A/N: I don't know if any of you've read but I had published a book titled "To Be With You" back in 2021. That book along with my other works had got deleted here. So, this short story is basically me rewriting my earlier book. Of course, there can be slight changes here & there provided that was a full-fledged 45 chapters book & this has be told as a short story (probably 10 chapters).
So, I hope that the new readers enjoy the story & the old ones (if any) experience some nostalgia if they choose to read.
PS: This story is inspired by the Urdu drama Sunheri Titliyan (Savas-Nazli Track), which itself was a dub of Turkish drama Gunesin Kizlari.
Warm Regards,
Nerdy Turtle! 🐢
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"Alag tujhme asar kuch hai, Ke dikhta nahi, magar kuch hai!"
Mumbai
About ninety-five out of hundred people don't usually like changes in their life - from things as huge as the city that they live in, the career prospect that they're thinking about, the person they want to spend the rest of their lives with, to things as mundane as the colour of their parapet, the Domino's outlet they order their specific pan pizza from, or, the way they like their coffee.
However, Avni was among the remaining five, she was someone who had always been thrilled by the idea of change - by the idea of something new & unseen! So, when her father, Ashish got transferred from Delhi to Mumbai, she had been nothing short of a ball of joy & excitement. She had always liked the feeling of exploring new places. Her father always told her how he believed that a city was just a reflection of the people that inhabit it, & Avni was a people's person to the tooth. She loved interacting with people & getting to know them. Yeah, one of those chatterboxes who wouldn't know when to stop talking!
Avni along with her parents had arrived in Mumbai five days ago and they were still setting their new house up. She & her mother, Neela were glad that they could interact with new people as their new apartment was in a complex, Ashish had wanted a duplex, but Neela & Avni insisted on a complex. So of course, he had to give in eventually!
Apart from theirs, there was just one another flat on their floor & in these five days that they had been here, Avni had never seen anyone from that house. The flat was occupied, the building manager had told them, & she wondered how could someone not step out of their house even once in five freaking days! Neela would treat her with her favourite delicacies if she didn't go out to play even for two days straight!
To say the least, whoever stayed at the apartment opposite to theirs was definitely intriguing Avni's interest.
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Why are people so loud? And, how do I always end up around the loudest of them? - Neil couldn't help but ponder.
His best friends - Ali & Rhea were eating his ears off by dictating, word-to-word, how they had ended up arguing once again. He was pretending to listen to their supposedly war-inducing fight while the trio walked around the playground in Neil's complex.
As if he hadn't had enough headache because of the new family shifting in the apartment across from his. His mind went back to that one voice that he had been constantly hearing from the last five days now. He hadn't met the family yet, but he was sure that there was this one girl who was mind-bogglingly loud. She used to sing songs at the top of her lungs at midnight & was up like a chirpy bird at seven in the morning. What was about all this over the top energy?
Ali - Neil, are you even listening to what we're saying? - Ali spoke bringing Neil out of his trance.
N - Uh, yes, yes! I heard how Rhea spilled coke on your new shirt & then you-ow! - he couldn't complete the sentence as he groaned in pain when a football hit him on his head.
Ali & Rhea were quick to help as they held his arm and led him to the nearby bench, making him sit there. Rhea passed her sipper to him & he took in a sip of water as he rubbed the side of his head.
From his peripheral vision, Neil saw Ali picking the ball up & was going to hit it back before he or Rhea could stop him, however, just when he was about to throw it, someone came up running towards them.
"Stop. Stop! It was a mistake. I'm sorry!" - Neil heard a girl's voice as she heaved out a breathe. "Hey, Are you okay?" - this time the voice was much clearer as she had stepped towards him making him look up at her.
Just as he bobbed his head up, he came across a pair of beautiful dark eyes. She was looking at him with a concerned look on her face & Neil was sure nobody could have missed the kindness that she held in her eyes even if they noticed with half of their attention.
Ali - Of course, he is peachy! You did not just hit his head & tried to open it in two halves! - Ali barked as he narrowed his eyes at the girl.
"Listen, it was a genuine mistake, okay? I'm apologizing!" - the girl retorted defensively.
