb? That shit is expensive and overrated here. I've heard hostels are good for a short stay."

"Yeah, but are they safe?" He shrugged, "I think so. No idea, never tried one myself."

She looked at the time on her phone. 11:20 am. "How about this---" She looked up, only to find Amol's eyes on her face already as he smiled, "---you can continue your search for a place and at the same time, freshen up at my place. I'll make us some lunch and we can catch up."

She took her sweet time to decide. She wouldn't have to go out for lunch, he sounded like he knew how to cook or at least knew his way around the kitchen, she did feel a sudden pull of nostalgia on seeing someone from school after so many years.

Coming to a decision, she smiled and responded, "Okay, that sounds good."

******