"A good conversation is as stimulating as black coffee, and just as hard to sleep after." – Anne Morrow Lindbergh
Mumbai, India
We went to The Marigold Restaurant, which was present on the first floor of the hotel. Almost every employee who met us on the way greeted us, especially Akanksha, as they saw her after a long time. The hotel was barely fifteen minutes away from the location. So, we walked all the way, thinking it was unnecessary to take out the car. Two guards, who were appointed for Akanksha and I, trailed behind us, keeping a good distance.
The dinner was turning out to be very scattered. Reyansh Bhai and I spoke to each other, whereas the sisters were busy in their own talks. Yash was playing a game on my phone. I occasionally stole glances at Akanksha while I spoke to him. She was heavily engaged with her sister, unknown of my eyes wandering towards her.
Suddenly, Anika Di barked out a laugh, attracting everyone's attention at the restaurant. All the waiters and managers were looking at her. Noticing the attention, she cleared her throat and straightened her posture.
"Enough of the entertainment. Back to work!" she ordered, and everyone scurried off in different directions.
Anika Di did have an intimidating aura around her employees as I could see everyone hurrying up with their work. Akanksha snickered at her.
"Anika, what was that?" Reyansh Bhai asked, furrowing his eyebrows.
"Akanksha was telling me a bad joke. It turned out to be funny," she laughed again, recalling the joke.
I could see Akanksha's lips twitching, enjoying her sister's laugh.
Reyansh Bhai frowned. "Akanksha, are all jokes for your Di and nothing for your Jiju? Tell me what the joke was. Even Vihaan wants to know. We also want to laugh. Right, Vihaan?" He looked at me.
I nodded.
"Even I want to hear, Masi!" Yash exclaimed as he shifted his attention from the phone and stared at her.
Akanksha waited for a while and saw everybody was looking at her. A sly, mischievous gleam was dancing in her eyes as she seemed excited to tell her joke.
"Because of the heavy demand of the audience, here we go again." She cleared her throat dramatically and said, "Budhi bachpan mein mar gayi." For a moment, there was utter silence. Akanksha nervously looked at us, and the very next moment, Anika Di and Reyansh Bhai started laughing out loud, startling her. Yash was sitting there, perplexed as it was clear that he did not get the joke.
I couldn't help myself but laugh along with the two. Yash also started laughing as everyone was doing the same. Akanksha's face brightened as she, too, joined us, laughing softly. We stole glances at each other as we laughed along. There was a sudden surge of happiness in my body after a long, long time.
Is this what happiness feels like?
Her simple bad joke was able to make me laugh after all these years. Or maybe it was just her aura. I closed my eyes and savoured the moment, fearing that this moment would soon go away, and I would return back to normal. For the first time in seven years, I felt my heart move. I didn't want to admit it, but it was all because of Akanksha. There were no romantic feelings for her. All the hard feelings and hatred were long forgotten, and all I wanted to seek was her friendship and companionship as it was enough for us to spend the rest of our lives together.
Bad experiences scar you to the extent that you know it can't be healed. These experiences change your perception of things and people, and you can't help but judge a person a thousand times who has good intentions. Knowingly or unknowingly, she's making her way into my heart. I am beginning to trust her, and it's scaring me. Akanksha was a stranger who held the title of my wife for the past seven years. Suddenly, it felt weird how we did not know anything about each other except for our educational qualifications.
Mom always said that a conversation is necessary between two people to make their relationship work. It is not necessary that the conversation should be about each other's favourite things, hobbies, and habits. It can be anything. Be it sharing life experiences or talking about something intellectual. It was necessary to view how each of us perceived things around us and know their thought process.
I never had a casual discussion with Akanksha. It was more formal, and we only spoke when required. We never had a conversation in our bedroom apart from work. I realized we were more comfortable talking to each other when we discussed things related to the case. Otherwise, there was pin-drop silence.
All in all, dinner was a fun affair. I really enjoyed it after a long time. Reyansh Bhai and Anika Di, along with Yash, were a pleasant company, and I felt light-hearted. It was good to take a break from work. It was refreshing.
It was almost eleven at night, and we were walking towards our destination, chattering all the way. Anika Di and Reyansh Bhai were walking ahead of me and were bickering about why husbands ditch their wives to watch games with their friends. Akanksha was walking behind them, carrying Yash, who was sleeping in her arms. I fastened my pace and fell in step beside her as I joined her in the walk.
