"I studied in the States for four years then researched, and took part in activities, seminars and internships for a year and a half. Now I shifted to the country to work with a successful portfolio and enough funds." Kabir spoke as Nisha nodded.
Despite Nisha concluding Kabir was strange and tore her flowers, she was chatting with him.
More like—he was chatting with her.
He kept on asking questions and Nisha kept on answering, occasionally asking a few as well. She found it awkward at first, she wasn't quite the social one.
"Quite curious about one thing though." He cleared his throat as Nisha stared at him. Both of them were leaning against the wall and somehow, it didn't feel that weird.
Maybe because it was a natural occurrence.
"Well, do you usually act like that or just... today?" She knew well what he meant. She looked at him, playing dumb. The blazing eyes stared into hers, curiosity evident in them.
Her eyes wavered as she spoke, "Today was a misunderstanding. That's all."
"That means it's habitual. Interesting." He spoke, raising his brows.
"What?!" Nisha asked, offended. Kabir chuckled, "Take it easy woman. You're not the one who got called 'half-naked',"
"Sure, grudge-holder," She murmured under her breath, unknown to the fact that Kabir gave her a side-eye hearing that.
"You're quite a woman." His statement made her roll her eyes slightly, "Of course I am."
She felt like Kabir gave her a long glance but didn't dare to look at her right and meet those eyes. Those confident eyes made her question herself.
"Well, Mr. Kabir, why did you pull that prank on everyone?" She asked.
"For fun, of course." He shrugged, making her roll her eyes.
"If you'd have told everyone, you wouldn't get your ego bruised." She emphasized the word 'ego' as he looked at her, amusement dancing in his eyes. This time though, he did not look away.
"Right, you are. I'm surprised you never saw my picture. For 10 years.."
"5. I didn't know about it until 5 years ago."
"That's also a looong time." He spoke. She thinned her lips, "You knew me, then?"
"Not really. Just heard from Shams occasionally." He excluded the part where he had seen her pictures.
"You're one to talk then," Nisha spoke. His lips parted, wanting to say something but it soon died down.
"You have an answer for every statement." He spoke.
"Born and raised in a country where your tongue is the ultimate weapon, you get it naturally," Nisha spoke making Kabir smile slightly.
"Feisty."
She didn't respond but glanced at him, taking in some of his features.
He had very detailed brows that nearly intersected in the middle. His eyes were tender and they reflected a deep shade that reminded her of a moonlit night.
She never thought she'd analyze a Bengali man's face like that but here she was.
"Are you 100% Bengali?" She asked.
He raised a brow, "Am I that handsome you're questioning my nationality?"
"Did I say that?" She frowned.
"Yes, I am. I was born and raised here, like you. I only lived in the States for 6 years, that's all."
She nodded, looking at anywhere but him. He was the feisty one here.
"Nisha!" She got a call from her mother who was waving her hand at her.
"Coming!" She said, locking eyes with Kabir once who watched her run away. Maybe it was her swift motion and the wave of her swaying hair but he got a whiff of her scent.
A slight floral scent with a fruity essence. And he kind of really liked it.
He watched her work with her mom and serve the guests.
He noticed how she threw around a kind smile, chatting with everyone who called her. For a moment, he felt as if it was a fake show.
Because every time she moved away, her face turned poker, a sigh escaped her lips and the cycle continued. Kabir hadn't been in such functions for years. The last time he was, it was during the vacation he got.
The scenery of so many people together, in desi outfits, hanging out made his heart warm up. But he also knew that half of it was a fake show. The way some relatives eyed the others yet walked up to them to strike up a conversation with the widest grins.
There were good moments that came, along with deep secrets underneath.
"What are you staring at?" He heard a voice and looked down, finding Adil.
He looked at everyone and said, "Are you watching Nisha-pi?"
"What?" Kabir asked, a tint of humour arising in his voice.
"You seem to keep staring at her. Did she do something to you?" Adil's question made Kabir chuckle bitterly.
"Not really... your sister lacks common sense, is it?"
"How did you know?! Don't tell her you got it. She'll hate you." The younger warned cautiously as he hummed deeply, "I think she already does."
"How?"
"She fake smiled at everyone but me."
"It's fine. She doesn't fake smile at me either but she loves me a lot." Adil shrugged, staring at his sisters.
