VANSH
I was used to thinking that Ahana and I were the only crazy people in the world. That only we could think about trespassing a random swimming pool in the middle of a night but obviously, I was wrong. There were many more crazy people in the world, crazy in ways we couldn't fathom about.
That gray eyed woman from my workplace was one of them.
I was still popping my eyes out at the woman standing right in front of my apartment (obviously my eyes haven't popped out of my sockets but you understand right). I didn't need to question how she managed to find my address. It was probably an easy task for someone like Natasha. I couldn't shut the door at her face cos that'd be rude. I let her in and stood at a considerable distance from her.
“Why?” It was the only word that came out of my mouth.
A shadow of smile appeared on her face as she turned to me. “Why, you say? Did you forget what happened that fateful night?”
I sighed dramatically, “Can we please just forget and move the fuck on?”
She took slow steps towards me, making my palms sweaty. “Fine, we'll move on, Baweja... With this.”
And then, she did the most unbelievable thing any crazy woman wouldn't have done in her place— she stripped down her robe.
I let out an intangible scream but realized that it was only my mind screaming. I thought of closing my eyes like before but it was as if my hands were tied. Instead I was staring— Staring at the hot naked beauty in front of me. For a minute, I only gazed, accessing every exposed part of her— her hourglass figure, her two swollen buns and the face of the cat between her legs, and felt a jerking sensation down there. Wait, why two buns and a cat?
“You are... You are...”
“I know baby, I know. Now can we please just...” she murmured close to me and nibbled at my lower lip. That's when I reached my limit of temptation. I was seduced. It was time for action. A wild, animalistic action.
“My wish is your command, baby,” I whispered before crashing my lips with her soft ones, thus burning ourselves in the hot blazing flames of fire.
Fire?
I woke up, startled by an unmoving fan in front of my eyes and a sweat trickling down my forehead. So that's why it was burning. I heaved a sigh of relief. So it was all but a dream. A very stupid, stupid dream that I'll keep locked in my archives forever. I was about to take another relived breath when I looked to my left and saw a naked Natasha sleeping peacefully in my own goddamn bed.
It wasn't a dream!!
I fell down to bed and let my world envelope in darkness.
***
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*Vansh walking high and mighty in a God like outfit*- Wishing you all foolish mortals a very happy April fools day. 👿👿👿 Thanks for giving me the opportunity once again, Miss writer. Though I must say I really am disappointed that you didn't include my dearest partner in crime this time. No worries Ahana, we'll play lot of pranks as always.
*Natasha stepping in- Excuse moi? I think I should be given some credit for my fabulous acting too. No? Nevermind. I hope y'all get fucked by a cactus. Fuck you all! *shows middle finger. walks away fuming*
*Interviewer steps in clearing her throat* 😅 Yahaloo, minna san~ Ogenki desuka? Watashi wa, anata no subete ga Happy April fools day!!! 🙌
(Props to you if you understood that. Yes, I know a bit of Japanese) Hope you liked this surprise as well. Remember I did a similar thing on Stupid in Love last year? Haha, I know you love me. I love you too. 😎 Now, without wasting any more time, let's move on to the REAL chapter.
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9- “Good going, Baweja. Keep fantasizing about me.”
VANSH
I stepped inside the office premises in my usual office attire, greeted my peers as usual, sat in my cubicle as usual. In other words, I behaved as usual as it usually would be. So far it was like any other day.
You're thinking too much, dude. She must have forgotten about that filmy deal already. Maybe wouldn't even show up today.
My self conscious might have a point. I would have understood if it was college but office, no way! We were grown ups here. I mean who would be crazy enough play a cat and mouse game in a prestigious—
“Mornin' Irfan!” I heard that same deep, accentuated voice from afar that challenged me last Friday. I could clearly see her past the side of my cubicle where she was greeting Irfan. I was just about to look away when she turned her head to me, making my shoulders go stiff. “And a good morning to you too, Baweja.” Her eyes crinkled a bit as she pulled up a plastic smile.
“Morning,” I greeted, out of formality. In all of the one and a half months I started working here, I could swear this was the first time she initiated a greeting towards me. Even Irfan seemed a little baffled that she looked my way. Not only that, but she was walking towards my desk as well.
“You have your desktop on, right? I need to check on something,” she said as she reached behind me. Her hand extended towards the mouse on my right, causing her to bend to my level. A fresh wave of perfume filled my nostrils that smelled of jasmine and lavender. Her cheeks were almost touching mine. My jaw clenched out of its own accord as I realized her act. “I hope you remember our conversation from that fateful Friday night. I'll let you know that the game is still on and I intend to woo you till the end... No way, even you don't have that 3A- section schematics file I'm searching for. I swear I sent out a copy somewhere...” She said, her tone immediately transforming to a dedicated employee as Richie passed our side of the office. He casually asked her what was wrong while she explained it in a way that even I would believe her lie. This woman surely knew how to mince away with words. She turned to me with that playful smile once he was gone. “Well, you can always say 'I quit' if you find me too irresistible to bear.”
