Love didn't arrive in a rush for me.
It came quietly, through small texts,
through late-night conversations,
through the comfort of knowing someone was waiting at the other end.
Still, I often wondered—how would he look in real life?
And even more, would he like the way I looked?
Curiosity and nervousness kept circling my heart,
until one day, I gathered the courage to video call him.
I didn't show my face at first, but I watched him. He was so shy, his cheeks turned red, and I felt a strange happiness seeing him blush like a little kid. Slowly, those calls became longer, warmer, and soon we both decided—it was time to meet.
October 23rd became our day. He faced so many struggles to come—his bus met with an accident, his train ticket didn't get confirmed—but still, he made it. When he finally saw me, the very first thing he did was hug me in public. I froze for a second, not knowing how to react, but my heart was beating so fast with joy.
We walked together, hand in hand, searching for a hotel and finally found one. The room was full of silence, a little awkward at first. To ease it, he turned on the TV and played Shinchan. I couldn't help but smile—it wasn't in Telugu, not even in Tamil, but in Hindi. That felt so funny and sweet at the same time. While the cartoon played, I hugged him from behind and playfully bit his ear. His face turned red, and I loved watching him blush.
Later, he took me to KFC, where we ate a lot and laughed like we had been waiting for that moment forever. Back in the room, I noticed him pouting, trying to hug me from behind. I teased him for a while, not letting him, until finally, I kissed him. He kissed me back. When our eyes met afterward, I felt a happiness I had never known before.
We went to the beach, collected shells, walked along the shore, and let the sea carry our laughter. At night, we returned to the hotel, planning to watch a movie. But in the middle of it, a sudden knock came. The police. They suspected us, took our mobiles and ID proofs, and left us terrified. His parents didn't know he was in Andhra. My parents didn't know I had stepped out of the hostel.
That night was filled with fear, yet deep down, I knew something unshakable: I had found him, and he had found me. No matter what storms came, we were already each other's home.