Hers To Love

Chapter-2

This time my parents didn't fly to Delhi with me. They sent me off at the airport. Despite my less-than-stellar behaviour after returning from Delhi, my mother was wiping tears from her eyes with the end of her dupatta when the boarding call came.

"Call us regularly," she said as she pulled me and Dad into a hug.

"You know I will," I said as tears pricked my eyes. I was home for two weeks but didn't enjoy my parents' company as much as I wanted. Blasted Arun Sahu was always in the back of my mind, reminding me how I had wronged him. My contempt for him grew even more as I realised that he had stolen the little time I had with my parents.

Waving to my parents, I boarded the bus that took me to the flight and in a few minutes, I was in the air, flying to Delhi. Usually, when the flight took off, my stomach dropped down due to the change in gravity, but this time it dropped for another reason too. In less than three hours, I would be in Delhi and at Escale. I might see Arun Sahu for the first time in two weeks. For the first time after he told me that he hated me and let Ritu into his flat.

I didn't think I would enjoy that encounter. Because when I saw Arun again, we wouldn't be fuck buddies or people who were slowly warming up to each other. We would be true enemies with the potential of messing up each other's lives.

Oh, boy.

I shut my eyes and forced my overheated brain to sleep and cool off. It obliged, but even in my dreams, all I could see was Arun Sahu and his perfect, sculpted lips saying that he hated me.

************

The thing about coming back from home was that you ended up with more luggage than you went home with. I went with a trolley suitcase and backpack but came back with another trolley filled with snacks my mother made for me. They might be difficult to carry from the airport to the twelfth floor of Escale, but it would be worth it when my taste buds were singing with the deliciousness.

I booked an Uber and it brought me to Escale. I got out of the car and looked at the building, the early morning smog blurring the upper flats. Somewhere up there was Arun Sahu, already up and getting ready for his day. I shook my head determinedly. I would not think about Arun Sahu. Not when he agreed to a date with the insufferable Ritu Banera.

"Ma'am, your luggage," the cab driver, a middle-aged man with an infectious smile called from behind me. He already removed my two suitcases and bags from the trunk.

"Thank you so much," I said and paid him. Nodding, he got into the car and drove away. I pulled the trolley cases behind me while resting the backpack on one of them and made my way to the elevator. It brought me to the twelfth floor and the doors opened into the corridor. I didn't expect to feel the relief I felt as I looked at my flat. Somewhere along the last six months, the posh flat Sahus had let me live in started feeling like home.

I realized with a sudden pang that I missed the bedroom with its large and comfy bed, the large flatscreen where I spent hours surfing Netflix, the smart kitchen where I mostly made noodles and most of all, the amazing view through the glass wall. The life of a person who left their parents' home was a strange one. You wouldn't quite belong anywhere. Wherever you were, you would miss the other place. I patted the house key in my pocket and walked towards my front door, pulling all my luggage with effort.

I was so engrossed with the thought of being in my flat again, that I momentarily forgot about Arun Sahu and the rift between us. That was until the door across mine opened and he stepped out. My throat went dry and I gulped. I remembered how handsome he was, of course. It had just been two weeks. Still, seeing him in the flesh felt like a punch to the gut.

Imagination and dreams couldn't do justice to how intense and smouldering his eyes were. How long and strong were his arms. How perfect was his physique. He was like a sculpture of the ideal male form made with love and concentration by the creator, Brahma, himself.