While Ember was busy preparing for the festival with Loraine, Nikki texted him constantly. But he mostly replied to her texts at night when he was free. He wondered why Rhea didn't text him at all so he decided to make the first move.
"Hello Rhea :3" He texted.
Soon he received a message and he ran out of his shower. He quickly checked his phone. It was Nikki's text. He sighed and texted back. He lay on his bed with wet hair, "Rhea..."
Meanwhile, Rhea had gone to South Delhi at her cousin's place and was working on new designs with her, wrapping up for her college assignment. She drew the sketches while Jessica modified them and Raj worked on making the outfits. Soon, they filled the pin board with around ten designs.
"We are working very well," Jessica smiled, "You should go sleep now. Raj and I will work on cutting the fabric. We are going to the market place to buy new fabric next week, better finish this work so that we know what exactly to buy,"
"Okay. Good night," Rhea smiled and went to the guest room. It was one in the morning. She checked her phone while sinking in her bed. She looked at Ember's text,
"Hey," She typed, "Sorry for the late reply. I was busy,"
After a while, he texted back, "It's alright. How are you doing this fine evening, young lady?"
She giggled, "Pretty good, actually. I am working,"
"As in part time?"
"Yeah, kinda. I'm helping Jessica out with her asssignment. She said she'll pay me for it,"
"That's amazing! You can buy those supplies now!"
"Yes, I can,"
"I am happy for you :)"
"We are going to the fabric market again this weekend. Could you show up?"
"I'm kinda tight on schedule,"
"Oh, it's fine then,"
"Well, was there something specific you needed?"
"I thought we could go to that shop again,"
"You know the way,"
"But I want to go with you,"
He didn't text for a while even though he was online.
"Actually, I'll be there. But it'll be later at noon," He finally texted.
"You sure?"
"About you? Always,"
She smiled as she looked at her phone screen, "Thanks Ember,"
"No biggie,"
"I'll sleep now. Good night!"
"Godnat" (Tn// Good night)
Rhea looked forward to the weekend. She was going to see his face after two weeks. But weekend seemed far away and so did he, even though they shared the same sky. She poured some coffee in a white Chinese porcelain mug. She drank way too much coffee and thought of him often, in a city where reality had long been forgotten. She wondered if he was afraid because she herself was terrified of the power he wielded over her, rugged and fragile.
She sat alone in the veranda with a canvas board before her. She painting a portrait, buried red in watermelons, like the colours of summer mist, it began resembling a pink face with red hair, as if fire emerged from his soul, and through that fire rose two bright blue eyes, like the colours of water trying to calm down the fire burning inside of him, giving off a pink smoke. It didn't look that good, but she felt it. She felt it as she painted and she felt it when she looked at his wonderfully pink face that weekend. He stood before her, holding the sun on his head and the sky in his eyes.
"Hello, young lady"
She felt it when she heard his voice. He waved at her as they stood beneath the Neem trees, over the green algae. His wrinkles seemed finer as he walked towards her, the moles on his neck, the freckles on his dry palms, all of them were the same, just as she had left them. She could still see it all as the voices of violins filled her heart, making those ruined shops into castles of amber.
"Shall we?" He leaned in to bring her back to her senses. She nodded and he walked before her. She looked at his strong shoulders, his blue Nikes, his thin fingers. He turned back to look at her. She looked at his smile and smiled back, "We are here," He informed her.
"Oh!" She looked at the old shop. She quickly gathered herself and ran inside. He chuckled as he watched her almost trip over and fall.
She looked at a box of ink. It was dark inside, she couldn't read clearly. From the corners of her eyes, she looked at him, crossing his arms in front of his chest and leaning on the rusty, metal shutter, blocking the light from outside. His figure looked like a dark silhouette, covering his features with the dark, but the blue light in his eyes reflected the hidden stars in the sky. She looked back at her box, now she couldn't see at all.
"That'll be nine hundred and ninety five rupees,"
She kept the money on the old and dusty, wooden counter and picked up the packet. Ember walked in and picked a bottle of spray paint, "How much will this be?"
"It's a pack of twelve, one thousand three hundred rupees,"
"Cool," He took out his wallet and took out a two thousand rupee bill, "Pack that for me, please,"
They walked out of the shop, "That grandpa literally has everything there!" Rhea exclaimed.
"That's what art supply stores are for," Ember smiled.
"Why did you buy spray paint though?"
"Oh yeah, come I'll show you,"
They walked into the small Neem groves, under the shade of trees and the light of the sky. Rhea looked down at the moss on the rocks. She looked at her sandals while carefully placing her feet over the slippery rocks. They soon reached the end of the grooves, which were secluded from the marketplace by a huge, dull yellow painted wall with black fungus growing at certain corners.
"I don't think anyone would mind if we retouch these walls a bit," Ember opened the packet of spray paint. Rhea looked at him, "What are you doing?"
He threw an orange spray paint bottle at her while he held a blue one himself, "I, well, we are gonna paint this wall,"
"But isn't that vandalism?"
"Well," He shook the paint bottle and turned off the cap, "I'm allowed to be bad sometimes,"
She smirked and popped off the cap of her bottle, "Count me in!"
"That's my girl," He said and they both jumped in. Ember made some random blue lines here and there while Rhea turned them into something meaningful, tracing each other's lines. Once they were finished with their spray paint bottle, they grabbed some more from the box and continued painting as they danced and laughed until they were covered in sweat.
"So, next week, you're coming?" Ember asked they walked home with paint on their clothes.
"Of course I am," She smiled, warmly.
"Did your parents agree?"
"Well, my cousin did,"
-To be continued
Arorhea Laghari
Can't I Touch Your Heart?