N and V - Part 2

Varun hurried to the corner table and seated himself. He had thought Nithya would follow him suit but he looked surprised to see Nithya purveying the restaurant before making her move. He gestured with his hands asking her to join him at the table. Nithya paced herself fast towards his table and took her seat. “Isn’t it chilly? Can we find another table?” asked Nithya.

“Nah, the view from this table is quite awesome. You can see the whole of the city from here. Take a look” replied Varun.

Nithya placed her Gucci bag on the table and took a peek at the buildings around and road below. He was right. The view was fantastic. But she was feeling cold.

“Wow. A Gucci bag! You seem to have an expensive taste Neetu. You are a rich gal, huh?”

Nithya smiled sheepishly. The bag had been a gift from a cousin who lived abroad. He had gifted the same on her birthday.

Varun noticed that Nithya was feeling uneasy. With a mischievous smile he said “Neetu, I see you are still feeling uneasy. Is it because of the chillness? Do you want me to come over there and give you a hug? It might keep you warm. But I am not sure whether you are comfortable with the touch and all? Or is this uneasiness because of our first date?”

Nithya replied “Nope, I guess I am ok. Thanks though. I guess you are right. Maybe I am feeling nervous because I am meeting you alone."

“There’s nothing to feel nervous about. If we have to continue to fall in love with each other, we have to meet alone, spend time alone. I can’t bring my family and you can’t bring yours for dates right?” saying this Varun broke into splits.

Nithya looked at him. He was taller than she had remembered. He wore a Casual T over a Blue Jeans. He had just gone for a hair cut so he looked more irresistibly handsome. Varun noticed Nithya looking at him and stared at her back with a grin.

“I know, I know. I am really hot. But that doesn’t mean you can ogle at me? I have a girlfriend who will not like it.”

Nithya was taken aback. ‘Girlfriend’? What the hell?

Varun continued “Yes Neetu. I have a GF. She is a very pretty and cherubic gal. She is head over in heels in love with me. Sorry I did not tell you this earlier“

That’s it. Nithya decided to leave that instant when Varun caught hold of her hands.

“Hey, you seem to be be jumping to conclusions. Boy, you are a real fast gal. Let me complete it. Don’t you want to know more?”

Varun continued “She is a great gal from what I have got to know about her. I keep hearing that she is a fierce friend too. She has come to this city all for my sake and is right now sporting a green color dress with her hair clipped at the centre and sitting right opposite a dashing dude. She is sporting a Diamond earring which glitters like her eyes. Btw, she has these real BIG eyes which makes me go weak whenever I look at her. Her name starts with N and ends with A – Nithya. Though I like calling her ‘Neetu’ from her quizzical expression, looks like she does not like it”.

OMG! Varun seems to be a mind-reader or is she being very obvious? Damn you Nithya, you and your give-away expressions.

Nithya sat down and started looking away. Varun continued to stare at her with a smile. It took few minutes for Nithya to fully absorb what Varun had said. He had said that his gal’s name was Nithya.

A deep flurry of emotions surged in her and she could feel the palpitations of her heart loud enough. She had felt somewhat close to this before but the feelings and palpitations were nothing like this.

She looked at him with tears in her eyes. “I love you” is all she could muster to say!

N and V - Part 1

Nithya looked at her watch for the umpteenth time. It was 10 minutes to '8'. It has become a routine of sorts to wait for Varun. Nosy shopkeepers kept looking at their clocks and at Nithya interchangeably. Nithya couldn’t help but feel conscious of the fact that those curious cats in the name of shop keepers were curiously observing her everyday ‘waiting’ routine.

But Varun had always been like this since the time they met. She had bumped into him at a friend’s house and had taken an instant liking for him. Though Varun had pretended to ignore her and her friendly banters, he had fallen head over heels in love with her over time. Very often they had indulged in debates as to who is more romantic based on how quickly he/she fell in love with each other. Nithya had been the first to propose to him over Yahoo chat and he had accepted. She had a different set of plans until she met him and meeting him and falling in love with him had changed her career plans and life totally.

They hailed from different cities and from different communities but such trivialities were not a Berlin Wall for them and they felt bounded by a more powerful religion called LOVE.

She still remembered the first time they met after she had proposed her love to him and he had accepted. He had asked her to meet at the current meeting place ‘A few meters from a busy bus stop’ on Wallace Road was what he had mentioned. She had no clue to the city and to the road as she had just relocated from her home to be just near him. On the other hand he was familiar with the place for he had been living there for the past 2 years and knew the roads like the back of his hand. As she paced herself up and down on the pavement, looking at her watch, a fruit shop caught her attention and she hurried to the same and helped herself to a healthy dose of pomegranate juice. Normally a very fast drinker, she tried her best to consume it slowly to prolong the wait but then she gulped it down and proceeded to the D place. She looked at her watch. It was 10 minutes to 7.30. She did not have a mobile and neither did he as they had both decided to shop them together.

Tears flew down her cheek. Had he played a joke on her? Did he not like her leave alone love her? She then looked at her watch and decided to catch an Auto to head back to the Paying Guest House when all of a sudden; from nowhere Varun came and shook hands with her. As she tried to collect her thoughts, coy and emotions, he laughed hard and said ‘Neetu, poor you…you have been waiting for a long time, didn’t you? But you should not have gulped the juice in one go. You should have enjoyed the juice. This shop is really famous for fresh juices. Let me give you a tour of this road sometime’. 

Nithya went mad with rage as she wondered (How the hell did he know all this and “Neetu?”  Only Appa called her like that and she liked to hear it only from him?’) and she could not help but ask him to which he replied ‘I came to the bus stop much earlier than you. For the past ½ hour, I have been hiding behind and looking at you. You are beautiful. Do you know that?’ 

Nithya did not know whether to feel angry or happy but she chose to be quiet and asked him ‘Now what?’ to which he pointed at a restaurant and said ‘Come, let’s eat. I am famished. You must be hungry yourself. A juice can’t arrest hunger pangs and besides I like my gal to be a fuller figure. Ha! Ha!’ She followed him quietly to the roof top restaurant and looked at him in the eye. 

(to be continued…)