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Chapter Fifty Four

Last chapter summary: The four of them were stuck on the highway. Shujaat and Mahi went to find a village while Soha and Rahat reconciled.

Third person pov:

Mahi and Shujaat went back to the village with now reconciled pair - Soha and Rahat, where a villager was waiting for their return. Soha found out that it was one of the tribal village who came down from the hill tracts and inhabited this lower areas.

The villager who introduced himself as the tribe leader and the only person who understood bengali, told them it was too dangerous to spend the night on the highway. He also offered them bed and breakfast.

But there was no bed. They got a hut which was too small for all of them to fit in comfortably. But they were grateful to the tribal leader for letting them have a roof over their heads. The leader also offered them some snacks which they devoured in no time.

Mahi and Shujaat were clearly more tired than the other two as they had to go back and forth. So, Soha insisted that both of them should rest first. She took the jar of rice wine offered by the leader and came out of the hut. Rahat silently followed her while Mahi and Shujaat placed their mats on the opposite side of the room.

"What's that?"

"Some kinda bevarage." Soha replied as she smelled the whitish drink. "You want some?"

"Mind feeding me?"

"I don't want to."

"Why not?"

"Cause I don't feel like it." 

Rahat snatched the jar from her and gulped down almost half of it.

"That's not nice."

"I don't do nice." Rahat looked at her briefly before turning his head away.

Both of them silently gazed at the gleaming stars. A clear starlit night was halfway through while they kept passing the wine jar to each other. The chilly wind made them huddled together unconsciously, seeking warmth in each other.

"I feel weird." Soha spoke for the first time in a while.

"Weird? Is it a good weird or bad weird?" Rahat raised his eyebrows.

"Good. . . My head feels lighter aaand. . .body tingly."

"I think this sweet drink has some kind of alcohol in it. Cause I feel it too." He looked at her as he touched her nose briefly. "Your body is warm but your nose is cold."

Without saying anything, Soha touched his nose too.

"Yours is colder."

"I know how to warm them up." Rahat said with a mischievous smile which Soha couldn't seem to recognize. As he turned his head, he found themselves so close that it would only take a second to touch her lips.

Rahat raised his hand, and pull her head towards him, making their nose touch lightly.

     ************************

Rahat's point of view:

My heart started racing when I got closer to her. I never felt this nervous and excited at the same time about any girl before.

She's just a friend!

I'd been reminding myself these past seven days. You don't get these weirdly happy feelings when your friend smiles, your heart doesn't jump against the ribcage when you touch a friend's hand, right? I did. I felt like holding her close to my heart when she cried. I wanted to ruin those people who gave her hard time.

I grabbed the back of her head and pulled her toward me. She slightly trembled as my hand touched the small of her back. Our noses touched lightly for a few seconds. Just when she was about to pull away, I leaned in. Her soft but cold lips met my even colder ones. Soha let go of the empty wine jar as she closed her eyes.

Our lips brushed against each other a few times before I pulled her harder, making  our bodies pressed together. I licked her lips, trying to sneak in. But she wasn't giving in yet so I just bit her lower lip. Soha let out a sharp gasp, obviously she wasn't expecting the bite. I took this chance and slipped my tongue inside her mouth.

Her tongue tasted like rice wine. Our tongues mingled together, dancing with rhythm.

I didn't want to  pull away, not yet. But we both needed to breathe. We panted heavily, her eyes still closed. I kept my hands around her back as my now warm nose nuzzled against hers. 

Soha opened her eyes and saw me looking at her. Sudden shyness engulfed her as she remembered how passionately she kissed back a minute ago. Biting her lip, she lowered her eyes.

"Look at you!" I whispered in her ear. "Feeling shy? What happened to the girl who kissed back so eagerly?"

"Shut up." Soha nudged me in the ribs before she hid her face with her hands. Chuckling softly, I let go of her.

         Why is she so cute?

"You know I like this side of you. You're bold yet shy." I said. "Sometimes fierce but sensitive. Actually I like everything about you."

"You l-like me?" Soha seemed astounded by the sudden confession. 

"Mm hmm."

"I don't know what to say. . . You are not joking, right?"

"Why would I? I might not be completely sober right now, but I know what I feel about you."

I was kinda sobered up at this point. I knew where it was going. So, I contemplated that whether it was a good idea to do this before I left the country.

"I like you too." She said with a shaky voice. I almost smiled when I heard her saying that she liked me back. 

"Okay." I replied.

I didn't know what else to say. To tell you the truth this sudden realization of the development of my feelings coincided with the realization that I was allergic to relationships. I don't do commitments. I hated that feeling of being bound by something or someone.

"So, what does it make us?" She asked after a few moments of silence.

"You want to put a label on whatever is we have going on?" I stated the obvious.

"You don't?"

"I'm not a big fan of commitments, you see?" I scratched the back of my head, feeling short of more polite ways to reveal the fact.

"What do you mean?" She sounded puzzled by my answer.

"Well, I don't do relationships. I do enjoy your company, I like kissing you, and I like you. But I'm not ready for a relationship, not yet."

A/n: Hey guys, first of all, I'm sincerely apologizing to you all for not updating these last two months. As some of you know that I had exams, and then a few unfavorable circumstances made it difficult for me to write. Now I'm back once again.  I can't thank you enough for being so patient with me.

Hope you all can forgive me. Please support the book till the end like you've been doing these past years. 

😙❤️