With her head still hung low, Ira shoved her hand in the chips packet and took out a chip, shoving it into her mouth. It's not like she wasn't used to being scolded or treated harshly but it's been long since she was treated that way. Besides, she wasn't expecting Ehan to burst out all of a sudden. She took some more chips and shoved it into her mouth, standing in the same spot, still looking down.
She glanced up from the ground when a hand offered her a piece of cloth. She turned her head to meet Honey's face. He was giving her a sympathetic look, offering her his kerchief.
She grabbed his handkerchief and examined it, thinking why he was offering her that.
He thought she must be crying over Ehan's harshness towards her, though he didn't hear anything. He just noticed Ehan's hard eyes as he spoke to Ira.
But she looked just fine, as always.
"What's this for?" She asked, giving it back to him.
"I thought you must be cr.... Never mind" Honey was at the loss of words. He thought he'd console a crying Ira and his chances of having her would increase but seems like luck was not on his side.
"See, I told you. That guy is not what he looks. Look at the way he behaved. That bloody...."
"Come on, Honey. You know nothing. It was my fault. Besides, I don't mind it" she shrugged and offered him her chips.
He clenched his teeth and denied it, saying, "Oh! Come on, Ira. Stop saying that you don't mind anything. You are a human after all and it does feel bad when people treat us like a piece of sh*t"
"No, it doesn't, not to me at least. And Ehan was being extremely polite though he was angry" she pointed, making Honey throw his hands in the air.
"Trust me, he is nothing like you are thinking of him," she said, bringing back the smile on her face.
Honey groaned after she left. He was getting frustrated over this whole 'turning Ira against Ehan' thing.
---
Ehan threw the remote control of his PlayStation, tired of playing games whilst his mind was filled with Ira's sad face when he yelled at her. He didn't intend to behave the way he did. He held his head with both his hands, shutting his eyes tight.
He walked back to his room and let himself fall on the bed.
Ira knows nothing about him. She thinks he is an orphan. She doesn't know about his background. All she knows is, that he is Ehan; the topper.
"Isn't that exactly what I wanted? Somebody who would know me as me; Ehan, not as Ehan Sinha" he asked himself, looking at the ceiling.
He turned to sleep on his stomach, grabbing a pillow to bury his face. He twisted and turned, just not feeling good.
Will she be upset? He thought, removing the pillow from his face.
Did she cry after I burst out?
What do I do now? He groaned, thinking of a way to meet her as soon as possible and apologize.
He checked the time on his wristwatch and stood up all of a sudden. It was 8.20. 30 minutes left till her shift ends. He grabbed his jacket and made his way to the restaurant she works in.
He reached there in a few minutes and went inside. He looked around, trying to find Ira. He took a seat from the left to the counter, waiting for her. When a waitress approached him, he absentmindedly ordered a double cheeseburger, wanting to spend some time making himself ready to apologize while eating.
He was waiting for Ira to appear and serve him like the last time but to his disappointment, the same waitress came back with his order.
"That's wonderful" he heard Ira's voice behind him and turned quickly to spot her talking to a couple, her cheerful laugh eased his guilty heart. He turned back when she moved from that table and came towards his.
He came there to apologise but he didn't know why he hid from her eyes. She walked past him, without noticing his presence. He slowly munched on his burger, trying to be there till her shift ends. After a few minutes, she disappeared from his eyes. He looked around but found her nowhere. He checked the time and it showed 09.10. Thinking that she would have left when he was hiding from her, he walked out paying the bill.
He walked ever so slowly, like a tortoise, thinking how he was gonna face her the next day. He could hear footsteps right behind him. He stopped at a point, kicking a stone on his way. The footsteps close behind him stopped, making him turn his head back and look at the person.
Ira gasped as her eyes met his. She noticed him at the restaurant but didn't disturb him, not wanting to spoil his mood further. As she made her way out, she found him walking ahead. She walked behind him, taking slow steps.
He blankly looked at her, trying to form words to speak.
"I wasn't following you" she said instantly, shaking her head and hands as no and he was just blankly staring at her. A part of him was happy to find her there yet another part was guilty of facing her.
"I swear" she pinched a little on her throat as he didn't respond to her earlier statement.
"I'm sorry" he mumbled, lowering his gaze.
She raised her eyebrows, surprised. She was expecting him to yell again and ask her to stop following him. But it was something quite the opposite.
Her eyes twinkled and she walked close to him, clasping her hands together.
"It's so sweet of you. You are the first one to apologise after yelling at me" she squealed as always and gave him a wide smile, who wasn't even meeting her eyes.
He didn't know why but it hurt him to hear her. "I didn't mean what I said" he stated meeting her eyes for a moment.
"It's completely fine. I seriously don't mind" he was supposed to feel relieved that she forgave him but it became more awkward for him to know that she was letting it go so easily.
"You seriously not angry?" He asked with hesitation.
"Not at all. Why would I be angry?" She pursed her lips.
"Thank you, thank you so much. You have a big heart" he looked up at her, who was flashing him a smile.