I gave a sarcastic laugh as I rotated my chair to her direction, “You couldn't even make a single hair on my neck stand so don't worry about me. I'm more than fine.”
“Not even with this great tunic dress I wore for the first time today,” she said, pointing her hand to herself. When I gave nothing away, her lips twitched instead of drooping, “Great! See you around.”
I clutched my hands to my head, cussing in my head after she was gone. Why the hell did I say that to provoke her more? I knew it was an instinct that came from accepting challenges in the past. Ankit and I were used to facing many of those kinds in school. This was no different. If I consider this carefully, it wasn't that big of a deal as my mind was framing out to be. I mean what else she could do, really besides dressing up nicely and flirting. From the way, she behaved with our boss earlier, it was clear that her professional reputation mattered to her. She wouldn't cross her boundaries. If I think about the free treats I would get from the canteen then these fifteen days would pass away like a breeze. It was going to be all fine now.
Wrong.
“You want me to drop her home? Every single working day! Are you out—” I cut myself off before I could ruin my reputation with my boss. He regarded me with an suspicious eye but I was quick enough to retort. “I mean, are you not free, Sir?”
His shoulders visually relaxed. “No, young lad. My hands are tied. I won't be free before eight. Why, you both take the eastern subway, right? I don't see the problem in dropping her off.”
I exchanged glances between Natasha, who I'm sure was masking a psychotic smile behind an innocent face and a clueless Richard. This bitch. “Yeah, but I don't see the problem in her going alone either,” I voiced out, softly.
Richard, who was reading a file while simultaneously addressing us, placed it aside and stood up with an audible sigh. “See, son, we are working on a team project. In such projects, teamwork and cooperation is vital. It is necessary to build a rapport with your team members and what better way it could be than this. You should consider yourself lucky for being accompanied by a companion of the same age and culture as you. I'd say go out, and give yourself a nice hot coffee to relax after work. It helps you live through a faraway city alone.”
Did it seem like I had a choice? Yeah, I thought so too. “Okay, sir.”
“Thank you Richie. I owe you one,” Natasha expressed her gratitude with a smile bigger than her face itself.
Richard hissed besides me after she left. “Try to understand, young lad. She's got some... issues.”
.
“Issues? What issues?” I exaggerated, once we were strolling outside the office.
Facing opposite of me, Natasha twirled her curls around her fingers, appearing to be nervous. “Please don't tell anyone but I have Enochlophobia. It's the fear of large crowds.” She said, battering her eyelashes.
I scoffed, “So that's how you tamed our boss.” To think she would go to this extent just to make me accompany her outside, she was way smarter than I thought. No rather, crazy considering why she did that.
“But it's the truth, my dear. Large crowds scare the fuck out of me,” she said, hugging herself while walking backwards ahead of me. “It happened when I got separated from my parents, at a fair. I kept searching for them till ten at night. Imagine how it's like for a six year old. It was like being inside a zombie game. People kept staring at me...”
“You're walking backwards,” I interrupted getting disturbed by it.
She placed her hands behind her and replied, “So?”
“So, isn't it obvious? You're going to bump into a non living object,” I said, my eyes darting away to a block with a pole ahead.
She waved a hand in dismissal, “It's fine. I'm used to walking like this. So I was saying, I was lost for—” Her words were cut off as her feet hit the edge of the block. My instincts kicked in as my palm extended to grip her arm before she could lose her standing.
“Didn't I tell you not to...” I trailed off when I witnessed a shadow of a smile in her face till it extended to full blown smirk of a devil.
“Holding hands is the first step, Baweja. I'll take this as a sign of progression,” she said, maliciously, showing off her tongue. I removed my hold from her upper arm, stepping away immediately. It dawned on me how close we were standing a second ago. “My, my, your grip is strong. You must have practiced a variety of positions in the bedroom,” she added, rubbing her arm.
I stared at her in horror, “You didn't just say that.”
She cocked her head to one side, “What? I was talking about various yoga positions.”
I let out a frustrating groan, “Stop fucking with my mind.”
“Gee, thanks, atleast I'm fucking something. That's a huge progress. Wonder how huge it would get.” She winked.
Good lord, this woman was insane with all the capital letters. It's like she had all her replies stored in the archives of her brain, never mind the double meaning behind it. I should just keep my mouth shut from now on. After all, silence is golden.
A minute later, Natasha broke the silence as she whispered with a cheeky smile. “Good going, Baweja. Keep fantasizing about me.”
Am I allowed to bang my head against the wall now?
