Part 2 (1/2)

Virat felt like hitting Kavya with a hammer that very moment.

'Chill, we are going for a movie. I hope you don't mind,' Mehak said in her sweet voice looking at Virat.

'Are you mad? Why would I mind? I am on cloud nine,' Virat added, elated.

'What?' Mehak said giving him a puzzled look.

Kavya nudged him with her elbow and signalled him to come with them. Virat followed both the girls out without uttering a word. There were no lectures all through the day so Kavya had planned for a movie to give them an opportunity to spend some time together. Though they had to submit their a.s.signments the next day, it hardly bothered them. It really doesn't bother students unless they want to impress the professors.

All three of them reached E-Square cinema and booked tickets for the next show of 500 Days of Summer. Virat was overjoyed since it was his first outing with Mehak. He prayed it would turn into a date in the future. She swept him off his feet whenever their eyes met. For the first time he felt special, like he had been searching for someone special all these years and had finally found her. But he felt a void inside since he didn't know how to act around her.

'Let's go eat something. We still have an hour left,' Virat said looking at his watch.

Mehak agreed and all of them went to the food court.

'Mehak, you've never had a boyfriend?' Kavya asked her on purpose.

'No, I am kinda afraid of relations.h.i.+ps,' she said resting her hands on the table.

'Me too. I think we're a perfect match for each other,' joked Virat.

'Relax. Mahek, he thinks he's a stud. In reality, his brain is the size of a peanut. Ignore him,' Kavya replied.

They had a good laugh and spent some time getting to know each other. Virat found that he was extremely similar to Mahek, personality-wise. They had the same taste in movies, food, sport etc. and even had the same att.i.tude and perspective towards things. Though he was never too loud or outspoken, whenever he talked to Mehak, he would metamorphosize into a completely different person. The glow of her electric personality energized his brain as well as his heart.

It was time for the movie to begin, so they went inside the cinema hall and took their seats. The theatre was normally vacant on weekdays, and almost all the seats were unoccupied.

The movie turned out to be really boring and they soon started to feel sleepy. Kavya saw a couple who were seated one row ahead of them and they were busy making their own movie. They were so engrossed in kissing each other that they hardly looked elsewhere. Both of them had closed their eyes and were feeling every inch of each other.

'Look at those dumbos,' Kavya whispered and continued, 'Virat, you should lend your flat on rent to such couples who are unable to find places to have s.e.x.'

'Yeah, why not. I will even install a condom machine next to my door. Happy?' Virat said sarcastically to which Mehak smiled. This brought a smile to his face too. He felt like he was on top of the world.

'I think we should videotape them on our phone. What say, guys?' Kavya added.

'Have you lost it?' Virat said, annoyed.

'Awesome idea. It will be fun. Let's tease them later during the interval by showing them the video,'

Mehak said excitedly.

Virat was shocked and felt trapped between the two girls. Earlier there was just Kavya, and now even Mehak had joined her troupe of crazy girls, it seemed. Mehak took her cell phone out and started recording them in the act. She angled the camera in such a way that both were clearly visible in the frame. The couple didn't have the slightest clue about what was happening. They got wilder with each pa.s.sing minute and were almost on top of each other. Looking at them, all three started to laugh loudly.

'Hey, what are you doing? I will complain about you,' screamed someone from the back seat.

Mahek dropped the cell phone in fear and it rolled down a row.

'What are we doing? Look at them. We are just protesting,' Virat shouted to show that he was not afraid of the person who was threatening them.

But their luck was terrible because the guy actually went to the authorities and complained about the three of them and the racket they were creating. The authorities asked them to delete the video of the couple and threw everyone out of the hall.

'Don't you have a place to have s.e.x, you a.s.sholes?' Kavya screamed on their way out.

'Should I book a room at a nearby hotel for the two of you?' Mehak added. She seemed to be having fun teasing them as well.

The trio ran to the parking lot towards Virat's car as the authorities were hot on their heels. They laughed thinking about how they got thrown out of the hall for shooting an MMS. Virat hadn't expected his first meeting with Mehak to turn out to be so adventurous.

