Ishqiya - Chapter 17: Chapter 17

S I M R A N
"fir na ham saare bhagwan se pray kiye ki papa kuch hi bole, kuch nhi bole per hamari toh kismat hi futi hai. Papa saara bhanda fodh diye..", I narrated the whole thing to Akshi while we were on the video call
(translation:Then I prayed to God that father shouldn't say anything, he should not say anything, but my luck seemed to run out. Papa, he ruined everything.)
Akshi blinked at first, hearing me patiently and then laughed making me cry more and dwell in more self-embarrassment. After the shop incident, I ran back home and locked myself in my room crying over the second-hand embarrassment I faced today.
"You have gone crazy Simran, aisa kaun karta hai? Sidha sidha bata deti kaun ho tum", Akshi spoke from the other side after calming her laughter. "aise kaise bata dete, ham nhi chahte the ki vho hame pehchaane per Papa yaar sab bigad diye", I cried out scrunching my nose in annoyance
(translation:You've gone crazy Simran, who does that? You should have told him straight away who you are.
:How could I have told him like this, i did not want him to recognize me, but alas my dear father, he had spoiled everything.)
"Bhai ham paida hue vhi embarrassing hai, hamne science choose Kiya vhi embarrassing hai, ham neet liye vhi embarrassing hai, ham doctor banne wale hai vhi embarrassing hai, ham Avinash ko abhi bhi pasand karte hai vhi embarrassing hai, ah ha sab kuch embarrassing hai..!", I whined dramatically as I drop myself on my bed and shouted loudly in the pillow
(translation: I was born and that is embarrassing, I have chosen science, that is embarrassing, I took neet, that is embarrassing, I want to become doctors, that is embarrassing, I still like Avinash, that is embarrassing, all this is very embarrassing)
"Tum bhul gyi, tumhari existence bhi embarrassing hai dost", Akshi added and I glared at her. If looks could kill she would have been ten feet down the ground. She was trying her best to muffle her laughter but one look at my disheveled state and she burst out again.
(Translation: You forgot, your existence is also embarrassing, friend.)
"ahh ha, you aren't helping either", I whimpered nibbling on my lower lip. I don't know why but every time I'd encounter Avinash, it'd always ended up with a disaster. With me always embarrassing myself in front of him. Ham itne ch**tiya kyu hai?
"Yaar hamko bhukhar ho raha hai Akshi tsk, koi hai bhi nhi hamari care karne ko, batao yaar", I told her as I wiped my non-existent tears
(Translation: I'm feeling feverish Akshi tsk, there is no one to take care of me. I pity myself)
"Tumhe bukhar nhi moye moye ho gaya hai", she said and I looked at her with a done expression. Wasn't she having so much fun at my expense? Har kutte ka din aata hai Tera bhi aayega kaliya- I mean Akshi, *huff*
(translation: You don't have a fever, you are suffering from moye moye.
:Every dog has its day, yours will also come Kalia- I mean Akshi)
After talking to her for a few minutes, where she consoled me or more like made fun of my situation I ended the call and decided to get ready for Dhanteras. I got freshened up and dressed in an ethnic kurti. Keeping my hair open, I coated my lips with a thin layer of gloss and walked out ready to enjoy but the scene before me made me sigh.
"tum bhi aaram farmao, hai hi ek kaam wali, karegi kaam. Aur ghar meh ladki log puja ghar saja rhi hogi, rangoli ka colour la rhi hogi, aur ek meri hai baithi Hui hai, arre zara apni badi behen se toh kuch sikho. Khali Diwali jab aayegi, haat meh diya leke aise aise photo status per lagayegi", all I wish for was a peaceful holiday but nah Meri kismat meh toh Shani hi likha hai, rahu ketu kaal chal raha hai *sigh*
(Translation:You also relax, there is a maid in the house right? She'll do all the work. In other houses, the girl of the house would be decorating the puja room, and buying colours for rangoli, and here one of my daughters is sitting idly. At least learn something from your elder sister. But no! When Diwali comes, you will just pose with the diya and put the photos on status like this.)
I ignored my ranting mother and an ugly-faced sister who sat lavishly on the sofa twisting her face because of my mother's scolding. I walked towards the terrace to get some fresh air. It was late evening and everyone was busy decorating their houses with fairy lights. I smiled at the feeling.
Standing near the railing I leaned more on the iron bars as a soft smile played on my lips. Avinash Thakur
The boy I've been crushing on since I don't even remember. All I wished was for a happily ever after ending but what I ended up was with just tears and a broken heart.
