Never Kiss Your Best Friend

Chapter 24

"Bhaiya," she said.

Ah! My ears craved to listen to her!

She pulled away from me, as I put her on the ground. I smiled wholeheartedly when she grinned with teary eyes. I held her cold hands in mine. "I missed you." 

"I missed you, too. I missed you s-so much," she said, her voice heavy and rough. 

 She turned around to the boy who was looking at us intently. His eyes bored into me as if I was some enemy at the border, as his forehead strained. 

Two others who exited the apartment stopped in their tracks. The girl looked at me with a frown and the man beside her looked at Aisha. 

"Aaron, come. Let me introduce you." Aisha said as she grabbed Aaron, the boy, from his arm and we stood face to face with each other. 

He looked into my eyes as if to see assess some unspoken words. I needed to talk with Aisha. No precaution was good enough for her safety. It never would be. 

"Who is he?' Aaron asked, looking down at Aisha. 

My adorable baby sister showed her teeth as a smile pulled up her lips, and my heart swelled. She looked so... adult. I knew I missed her birthday and that I couldn't call her. But, I had every reason to not be able to do so. 

Aisha came close to me and tangled her hands with my left arm. "This is Rahul bhaiya, whom I told you about. Oh god, I can't believe you are here." her head tilted upward. "I mean, I was expecting anything, and then you just called me. Oh god, I still can't believe you are here in front of my eyes. I mean, four years and what the hell." 

"Aaron," The other man standing behind Aaron said. "We are getting late," 

"Ask for another appointment, papa. We are not going today. And you," Aaron said while looking at Aisha. "Take him inside."

"No, I am taking him to my apartment, thank you," Aisha said. 

I knitted my brows as I looked between them. But, questions could be asked later, right now Aisha was everything that mattered to me. With my last goodbyes to everyone, she dragged me to her apartment. 

I entered inside, with a smile as I looked around. It was as simple as any term that would describe Aisha. She had never been one of that extravagant girls who wanted to decorate. The living room had a plain grey-blue sofa in the middle, with a small centre table. To my right, her paradise. Her kitchen. I knew she always felt connected with cooking, though her mathematical skills were out of the world. But, anyways. 

I sat on the sofa, and she sat beside me. She took a deep breath, as we looked at each other. It was still unbelievable to see her after so long. Though, before coming here I was concerned if there would be an invisible wall between us. But the moment I hugged her, everything shattered. And I found myself the same boy ten years ago. And the same Aisha, who used to annoy me but made me laugh the most. 

"I still can't believe you are here," she whispered. 

I looked at the centre table as I laughed while shaking my head. "I can't, too." 

"How- how did you manage to come here?" she said. I tilted my head toward her. She was playing with the hem of her t-shirt, which she often used to do when she was nervous. the nails of her right hand flew to her mouth, and I understood that she was not only freaking out but about to have an anxiety attack. "How did you convince him to come here?" 

"Chief justice is a dear friend of the prime minister, and he has a liking for me. So, I convinced him to put my company upfront with some foreign project. And there we are. He asked the favour from the prime minister, and here I am. As for papa, he thinks it was an order from the prime minister."