SARAH
Three years ago
"Yes." I said.
"No." Kiya replied.
"Yes Kiya."
"No Sarah, you're lying." She said the third time, her eyes widened.
"No Kiya, I'm not." I told her again.
Kiya gasped, and screamed making the heads turn towards us in the college canteen. She stood up on her seat, clapping her hands wildly, her face had the biggest grin.
I pulled her hand, making her sit back down. She had never been this excited for anything ever. She looked at me, a bright shine of amazement in her eyes.
"Sarah, I love you." She said, giggling, her eyes shining.
"I know, but please you have to calm the fuck down. It's not even that exci-"
"The fuck are you saying." She cut me in, frowning at me and stood back. "Why shouldn't I be happy? My fucking best friend is finally not a virgin anymore!"
She shouted and a wave of laughter and gasps broke out. I swear I would've kicked her ass instead of hitting her in the stomach, which made her sit down, if everyone in the room was not staring at us like that.
Thanks to God there were not many students today, it was just a few whom I know and they probably wouldn't mind.
I pinched her arm, tightly. But there was no fucking effect on that bitch. She still sat there, eyes widening with amazement, with her opened mouth.
"That couldn't have been louder." Arush said, laughing under his breath, who sat across from us.
"I know, right? Calm your fucking girlfriend!" I blurted out at him.
But he just grinned and shrugged. I hooded my eyes at him and turned back to Kiya, she looked at us with an expression.
Yes, we fucked.
It was a few days after that late night stay at his. He came over to my house, luckily my mom and dad were out of the city and I was alone and...
I've just told her that. But I don't know what would've happened if I told her he ate me back then.
"Kiya, I know you're excited. But please lower your volume. We don't have to make everyone aware of that." I told her.
"Okay, I apologize. But now, please tell me the details." She asked.
"Stop. No, definitely not."
"Sarah, Jay fucked you, it has to be something. Tell me I wanna know."
"The fuck, no. That's weird."
"I told you about my first time too." Kiya argued.
"Oh you did!" Arush said, a slight smirk lifted up his lips as he exchanged glances with Kiya. I saw her cheeks turning red.
"Arush, could you please give us a minute? That's a private chat." She told him, trying to hide her smile.
"I'll see you later." He said and went away, winking at Kiya.
"Sarah I'm sorry if you're angry. I swear I won't do this ever again. I just got carried away." Kiya said, feeling sorry.
Even though I was mad, I couldn't help but grin at her excitement regarding my personal affairs.
"It's fine, Kiya." I grinned.
"So, how was it?"
"Obviously, good" I felt the heat rising to my cheeks.
"And?" She looked at me with a mischievous grin.
"Oh come on, do I have to tell you every second of it now?"
"Yes, of course. I'm all ears."
"Yeah, okay, but not just here. I don't want you to freak out again, so it's better we move somewhere more private." I told her.
"As you say." She said, wasting no more time she picked up her backpack and phone and held my hand, leading the way. "Let's go.
We went to a nearby coffee shop, and settled in a corner booth. Kiya listened to each and everything I told her and I couldn't help but grin as she nodded with every word that came out of my mouth.
She listened attentively, and sometimes, she would make a noise but I felt like I was pouring my heart out, and she was listening to every word.
"You fucking bitch!" Kiya giggled, as I finally finished telling her the details.
"If I'm getting you right, I don't think it could've been much better." She said, cocking an eyebrow mischievously.
I felt my cheeks turning red again. "Yeah, maybe." I bit my lower lip trying to hide my smile.
She chuckled looking at me and we both laughed. I just love Kiya. Her eyes suddenly went towards the entry door of the café. "Arush?" She muttered and waved a hand at him. He smiled coming towards us.
"How'd you know we were here?" Kiya asked him.
"Wasn't hard to guess, you girls always come here." He shrugged.
"Hey Arush, have a seat here, I'm actually gonna head away." I told him, grabbing my stuff.
"No Sarah, sit with us." Kiya held my hand.
"Kiya." I gave her a familiar look.
"Ohh." She mouthed as realization hit her.
"Bye then, enjoy." She said, her lips curled into a slight smirk.
I showed her a middle finger and went out through the doors. It was time for me to go to Jay's.
I walked down the road to our college which was just a few buildings away from the coffee shop. My mind rushing through the possibilities of what could happen today. Everyday means something to me these days, full of surprises.
Since, when he's entered my life, I feel alive. I've always been the shy, introverted one. But with him I feel the sky's the limit.
To my surprise, I saw him standing there in front of the gate, waiting for me. His tall frame, dark hair, and handsome features never failed to take my breath away. He smiled at me, and I could feel my heart skip a beat.
He stood in front of our college gate, near his car, waiting for me. I rushed over to him and he greeted me with a warm hug and a kiss.
"Beautiful as always." He said.
"Thanks." I grinned.
"Let's go." He opened the car door for me and I got in
He started the car and we drove off, heading towards our destination. This became our regular routine but I was excited always.
"Hey, is this any shortcut?" I asked him, when he took another turn, from our regular path.
"I want you to meet my dad." He smirked at me.
"What?! I mean wow that's amazing and I'd love to. But didn't you say, he doesn't likes to meet anyone." I asked him. He told me once his dad, Mr. Gautam Rao, is usually busy with his work and merely talks to anyone. Even Jay, has conversations with his dad just about the work.
"Yeah, but why won't he like to meet his son's girlfriend." He said, giving me a quick glance.
My eyes opened wide and I stared at him.
What? Girlfriend?
Am i hearing him right? Mr. Jay Rao Davis just called me his girlfriend! It's weeks since we've been dating but he's never mentioned me that way, however it was obvious but, still.
Damn!
"I'm your girlfriend?" I asked him still in shock.
