Only Mine
Chapter 20: Belong Together

There was a lazy stillness in the afternoon air, even the leaves on trees found it difficult to move, the waves in sea mocked the weather, and the dust on floor rose with footfalls only to settle again. Sameer huffed as they walked all the way back to the fort entrance, and Naina also started to feel thirsty again. She panted, “I feel like taking a bath once again.”

He grabbed her hand, smirking, “sure… you can do that at home… only condition is that I join you.”

She stomped his foot, this time successfully, and he laughed, happy to see a glimpse of old Naina. Given the humid afternoon heat Sameer insisted on taking a taxi rather than traveling by local again. She readily agreed, and once they reached all the way down to the main road they bought a new bottle of water.

As they sat in the taxi, she grumbled, “why is it so hot today?”

Sameer chuckled, “it’s summer honey… it’s bound to be hot. Plus you should be happy.”

She quirked a brow, “why so?”

“The hotter it gets the earlier rain arrives”, he informed.

She grinned, “that is true… But still there’s a few weeks. What do you plan to do for vacation?”

He opened his backpack, “we will discuss that later… for now, I wanted to give you this, but didn’t get a chance at the fort.”

She took the small gift from his hand, her smile dimming a little. He frowned, “what is it? You haven’t even seen what I got and you are already sad.”

She shook her head, looking at him, “it’s not that. This is our fourth proper date, and you always bring me gifts… Plus you get flowers every single day. Why?”

Puzzled he queried, “you don’t like it?”

She kept the box on her lap and tried to explain, “I like it Sameer… but it is not necessary… On the first date, yeah… But why daily? Is there some reason?”

“I like giving flowers and gifts to you”, he reasoned. She smiled, “and? I can tell there’s something more…”

He rubbed the back of his head, his eyes shifting away from her, “I… I just want to be the ideal boyfriend for you… and I won’t be if I don’t give you gifts. A gentleman does it… right?”

She let out a surprised laughter, “oh Sameer…” When he pouted, she calmed down and explained, “you already are a gentleman… your character and attitude makes you that. Gifts are just a form of expression… You give it when you want to, to express something that you want.”

“But girls like it when boys give gift, and they expect it”, he countered.

She shrugged, “maybe you are right. There are many girls who would expect their boyfriends to give gifts every time they meet. But there are other girls out there too…”

He thought for a moment and asked, “so what do you expect?”

She smiled, holding his hand, “you don’t have to buy me anything, just be there when I need you.”

He further quizzed, “and how do I do it?”

“You are already doing it”, she replied softly.

He frowned, “and that’s all you want from me?”

“For now, yes”, she assured, “if there comes a time when I want something more from you, I shall ask.”

He nodded, and then smiled, “okay… no gifts from next date… but at least open this one now.”

She chuckled, and opened the golden wrapper and small cardboard box only to exclaim in surprise on seeing the beautiful pair of earrings. This was the first time he had bought something feminine, and he hadn’t been sure about his choice, but her obvious delight assured him that she indeed liked his choice. Still he asked, “liked it?”

“Loved it”, she grinned, “hang on.” She quickly removed the earrings she was wearing and then slipped on the ones he had gifted, and asked, “how’s it?”

He lifted his hand, pushing her hair aside, tucking the strands behind her ear, “they looked nice when I bought them, but now… beautiful.”

She blushed, suddenly devoting her attention to stuffing her old earrings in the box and keeping everything in her purse. He was quite amused at this as Naina rarely blushed in school… maybe a few times… like when she had fallen on his at his home, and then at the fair when he had called her beautiful. He liked it thought… It showed him the kind of effect he could have on her.

In another twenty minutes they reached the society where Sameer lived, and Naina ascended looking around with interest. She was… surprised. She had expected him to be living in some relatively high-end locality, in a well maintained upscale apartment, with perfectly manicured lawns and new cars in the parking area. But this was quite a contrast to her imagination. The board with the society name “Omkar House – Tower A” was the only new thing she could see. The building was old, with peeling exterior paints in some parts; the parking area held a jumble of cars and bikes; there wasn’t any manicured lawns but a rectangular patch of mud where an assortment of plants and trees grew haphazardly… It looked as if the people living here had tried to utilize every bit of ground they had access to in order to grow what they wanted. There were flowers, a papaya tree, an asopalav, and, if she was not mistaken, a mango tree as well. She moved forward tracing her fingers on the bold letters on the board, and Sameer stepped up next to her, “it’s new… the society collected in funds and put these up for all the three towers. Else the postman used to be lost sometimes because tower has same house numbers.”

When she didn’t say anything, he gestured her to step inside, wondering what was going on in her mind. She knew the Sameer Maheshwari from Ahmedabad, so he understood that she would have different expectations about his lifestyle… Also, Naina had the habit of forming perceptions, just like when they had met at the theatre she had said that he must be studying in some special college for rich kids. Similarly she must have thought that if not in hostel, he would be living in some lavish apartment because naturally he could, or rather Nanu could afford it.

They climbed up the short flight of stairs to the second floor, and she saw that each floor had four flats, and Sameer lived in 104 which was at the far end of staircase. He unlocked the door, but hesitated before opening it. She glanced at him, “what’s wrong?”

He bit his lip, his expressions worried, “umm… I live alone… it might not be as proper as it should be.”

