The overwhelming aroma of a French omelette teased her nostrils. The relentless Sun attempted to curb the appetite as her belly yearned to be filled. Sensing Aadhya’s discomfort, he jiggled his eyebrows at her. “You want to go sit inside where there is air conditioning?”, he asked.

Nodding, she walked alongside and let out a sigh. “900 bucks for a plate of toast? Dude, this will cost us an arm”, she stated. He smiled and gestured to order. She settled for an apple juice while he went all out and ordered a full meal. His grin and fragrance accelerated her already high heartbeat. She continued observing the lights and the delicate flooring as he observed her from head to toe.

“Thank God, I accessorized well”, she thought to herself and settled into a comfortable position so that he gets to see her legs and not the bloated midriff which was hidden under the kurta. The air was mysterious and filled with magic. It was like one of those days, where everything you look at appears to be charming. She grinned to herself and returned the scanner look. “I hope you realize that I am good at mind-reading”, he said, making her jump in her seat. What a fibber she thought to herself,  “Nah darling, I am not fibbing”, he said, shocking her.

Thankfully, the waiter rang up the order and she started sipping the apple juice to divert attention from the awkward moment.  He leaned forward to cup her cheek with his palm and traced her lips with his thumb. Blushing, she continued slurping the juice as if it might disappear if she stopped drinking. He leaned back with a grin and started eating noisily. 

Back home Aadhya wondered what was happening. Dialling her friend to spill her heart’s contents out and she said, “It’s the kind of thing that you read about in Danielle Steel’s books”. Her friend muttered an incoherent response while she wondered if it was too soon to judge.

After a long day, he put his feet up and sat down to mull over the date. He tried to divert his mind, but with little success. He thought about her, the way she brushed away the strands of hair off her face and kept looking at him shyly. He knew he was smitten though he did not want to accept it. “There’s something about her eyes. It is soulful and full of truth”, he addressed the cups and saucers around him.

It was 1:45 AM, she still couldn’t sleep. ‘Why does it feel weird?’, she asked herself. She knew that she had to take it slow but why was her heart racing? Calm down, calm down, she muttered to herself and started watching F.R.I.E.N.D.S, her favorite TV show. As she drowned herself in it, she pondered if she will ever find her lobster in life.

After twisting and turning all night, she woke up with a groan next morning. The events of yesterday made her smile as she washed her tresses and got ready. Suiting her mood, she picked up a bright yellow kurta and paired it with red leggings. As she got ready, he called her. ‘Hello Rahul’ she purred. ‘Hey Aadhya!’ He said. Breathless from his husky tone, she said ‘Yes’. ‘Let me drop you to class’ he said. Wow, she thought to herself as she awaited his arrival.

Wow! She did sound surprised, he thought,as he went to pick up the lady love in his chariot. She was dressed like a bright flower. Her dupatta jingled every time she moved because of the beads at the end of it. Music to my ears, he told himself as she sat down beside him.

That’s when she saw a glimmer of silver. Is that a knife? Oh crap, what am I going to do? Aadhya panicked.

                                                                                                                                                     To be continued..

*Images are for representative purposes only*