The Haunted Fortress of Bhangarh: Book 1

28. Kalavati

Ishita was having the time of her life that evening. The anniversary party turned out to be one of the best she had ever attended, and Rishabh's mother being a party connoisseur was no fable. The theme, the decor, the music, the food, and the beverages were top-notch, and the cake was so decadent that Ishita was left licking her fingers while she got teased by her friends for her not-so-sophisticated behavior at a posh event. She was mighty impressed by the presence of oysters and calamari on the starter menu, and she was exuberant after she tried the delicacies.

The red and white balloons, the scarlet and cream-hued streamers, the neon lights changing colors with the beats of the music, and the multi-colored cocktails and mocktails lining the bar were making her ebullient throughout. But that was certainly not the highlight of the evening, for the sweetest surprise was when a flustering and blushing Rishabh took her to a corner of the dance floor, placed his palm on her waist, and swayed to the tunes while admitting the massive crush he had on her. She giggled at the manner in which he fumbled with his words, and she couldn't decline when he proposed that they skip the rest of the party and spend some time with each other.

So, they made an exit after grabbing an early dinner, and he took her for a stroll in Lodhi Garden. He was humorous and jovial, preferred smiling and laughing, and much to her jubilance, he was a fan of the same supernatural thriller that she watched with ardent passion. As the duo discovered a lot of topics they could potentially talk about, they chose to get a cotton candy each and stuff the sugary treat inside their mouths while chattering away.

She had such a good time with him that she was disheartened after seeing a message from her father, asking her to come back home as the driver was already at Rishabh's. His expression fell and his shoulders slouched upon hearing her talk about going back, and he offered to drop her off so that they could spend some more time together.

She didn't decline either since she was savoring the undivided attention of the sweet guy, and as his car sped past the roads teeming with other vehicles and pedestrians, she found the ease and comfort with which he could make her smile and giggle.

He stopped the car right in front of her porch and crawled out of it while she followed suit and clambered down. Nervous smiles were exchanged as they fiddled with their fingers, glimpsing at one another often before their gazes darted around in an attempt to come up with a proper goodbye.

"Uh..." He grinned. "So..."

"So," she beamed, "I had a lovely time with you today."

He sighed in relief. "I did too."

She tittered. "I will see you Monday?"

He cleared his throat and garnered enough confidence as his fingers went ahead to brush against the side of her palms. "How about we meet tomorrow? Lunch? You and I?"

***

Rudra had been in a foul mood throughout the evening. Ishita was a no-show and even Shravani didn't receive any of his incessant calls or respond to the string of messages he had sent. Neither of those two girls cared about him, and that hurt him considerably. In fact, Ishita choosing to attend a random party instead of using the opportunity to talk to him made him wonder if she really didn't care about the crush she had on him once upon a time. Though he was glad they could be friends without any of those annoying feelings intervening between the duo, a tiny part of him was upset since her attention had begun wavering, and at the moment, he needed her the most, for she was the only one he could confess his demons in front of. Unhindered and untamed.

Irked he was by the end of the veneration, and he had half a mind to ignite the bike and head towards the desolate lane where Shravani lived. She had time and again told him about the conservative parents she had, and he didn't want any problems for her, but at the same time, he wished to check up on her once and ensure she was safe and sound.