His nervousness made her smile, and she removed his hand from the bolted door, opening it herself. Eager to see more, she stepped inside, her eyes darting around observing every detail. The sofa was small and old, but he had put on covers to make it appealing. The slightly chipped wooden coffee table was bare, but a couple of flowerless vases adorned the cabinet near the wall. The walls in the living room didn’t have any photographs, but an old painting of sunrise hung on it. A TV set, a walkman and a radio was placed on another table, this one a two-shelf style with wheels, and she could see a collection of cassettes on the shelf below along with a piece of cloth that he probably used to wipe the TV.  The kitchen was on the right, the entry sans a door, and she could see the small refrigerator.

He kept his bag-pack on a chair, and pointed to a door, “umm… that’s the bedroom and the kitchen is through there, you can see it.”

She nodded and walked to the small kitchen; it was neat and contained the necessities. The refrigerator was much smaller than what PB had in her kitchen, but this one had her gifted magnet stuck to the door, and it made her smile. A two-burner gas, dishes and cups were on the sideboard next to sink, a chopping board leaned on the platform wall, next to a pen-holder that was filled with spoons and knife. There were two cabinets beneath the platform, and she guessed that one would hold the gas cylinder, and the other one might contain vessels that probably used for cooking. She noticed a covered pan on the gas, and queried, “what’s that?”

“Milk”, he replied, “I had heated it up before leaving. Would you like some tea?”

She shook her head, “no… too hot.”

“I have some cold drink in fridge”, he mentioned.

She took his hand, “let it be… show me your bedroom.”

The simple sentence from her mouth took Sameer’s imagination on another track, and he teased, “I had never thought you would be so fast… Directly bedroom?”

She turned to him, hands on hips, but on seeing the sparkle in his eyes, she grinned cheekily, “what to do… Sofa is too small.”

His eyes widened in surprise, and he stammered, “N…Naina…!”

She laughed and left him there, moving to the bedroom on her own. This part of his home looked to be the most lived in. Couple of photographs of Nanu and his friends hung on the wall, a mat stood on the side, there was a small desk with single chair next to a metal cupboard, the bed was medium sized covered in a cotton printed bedsheet… Her gaze shifted to the bedside table and the next moment she froze. There was the rabbit soft-toy she had won for him, and a photograph in glass frame… It was her… Her school time picture… Sameer came behind her and placed his hands on her shoulder, “surprised?”

She nodded and turned to him, “where did you get it? Why is it here?”

He smiled, “Nanu gave it to me when I went home in last summer vacations. Since then it is here… near my bed.”

“But…”, she tried to frame her thoughts, “why?”

He gestured her to sit on bed and asked, “why what?”

She sat down, and touched her photo, “why did Nanu give it to you? And why did you take it? Why did you keep it here?”

“Too many questions”, he chuckled sitting next to her, but honestly answered, “Nanu gave it to me because he understood that I was missing you and was unable to stop thinking about you… I took it because this photograph was the only way I could see you then, and I needed it… When I came back I tried to stash it inside the cupboard, but I couldn’t do that, and finally I kept it here, at its right place.”

She stared at him in wonder, “all this time?”

He nodded, “yes… You have no idea how much I missed you. It was strange… I thought I was crazy.”

She looked down, her cheeks coloring a bit, “I had missed you too…”

Grinning wide, he looped his arm around her and pulled her to him, “is it? Please do tell me how much you missed me… And what’s with this blush?”

“Sameer”, she tried to hit his arm, but he grasped her hand, wrapping it around himself, tightening the hug.

She fell silent, and closed her eyes, her face pressed to his shoulder, her mind in awe with how natural it felt to hug him. She could feel his heartbeats, recalling how he had mentioned that she made them race; she could smell his cologne, an earthy heady fragrance; she could feel his hands on her back, his palms warm and big. In another moment, he whispered, “Naina… hugging you like this in my room, on my bed… makes me want to do things.”

Bit dazed from the several sensations, she muttered, “things?”

Amused, but eager, he said, “yeah… let me show…” His one hand moved to her waist and he started to tilt her back on the bed slowly. Puzzled she blinked, and in just a few seconds she realized what he was doing… “Sameer”, she gasped in outrage, pushing him, and he left her, falling on the bed, rolling on his back and laughing hard.

Still roaring with mirth, he managed to say, “what? I was just trying to show you… things.”

“I will show you things”, she muttered and picked up the pillow, hitting him repeatedly.

He tried to roll here and there, deflecting her blows, “ow… Naina… slowly.”

She kept hitting harder, “no… I don’t like it slow.”

When she tried to hit him again, he grabbed her hands, and rolled so that she was on the bed, and he loomed over her with the pillow between them, separating their bodies. He took care to remain well away from her, not touching anywhere except her hands… Slowly he dipped his head, his face inches away from hers, “I will remember that for future…” Her eyes widened again as she gasped, her face flushing with color and he found it so extremely adorable that he muttered, “I could kiss you now…”

She gulped, her gaze darting away from him, “Sameer… I…”

He left her hands, and sat up before she could clarify anything. Confused she grabbed the pillow to herself, slowly getting up, not sure why he left her like that. He looked at the balcony outside, where the rays of the sun were receding, “I didn’t want to make you uncomfortable… I just blurted what I felt.”

She smiled slowly, “it’s okay… I am hearing your kiss talks since school.”

He chuckled, “yeah… see, how long I have been trying for just one kiss.” She raised her hand to hit him again, but he laughed and stood up… “I am hungry”, he declared, “let me freshen up a bit, and then we can have some tea and snacks.”

