IshaqNama

The First Date

Adyti

I slowly opened the doors of the back entrance and sneaked out of the house without making any noise. If Rishaan Bhaiya learned about this, he would punish me badly and never let me get out of the house.

After coming out, I sigh and check the time on my phone. It was already 11:30 pm and we decided to meet at 12. I unlocked my phone, checked the location he sent me over the text, and booked a cab. After almost 5 minutes, the cab pulled up in front of me. The driver rolled the windows down and asked for the OTP. I said "4567.". He stared into my eyes and then scanned me from head to toe, which scared me. I was too startled to sit inside the cab, but I did anyway. Sitting in the backseat, the cab driver was sneaking glances at me through the rearview mirror. I immediately shared my current location with my friends. I don't want to take any risks. The journey was almost 15 minutes and every minute felt like an hour. Inspecting the Google Maps, I saw that the driver had taken the wrong turn. I asked politely, "This is not the correct way, sir, you had to take a right turn."

He replied, looking at me through the rearview mirror "Ma'am, it is a shortcut, that way must have a lot of traffic."

As my anxiety increased, I bit inside my cheeks, calming myself down, and said, "Don't worry about the traffic, take through that route only, and before taking any shortcuts, ask me first."

While changing his route, he stated, "Okay ma'am, but if you don't reach in time don't say it to me."

I rolled my eyes and said "Okay."

I was finally going to meet him. I was excited and nervous at the same time. My heartbeat was racing with the speed of light. Gosh, it felt like a dream come true. I was scrolling through my messages and saw his name popping up.

"I have reached. Where are you?"

I replied, "5 minutes more."

Turning off the phone I kept it close to my chest and took a deep breath. The person I have been admiring from afar is going to be in front of my eyes in a few moments.

I looked outside the window and saw multiple cars banging horns. Delhi people don't have patience at night as well. I bobbed my legs up and down inside the moving car, making a clicking sound through my high heels. I kept my hand on my knees, trying to calm myself down, and closed my eyes in the hope that I would reach soon. Suddenly, the car came to a halt. My eyes flew open, and I realised I was in the middle of an empty road, I tapped my phone open and dialled the first number that came to mind. The driver stepped out of his seat and made his way towards my door. I quickly pressed the lock button, preventing him from opening the door. I shifted my weight forward and hoisted myself up into the driver's seat. I reached for the lock button, ensuring that all the doors were securely fastened. The cab driver was hardly whacking the windows from outside, flinching me out of fear. I took a deep breath as my heart pounded in my chest and sped away as fast as I could, feeling a sense of relief creep in me as the distance between us grew.

As I reached a good distance from him, I applied the brakes decelerating the car as it slowly came to a stop. I got out of the unknown car and started to stroll to the location all by myself in the middle of the night. I started doubting every single decision I took today, firstly meeting him, secondly taking the cab, thirdly driving an unknown car, and lastly deciding to walk to the destination instead of driving there.

It was a completely empty road and there was no sign of anyone near me. I checked my phone for the leftover distance and it showed 10 minutes. I am tired and frustrated. The heel is biting my feet, and the dress I am wearing is feeling itchy and uncomfortable. I regretted coming here every second even more than before.