As Virat drove the car, he kept checking out Mehak several times through the rear-view mirror. The smile on her face transported him to a dream world and her naughty eyes made him crazy for her. With each pa.s.sing minute, he was falling for her more and more, while Mehak was drawing close to Virat and Kavya; she was starting to enjoy their company. When Virat had met her for the first time, he wasn't planning on falling in love. He wasn't even looking for another best friend. But she changed all that. Everything started with a little crush and slowly turned into something stronger. The attraction was electric and unexpected. She entered his world and turned it upside down. His mind tried to take control, but his heart would always win over the mind.

The next morning when Mehak reached college, she was slightly tensed as her a.s.signments were incomplete. Kavya had finished writing Virat's a.s.signment so he was in a relaxed frame of mind. When Mahek expressed her concern to the both of them, they laughed it off and told her about the plan some students had come up with.

'Are you serious?' Mehak asked.

'Yes, all the students who haven't finished the a.s.signment have come up with a brilliant plan. So just relax and don't worry about the unfinished a.s.signment,' Virat consoled her.

After the first lecture got over, some of the students left the cla.s.s and went to the washroom. A few minutes later they returned with a sly smile on their faces.

'All set!' they screamed in unison.

Everyone was anxiously waiting to see what they had planned. Virat, Mahek, and Kavya stared at each other, waiting for the big reveal. A few seconds later, there came a loud sound from the washroom.

No one could mistake that sound-it was the sound of firecrackers burning! They had successfully trapped the professor in the washroom before he could come in for the next cla.s.s. They knew he'd pay tribute to the 'Washroom Baba' before beginning the lecture. That's why they had named it 'baba' as it always came to their rescue in times of need. The caretaker ultimately helped the professor out who immediately rushed to the princ.i.p.al's room to complain about them. But by the time the princ.i.p.al could do something about it, the entire gang had run away. There was no other way to get hold of them. The submission of the a.s.signment was forgotten in the entire process and Mehak sighed in relief.

Kavya had to leave early that day so Virat got an opportunity to spend some time alone with Mahek.

They went to Mocha's for coffee where Virat shared his past with her-his family, past relations.h.i.+ps- while Mahek told him about her ambitions in life. While Virat was perfectly comfortable talking to her about everything under the sun, he wasn't sure if Mehak was making small talk or if she too liked his company.

'So dancing is your pa.s.sion?' Virat asked looking straight into her eyes. She silently nodded and turned her gaze away from him, breaking the temporary spell.

After a few seconds of silence, Virat added, 'Do you know I have no knowledge of salsa? I joined because...'

Virat was about to complete his sentence when Mehak took his hand in hers and a.s.sured him that she would teach him everything she knew about salsa. He too tightened the grip on her hands and they looked straight into each other's eyes. Mahek immediately moved her hand away.

There's a famous saying that goes 'Don't try to understand a girl completely. If you do, then either you'll go mad or you'll start loving her.' Virat had started loving Mahek. She had stolen his heart before he could do something about it.

Shortly afterwards, Virat dropped her home and left for his apartment.

Once he reached the apartment, he sent her a message: I had a great time with you. You're the reason I smile these days and I think I have found that someone who can make me have faith in love all again. Someone who can make me believe that even if things are hard in life, I don't have to worry as I have found that someone who can help me make it through. Someone who fills an empty s.p.a.ce in my mind and heart. Someone who makes me feel complete. Someone who's enough for me. Someone who can accept me the way I am. Someone who is not insecure. I have been hurt so many times in the past that it takes a lot for me to trust someone now. The first time I saw you, I had this gut feeling that you and I were going to be together for a very long time. I hope I'm not irritating you with my silly talk, but I need to tell you that you are special. Thank you so much for coming into my life.

Once he sent the message, he kept the phone next to his laptop, waiting for her reply. But no message came. He scrolled through the pictures he had of her on his phone since he was missing every moment he had spent with her. He transferred them to his laptop and logged in to Gtalk. His chat-friend Rohan was online. It had been a few months since they first connected and both of them had become really good friends. Though Virat and Rohan had met only once, they talked with each other like they were childhood friends.

Virat: 'Hey. What's up? I need to tell you something.'

Rohan: 'Hi. Nothing much. Just sitting idle.'

Virat: 'Why, what happened? You know you can share anything with me.'

Rohan: 'Chuck it. You were going to tell me something...'