The café had only the usual breakfast crowd when I walked in. Sunil, the aspiring coffee artist who had been working with Nair Uncle and Aunty for as long as I had been coming here for, was the only one behind the counter. It was extremely unusual for both of Uncle and Aunty to abandon the place together, especially since the sign on the door read open. Given their age and the fact that they didn't have too many relatives they could count on, for years now, I had been visiting them – even before they opened this café.
"Aunty-Uncle kahan hai re, Sunil?" (Where are Aunty and Uncle, Sunil) I asked, slightly concerned. "Who ek ladki se baat kar rahe hai. Office Mein" he replied (They are talking to a girl in the office). Relieved that they were fine, I decided to entertain myself and Sunil by asking, "Ladki? Kaun ladki?" (Girl? Which Girl?) Sensing my amusement, Sunil also replied, "Pata nahi bhaiya, par thi badi pyaari" (I don't know who she is; but she's adorable)
Laughing to myself, I decided that whoever she was, she certainly wasn't more important than I am. As I looked past the counter, I could make out Nair Uncle's frame moving inside. So, I called out, "Nair Auuunnnttyyyy!! I want filter coffee!!", sounding as innocent as I could. The door to the office opened and out came Nair Aunty, giggling at the sound of my summon, I'm sure. Behind her was Nair Uncle and on seeing them, I let go of a breath I didn't realise I was holding while worrying over their well-being.
Alas! I had to draw a bigger breath back in, overcome by shock, when the person I least expected walked out from behind Nair Uncle and out of the counter area.
"Dev! My boy! We were Just talking about you!!" exclaimed Nair Uncle. "You will live to be a hundred and one, beta!" blessed Aunty, smiling at me. While I acknowledged them and tried to be myself (the way I normally am with them) but I couldn't help notice that Deeksha's eyes kept darting from place to place, but she never once looked at me.
As Aunty scurried to make me my filter coffee, Uncle realized that Deeksha was still there and said with his pleasant smile, "Good lord! How uncultured of me! Deeksha, come here and meet Dev. Virtually our son and the architect we will be working with."
She slowly, carefully looked up at me and where I expected to see spite, anger and remorse, I saw untainted curiosity this time. "Nice to meet you" she mumbled and had I been even a foot further from where I was, I am sure I would not have caught it.
I nodded, while she turned her attention to Nair Uncle, who was now saying to me, "Dev, this is Deeksha. She is also my friend's daughter and she will be working with us on the renovations." Wait. 'WHAT!!! NOOOO. Don't let her. I can't work on this anymore. WHY?!?!?' I wanted to scream. But obviously, what I did instead was smile at both of them an say, "Lovely to meet you too, Miss..." "Bhalla. Deeksha Bhalla", she said, with a mischievous glint in her eyes.
'Ah.. I see the game you're playing' I thought as I shook her hand like you should shake a lady's. Alright, babygirl. Two can play this game. "I don't believe we've been introduced before", I said, in a slightly sultry way. "No, I can't think of a time we have," she replied, clearly catching on.
Turning to Uncle Nair, I asked him, "Uncle, would you mind if I borrowed the lovely lady for a bit so that I can explain what we plan to do with the café as of now?" From the corner of my eye, I saw Deeksha's face drain a little and the entire time, I wanted to run. Or throw up. Or punch something. Or all three. Instead I was asking for some time with Deeksha. Clearly, I had left my brain at home this morning.
"What a splendid idea!!" rejoiced Nair Uncle, "Darling, what would you like to have? I'll send it over to your table with Sunil once his coffee is also ready," he said.
Before she could say anything, "Hot chocolate", I said without thinking. To me, it was a mechanical response than a thought-out one, almost like a reflex. But. the look of shock on Deeksha's face and the sheer confusion on Uncle's made me realize that I was supposed to have JUST met her.
"I mean – you seem like someone who'd like hot chocolate" I covered up. Giving me a smirk that could only mean trouble later, Deeksha said "Actually, I want green tea this morning – but thanks for the suggestion" and walked towards the table. Oh Boy!