"We'll meet almost every day now. Since it's a wedding season."
Adil chuckled, "You know, I'll dance with Adisha to a song. Will you dance too?"
"Adisha?"
"My sister."
"Oh. What song?"
They both continued talking for what felt like an eternity and Kabir knew right there, that this pal here was going to be his companion.
—At night—
"Really?" Shams asked, gasping.
"What else? These morons helped, of course." Kabir glared at the other 3 who had the faces of 3 culprits.
"You look like 3 idiots." Shams spoke as they all immediately fell to Kabir's feet, "Sorry, darling." Atif spoke.
Ajay and Wahi gave him puppy eyes.
Shams chuckled seeing Kabir roll his eyes, "You guys don't deserve forgiveness."
"You should prefer Nisha's feet to his. She'll take her revenge on you all for embarrassing her." Shams suggested, checking out his nails.
"Oh, right. The way Kabir was cornered by Nisha though. It was so funny! He looked like he was stabbed in the heart." Ajay commented as Shams raised his brow, turning to Kabir.
He didn't respond.
Picking on the couch, he took deep breaths.
"Hey, stop fussing on my couch. You'll ruin it." Shams complained, making Kabir's brow raise.
"Exactly, this!" Wahi suddenly spoke, gaining everyone's attention.
"Nisha isn't one to act up. Only because you tore the flowers and rummaged through them, she got so mad. She had been so serious about the flower decoration for days."
"Right. Other than your weird dress up, you were engaged with flowers so."
"You tore Nisha's flowers?!" Shams gasped, "You're such a nutjob, man. That's decoration flowers at my wife's house!"
"Shut up, you all!" Kabir sighed, restraining himself from bursting.
"I was only staring at a few flowers... they looked really pretty. And I did not tear anything! The tore flowers were there from before."
"I don't trust you," Atif spoke, making Kabir glare at him.
"Atif is right, though. You pick at everything you see." Shams spoke. Kabir rolled his eyes, "Whatever you believe. I. Did. Not. Tear. The. Flowers. And that woman's a real piece of work." The ghost of a smile played on his lips apart from irritancy as he mentioned her.
"Whatever you say, Nisha's the wisest of them all," Atif spoke.
"Her? That woman?" Kabir seemed to be in disbelief but Ajay cleared it up, "She's quite... bullheaded often. But she's mostly not like that. We have known her for years, trust us."
"Whatever. That's not my business, anyway."
"Try to mix well with her, she's my wife's sister, after all." Shams requested.
Kabir eyed him, "There are twenty days left for your wedding."
"Same thing."
"I'll never get why people in love act so weird."
"You haven't even fallen in love, how'd you know?"
"Shut up! I dated before."
"9th grade and university, that too for 2 months doesn't count."
"Did you even hold their hands, Kabir?" Atif asked, making Kabir smack his back.
"Cruel," Ajay commented, moving away from Kabir who sighed.
It wasn't his fault that no one was that interesting. Not enough to make him wonder for days, or crave more.
—Next day—
"Nisha, you're so late!" Wahi spoke as the woman in her plain white kurti panted, "Shut up! Why would you pick this area?"
"It's the only place near our house available for rehearsal," Ajay spoke.
"I hate the location of your house, Ajay."
"Anyway, I brought Adil and Adisha with me."
"Priti could've danced!" Shams complained from behind as Nisha scoffed, "Sure, brother."
"I tried convincing her so many times, she's scared of people judging her. You know, brides don't dance at their weddings. I don't get it. The world's changing, but some people don't." She sat down, Adil and Adisha sitting near her.
She eyed the place. It was the terrace of Ajay's house—the only one with the most prominent space.
"Hey, Nisha!" Atif waved at her to which she reciprocated.
"Kabir's still buying coke? That idiot."
"Coke!" Adil immediately jumped up, making Shams chuckle.
"None for you," Adisha said calmly. The boy frowned at his sister as Nisha stared at her nails, wondering about how she constantly thought about Kabir last night. It wasn't intentional but his face kept popping up all of a sudden.
She couldn't contain her embarrassment. And as exhilarating as this situation was, she was equally anxious.
"How did I react so rashly yesterday?" She whispered to herself, feeling disconcerted. The memories of Priti and her mom fussing over how orange juice fell on Kabir and the culprit behind it had scared the shit out of her. Thankfully, she didn't get caught though.