She went to the balcony while he was in bathroom; given he was staying in the corner flat the view wasn’t blocked apart from the safety iron grills, but she noticed there was a small part that could be opened inward if someone wanted, and there was a considerable gap from the neighboring balcony on the side. As she stood admiring the hues of evening sky, a high pitched voice chirped from somewhere, “who are you? Where’s uncle?”

Naina jerked, looking around to find the source of voice, and saw a small kid jumping up and down in the neighbor’s balcony. The kid was so small that she couldn’t even see over the balcony railing while standing, and hence the jumping. Naina smiled, wondering who she was, and how should she introduce herself… Who was she indeed? Sameer’s girlfriend? Just then Sameer stepped out, and asked, “what are you doing here?”

She replied, “just admiring the view… By the way someone wants to know who I am… and she is asking for some uncle.”

He looked to where she was pointing, and frowned, “Netra… stop jumping.”

The kid immediately obeyed, and stood on tiptoes barely able to peek over the top, “uncle… chocolate.”

He knew it was futile, but still tried to correct, “I am not uncle.”

“Uncle”, the kid exclaimed loudly, starting to jump again.

He nearly groaned, “fine… go inside, else no chocolate…”

The kid stood there, probably thinking for some time, and then rushed inside. Sameer grinned and muttered, “always works.”

Naina stared at him in wonder, surprised at the way he handled the over-excited kid. And uncle? Someone was daring to call Sameer Maheshwari uncle, and he was listening to it without blowing steam. In fact, Sameer Maheshwari was doing a lot of things that she hadn’t expected him to. When he looked at her, she curiously asked, “Uncle?”

“Don’t ask”, he rolled his eyes, and gabbed a couple of clothes that had been drying outside, “go freshen up… I will make tea.” He handed her a clean towel, “the facewash and soap is on the side of sink… call me if you need something else.”

She lathered her hands with the antiseptic soap, lost in thoughts, everything she had seen till now flashing before her eyes. The society was middle-class, the flat small in size even though technically it was 1BHK, it was furnished with basic necessities, and the way he had picked up those clothes from the drying line without a hitch told her that he was practiced to do it. As she washed her face with the musky male face wash, and wiped herself with the towel, she wondered if she should let it slide by or ask him. The internal debate in her mind lasted for a minute or two before she remembered how he had told her that if they wanted to be serious in their relationship then they needed to share their life with each other. She had opened up everything about her past to him today, and had felt utmost peace and relief when he had trusted her immediately. It was so strange that her family didn’t trust her, but Sameer did… The boy who barely knew her in Ahmedabad was sure that she couldn’t have had an affair, while her family who had known her all her life had no faith on her. Well… the point here right now wasn’t about her past, but about Sameer’s present… He had brought her here so that she could see where he lived, how he lived… And so she had all the right to ask him questions.

With that in mind, she carefully hung the towel in the balcony, and then marched into the kitchen. He was standing near the gas, chopping something, and tea simmered in a saucepan on the burner. The sight amazed her so much that she stood still trying to take it all in… He was still dressed in the same clothes as morning, but now his shirt was untucked, the material wrinkled at the bottom. He didn’t look as thin as he did earlier last year in that theatre, his shoulders looked broader, and his overall physique had improved. In the last almost one month of being with him she had seen some changes in his face as well, the dark circles had receded, his skin looked better, and he was smiling most of the time as if he was genuinely happy. What kind of life was he leading? She had thought of him as rich, spoiled, pampered brat on their first meeting… Definitely handsome but a total pain… However, over the span of two years in Ahmedabad she had been forced to revise her perceptions of him… She had started to think that she finally knew him… And yet now he revealed sides of his character which she had never witnessed before. The way he cheered her up always, the way he teased her, the way he would flirt with her and yet not overstep any boundary, the way he always handled her with so much care as if she was extremely precious to him… One year… For one year he had been keeping her photograph on his bedside table… What did that mean? And why was Sameer Maheshwari picking his own dried clothes and cooking his own meals? And how did he manage to look so at ease in every situation, whether he was sheltering her from rowdy boys on train, or pampering her with attention, or flirting with her at every chance he got, or now… standing in his own kitchen to cook for her… Every single time he was at total ease as if it was an intrinsic part of him.

“Naina…”, he called without turning back, “how long are you going to stand there and stare?”

She jerked out of her thoughts, “how did you know?”

He shrugged, turning his head to smile at her, “I just did… do you like rusk biscuit?”

She frowned, “huh? Yeah, why?”

He turned off the gas, and grabbed two cups, “I made sandwich for us… there’s still time for dinner. So thought we can have biscuits too.”

She walked up to him, peeking around him to see, and was surprised to see the perfectly made vegetable sandwiches on dish. She realized he had been chopping vegetables for it when she had entered in kitchen. “Wow”, she softly exclaimed, “you weren’t kidding when you said you will cook for me.”

“Of course I wasn’t”, he placed the cups on a small tray along with some rusk biscuits, and instructed, “grab the sandwich.”

She did so, and followed him outside to the sofa. Placing the dish on the coffee table, she asked, “you eat here?”

He sat down, pulling her to sit beside him, “I don’t have a dining table… so I eat where I want to. I sit here because of TV, though sometimes I just roll the TV table to my bedroom…”

“Convenient”, she mused, and took a sip of her tea. She blinked in surprise, and took another sip, “oh my… this is good…!”

He chuckled, “thanks.” She hummed, “what did you add?”

