Silently Falling in Love: Race (THE EDITED VERSION)

Chapter 26 - Proposals

Anjali July 1994

I raced over to Alex's place as fast as I could. Arjun had told me not to wait even a minute to get to his place ASAP. He said Amar wasn't answering any of his calls and he'd never seen Amar in such horrible shape. I still couldn't believe what had happened.

I took the stairs to Alex' apartment because the elevator was so damn slow.

Panting I knocked on the door a few times. "Open up Alex I know you're in there."

"Go away, Anjali. I'm busy getting drunk."

"Open up this damn door before I call your mom and dad and tell them what horrible manners you have. What kind of desi boy doesn't open up the door for a guest and invite her in. You're supposed to invite me in and ask me to sit, then ask me what I want to drink. Then once you get me a drink, you're supposed to ask me if I want to eat something. Has it been that long that you've been away from your parents you've forgotten all hospitality?"

"Anjali, I'm not home otherwise I'd let you in." he slurred.

"I can't believe you and Arjun were raised in the same household. What a difference between the two of you. I mean I have never seen Arjun be this rude before. Wait until I tell your mom. Something must have gone wrong with your upbringing. And then I will ask her for your Dadi's (paternal grandma) phone number and I'll call her in Chandigarh and tell her how horrible her oldest grandson is and then..."

The door opened and a drunk Alex with day old unshaven stubble, messy hair, a grey t-shirt and navy-blue sweats stood in the doorway. He placed a drunken kiss on my cheek and then said, "Andar Aiye. Aap kaise ho? Aap ko kuch chaiye peenaye ke liya yah kuch kahne ke liye?" (Please come in. How are you? Would you like something to drink or eat?).

I pushed my way in. "Yes, I'd like whatever you're having, and you stink."

"No one asked you to come over. I'm sure there are some rules about uninvited guests which your parents obviously didn't teach you. But since I'm a well-mannered desi gentleman and I wanted you to shut up and stop talking I let you in."

"Good to know. The next time I'm home I'll ask my parents about the uninvited guest etiquette."

Alex handed me a shot of Scotch. "Can you handle that Jersey girl?"

"Of course, I can handle it!" I said as I swallowed the shot. Then I choked and coughed it out. "Oh god, this tastes terrible! How can you voluntarily drink this shit? If we're going to get drunk, I need something that tastes better."

"We're getting drunk? Excuse me."

"Yes, we're getting drunk. What else do you have?"

"There's vodka and cranberry juice. My ex's favorite. Help yourself to it since it's not going to get used now. And Anjali, please spare me all the anecdotes about their being other fish in the sea, it's for the better, and all of that shit. I don't want to hear it."

"I would not give you any anecdotes. What I would say is that your ex and I have similar tastes in cocktails. I love vodka cranberry!" I paused before asking, "What happened?"

He threw a jewelry box at me. I opened it and saw an engagement ring.

"Look Alex, don't you think you should at least wait twenty-four hours before proposing to me? I mean I don't want to be the second proposal in one day. I don't think that's fair to me. If you ask me today, I must reject you, which would mean two rejections in one day. But if you ask me tomorrow, I'll say yes."

"Well then, it's your lucky day, because I didn't propose to anyone today so you would be my first proposal of the day. Will you marry me Jersey girl?" He slurred with a smile on his face.