107 Adore You (1/2)

Sebastian placed his fork down and stared at Harshit. ”You. Stop embarrassing her. I know you enough to be sure that you told her to play with my heart!”

I choked on the water I had tried to sip on to cool down.

”Okay, I'm done with lunch. I'll take my leave.” I stood up abruptly, my cheeks burning. Well, everything they said (apart from the whole sister-in-law thing) was true. I shouldn't be embarrassed. Maybe, I should pour out all my tension and kiss him so many times that it is no longer embarrassing to me.

And talk to him like Harshit had mentioned. That seemed like a good idea.

I prepared for the class for the rest of lunch. Sebastian didn't come back and I guessed that he was trying to give me space. I was thankful for that. I found myself going through emails and answering questions rapidly despite how terribly busy my mind was with the images of intimacy with Sebastian.

How was Sebastian more emotionally adept than me? Hadn't he appointed me for the sole purpose of helping him communicate with the world?

Then a thought... a dangerous thought passed through my mind.

What if... What if the only person with whom he truly communicated with, without barrier, was me. Because he was putting in a conscious effort to get to know me and place himself firmly in my life. When I thought back to the beginning I could almost laugh at this. When Alec interviewed me, he had remained hidden in the shadows, observing me. Thereafter, he had tried his best to keep his distance. Until the case. He had pervaded my life fully since then. Even when I didn't see him for months on end, I had sometimes thought about him and his proposal. And that eventful day when I saw him on campus as he walked out of the department... I remembered being dazzled. His hair bronze and shining in the piercing sunlight, his glasses pushed down his nose as he fixed it. It was the first time I saw him in perspective.

As other people saw him. I still remember his eyes and how they glittered on seeing me. Had he liked me since then?

Probably not. Maybe he admired me and saw worth in appointing me.

When had he started liking me though? I wondered about it.

He had crept into my life and taken over so completely that I couldn't imagine it without him anymore. Now that my life was in multicolor, it would seem grey without him.

I realized that I liked him. Liked him a lot. But I needed answers.

The class flew by and we silently drove back to the complex. He walked me to my apartment, leaving me to my thoughts. When I entered my apartment, he remained outside the door.

”You aren't coming in?” I asked, surprised.

”No. You need time to think,” he said softly and shrugged. I felt my heart skip a beat.

”Shoot.”