“Tea masala”, he supplied, “Netra’s mom prepares all spices at home… tea masala, garam masala and such stuff… She gives some to me whenever she grinds fresh stock.”

Curious she asked, “Netra is that kid… right? Why was she calling you uncle?”

He picked up a piece of sandwich, holding it to her lips urging her to bite. She did so, and then he took a bite himself, making a sound of relief at the back of his throat. Finishing the mouthful, he answered, “I don’t know why she calls me Uncle. She does that ever since she saw me for the first time… I try to correct her, but she never listens. At first I tried not to pay any attention to her… but then…”

“Then?” She asked as he trailed off.

He smiled, “her name is Netra, meaning eyes… same as yours… plus she would also have her hair in two pigtails or ponytails, like you used to… I couldn’t ignore her.”

“She reminded you of me”, she observed amazed. He nodded, and queried, “how’s the sandwich?”

“Perfect”, she grinned, “mine is always bit squishy.”

He took another bite of the sandwich, “maybe you press the bread too hard. Don’t do that next time… Now eat more…”

She obeyed, picking up another piece, musing over the fact that Sameer was giving her cooking tips. It was… unexpected. She recalled how Chachiji used to ask her and Preeti to prepare tea, or help with cooking. Chachiji would teach them slowly, guiding them about each spice, how to roll the chapatis so that they are round, how to check if the rice was cooked properly or not. Unlike Preeti, she used to enjoy those sessions, and the aloo paratha that Sameer had stolen in school was the first time she had made something without any guidance. Even though she had understood that he had taken her tiffin, and he had no idea that she had made it, she had been extremely happy when he had said that it was tasty. But after coming to Mumbai she had wallowed so much in her own misery, and focused on turning herself around that she had given up a lot of things of past, including cooking. And it was once again Sameer who had made her step into that old mould, her want of preparing something for him; her need to care for him had driven her in the kitchen to cook.

After they polished off everything Sameer asked, “what are you thinking?”

She shook her head, smiling, “nothing much… but I do want to ask you something.”

He nodded, “I know… ask away.”

She thought for a moment on how to string her question, and then asked, “why are you living here? I know you don’t want to live in hostel, but why here? You could definitely afford better accommodation than this…”

He smiled, leaning back on the sofa, “what do you remember of our discussion in classroom? The time when I had told you about wanting to make myself worthy of Maheshwari Industries.”

“You told me that you don’t want the ownership just because you are privileged”, she obediently replied, “you told me that wanted to become capable of that position. Earn that position and respect both.”

He nodded, “yes… now tell me how could I do that if continue to stay in the shadow of my Nanu?”

She countered in puzzlement, “but you are here… and Nanu is in Ahmedabad.”

He suddenly grinned at her, “ok first… it sounded really cute when you said Nanu… I like it better than Nanaji. And yes… he is in Ahmedabad. But living in his shadow doesn’t only mean using his name to find my way in life, it also means using his hard-earned money for conveniences that I haven’t earned.”

She thought about what he was saying, trying to decipher the meaning, “so… you mean… ever since you came to Mumbai you are not taking money from him? You are living on what you earn?”

He nodded once again, and her eyes widened in shock. After a minute she queried, “but… but… how? The rent, your day-to-day expenses, your college fees… And who does all the work? I know you cook… but what about cleaning, washing clothes… there are so many things in a home.”

Looking into her eyes, “is it so difficult to believe that I can work in my own home? Do you still think of me as rich, pampered, spoiled kid?”

Her eyes moved over his shoulders and arms, and she muttered, “not a kid, definitely.”

He grinned, his eyes glittering impishly, and he touched the buttons at his chest, “shall I give you more view to prove that I am not a kid?”

Surprised she started to laugh, “no… not needed… I can see.”

He tilted his head, “without opening my shirt? X-ray vision?”

She hit on his arm lightly, “no… I meant, I can see the difference in this one month… Your health has improved. And ummm… your face also looks better… the glow is back.”

He took her hand, playing with her fingers, “yeah… I guess that’s because I am happy.”

Her heart pattered wildly because she knew he was saying that he was happy with her. And so was she… But for now, she wanted to go back to their original discussion, “Sameer… I don’t think you are spoiled or pampered. But still… isn’t this too much?”

He sighed, “Nanu pays for my college, and this apartment belongs to Nanu’s friend who lives abroad, so there is no rent. I haven’t separated myself from Nanu totally… But, if I continued to have all the privileges like I did in Ahmedabad, where was the learning in that? By trying to live with my own earnings I learned not just how to manage my time but also about managing finances. Do you know before I came to Mumbai, I had no idea how much a litre of milk could cost or how much of an effort it is to wash clothes? Sometimes I used to change clothes twice or thrice in Ahmedabad, and the servant would wash it… But now sometimes I repeat clothes. If I liked a t-shirt or shirt I would buy it without thinking if I even needed it… Do you remember the time when I cracked an egg over your head just because you spoiled a new shirt that I had bought specifically for that day?”

She chuckled, “yes I remember that very clearly.”

He scoffed, “what kind of behavior was that on my part? Irresponsible and insensitive… I didn’t even think for one moment that if it was a special day for me, it was the same for me… And it was just a damn shirt… I gave too much importance to materialistic happiness and had no value of certain things that are actually essential to live a life. I had all the time in world, every facility at my fingertips, and everyone fawning all over me just because I am blessed with good looks. Coming to Mumbai was like an eye-opener… I am not the most handsome boy in college, I was teased because I had no girlfriends, I barely have any friends because I don’t money to splurge… But still I am happy, you know why? Because every day I come home there’s this sense of accomplishment of having lived a day on my own terms with whatever means I had planned. There is a sense of satisfaction of having learned something new.”