"Yes, wasn't that obvious?" He laughed under his breath, looking at me.
"Yeah it was but... uhm." I stuttered. "Well, Leave it." I turned towards the window looking out at the setting sun.
"I'm Jay's girlfriend now." I muttered to myself as I felt my lips curl up itno a grin.
He chuckled again and turned up the music. Kiss you by one direction played. The orange and pink hues of the sky seemed to match the warmth I felt inside. I was his girlfriend. I smiled to myself again.
It was a half-an-hour drive to his father's office building. Jay parked the car and we got out. His dad's office was on the top floor of the building. We took the lift.
The lift doors opened and we stepped out into a large, open space. The walls were painted white and grey matching the furniture sitting there. To my left was the reception table. Behind it, on the walls, hung a huge logo of their fashion brand. J&J.
I asked him once about name, he said his dad named it after his and his mother's name. But he never told me about his mom or her name except the fact that she left them alone when he was young.
A lady walked over to us with some documents, mostly magazines in her hands. She was wearing a white shirt and black formal pants with white heels.
She shook hands with Jay and turned to me. "You are shining on our magazines and website girl. I love your shots. Sofia by the way." She said and we shook hands.
"Thank you. Nice to meet you Sofia. I'm Sarah."
"I know you Sarah. Everybody knows you now." She said, in a mocking tone.
"You guys must be here to meet. Mr. Gautam, right?" She asked and Jay nodded.
"Follow me." She waved her hand at us to follow her.
Sofia led us towards the right of the office building. The walls were covered with pictures and posters of their models and fashion shoots, giving the hallway an air of luxury and elegance.
A few heads smiled and greeted me as we walked through the hallway. I simply forced a smile at each one of them, surprised to know how come they were all aware of me?
"When did I become so famous here?" I whispered to Jay looking at the picture but he just winked.
"Magic." He whispered with a smirk.
I scoffed at his useless reply.
We walked past a few offices and finally, Sofia stopped in front of a door with the nameplate that read "Mr. Gautam".
"Here we are." Sofia knocked on the door before opening it and gestured for us to step inside. A man in his late thirties was sitting behind a large wooden desk, busy looking at a magazine.
He looked up as we walked in, and a warm smile spread across his face.
"Hey, welcome guys."Mr. Gautam raised his hands.
His office walls were lined with glass windows behind, making an entire city view from there.
"Please have a seat." He gestured towards the chair in front of his desk. I sat down and took a glance at Jay, his expressions tightened and he simply stood there looking down at his dad.
"So you've finally brought Sarah with you." He grinned and extended his hand for a handshake. "It's nice to meet you."
"Thank you for having me here, Sir." I shook hand with him.
"You can call Mr. Rao." He said and looked at Jay, gesturing him to sit down with a serious face.
"I'm fine.". Jay said, dryly.
"So, Sarah, you that you are amazing. The last few shoots were absolutely great they were a boom to our magazine's sales."
"I'm so grateful to hear that Mr. Rao." I said, feeling proud.
Mr. Rao leaned back on his chair and clasped his hands,"But there is something that's been on my mind since the last edition went live."
"What is it, sir?" I asked, curious.
"I was thinking if you could go a little more, bold with the poses."
I knot formed in my stomach as he spoke. "Bold, sir?"
"Yes, Sarah. We need to keep up with the current trends and appeal to our audience. We also have an upcoming female lingerie brand and I feel you're a perfect model for that."
My heart sank at his words. I had always been comfortable with tasteful and elegant posing, but the thought of doing something more daring made me feel uneasy.
I glanced at Jay, hoping to see some support from him, but he was staring at Mr. Rao with a hint of anger in his eyes.
"If you aren't comfortable with Jay, handling your shoots then, I can help you." His eyes suddenly darkened.
I felt the feeling of uneasiness settling over me. I turned to Jay again, the muscles in his jaw worked and I held his hand. "No, I don't have any problem with Jay, but I think I need some time to think about it."
"Of course, take your time. But keep in mind that the deadline is approaching fast, and I need a decision soon." He said.
"Thank you, Mr. Rao." I said.
"You can come at my office whenever you want, Sarah. You don't have to ask anyone." He gave Jay a look. Jay turned back with anger and went out as I followed him.
We walked down the hallway and my mind raced with the thought of compromising my ethics and morals for the sake of pleasing others. The demand of the industry made me question if this was the right. It just started with a normal college fashion show and I can't believe how far I've come.
I turned to Jay, who was lost in his own thoughts, "Do you think I should do this?"
He paused in the middle before turning to me, and held my hands, looking into my eyes.
"I don't know about that, Sarah. This decision is yours. But I just want to tell you that I don't trust my dad." He cupped my cheek and continued. "Make sure you're comfortable with whatever you decide, and remember that I'll support you no matter what, okay?"
I smiled at him, feeling comforted by his words. "Yes, Thank you, Jay."
We headed towards the elevator and Jay pressed the button. The doors opened but I lagged behind as my phone vibrated in my pocket.
It was mom. I picked up the call.
"Hello, mom?"
"Sarah, Sarah I need you here. Please come back to Delhi." She said, her voice low.
"Mom, what happened? Tell me, is everything okay?" I asked, panick rising in me.
"Your dad, he had an accident and is admitted in the hospital." Her voice cracked as she tried to speak.
Her words hit me like a train. A lump formed in my throat, making me unable to speak.
"Honey, I need you here. I can't handle everything alone here and they're are asking for money." She cried from the other side of the phone.
"I- I'm coming mom. I'll be there tomorrow, take care, okay?" I said, my voice cracking.
I hung up, and turned to Jay, my hands shaking and tears filled the corner of my eyes.
"What happened, Sarah?" He asked, jerking my shoulder.
"Jay. I need to go back to Delhi."
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