She slowly looked up to me and smiled, which I acknowledged with a small smile, making her laugh.
I frowned. "Why are you laughing?"
She laughed harder at my question. Her laughter reverberated through the silent road, making Anika Di and Reyansh Bhai turn back and look at us. I shook my head, indicating to them to go ahead. Yash slowly stirred in his sleep, startling her, and she immediately stopped laughing and cooed the little guy back to sleep.
I observed that she was a natural with kids. Her equation with Yash said it all. She knew what he wanted at what time, just like a mother knew about her child's needs.
"You love him a lot, don't you?" I asked as I patted Yash's hair. No doubt, he was an adorable kid.
Akanksha hummed. "He is like my own child because I treat him like one. He is my firstborn. I had a natural inclination towards him and vice versa. I remember holding him for the first time. It was a beautiful experience. There was a time when the pressure of Jiju's job and Di's business was so much that they were having difficulty in taking care of Yash. So, I took him with me to Delhi for a year."
I was surprised at the revelation. I never knew she was adept at taking care of a child along with all the other work she had. "You must be doing your masters at that time. How did you manage all of it?"
"He was just a year and a half-year-old when he moved in with me. I was 23 at that time. I was doing my master's then. I used to leave him in the kid's den while I was at college. Since he was so small, I used to come after every class to check upon him. I used to keep him with me all the time. Also, there were lovely caretakers, and Aadya helped me out with him. It was that period of time when we both got very close and became attached to each other." She lovingly smoothed his back and patted him to sleep.
She was indeed a strong woman. She could go to any extent for her family and friends. "You had a lot of responsibilities at a young age, isn't it?" I asked her.
She had a calm and serene expression on her face. I saw her hands shaking due to carrying Yash for a long time. I opened my arms and gestured to her to give him to me. She looked at me in hesitance but still gave him to me, and I swiftly carried him and continued to walk with her. She visibly relaxed, flexed her arms, and stretched them.
"It was the least I could do for them," she paused. "Di has done a lot for me. I wasn't doing my business course at that time, and she had the pressure of handling both the branches. Even now, until recently, she was handling a few important meetings, but since I have started handling the Jaipur branch completely now, she's all relaxed, and I want it to be like that."
I hummed, not knowing what to say. We didn't realise, but we had reached the house. Akanksha helped me tuck the sleeping Yash in bed, and we started going towards our rooms.
"Vihaan!" she called out, startling me.
She let out a nervous chuckle. "Would you want to... umm, have a cup of coffee?" she was looking at me hopefully.
Her company wasn't bad. In fact, I enjoyed talking to her. Spending some more time with her wouldn't kill me. Right?
I nodded. "Coffee sounds good."
She gave me a full-blown smile. "Cool! You go and wait on my room's balcony. I will bring the coffee there." Saying this, she sailed downstairs to the kitchen.
I slid the door to the balcony and stepped in. It was quite spacious with two small chairs separated by a teapoy at the centre. I sat down on one of the chairs and waited for her. A few minutes later, she came in with the coffee and placed it on the teapoy before settling herself on the chair.
I took the mug in front of me. The scent of coffee was strong, just the way I liked.
"I see an Americano here," I smirked.
"Well, Americano is my favourite, but I also love filter coffee. I used to drink that a lot when I was in the hostel," she said.
"Americano is my favourite as well. Gives me some weird energy," I murmured with the rim of the cup near my lips as I was about to take my first sip. "Hmmm," I closed my eyes as the coffee went down my throat. "Nice coffee. Exactly my kind."
She saluted as she went to drink hers. "My pleasure!"
We sat there in silence, enjoying our coffee. This time, the silence and the company were comfortable. The night sky was clear, with the moon shining in the sky. A soothing wind was blowing, keeping us calm and relaxed. The rustling of leaves was audible, and owls flying in the clear sky were visible.
A few moments later, I kept my mug down, drawing her attention.
"You said your best friend lives here. What was his name again?" I asked, starting the conversation.
"Pranav. His name is Pranav. His house is a lane away. It's only a five-minute walk. Chirag is his neighbour," she said.
That meant Diya lived nearby. Perhaps I could go and visit her in a day or two.
"You have three best friends, isn't it? What about the third one?" I asked as curiosity was engulfing me.
"He is Aditya." Her body tensed as she continued, "He lives opposite to the Agarwal House. His house is two lanes away."
I cleared my throat. "So, he umm... used to be your neighbour before we - " I got somewhat uncomfortable mentioning it, and she beat me to it.