She gazed at him with admiration, he had not only chosen a tough path for himself, but was also following it devotedly. However, she wanted to correct a few things, and so she said, “you were never irresponsible or insensitive.” He started to interrupt, but she placed a finger on his lips, “let me finish… You were impulsive, temperamental, and yes… privileged. But that doesn’t mean you were wrong. You know what was the first thing that I liked about you? Your friendship with Munna and Pandit… At first it was tough for me to believe that a rich and handsome boy like you could be friends with such ordinary boys… But as I got to know you more I realized they were not just some sidekicks for a hero, they meant so much to you.”

He removed her hand from his mouth, and held that one too, “so I was good then?”

She smiled, “yes… if you were insensitive you wouldn’t have been friends with them, you would apologized to me after hurting me in your anger… if you were irresponsible you wouldn’t have protected me every time I fell and you would have kissed my hand just to prove a point. I agree that given your upbringing there might have been a lot of things about which you had no idea, like you mentioned about the price of vegetables or the effort in housework… But that doesn’t mean you were spoiled or incapable… Look at me, I had no idea of how to keep up with fashion trends before I came here… Does that mean I was a failure?” He shook his head, and she continued, “just like that if you were unaware of certain facts of life that doesn’t make you a failure. It takes a lot of guts to do what you are doing, but that doesn’t mean that if sometime you relax and look up to your Nanu for certain things you would fail.”

He sighed and hesitantly said, “I know I will have to go back… And then naturally I would have all the convenience again… but for now this is how I want to live and learn… Will you… uhh… will you still be with me?”

“Yes”, she replied immediately, “but I have a condition… since you are going to live on your own earnings, you have to promise me to not spend a lot on gifts or extravagant dates. And you have to let me share our restaurant or outing bills.”

He frowned, “girls don’t do that.”

“Perceptions Sameer”, she grinned, “I am not like other girls… and I am not talking about sharing because you have less money that before or I have more money than before… I was going to talk about this to you today… I don’t earn yet, but I still want to do this because I try and limit myself to my pocket money which even after PB’s insistence is much less than what she would have originally given me. I believe in equality… If you want to do things for me, then I want to do that too.”

He thought about it, and knew that Naina wasn’t the type of girl who would offer such a thing out of pity or worry. If she had something to say she would say it directly because there wasn’t an ounce of malice in her. Finally he said, “okay… let’s do this… it would be weird to keep a track of all expenses on our date and then split… Instead we can pay alternatively, one date after other. And my condition is that just because you could have more money at disposal doesn’t mean that you would spend more.”

She also took some time to think and then smiled, “deal…”

He tugged her hand, pulling her in his arms, “no deal… it’s a date honey.”

She smiled, wrapping her hand wound his waist, and leaning on his chest, “yes it is a date.” A few minutes later she queried, “I have two more questions… if you are not the most handsome boy in your college, then who is? And you said you were teased about not having any girlfriends, then who was Ms. Sparkly Ass?”

He laughed, “His name is Prem… grandson of our college trustee, and extremely rich. And I was teased before, when I joined college, but then I… um… went out with Sanjana twice, once with Nidhi, and last one was Priya… your Ms. Sparkly Ass.”

She pulled back from him and sat up, “three girls…?? You dated three girls? Oh God…”

“Naina”, he tried to clarify, “they weren’t dates… I was teased and so I wanted to go out with some girl… but I failed so miserably I can’t even tell you… When I had coffee with Sanjana, I kept thinking about how she is not as interesting as you… Nidhi humiliated me because I didn’t have enough money… And Priya… She dumped me publicly that day in the theatre, even before I could tell her calmly that I didn’t want continue a relationship where I can’t put my heart. I never even thought of buying flowers for them, or wanted to go out with them again. And now everyone in college again tease me because after Priya I refused to date any other girl.”

She was tempted to laugh at how nervously he clarified his dating history or his failure in dating. But instead, she decided to tease him. Standing up she pretended to muse, “hmm… but it is still three girls… Maybe I should try some variety too… How about that Prem from your college?”

She had expected him to be horrified or outraged, but could have never anticipated what happened next. He grabbed her and pulled, and she landed on his lap, shrieking at the sudden fall. His one hand wrapped tight around her waist, and the other fisted in her hair, making her look at him, his eyes glittered possessively, and his voice had an edge as he rasped, “don’t ever say that again… you are mine… only mine.”

Her heart raced like never before, a storm rearing its head inside her body, her breathing accelerated, and her eyes gazed into his… She had never felt so helpless and yet so powerful before… One sentence, just one sentence from her had made the calm and understanding Sameer vanish, and right before her eyes was the boy who had grabbed her waist near the pond and demanded that he was different. She had surrendered to his demand then, and she did the same now… Her body softened as she leaned on him, and she lifted her hand, placing it on his jaw that was slightly rough with the shadow of evening stubble… Her other hand wound around his neck, and she smiled softly, “yes.”