No, how could you let someone walk all over you, that too a woman? Shame on you. My conscience was right. What happened to the fool who fooled others? Did the various measurements of vaults and typologies drained away the creativity from my neurons? Surely I could get back at her too. Obviously not her way but rather my way. I surveyed the surroundings with my eyes— At people, residents, objects, insects— anything to fool her with, until I spotted something worth my agenda.
“Do you know which builders designed these sets of residential apartments?” I asked, pointing my finger to the set of similar three floor buildings to my right.
“You're kidding, right? She questioned a bit suspiciously but I shook my head, looking totally serious. She seemed thoughtful as her brows furrowed, “No, I don't. Is it important to know?”
I shrugged, “I think it is. If you look carefully— especially at the design of the mantels and chapel, you'll notice a kind of different design that's not so common... Kind of old, I'd say. Their history goes way back.”
And so, I began reciting the history and the development of the Mark Wood builders— a story which was nothing but a figment of my imagination I got from reading various articles in the past. She listened to it with keen interest.
“That's kind of cool. I hate to admit but I'm yet to know a lot about architectural field since I studied mechanical. That was an interesting story.”
“Yeah,” I mumbled while turning my face to a side, biting back a laugh. She bought it! She totally bought my lie! It felt so good fooling someone who tried to outshine me, the whole day. I wasn't known as a prankster for nothing. Two can play the game, Natasha. Since we were talking about buildings and structures, I decided to carry on, “By the way, what made you choose architecture? And how did you even get this job in the first place? Unless you sweet talked your way out of it.”
She threw an accusing glare at me. “Ever heard of the term 'crash course'. Yeah, I did that, fuck you. It's a one year course for mechanical engineers and if you perform good, your placement is sealed. At first it was difficult. I felt like giving up but after I learned the basics I started enjoying it. Like getting- used- to- this- shit, kind of enjoyment.”
I pulled a face, “Lucky you. You missed five years worth of spreadsheets and 3-D models. It was such a pain to the brain cells I tell you. If I knew this was a option I would have done that too.”
“What? Mechanical was pain in the ass too. You just don't know that. Believe me, I didn't miss anything.”
This carried on as we reached the station and inside the subway. Time passed by in a blur as each of us ranted about the academic difficulties we had to face. The stupid challenge was long forgotten. Atleast for a while that is.
“That's my station,” she pointed out to the digital board displaying the name of the next station. We were standing besides the door with our backs against the wall. “And don't think for a second that I missed the subtle way you changed the topic. Since it was a sensible conversation I'll spare you this time. I got some valuable knowledge out of it.”
Valuable knowledge? A laugh almost escaped past my lips but I managed to cover it with a cough. She still didn't buy my lie. Seemed like I caught a bull's eye. “I'll spare you too, this time but don't think I'll babysit you to your station, tomorrow or any day for that matter.”
“In your dreams, Baweja,” she winked. Soon the doors opened and she stepped out of it but not before blowing a mock flying kiss my way. I rolled my eyes and noticed a man to my left who gave me a sour look that said— How could you reject someone hot like her? “Shut your mind!” I told him, thus freaking him out and went to grab an empty seat to sit.
I did my best to avoid going home with her the next few days, keyword being— tried. I pretended to work an hour late to test her patience but she remained glued to her seat like a cement. I knew she was keeping a watch at me like a hawk so I decided to fool her, the next day, by pretending to leave when I was actually going for toilet. I remained there for quite a while before stepping out. But when I did—
“You took quite some time in there. Were you emptying your shit or sperms? Urgh, men, these days. They seriously need to filter their needs.”
It's rather your mouth that needs a filter.
The next couple of days were torture enough. I tried every possible way to escape but it was practically next to impossible. Not when the person you were trying to avoid worked in the same room as you. Even during the occasional meeting, she deliberately sat next to me to get my attention. Once when our team was out to visit the site which was to be built, she took the opportunity to sit next to me in the bus. The whole God forsaking ride, she kept bumping her leg and shoulders against me, whispered filthy words to me and laughed at my face when I expressed my frustration. By the time we were finished with our expedition, I felt like my brain had been fried toasted with anger.
What's more, she took it to Instagram to express her excitement. Each morning I would see a post by her, dressed in office clothes while sometimes in her casual. I didn't look twice into it until I caught on the words in one post where she wrote— 'Need to impress someone at office. Good enough?' And in another— 'Decided to paint my dress green this time. It's his favorite color or so I heard.' Now don't get me wrong. Neither of us had added each other on social media but we had one mutual friend, Irfan, which enabled me to see her posts that Irfan liked. Her friends got curious about her mystery man, asking who it was she was dressing so bad for? And who was dumb enough to not be impressed? Thankfully, the only thing she revealed was that he worked in the same office and that, she was betting something. It didn't even take a second grader to know who she was referring to. A part of me was actually giddy about the kind of attention she was giving me but another sensible part of me knew that it was nothing but a game to lure me in. Her trashy innuendoes and snarky remarks only made it worse. I thought of calling it quits a million times but my stubborn pride wouldn't allow me to lose. There was only one thing left to do.
