The next morning, the bright sunlight woke me up, and I started my day with eye pain. My contact lens.
I should have removed them before sleeping. No, how could I remove them? I was busy taking in the pleasure from last night. God, Kriti is so good at it.
"Wait, where's Kriti?" I spoke aloud. I got no reply, just silence.
"She left for class, I guess." I inferred. I sat upright and looked at the bedside table. A glass of warm water and ibuprofen were kept with a sticky note.
'Take it if you're having a hangover. I cooked some instant noodles with a poached egg on your living room table. Eat before you leave.'
If I told my female friends, "Hey, my one-night stand just made me breakfast and kept some painkillers in case I had a bad hangover."
I swear, no one would believe that and say I were dreaming in my sleep.
Are these the perks of dating a woman? Then I officially want to have a girlfriend. Let all men have the lowest to bare minimum type of girls. I am high maintenance. I need a girlfriend.
I pulled out the drawer of my bedside table and took one sachet of vitamin C and ginger drink powder. I poured and drank it.
"God, still not used to sourness." I shivered.
I stretched my body and headed for the bathroom. I freshened up and wrapped myself in a towel, and I went to the living room. The noodles and poached egg were carefully kept in a bowl, and a plate covered it.
I sat on the floor and removed the plate. The noodles were still hot. I took a bite and had to fan my mouth for how hot it was.
After finishing the bowl, I looked at my schedule. I had two and a half hours left for first class. I kept the bowl and the fork on the plate on the table and went to my wardrobe.
I started rummaging through my clothes and started feeling that I really had no clothes to wear.
"How come none of them look good enough to wear? I should have something to wear at least." I started getting frustrated. While manhandling my wardrobe collection, I found a cotton red with yellow and black striped Mekhela skirt[1]. I took that and paired it with a white cotton shirt and yesterday's cardigan. I wore brass long loops and yesterday's necklace and watch.
I shoved everything needed in my bag and locked my door. I needed to reach the class on time, for my attendance was on the line.
***** ***** ***** ***** *****
Jaya was still thinking about yesterday's talk with Siddharth.
"She even has a trust fund in her name. Her pockets are so deep that she doesn't have to worry about anything in her life. Honestly, if today she chooses to drop out and do nothing, she still will be able to live comfortably and raise her own family. Have you seen her worrying about student loans?" Siddharth said while chewing on his pizza.
"Right, I have never seen getting worried about affording anything but concerned about how she has enough at the moment to pay for it," Jaya said, dawning with realisation.
"But the way she lives her life, I would have never realised. She's not even a spendthrift. She lives her life like she has seen all kinds of hardships in the world."
"Well, I don't know why. All I know is she lived with one relative or another and was raised by her paternal family. So if we get them involved, we might get things done." Siddharth said, "They might get things done."
"Mr. Chatterjee's family?" Suddenly, a nurse spoke up. Jaya looked up from her seat and found the nurse holding up a file.
"Yes," Jaya asked.
"The patient's medical file. Have you filled out the rest of the paperwork?" The nurse looked at Jaya's filled form. "Come with me to submit the rest of it with the fees."
"Sure." Jaya looked at Siddharth and said, "I'll complete the rest."
"Ok. Take care of yourself, Ollie." Shiddharth said and cut the call.
Jaya took a sip of her tea and let the taste of the tea wake her up from the long night. Asking her relatives would be good, but it would be intruding on her privacy. Also, they are her relatives, not herself. If Jasmine were comfortable with telling people, she would have told Siddharth or her.
Looking at the tea, Jaya said," I think it's better not to tell them. Even if they can manage to pull off the punishment using their connections."
Jaya pulled out her phone from her pocket and typed, "Let's not involve her relatives. Let's handle it ourselves."
After three minutes, Siddharth replied, "Ok. I'll see what we can do."
Jaya typed, "Collect evidence? Library cameras need to be checked out."
Siddharth wrote, "I'll check the records. I need Kriti's permission for older records."
Jaya typed, "Does she know?"
Siddharth replied, "Jasmine told her."
Jaya said, "Lucky her. Fine, let's rope her into this. Ask her."
Siddharth said, "I'll."
[1] Mekhela is a part of Mekhela Chador, a traditional Assamese attire worn by women. It consists of two main pieces: the Mekhela, which is a cylindrical skirt, and the Chador, a long piece of cloth draped over the upper body. The Mekhela Chador is a symbol of Assamese culture and is known for its intricate designs and use of local silk like Muga, Paat, and Eri.