A muscle ticked in his jaw, his lips pressed in a thin line, and he swallowed trying to control the flare of temper as well as the need to claim her as his own… Her soft yes calmed him somewhat, and then she hugged him, rubbing his back. He shuddered with the sensation of having his face pressed to the crook of her neck, her sweet smell assaulting his senses, and plus she was on his lap… He could feel the roundness of her bottom on his thighs, and his hands clenched on her waist, his body responding to the way she was so soft and pliable in his arms. God… He needed a minute to calm down before he did something stupid… like grabbing her face and kissing her mouth… No, he couldn’t do that… He couldn’t dent her trust like that. Coming here with him, in his home, alone, was a very big thing… And she had done that because she trusted him. He needed to handle that trust with care. And so he lifted her off his lap, placing her on the sofa beside him, and then hugged her… It took him a few minutes to calm down and then he breathed, “please don’t say things like that again.”

“I won’t”, she assured, “and I was just kidding.”

He buried his face in her hair, “I know… but still… I can’t bear it… I swear I never dated anyone seriously, I couldn’t… every moment I could only think of you… And now that I have you, I don’t want to let go…”

Tears pricked her eyelids at his confession, “you won’t have to… I won’t go anywhere.”

She drew back after few minutes, and asked, “are you okay?”

He nodded, “yes… did I hurt you?”

She rolled her eyes, “You can’t… and I am not a glass doll Sameer…” And then she asked, “what about dinner? Shall we order? And I will have to call PB… And you promised to play guitar.”

He chuckled, “I will have to make a habit of listening to your endless questions… God save me.”

She tried to pinch him, but he stood up, moving from the range of her hands, and laughed. Crossing his arms he said, “no we won’t order… I had said I will cook, and I will… How about noodles?” The way her eyes lit up at the idea was all the answer he needed, and he smiled, “noodles it is… c’mon help me chop vegetables.”

Naina called up PB first and informed her that she would be back after dinner, and then together they started making all the preparations for cooking noodles. He chopped the onions, while she carefully sliced a capsicum. Taking care not to startle her, he slowly asked, “Naina… Will you go to Ahmedabad in vacation?”

She sighed, “honestly, I don’t want to… But I will have to… At least for Chachaji, Chachiji and Preeti… And of course Swati too.”

Keeping aside his knife, he asked, “what if this time I am there too?”

She turned to him, her eyes wide, silent for a moment, and then she squealed, about to fling her arms around him. He caught her hand, “Naina… knife…”

Tongue in teeth, she grimaced, “sorry.” She placed the knife on countertop, and then hugged him, squeezing tight, “really? Will you come?”

He held her lightly, “yes, I will… anyways last time I stayed there with Nanu for vacations, but this time I would be able to do just a week.”

Pulling back, she asked, “why?”

“My project”, he informed, “remember I had told you that my company wanted to give me an assignment. It is about a new series of articles they want to do… About Mumbai from people’s perspective.”

She had a strange expression on her face for a moment before she said, “that’s nice.”

He smiled, slicing more vegetables, “will you come to meet Nanu?”

She immediately agreed, “yes, of course.” He waited but she didn’t ask or say anything further, so he took the plunge, “I would like to meet your family too.”

Biting her lips she sighed, “I know that would be the proper thing… but do you think this is the right time? Taiji or someone would just say something about me, plus the people in my society… And if nothing, then… they would ask us to get married.”

“Yes”, he agreed, “that topic might come up… but we are capable enough to deal with it. To be honest, I really want to meet your family… see who were those dumb idiots who hurt you.”

Surprised she looked at him, to see that he was staring at a point on the wall with narrowed yes, and his hand was clenched on the knife… She smiled, taking away the chopping board, “I think you have chopped enough. What’s next?”

He shook his head, placing the knife aside, and took out a wok, “pass on the oil…”

She did as he instructed, and watched him set water to boil in pan, and he placed the wok on the other burner… He didn’t ask her to do anything, or even need her help… It seemed he had done this often, his movements were precise, and he added the spices expertly without any measurement. She kept watching in wonder and asked, “when did you learn to cook?”

He added some pepper and tossed the noodles in the wok, “I don’t remember exactly… but Nanu and I used to experiment in kitchen. He had lived without Nani since many years, and had learned some things. Cooking was like a bonding time for us… Just like when he would play cricket with me, or teach me chess, or guitar, or when we would sing along to songs on TV or radio. Nanu did everything for me that ideally a parent should do.”

She slowly queried, “so… he taught you?”

He nodded, “some stuff… like tea and coffee, milkshakes, khichdi, dal, sooji… and slowly I started to enjoy cooking. So I asked Ramdhari to teach me more… I can cook enough to survive… Few types of vegetables, dal and rice. I also make rotis, but they are not round and soft… And I can never make stuffed parathas.”

She absorbed all the information asking few more questions here and there. Curious he asked, “why are you asking so many things?”

She bit her lip, “I… I just want to know more about you.”

He turned off the gas, and then looked at her, “and what about me? Don’t I get to ask?”

“Yes you can”, she agreed, “what more do you want to know?”

He quickly asked, “do you still have the soft toy I won for you? Or you left it in Ahmedabad?”

She looked startled for a moment, and then started laughing, “is that what you want to know?”

He looped an arm around her shoulders and pulled her to him, fiercely demanding, “answer me.”

Her laughter caught in her throat as she looked into the intoxicating glimmer of his eyes, and she slowly observed, “you want to know if I kept your memories with me, like you kept mine with you.” He swallowed but didn’t reply, it was not needed, she understood what he wanted. Smiling softly she said, “yes… of course I have it with me. That’s the only thing that gave me both strength and solace when everything in my life was going crazy. I don’t know why but I just needed to hold on to it all the time. I… ummm… I still sleep with it.”

