Once again, London helped me breathe. The boys left to their rooms after the light dinner.
I poured myself and Hope, each, a glass of coke from the fridge and came back to the living room. Hope briefly looked up from her phone to smile at me and immediately went back to typing on her phone.
I checked my own phone for texts. Thankfully, Pranav hadn't bombed my phone with texts again. Of course, it has to do with the fact that I blocked him. I texted Arjun and my mom that we reached home. It was probably only past eleven back in India, but I was still surprised to find my phone ping immediately with a reply from Arjun.
Letting me know wasn't so hard, was it?
I could hear his teasing tone in his deep, masculine voice as I read the text. My lips involuntarily pushed into a pout. Why is he always teasing me?
It was dreadful.
No, it wasn't. I was positively afraid of what Arjun would do if I hadn't informed him of my arrival. I did learn Arjun has quite the temper. He looks hot when he's angry, but it's not a look I would want to see on him at my expense.
Like your separation from me?
You can confess your undying love for me now, Janaki.
With that name again. I frown at my phone, in half-mind to chuck my phone and forget about Mr-I-look-very-hot-when-I'm-angry.
Flirt.
You can go fuck yourself, Arjun.
I realised I probably shouldn't have told him to fuck himself after I had already sent the message. I am an idiot. I've always known and accepted the fact, but this is new levels of idiocy.
I'd much rather do you.
My mouth falls open at his crude reply. Isn't that supposed to be rude? I feel my ears heat up at the text. Fucking Arjun. No, no. No. That is not what I mean. Stupid-arse Arjun. Yes. Stupid-arse Arjun.
I close the app without replying to him and put my phone away. What in the world would I even say to him? I blame my tiredness from the long haul for my lack of comeback. I look at Hope, who puts her phone away and looks back at me.
"I'll leave now," she says in her thick British accent, "Get some rest, and I'll meet you at work tomorrow?"
"Sure." I lead her to the front door. "I'll swing by the office by evening tomorrow," I let her know.
She nods, "I'll get those Oyster Cards for you," she says.
Buying oyster cards is a pain in the arse. Standing in long queues is not exactly at the top of my to-do list, for when I visit London. Oyster Cards are used for transportation around the city; the trains and buses. The time saved during travel makes up for the time lost in standing in the long queues. I have a car, but I wanted the boys to get the public transport experience.
"Thank you," I smile.
She reaches over to hug me, wrapping me in her arms. "I'll see you tomorrow," she says.
I hug her back, thankful for the physical warmth. I pull back before she can become suspicious, but apparently even hugging her back for a second time is highly suspicious to Hope.
"You alright, Arvi?" she asks teasingly, "I might think you missed me."
I roll my eyes at her. "I was being nice. I'm never hugging you again," I tell her.
She chuckles, "Get good rest."
I nod and wave back at her from the threshold of the front door. I close the door and lock it before going over to Rohan's room.
I knock on the door and wait five seconds before walking in. The room is completely dark except for the light from Rohan's phone illuminating his face. The lights are turned off and the curtains, drawn.
"Just checking," I tell him when he looks at me questioningly. "Feel free not to wake me up tomorrow morning if you want anything. I'll slap the shit out of your face if you do."
"I wouldn't dare," he says dramatically.
"Good night, then," I bid, shutting the door close.
I then walk to the adjacent room. I knock on Aryan's door and wait five seconds before going in. Never go into a teenager's room without knocking. Things can get super awkward.
The lights in Aryan's room are turned on, the curtains open. The rays of the setting sun are peeking into the room, showering it in an orange glow. "All good?" I ask Aryan.
He nods, looking away from the window. "Nice view," he says, tipping his chin to the window.
I smile in response. "I know. The balcony has a better view, though," I tell him, "We can go sight-seeing tomorrow, depending on how you're feeling." Travel and jet-lag are not easy to deal with.
He returns my smile. "Cool," he says.
I remember another thing I wanted to talk to Aryan about. "I was going to ask," I start, walking over to the chair and sitting down, "Do you want to go back before your birthday?"
The smile on his face falters, and he shrugs almost indifferently. The hint of disagreement on his face gives away his feeling towards the notion. "Anything is fine," he says, diplomatically.
I smile at him, "If you don't want to go back before your birthday, you only have to say the words," I tell him.
"Why would I not want to go back before my birthday?" he asks defensively, looking away from me, busying himself in looking outside the window once again.
"I don't know," I confess. "But it's okay if you don't want to."
He turns to look at me. "You don't want to go back?" he asks in a low tone.
I bite my lip, contemplating the answers I could give him. I choose to stick to the truth. "Not really, no."
"I don't want to, either," he admits.
I walk over to the window, watching as the sun, sets. "I won't ask why not," I tell him, trying to put him at ease. "If you want to share, I'll listen."