I needed to step up my game.
~
“Natasha, you bought that special report I asked you to prepare?” Richie asked her. The team members were lined in a circle around him giving their weekly reports as well as a special one, in this case.
“Yes sir! Just wait a sec,” Natasha replied, curtly. She opened the bag, the sound of the zip clashing admist the sounds of the flipping pages. Her fingers flipped through the files inside her bag but unfortunately for her, and fortunately for me, she couldn't find it. “Shit... Uh, my apologies, Sir. Please wait another minute. I'll be right back.”
I was so going to enjoy this.
Richie sir was checking my file next when Natasha returned. Disappointed. “What's the problem? You do remember that you were supposed to bring it today.”
Surprisingly, she didn't lose her composure but didn't meet his gaze either. “This may seem like an excuse, sir, but I'm hundred and one percent certain that I completed the report yesterday, placed it in my bag and bought it here,” she said, her eyes darting across the room until it landed on me. That's when she must have seen it. Seen the hideous smirk on my face because then, she was glaring at me. Her gaze penetrated through me like a cat who was about to attack but I didn't break away like she thought I would. She was the first one to break eye- contact, eventually turning to Richie. “What if somebody stole the file?”
My mouth twitched again. She can go ahead and put a search warrant on this office but she still wouldn't find it. It wasn't in this building anyway. “Don't be foolish. The file is not even that important. Who would be stupid enough to steal it? Ah, let it be. You can give it to me tomorrow but make sure you don't delay your reports next time. I also have somebody to answer to, if you understand what I mean.”
For a second, it seemed like she was lost in her own world until she snapped out of it looking squarely at him. “Just give me ten minutes, please. I'll be right back.” She disappeared out of the room even before Richie nodded.
Fifteen minutes later, after everyone had settled down at their cubicles, she came back, half panting, half running with a brand new file in her hand. For a moment I thought she found the file I had hidden but then she answered to Richie. “Lucky thing I hadn't deleted the file from my computer yet. I edited it and went to reprint it. Sorry for the delay but here's the report sir,” She said, giving it to him. She walked back to her seat, casting a victorious smile at me. Well, I couldn't have hacked her computer, now could I? Atleast I was able to hold her off for sometime.
“That was fuckin' low of you,” She whispered as she stopped at my desk. Chills ran down my spine as I imagined her, eye shooting behind me.
Despite that, I continued to work as if her presence didn't matter. “You mess with me, I mess with you. You don't mess with me, I don't mess with you. Simple as that,” I stated.
Luckily my little stunt paid off since she didn't accompany me after work today. Finally I could go home in peace.
“Whaayye?” I exaggerated, almost on the verge of tears. I could literally hear my soul crying in agony when this devil accompanied me, the next day.
“Because I'm Natasha and I'm stubborn.” She answered with a flick of her hair.
I joined my hands in front of her, admitting defeat. “Arre maate, maaf karde menu. Mere toh gaalti hogaya si, (Please madam, forgive this person. I've committed a grave mistake)” I pleaded in Punjabi.
She patted my cheek, infuriating me further, “Aw come on child, it's just a matter of five more days. I'm starting to enjoy this you know.”
Why do I get a feeling sometimes that she was just trying to irritate the hell out of me rather than seducing me as she said? Or maybe she craved for a company because she felt bored.
~
A u t h o r' s N o t e
So who do you think is on the winning streak so far? Natasha or Vansh? Will there be a winner, loser or *babaji ka tulu (zero)? 😝😝
I had divided this chapter to two parts since it was coming out to be 7000+ words lol. Next one will be posted next week (and probably my favorite one) As always, don't forget to support through vote and comments. I'm grateful for your support.
Also, don't forget to check out a little preview I had posted on Natasha.
I m p o r t a n t N o t e
Ok so, I have submitted my story Stupid in Love to 'the Literary Awards' I would be very glad if you show support by commenting this. I'll just show you by images instead of giving a long explanation. First go to this book ⤵
Then click on the chapter that allows nomination of books. I think it's the fourth chapter. Then-
Click on best humor story and comment exactly like this-
Here's the link to the book-
http://my.w.tt/UiNb/nc7Las2lZB
I'm thinking of nominating Destined Choice too, so those who want to support Destined Choice can comment the story name, the name of the writer under the line- Best romance. (Best is too much, don't you think? They should have written favorite instead)
Sayonara minna san. Mata ne!