He blinked in surprise, and then an impish grin lit up his face, “so… indirectly you are saying that I gave you strength and solace… and you would like to sleep with me.”

“Sameer”, she said in an irked tone, and tried to stomp on his foot, but since she was in his arms it didn’t exactly work out. Rather her agitated movements caused her body to rub against his, and he tensed, his hands clenching on her body, fingers digging in making her gasp. He quickly drew her away, afraid that she would get to know of his condition, and tried to change the topic, “okay… time to eat.”

She adjusted her top and hair, blushing at the way he kept pulling her to him. It didn’t even seem like today was the first time they had hugged. There was so much ease and comfort that it surprised her. When had they reached such levels of familiarity? Was it only in the last one month? Or did it happen from Ahmedabad?

A sound distracted her and she saw Sameer place two dishes on the countertop for the noodles. Just as he picked up the wok, she inched closer and lifted one dish, keeping it back in the cabinet. He looked at her for a moment, and then grinned, emptying all the content in a single dish. She took out a bottle of cold-drink from the fridge again surprising him into a smile, and they sat down to eat.

Sitting down she asked, “did you forget how we used to eat from a single dish?”

He smiled, “how can I? Even after I shifted here I used to leave half of my food for you.”

“You did?” She asked in surprise, “I used to do the same, until PB scolded me for wasting food. Since then, I just started taking less in my dish. Once I also left half cup of tea at the tea-stall, and when the vendor asked me, I said it was for someone else… I am sure he must have thought that I was mad. But ice-creams… I mean… I didn’t know what to do with the remaining half.”

He chuckled, “tell me about it… I have thrown away so much ice-cream… finally I stopped buying it.”

She smiled, amazed at how they had fallen in a habit that was almost impossible to get rid of. Still lost in her musings she twined some noodles in her fork, and automatically held it up to feed him. Their surprised gazes collided for a moment, and then he smiled, accepting the food, and also fed her in turn. And that was how they finished the dish of noodles and shared the cold-drink.

He cleaned up the dishes himself, totally refusing her help, citing that she had come here for the first time and hence he can’t let her do all these stuff. Then he teased that next time she can do all the work while he would sit and relax, which earned him a pinch on the waist and he splashed a bit of water on her. After that they went to the bedroom and he took out his guitar, “what would you like to hear?”

“Pehla Nasha”, she immediately demanded.

Frowning he said, “but you have already heard that once.”

She nodded, “yes… I want to hear it again… and after that you can play anything you like.”

“As you wish m’lady”, he bowed extravagantly just like their first date, making her laugh aloud. He strummed the strings, and Naina drew in a deep breath as the melodious tune wafted through the air. It was the most beautiful feeling and she smiled on seeing him close his eyes just like he had done before. In that moment she truly absorbed the absolute reality of being with him… A month… It had been a month since they were together, and today they had managed to resolve all the past misunderstandings. All those months of agony and restlessness had finally culminated into them being together like this. Sameer was in her life… And he was here to stay.

A fleeting image of their first meet flashed in her mind, Sameer on his bike, looking at her as if he was trying to solve a puzzle, the tilt of his head, the way he shrugged… Suddenly she felt the touch of his fingers on her cheek, and remembered how he had done the same in rains… The pull had always been there between them, the need to challenge each other, the need to look after each other… Yet they had been fighting their own selves. Slowly she opened her eyes, and found him a bit closer; he was looking at her face with a frown. Rubbing his thumb on the curve of her cheek, he asked, “why are you crying?”

She smiled, “maybe because it was so beautiful…”

“I don’t like tears in your eyes”, he said, “it means you are upset or sad.”

She chuckled, “no… tears convey a different meaning each time. I am not sad, I am happy.”

He shrugged, “then smile… and tell me what song I shall play next?”

“Play whatever you want to say to me”, she said. His eyebrows quirked, “are you challenging me?”

She shook her head, “no… I just want to listen, and I know whatever you play will be beautiful.”

His eyes glittered for a moment as he stared at her with an intensity that she had never witnessed before, it made a tingling sensation race up her spine, and she almost shivered. What was he doing? Before she could fathom the meaning of that stare, he closed his eyes, and his fingers played a new tune. She tilted her head in curiosity, and very soon started smiling wide. Sameer was playing “dheere dheere se meri zindagi me aana.”

This time she inched closer to him, because the way he smoothly played the tune, the peaceful smile on his face, the way his hair fluttered a bit because of fan, everything combined together made him look like a dream that had suddenly materialized in-front of her, and she wanted to touch him to be sure that he was real. He was lost in the tune… When she had asked him whatever he wanted to tell her, his heart had thumped at the opportunity… Maybe he couldn’t say it in words as of now, but surely he could put it across her in a song…. And now as he played the tune he felt that the lyrics of this song indeed suited his situation.

After a minute he felt her hand on his shoulder, and he stopped playing, opening his eyes to find her sitting much closer than before, her eyes shining with unshed tears. He quickly kept the guitar aside, and asked, “what kind of happiness is this that you have to cry?”

A small laughter spurted out of her, and then she flung her arms around his neck, hugging him tight. He held her, a bit surprised at the sudden hug. She hiccupped, “I was afraid you were my imagination.”

He rolled his eyes, tightening his hold on her, and pulling her as close as he could, “do I feel like an imagination?”