He doesn't respond. I take that as a no. I ruffle his hair with a smile. Aryan's already taller than me. Raghu Mama, Aryan and Kaushik's dad is quite tall, but Aryan also plays football.
"Sleep well, Ary," I wish him. I don't forget the warning. "The fridge is stocked. If you wake up before me, don't wake me up. I tend to get violent," I warn.
He chuckles, "I know."
The light-hearted chuckle of his reminds me he's only fifteen. A fifteen-year-old who doesn't want to go back home already? I was the same kind of fifteen-year-old.
I was fifteen when we took our last family vacation. By then, the three-storey house, about four or five times the size of this apartment had already started to make me feel claustrophobic.
I remember the vacation. Every bit. Nanna promised to put his phone away for the entirety of the trip. He couldn't completely stick to his promise, but he tried. He would only open his phone at the end of the day before he slept.
That was the last of the carefree trips we went on. The last family vacation. The city helped me breathe then, it helps me breathe now.
As a fifteen-year-old, I'd made my mind up to come here for my Bachelor's. I wasn't going to stay six years when I first came, but when I finished my Bachelor's my father said I could stay here, work at Zēlos London with Blake Corporation. I was twenty years old then. I chose to stay back. I don't know why.
At twenty-two, I decided I was going to get my Master's from Oxford. I applied for their nine-month-long Economics program and got in. I hadn't told anyone that I applied until after I got my acceptance.
My dad flew to London when he heard it. He stayed around for a week. He wasn't on a vacation. All week long, he came to work with me. In my car. Naveen Ravichander isn't a man of many words. The look on his face when he saw my car told me more than I needed to know. I knew he was happy. It made me happy to know he was happy.
I had already started with the course when Karthik told me he was going to propose to his girlfriend. It was the same girl he'd been texting all day and night long when he came to visit me for my Bachelor's graduation. They were together for two and a half years when Karthik popped the question.
I helped him pick a ring for his then-girlfriend, and then-fiancée and now wife. He told me how everything was going to be. I told him that I whole-heartedly pitied the girl who was going to accept his proposal.
Needless to say, she accepted his proposal.
Then, I decided I was going to go back to Hyderabad. I forgot why I wanted to leave in the first place. I missed everyone, everything. I had had enough of staying away. London is special, but home is home.
Here I am, two months later. Once again, unable to breathe. Once again, seeking solace in a faraway place. Once again, running away.
For the first time, I realise it's easier to love someone through a screen, to miss people you see through a screen. Everything seems easier when you're thousands of miles away.
~.~.~.~.~
Eleven days later
I look at Pranathi Vadina through the screen. I can almost feel Karthik's presence beside her. I know he's sitting right beside her every time we talk. I can see how her eyes flit to him every time I say something.
Sure, Pranathi Vadina and I had grown close over the past two months but I've never video-called anyone for eleven days in a row.
"Is Karthik around?" Like every day, the question never makes it past my closed throat. I miss Karthik, my elder brother. Karthik Anna.
Like every day, tears prick the back of my eyes and I hastily bid her a bye, citing an excuse and hang up.
I dab the corners of my eye to remove the moisture and walk out of my room to find both the boys in the living room. We'd reached home earlier than most days today because it's Aryan's birthday tomorrow.
"What do you want to do tomorrow?" I ask Aryan, plonking down on the sofa.
He shrugs, "Whatever. I don't really mind."
"It's your birthday tomorrow!" I say excitedly, but Aryan is least bothered by my tone.
"I know, Arvi Akka," he says in a bored tone.
I sigh. "Can you please show some excitement? Latha Atha isn't exactly happy about me keeping you away from home on your birthday," I tell him.
He rolls his eyes. "Ma knew we were going to be away for a maximum of two weeks."
"You saw how she kept telling me to finish off everything within ten days," I point out. "She's probably moping around the house, thinking about you."
He nods impassively with an airy, "Whatever you say."
"Aryan," I scold.
He looks at me. "Arvi Akka, one birthday away from home isn't the end of the world."
He better be excited about what I planned for him tomorrow.
~.~.~.~.~
At six-thirty the next morning, I wake up Rohan and Aryan. They'd both fallen asleep on the couch after watching a movie last night.
"What the fuck is wrong with you?" Rohan cusses, hiding under his blanket.
A lot of things, really. "You have a death wish with that attitude," I warn him. Oh, God. I'm turning into my mom.
"Arvi Akka! It's my birthday!" Aryan groans, refusing to open his eyes. Ah, now it's his birthday.
"Funny, you think I care about something you don't care about yourself," I say sarcastically. "Now, up! We're leaving in ten minutes."
"What's the time?" Rohan asks, peaking out of the blanket.