The universe allowed me to love him but not allow me to have him. I accepted it as I saw him walking hand in hand with the girl he loved. I smiled realizing how I wished to have him in another universe but little did I know that maybe I asked for the same wish in my previous life. I laughed at the irony of the thoughts.
Closing my eyes, I lead myself to the world of my past where I first met him and how I wished I hadn't.
Flashback~~
*Simran class 7th, Avinash class 8th*
I stared at the building that stood in front of me with a bored expression. My parents forced me to or more likely kicked me out of the house to go to the tuition classes no matter how much I protected.
I spat the gum I had been chewing on for the past ten minutes and entered inside only to be greeted by a class of almost 40 students sitting randomly and having fun. I didn't know anyone here. The surrounding was unknown to be much to my bad luck.
Much to my dislike, Sumedha's parents enrolled her in some other coaching and here I was stuck in a class of strangers whom I started dispeising since the moment I stepped inside.
I was standing near the door for the past 5 minutes but no one took notice of me. I heard the bell ring and that's when I felt a presence behind me. I turned around and met the most warmest yet distant pair of brown orbs. Gosh, they were so pretty.
I stood rooted in my place not having a sense of my surroundings. Everything seemed to blur as his tall frame stared down at me.
At that moment I realised what it felt like to be struck by a lightening as his brown eyes left me awestruck.
The moment he caught my eye it was not love at first sight. Instead, I felt as if a quiet curiosity was planted in my chest and I knew it was only a matter of time before he sunk deep beneath my bones and nurtured this deep-seated familiarity into a love so fierce that I would question if I had ever been in love before.
"Excuse me", he said and walked past me, entering inside the class. My eyes followed his every moment while I stood in the same place as before because of the spell his aura cast on me.
"You are new here child?", the moment was disturbed by the teacher as she questioned me. I nodded my head coming out of the daze. She smiled affectionately at me and pulled me inside the classroom where he sat along with his friends.
The now roaring with chatter classroom suddenly got silent with the teacher's presence. I stood beside her with my eyes roaming everywhere but him. Suddenly I felt nervous in his presence. The fact that I would be sharing the same class as him was enough to make shivers run down my bones.
"Good evening class. Welcome to the new session. As you all know that the students of class 7th and 8th will be sharing the same batch, I will be the one handling this batch, mostly like a class teacher.", the teacher said and I chewed on the flesh of the inside of my cheeks as I felt more anxious and out of place
"Let me introduce you to your new classmate. She's Simran Bhagat from DAV and she'll be studying with you from now on", she added and I raised my head only to meet with his brown eyes staring directly at me
I cowardly drop my head staring at my shoes which suddenly felt more interesting than anything.
"Let me change your sitting arrangements as always because I don't want any trouble hereafter. And no more complaints", the teacher ordered and the class whined with a chorus of 'No' and 'Uff'.
She quickly started doing her work and the students started scattering on their alloted seats with twisted lips almost hating her decision. Maybe she was making them share the seats with their sworn enemies. But what surprised me more was the placement of both males and females together. On every desk, a girl and boy sat together. I was curious as to where she was going to make the particular HIM sit.
"Simran, since you are new here. You sit on the empty seat with Avinash. He's a really bright and studious child, he'd help you get accustomed to the surroundings", the teacher declared and I roamed my eyes in the whole classroom searching for the empty seat and the said Avinash guy.
But my eyes widened when I found out it was just beside the HIM, the same guy with brown eyes. So his name is Avinash.
But I quickly averted my gaze feeling conscious as he stared directly at me. I felt his gaze deeply penetrate my soul. With hesitant steps walked towards where he sat and keeping my bag in between us took my seat.
My heart raced like crazy and my palms felt sweaty out of nowhere. I tried focusing on my breathing to control my heartbeat but the way it hammered against my cage in the abnormal pace left me thinking if it would leap out.
"Avinash, Avinash Thakur", he introduced and I snapped my head in his direction. This voice was thick, a bit heavier for an 8th grader but enough to make shivers run down my bones
"Simran Bhagat", I replied with a gulp trying not to stammer and make a complete fool of myself in the very first meeting itself
"You are from DAV right?", he questioned again to which I just nodded. "Me too", he added making my lips form an O. We shared the same school and I wasn't even aware. How come I was not? I averted my gaze looking everywhere but him, my cheeks and neck felt warm. His deep stare left me squirming in my seat.
I heard him chuckle and whisper a faint, "cute". It was so unclear, almost inaudible which made me question if I even heard it. But his faint smile said otherwise. My eyes widened and my cheeks burnt, I was thankful for my brown complexion or else the red hue would have been prominent. I opened and closed my mouth like a fish but before I could say anything we were interrupted by the teacher.