Her hands moved over his shoulders, she turned her head in the crook of his neck breathing in his fragrance, and her heartbeats matched the rhythm of his heart. “No”, she whispered, clutching onto his shirt. Her wandering hands, her soft body nestled against him, the slightly floral smell of her perfume, her sighing breath on his neck, everything teased him, aroused him… He swallowed, trying to bury the urge of pulling her flush to him, or kissing her, or more…

“Naina”, he whispered, “if you keep hugging me like this then…”

She sighed, “then?”

He held her waist, his fingers rubbing her soft skin over the cotton top, “then you won’t go home until tomorrow morning.”

Puzzled she drew back from him, “what do you mean?” He bit his lip, blessing her with a lopsided smile, and his eyes moved from her face down her body… He heard her soft “oh” of realization before she threw a pillow at him. He caught the pillow and grinned, “hey… you asked me.”

She kept trying to hit him, “you… first you keep on and on about kissing and now this…”

He stood up from the bed, still laughing, “what to do… you make me want so many things.”

She stopped with her hand raised in mid-air, and her eyes widened as she softly asked, “I… I do?”

Crouching in-front of her, he smiled, “yes honey… you do.”

Biting her lip, she queried, “what are… these… things?”

He linked his fingers with hers, “not today… I will show you when the time is right. For now… if I don’t drop you home, your PB will kill me.”

Naina glanced at the clock on his desk and sighed, “yes… it is late.”

“Listen”, he said, “umm… I was thinking… How about we leave for Ahmedabad on Friday? I can buy the train tickets.”

She smiled, “Friday is good. But, let me ask PB once. And also… before you meet everyone in Ahmedabad I want you to meet PB.”

“I would love to meet her”, he replied immediately.

“Tomorrow then?” She asked, “lunch with PB at home… and then we can go buy tickets.”

He grinned, “sounds like a plan. Now let’s go…”

She stood up, “seems like you are too eager to send me out.”

He pinched her nose lightly, “if it was up to me, you would stay with me 24×7…”

She laughed, pushing his hand away, “okay, I get it… c’mon.”

As they went downstairs, she suddenly left his hand and rushed to the parking. He frowned, wondering what had caught her attention, and walked up her. “Sameer… your bike”, she exclaimed in delight, running her hand over the seat.

He smiled, “yes… my bike… you know, I wanted to bring it on our first date… but then… I thought maybe it was too soon. And after that I never had the chance.”

She looked at him, “what about now?”

His brows furrowed, “you mean… you would sit on my bike? You don’t mind?”

“Of course I don’t”, she grinned, “let’s go, and I want an ice-cream on the road.”

He laughed, pulling out the set of keys from his pocket, and turned on the bike. As soon as he kick started it, she straddled behind him without any hesitation. His heart thumped in elation because this comfort was one more sign that she was completely his. She kept her hands on his shoulder, feeling extremely happy… His bike… It was so special… She still didn’t understand why he had brought this bike from Ahmedabad, but she was glad he did.

Somewhere mid-way she asked, “Sameer… out of those three girls, did anyone sit on this?” He applied the brakes suddenly, making her crash onto his back, and she exclaimed, “ouch.”

He turned to grin at her, “I always wanted to do this to my girlfriend… and no… you are the first girl to sit on my bike.”

And the last.

He added that in his mind. She didn’t know whether to frown on his brake stunt, or feel happy that she was the first. She watched him buy one vanilla cone, and then as he came back, she mused, “I don’t understand…”

He licked the cone, “what?”

She held his hand, nibbling at the ice, “why do boys keep applying brakes when girls sit behind them on bike? I mean… imagine… if you sit behind me while I am driving and I keep hitting the brakes it would be so annoying.”

He stared at her for a moment, and then laughed, “well honey… I don’t think you would feel anything if I crash onto your back… apart from a big heavy weight of course.”

She bit into the quickly melting cone, and asked, “what do you feel?”

He leaned down and whispered in her ear, “think about it tonight and then call me…”

She rolled her eyes and pouted, but he just smiled and kept eating the ice-cream. As they finished it, she again began, “I don’t understand one more thing…”

He chuckled, “goodness… I didn’t know my girlfriend was so dumb.”

“Shut up”, she reprimanded, “and tell me… it would have been much cost effective to buy a new bike here… Why did you bring this old one here? The transportation cost must have been… high.”

He smiled, and patted the bike, “this was the birthday gift I asked for last year… Yes, buying a new bike here would have been a much wiser option. But… I wanted this bike… The bike which had memories… of my friends, of you… The bike whose tyres you slashed, the bike which you painted pink, the bike on which you applied grease, the bike whose wires you cut… I wanted that bike, not any other bike.”

She smiled, stroking the seat, “this was another memory which you kept with you.”

He nodded, and then started the bike again. She sat behind him, and kept staring at him profile, overwhelmed with the way he had held on to her even when he had no idea where she was. As he navigated through the traffic, she slid forward on the seat and wrapped her arms around his waist, snuggling closer, resting her head on his back, and she said, “now there’s no need to apply brakes.”

He chuckled; holding one of her hand, he placed her palm over his heart, letting her know without words how happy he was… She understood because she was just as happy. A temporary relationship that had started as revenge and then moved to a game of pranks, had somehow managed to materialize into a much deeper bond of which they had been unaware of, but now as they spent time with each other without any shadow of separation they were beginning to understand that they had always mattered for each other, that they always belonged together.