"Got married? Yes," she replied, looking towards the sky.
This was kind of getting weird. I decided to change the topic. "I saw you guys at the wedding. You were always together. Like joined by the hip."
Akanksha chuckled. "That's how we are — always attached to the hip. You know, when I first entered college, it was weird not having them around. We have known each other since our diaper days. Funnily, we all are born in the same month. It's just the date that separates us."
"That's really surprising. They seem like a good bunch of people. I have known Chirag since I had spoken to him a few times during the wedding, and he seemed like a good guy."
She beamed. "He is an adorable one. All of them are. But they should never know about it. They will fly in the air."
I gave her a thumbs up.
I looked at the watch. It was already a quarter past twelve.
I got up from my seat, and she followed the same. "I think we should call it a night," I said, taking the mugs with me so that I could put them in the sink.
"Yes. I didn't realise it was this late. I am already feeling tired now." She came out of the balcony, sliding the door behind her, and followed me out of the room.
"Although we didn't talk much, it felt nice sitting with someone and chatting over coffee," she said.
"Indeed. Good night." I nodded at her. I did not smile this time because something about me smiling makes her laugh.
"Goodnight."
* * *
The next morning, I woke up early and did my morning workout. After finishing it, I freshened up and called Dad to know about the progress in the Bureau. The damage repair and the renovation had started yesterday, and it was predicted that it would be over by next week.
I walked over to the kitchen and saw Anika Di and Akanksha cooking breakfast. Yash was sleeping on the dining table, and Reyansh Bhai was sitting in the living room, sprawled on the sofa, watching television. I took out a water bottle from the fridge and chugged the entire content of it because my throat was dry. From the corner of my eyes, I could see Akanksha in a completely new avatar.
The clothes she was wearing surprised me. She was wearing an oversized hoodie, which was looking very loose for her frame. With that, she had worn extremely loose jeans. I wondered how those jeans did not fall off, and then I saw the end of the belt dangling a bit. She looked hideous, and she looked more like a guy. It felt weird to look at her in those clothes because I was used to seeing her in either formals or Indian wear.
She turned around to wish me good morning. I mumbled the greeting before snorting at the quote written on her hoodie.
Bro Code Rule #10
If a bro discovers another bro has forgotten to sign out of Facebook/Twitter/Instagram, the bro will sign out for him, but only after many humiliating updates.
But she was a woman. Then why the hell was she wearing that? I walked over to Reyansh Bhai and silently sat beside him, watching the television.
As if on cue, the main door opened, and three familiar men walked in rather dramatically as if they owned the house. At the same time, she came out of the kitchen, and her eyes twinkled with delight. It was mainly because they were looking at each other's clothes. I observed that they were wearing the same kind of hoodie with the same write-up.
Talk about connection!
They all tackled each other in a hug and ultimately fell down, laughing their ass off. It was a weird sight to watch. I never thought Akanksha would be this kind. I thought she was more prim, proper, and poised. She wasn't like this even during Diya and Chirag's wedding.
After a few seconds, they got up and did some kind of a bro hug. I felt so out of place.
They crashed on one of the couches and were panting hard.
After they got settled, Anika Di came from the kitchen carrying four glasses of water in a tray.
"Satan!" The guys saluted her.
She stuck out her tongue, handing them water.
"Jiju!" They nodded at Reyansh Bhai. He gave them a warm smile.
"Kid!" I think that was for Yash as their greeting for him was followed by a whistle. Yash, who was now awake because of the commotion, sat at the table, waving widely at them.
"Person!" They said in a grim tone looking at me.
I frowned at them, giving them a slight nod.
Like seriously? Person?
I never thought anybody would call me a person. They were already glaring at me. After the previous night, I thought I might warm up to them because they didn't seem bad. But I think it was going to be way more difficult.
Glossary:
Buddhi bachpan mein mar gayi: Its literal meaning is 'An old woman died in her childhood'. It was my own created joke. I wanted it to be a bad joke but turned out to be funny. It sounds funnier in Hindi.
Hello people! I am back with yet another chapter. A much needed Vihaan centric chapter. Let me know what you guys think of it. A completely different side of Akanksha and her best friends. Isn't it? Lots of drama and mystery is on the way. Let me know what you guys think of it. I really consider your suggestions.
Also, HAPPY WOMEN'S DAY! BE THE CHANGE YOU WANT TO BE AND DON'T LET ANYONE CHANGE YOU.
With Love,
Akii.