Ali - Ha, how generous of you to apologize! - he rolled his eyes like the drama-queen he was! Neil shook his head in amusement as he watched Ali being so worked up, he always became this over-bearing big brother whenever he thought Neil was even mildly hurt!
Rhea - Ali, stop it! You're over-reacting! - she nudged him as she awkwardly smiled at the girl standing in front of them.
"Finally, someone here has got brains!" - she mumbled under her breathe as she gave a side-eye look to Ali, almost making Neil laugh out loud. "Are you really okay? I didn't mean to hurt you!" - she spoke slowly as she bent towards him to see if the hit from the ball had hurt him real bad.
She was looking at Neil with her hands on her knees as she bent to his level while he was sitting at the bench. She had a frown marred on her face as she tilted her head to the side. Neil didn't realise that he was just staring at her with an amused glint in his eyes while she kept blinking at him.
"Oh, I understand. Um." - she said as she stood straight & then gave him a small smile. He just curiously watched her when she pointed her index finger towards him, then showed him a thumbs up & then raised her eyebrows at him. He just blinked his eyes in order to understand what she was trying to do, whilst she continued her actions. She then pointed towards Neil's head & again showed him a thumbs up followed with a raise of her eye-brows.
Ali - Uh, what are you doing? - he beat Neil to it when he asked her the question Neil was intending to ask.
"Uh, your friend is mute, right? It's okay! I know a bit of sign language." - she nodded thoughtfully making all three of them look at her dumbfounded.
It was silent was a full minute before Ali burst out laughing hysterically & Rhea too joined him, which only led the girl & Neil to frown in response.
"Hey, you shouldn't laugh! So what if he is mute. It's not his fault." - she spoke making both of them laugh even more while Neil just rolled his eyes.
Shaking his head in annoyance, he got up from the bench as he started walking towards his apartment. He could hear the girl running after him while she shouted for him to stop. Not paying her a regard, he kept walking out of the playground when she eventually picked up pace & started walking besides him.
"Okay, why are we doing this marathon, right now? Slow down, buddy!" - she huffed.
Before Neil could get rid of her blabbering self, she stumbled upon a stone & was about to fall on the ground when he grabbed her arm in a reflex.
"Watch Out!" - he said as he helped her steady herself.
"You can talk!" - she mumbled in surprise making Neil roll his eyes.
"Of course I can, you dumbhead!" - he said as he walked past her when she was standing on her two feet steadily.
"Excuse me! Ek toh main tumko sorry bol rhi hun, tum mujhe hi dumbhead bula rhe ho!" - she exclaimed as she walked after him. "You-you're a brinjalhead! Idiot!" - she stomped her foot as she finally decided to give his ears some relief by stopping walking after him.
Brinjalhead? That's not even a word. Foolish woman! - Neil thought as he kept walking.
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Next Day
Avni just hoped that she doesn't end up embarrassing herself anymore in front of that pretty-eyed hot boy anymore! When he had left yesterday, she got to know from his friends that his name was Neil, and to her utterly & absolutely absurd luck, he was the guy who lived opposite to their apartment.
So, there she was, standing in front of his door with a box of muffins in her hand that her Maa had freshly baked for their neighbours. Taking in a few deep breathes, she rang the door bell, & waited patiently for Neil to open the door but there was no answer. She pressed the bell again & there was no answer this time either.
With a frown itched on her face, she was about to turn around & go back home when she saw that the door was slightly ajar. Shaking her head, she pushed the door as she tried to open it softly. Tried being the catch! She had unintentionally ended up applying a little too much of force as the gate opened with a thud making her flinch & shut her eyes close.
N - What the hell!? Who's tha- -he marched out of the kitchen with a coffee mug in his hand when he heard the door open. What are you doing here, miss-I-know-a-bit-of-sign-language!? How do you even know I live here? - he furrowed his eyebrows in irritation as he looked at Avni.
Avni wanted to give him a befitting reply but didn't trust her mouth not to speak absurd incoherence when she was shamelessly gawking at his shirtless muscled chest & broad shoulders!
And, oh my god, those abs! Let's not even get started about them! - she thought!
"What are you doing here?" - he was standing a step away from her now when she just blinked at him trying to remember why was she here in the first place.