I intertwined my sweaty finger in a tight grip as I felt like a giddy teenager. Maybe I was growing a tiny whiny per cent crush on my new seatmate with my favourite shade of warm brown eyes. And the mere thought that from now on I was going to see more of him was enough to thrive an unknown thrill within me.
*Pehla Pehla Pyaar hai, pehli pehli baar hai, zaan ke bhi anjana-*
Present~~
I snap out of my thoughts as my phone pinged with a notification.
@sumedha__ mentioned you in their story.
Ab isne kyu mention kiya story per?
(Translation:)
With a confused expression, I tapped on the notification and saw her new story. It was updated only a minute ago. My eyes widened like saucers and I wondered if they would pop out of their sockets. The bish had screen recorded our Instagram chats where I sent her a random voicemail in which I was singing like a crazy drunkard. But the most embarrassing fact was Avinash and Sumedha followed each other on Instagram. And the possibilities of him seeing the story were high. I immediately dialed her number but the traitor wasn't receiving the call. Yeh sab hamare hi saath kyu hota hai, hamesha uske samne embrasse ho jate hai*crying face*
(Translation:)
With a crying face, I dialled Akshi and she picked up on the third ring. "Kya hua ab?", she spoke from the other side.
(Translation: what's the matter now?)
"Bhai tum choro sab, tum apna boyfriend dhund rhi hai, ham apna boyfriend dhund rhe hai, chal ham dono hi shaadi kar lete hai. We're the best option for each other. Yeh, pyaar best friend sab moh maya hai", I cried out sniffing, wiping my non-existent tears. The line was silent for a while and I checked the screen whether she had hung up on me but to my luck she hadn't.
(Translation: you leave all this, you are hunting for your boyfriend, I am hunting for my boyfriend, let us both get married. We're the best option for each other. This love, best friend and all is just a myth)
"Behen, kitni daru pi ho beh? Aisi behki behki baatein kyu kar rhi ho?", she questioned and I could tell that a deep frown might have been on her face
(Translation:how drunk are you? Why are you talking such nonsense?)
"Jyada nhi piye the,bas 50 wala ek paua chada liye the,
Bhai hame pani se nasha ho jata hai tum daru ki baat kar rhi ho", I added and I heard her chucking on the other side, "behen tum pagal ho gyi ho"
(Translation:Didn't drink much, just had a peg worth Rs 50.
Bro, I get intoxicated with water, you are talking about alcohol.
: you have gone nuts)
I pouted and continued to scroll on my feed while Akshi narrated about some cute child in her train berth who entertained her throughout the journey back home.
The notification of her sending me a reel popped up on the screen and I opened the chat box. I tapped on the reel and I literally droll over the sexy hot specimen in the reel. The handsome hunk played his electric guitar as his hair swayed with his each moment making me ogle at him. *dreamy eyes*
"bhag BC, tum.. aise aise ladko ka fir reel bhejogi. Fir ham horny ho jayenge", I quickly clicked on the mic icon and sent her the voicemail. She immediately saw it and replied with the typical S-I-M-R-A-N- H-O-R-N-Y text making me chuckle
(Translation: you bitch.. now if you'll send reels of such boys then I'll get horny)
But a deep voice from behind me made my smile drop and a chill ran down my bones. I turned around and gulped as he stood on the other terrace adjoined to my roof. I didn't know, from when he was standing there and what he heard.
"I didn't know you would get horny by just a reel Simran", he had the same smirk on his face that he had before. His words made me feel like I should hit my head somewhere. Why do I always embarrass myself in front of him every time?
I gritted my teeth and without sparing him a glance ran downstairs. But what I didn't miss was his attire. He wore a simple pale kurta with sleeves folded to his elbows. His left hand had a watch complementing his veiny hands. His hairs were styled and perfectly gelled highlighting his features. He looked really handsome and attractive. Well, I always find him attractive.
But then I felt realisation dawn upon me, that he wasn't mine, he never was. From what I heard from Sumedha, he was still in touch with the girl he liked during high school.
I closed my eyes as I leaned against the wall. A tear escaped my left eye, cascading down my cheek and my jaw. An unsettling pain hit my heart and I felt my throat clogged.
Maybe we were parallel lines, I followed him everywhere throughout the whole high school years, almost stalked him everywhere and supported him during his tennis games. But was never able to intersect with him in life, not back then, not now, not ever. He was the most hurtful yet the most heartful chapter of my life.