"Would you continue tutoring me?" She queried as they started walking side by side, taking slow steps.
"I never said I quit" he answered, looking at her for a brief second. Her eyes lit up as he said that.
"Thank you so very much. I don't know why you are helping me but it means a lot to me" She was back to her usual self, talking nonstop all the way. As much as he used to get annoyed by her nonstop talks, it was giving him a strange kind of satisfaction.
Ehan stopped when he reached his house. He had to take the right and walk around to reach the main gate of his house since they were standing facing the backyard.
"Oops! I came all the way with you. I was supposed to take left from there" she pointed behind them.
She looked behind him and asked, "Do you live here?" He looked behind to find her pointing at the cottage, built in the backyard of his mansion.
He looked at the cottage. He knew it was there but he never visited there. It was made for a full-time caretaker, who would stay close to him and take care of his needs. But he never appointed anyone.
He was having an inner debate about whether to let Ira know that though it was his property, he didn't live there. He lives at the mansion whose back they were facing.
"It's late. I should get going" she spoke interrupting his debate with himself.
"Are you sure you can go alone? If you want, I can drop you" he offered hesitantly. He was worried for her, at the same he didn't want to.
"No, I can go by myself. See you tomorrow. Good night" she waved at him, before starting to walk back.
"Ira" he called her to stop.
"Don't forget you have a test tomorrow. I want you to be prepared" he reminded her of the chemical formulas he asked her to read. She showed her thumbs up to him, flashing her smile.
He stood on his spot, waiting for her to leave the street so he could take a turn and walk inside his mansion. He didn't know why he was doing that but he wanted her not to know whom he belonged to, he was satisfied that she knew him as him; Ehan, only Ehan.
Once she disappeared, he made his way back home. He locked the main door and walked upstairs, scratching his neck as he felt irritation in his skin. He stepped into his room and rubbed his arm as he felt his skin begin to burn slowly. He looked at his hands in horror and groaned loudly.
Pink patches were beginning to appear on his skin. He checked himself in the mirror and noticed his nose turning red, rashes were lightly appearing on his cheeks and lips beginning to swell. He rubbed his face with both hands, letting out a shaky breath. His skin was burning, making him want to run away from himself.
He turned on the shower and stood under the cold water, soothing his burning skin. He didn't care about the chilly weather. All he wanted was to get rid of the pain he was feeling.
He threw away the wet clothes and slipped into a pair of fresh ones. His body shook from the cold as he slipped inside the blanket, covering himself from head to toe. His teeth chattering from the cold and his body shivering. He wanted to sleep but he knew, he couldn't.
He pushed away the blanket and sat up straight. Taking his sleeping pills from the drawer, he gulped it down with water. He messaged Lily not to show up tomorrow and also asked her to inform Ira that he was out of town.
He tossed his mobile on the nightstand and lay down as sleep took over him, numbing his senses.
---
"He is out in town? But I met him last night. He didn't say anything about it" Ira stated, tapping her fingers on the glass counter of the cafeteria.
Lily informed her what Ehan asked her to. At least once in a couple of months, he asks her not to show up to clean his house but never reveals the reason. She knew something was wrong with him but he never opened up about it nor did she force him to, respecting his privacy.
"I don't know much about it, dear. He asked me to inform you since he doesn't have your number" Lily said, smiling apologetically. She forwarded the tray of food Ira ordered. Ira took that from her and requested, "Could you please give me his number?"
Lily hesitated but by looking at Ira's pleading eyes, she gave her his number, hoping Ehan wouldn't go mad.
"Thank you, Lily" Ira thanked before leaving the cafeteria. She sat in her usual spot to eat and started eating. After finishing her food, she made her way to the study hall. She took their usual seat and took out her books to read. She tried to concentrate, the keyword being 'tried' but didn't feel like succeeding anytime soon.
Mary or Ehan, I need at least one of them here to make me study. She thought, looking around. Everyone seemed busy in their work and she was the only one sitting idle.
She gathered all her stuff and left the hall.
---
Sitting in between the scattered parts of a laptop, Ehan was trying to fix it. He was not at all feeling good. His head was heavy, nose blocked, eyes burning and skin itching. He was trying his level best to ignore his pain by keeping himself occupied.
He sniffed after sneezing a couple of times. His allergy wouldn't have become this bad if he hadn't taken the cold shower last night, which sent a grand invitation to fever and caused him more damage.
He rubbed his forehead and then left cheek to get rid of the itching. His mobile went off, making him frown. Nobody except Lily and the lawyer his parents hired for him (in case he gets involved in any kind of illegal affairs) calls him. He ignored the call, thinking it might be either Lily or his lawyer. It went off again and again as he continued his task. He lazily walked to the nightstand and grabbed his mobile. His eyes narrowed as an unknown number flashed on the screen.
He swiped the screen frowning and pressed the mobile against his ear, "Hello?"
"Thank God you responded" a childishly feminine voice screamed from the other end. He pulled the phone away from his ear and checked the screen again, thinking who it could be.
---
Assalamualaikum everyone,
How was the chapter?
Who do you think is calling Ehan? ;)