Thankfully, her gaze fell on the box of muffins she was holding & she thanked her stars for saving her from potential embarrassment.
A - Uh, I, um, brought these muffins for you! We..uh, shifted in the apartment opposite to yours a few days back! - she told him while trying to look only at his face.
Man! The boi was too handsome, I couldn't even look straight into his pretty hazel eyes! But those lashes were definitely fake. They had to be! Meri toh itni badi nhi hain! - Avni concluded in her mind.
"Oh! So she is the loud neighbour who host those stupid midnight concerts!" - he mumbled under his breathe but she heard it anyway.
Before she could answer him, both of them got a little startled at the sudden noise at the door.
"It's Party Time!" - Avni turned around only to find Ali & Rhea as they exclaimed in excitement.
Rhea - Oh, Hey, Avni! You're here too! Join us for dinner. - she offered chirpily.
Ali - Yes, we brought food. Hope you like Chinese! It's Neil's favourite. - he told with a smile on his face as held the packet of food high in his hands & both of them walked inside.
Avni - Uh, I should probably not! You guys enjoy! - she said politely as she looked at Neil.
Rhea - C'mon, Avni! Stay, no? We became friends yesterday & you're denying us? - she spoke giving her a puppy-face.
A part of Avni wanted to stay, but wasn't sure if Neil would like it, so she was about to decline their offer when Neil took the box of muffins from her hand making her look up at him.
N - Stay! - he said while looking at her.
Avni couldn't figure why, but all of a sudden, her heart skipped at beat when he looked at her with those stunning hazel orbs. She blinked nervously as she tried to avert eyes from him. He nodded to himself once & then went inside his bedroom to put a shirt on after placing the muffins on the dining table.
Dinner was all about Ali & Rhea's constant bickering while Neil just punched some sarcastic one-liners in between. Avni got to know that the three of them were friends since the time they were in nursery. It were times like these, that she wondered what it would be like to have someone who knew you so well & would always be there for you, no matter what. She undoubtedly had a lot of friends because of her outgoing nature but it wasn't like what the three of them had. She came to adore their friendship in such short span of time.
All of them settled on the sofa in the hall after they were done with the dinner & Avni was in a dilemma to decide if she wanted to laugh at, or adore the way Neil snatched the muffins from Ali when he tried to get a piece from the box.
"These are for me, you hog!" - Neil had said making Ali shake his head dramatically in fake disappointment.
"Jo tera hai, woh mera hai, yaar!" - Ali tried to grab the box from him but Neil had categorically refused making him sigh!
At the moment, Avni, Ali & Rhea were sitting on the sofa as they waited for Neil to get his guitar so that he could sing a song. Ali & Rhea literally had to persuade him throughout the dinner to make him agree. And, well, Avni was definitely excited to hear him sing.
Neil settled on the sofa opposite to theirs as he adjusted the guitar on his lap. He could feel Avni's gaze on him all the while & inadvertently, he looked at her before he closed his eyes & started to sing.
Khwab mein tairti parchhaiyan,
Shor mein dar-badar khamoshiyan,
Avni's heart fluttered when she heard his soothing soulful voice. She felt like she was enchanted. He had his eyes closed & his fingers were effortlessly playing the guitar but Avni could figure that he was pouring out all his emotions through the song. She didn't know why she felt that way, she didn't even know him, but there was something about him that just drew her in for some reason!
Duriyon mein batin nazdikiyan,
Baarishon mein ghuli chingariyan!
Avni would lie if she denied the fact that her heart felt a tug when she watched him engrossed in his music & heard him sing with his painstakingly beautiful voice. She didn't really know much about slow music, she couldn't even understand beats & rhythms, but right there in that moment, she felt like she understood each & every feeling that he was trying to convey.
Jaane kya - kya pal dohrati hain,
Har lamha mujhme yun,
Tujhe bhar jati hain
Neil opened his eyes & his gaze met with Avni's. His eyes held hers as he sang each & every word with perfection, as if it was what his heart was yearning to say all this while but didn't know how to word it out.
Tanhaiyaan! Tanhaiyaan! Tanhaiyaan!
His eyes were too intense, after a point Avni didn't know how to look away. However, the surprising fact was that he didn't look away either!