"Guys, the cola is here!" Kabir's voice reached her ears and she perked up instantly. She glanced at his figure, focusing on something else again.
"Oh." He spoke, as soon as his eyes fell on her. She could sense it was meant for her but played dumb as he approached her, keeping the Coke on the table beside her.
"Where are the others?"
"Others?" Shams asked, suddenly gasping in realization, "Oh, yeah! Nisha, where are your friends?"
"I meant Ajay, Atif and Wahi," Kabir said. Nisha just stared at the two males. As soon as her eyes locked with Kabir's, she looked away, "Adil, don't run around!"
"Let him!" Shams smiled.
"What if he gets hurt?"
"Hey, Kabir!" Adil waved at him from a distance as he grinned back, "Ay pal!"
Nisha's brows furrowed, but she straightened her face.
"My friends are probably not coming. I don't know."
"We only have 20 days, this is exciting." Shams grinned as Nisha eyed him, "I don't know if I should be relieved or concerned seeing you so... excited."
"Concerned?" Shams asked, "Elaborate, please."
"She'd better not," Kabir murmured as Nisha thinned her lips.
Shams rolled his eyes and continued, "Okay start the rehearsal! I'll leave then."
He took a sip of the cola and waved at them, running away.
"Is he not..."
"No. He prefers spending 10 extra minutes with Priti." Kabir spoke sarcastically, taking Sham's former seat. Nisha sighed, "Cringeworthy."
"I know right."
"Guys, let's start the rehearsal!" Atif spoke, approaching them. Both of the figures glanced at each other and got up, ready to dance.
———
When Kabir had jokingly asked, "She can dance?"
Nisha didn't respond how he expected her to. No scoffs, or feisty replies. Just a smug look.
And he thought she was fed up with him poking her.
But now he knew.
The moment she started her solo dance performance, catching everyone's attention, Kabir knew exactly why.
She tied her hair into a loose ponytail, dancing to the song's beat. Her expression, movements, and rhythm were on point.
And so was her beauty.
Kabir had always loved the song 'Manwa Laage' only because Shreya Ghoshal had filled the song with her heart-touching vocals and emotions along with Arijit Singh's undeniable charm that no one could recreate. But he couldn't lie, this dance performance to that very song was captivating him even deeper.
When he thought it was only the vocals that could be the best, he was gifted with this soulful dance. By Nisha.
"Yo! Nisha! You rock!" Ajay shouted. Nisha chuckled and started twirling.
Kabir stared at her, not blinking an eye.
"Nisha has learned dancing since she was 5, as she said. She's a pro at it." Wahi whispered from beside him as Kabir took in the new information.
He tilted his head, a smile forming on his lips when her eyes met his for a brief second before she diverted them.
As she finished with a curve of her waist, staring at the sky, everyone started clapping. Kabir couldn't help but clap along, the smile alive on his lips.
Her dancing brought his soul to life. That's how talented she was.
"Nisha, this performance was beautiful!" Ajay clapped as Atif said, "But, let's add a twist!"
"What twist?" Nisha asked, wiping her sweat, feeling a stare at her. The moment she turned to Kabir, she saw his gaze on Ajay. She could feel it from him, though. Strange.
"How about we fix a partner for Nisha? And add the male part? That'd make a beautiful couple dance."
"We need a good dancer who's compatible with this goddess," Wahi spoke.
"What do you say, Adi?" Nisha asked as Adisha nodded, her face beaming with excitement.
"Nisha, you'll rock it!" That brought a warm smile to Nisha's face. She nodded, "Okay, who's partnering with me?"
"How about me?" Atif gave her a lopsided smile as she sighed, "You?"
"What's wrong with her stare?" Atif frowned, making everyone else laugh.
"Wahi?" Ajay asked but Adil shook his head, "He's shorter than Nisha."
"So?!" Wahi gasped, "Are you height-shaming me?"
"It won't look good if you pull those moves on Nisha during the dance," Ajay spoke.
"Racist." Wahi rolled his eyes, Nisha thinned her lips, "Well, he dances better than you guys so-"
Her words were cut off by a deep interruption,
"I'll do it."
'I'll' as in, Kabir?