"Six-thirty," I answer his question.
He looks at me like I lost it, "Where are we going now?" he asks incredulously, "At six-thirty in the morning?"
"I want to eat chocolates," I answer his question. Belgian chocolates.
He looks at me with his mouth agape, "Are you crazy?" he asks.
I roll my eyes at him, "Both of you better be ready in ten minutes or that's it. I'm going to throw water on you," I threaten.
~.~.~.~.~
At seven that morning, Rohan, Aryan and I board my coupe with Aryan in the passenger seat and me in the driver's seat.
"Where are we going?" Aryan asks again.
"To buy some chocolate," I repeat.
He gives me an unsure look through narrowed eyes as if asking me to reconsider my answer. I roll my eyes at him and bring down the hood of the car. "Looking at me like that will not change my answer, Aryan."
Rohan who had passed out in the back sits up straight. "Seriously, Arvi Akka. Tell us already!" He sounds exasperated and impatient.
"You'll know," I tell them, accelerating the car. I look at the dashboard where I'd left our passports, and eye Aryan once again. He'd better like this.
~.~.~.~.~
Four hours later, I stop outside a homely cafe in Brussels, Belgium. "You are in Europe now, unfasten your seat belts and kindly move your asses out of my car."
"Wow," Aryan say breathily, looking at me. "You really like chocolates that much? You drove us all the way to Belgium to buy some chocolates?"
I chuckle and pull them into the cafe with me. I sit beside Rohan, opposite Aryan after I give our orders. The boys chose to sit beside the glass pane, visible to the on-lookers.
"You are crazy. I really hope you know that," Aryan says.
I grin proudly, "Crazy people have the best experiences, kid."
He chuckles, falling back into his seat. "Thanks, Arvi Akka."
I frown, "What for?" I ask him. Aryan genuinely looks happy and I couldn't be happier about it. He said he didn't want to go back home for his birthday but that doesn't mean I'm going to let his sixteenth birthday be a flop.
"All of this," he says sincerely, "Bringing me to London, and now driving all the way to Belgium on my birthday."
I shake my head at him. "You think too highly of yourself, Perry," I address him with a nickname I bestowed upon him when he was a kid. The kid loved Phineas and Ferb— the Disney show. His favourite character? Perry The Platypus.
He looks slightly surprised at the old nickname but smiles anyway. "I didn't carry you to London, neither did I bring you all the way to Belgium for a birthday you're not at all excited about. I mean, you're just turning sixteen, Aryan. What's the big deal? I drove to Belgium for the chocolates. Be assured."
The order of Belgian waffles comes to our table. One plate with a candle sticking out from it. I had given Aryan a birthday cake at midnight, but that's hardly anything special.
Aryan eyes the plate and me mockingly, "I can see a birthday waffle. Where are your chocolates?" he teases.
I chuckle, "Happy birthday, Perry."
I take a quick picture of the birthday waffle and Aryan's genuinely happy face. Nothing could make me happier than knowing this kid is happy.
I ask the waitress to take a picture of the three of us with Aryan's birthday waffle on my phone. She complies and clicks a couple of pictures to go on my photo wall.
We sing Aryan a happy birthday, much to his disdain. Aryan uses the fork and butter knife to slice the waffles, sticking out the fork for me first and then Rohan.
I give Aryan a big birthday hug, which he returns.
~.~.~.~.~
Two days later, the night before we leave for India, Rohan comes into my room and jumps onto my bed. "Are you done packing?" he asks.
I snort. "I'm probably going to pack an hour before we leave," I tell him.
He groans, lying back on my bed. "I don't want to leave," he says. Neither do I.
I smile at him teasingly, "Of course you don't. You're starting Twelfth grade this year, aren't you?" I tease.
He groans louder. "I hate school!"
"Me, too!" Aryan says, walking into my room and plonking down on my bed. Over the course of the two weeks, he has become more open to me. Maybe everyone feels lighter when they're away from home.
I chuckle and put my laptop away. "Okay, boys. One last night. Where do you want to go?" I ask them.
We spent our last night in London in Chinatown, walking around the streets and driving around the city. For the millionth time that night, I wished I could stay here forever.
In a faraway place, where the sun sets later than ever. Where I can miss the people I love, where I don't have to pretend, where I can be just another girl, where I can live in oblivion of everyone else and everything else. It all feels like a midnight summer's dream. Tomorrow, I'll have to go back to living in reality. Just one last night in my dream. Living my dream.
A/N
I'll be honest, I love writing Aryan's character. I'm not very sure how the chapter turned out and all that. It's probably different from the other, edited chapters because I'm letting this one stay as it is. It's not very descriptive... but I don't know... I don't think I want to re-write all of it. So... that was London.
Tell me what you thought of the chapter.
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Signing off,
A.