"A double date!"
"Yeah isn't it a great idea."
"It is..... just a little..... unexpected. "
"Won't we like, disturb you?"
"No. Don't worry."
I smiled to seem excited but when we were leaving I gave Aarush the look that said you're gonna pay. We sat in the car as quite as possible. Just to avoid a weird small talk. Never thought this blonde could ever be quite but somehow he was. How the hell did I get stuck here! Here of all places! Sushil was driving the car, Rani sat in the front seat. I finally whispered to Aarush.
"You never mentioned a double date!"
"It wasn't planned."
"Doesn't that mean you're breaking the deal?"
"No, I... asked you to be my fake gf but never mentioned whether we'll have a fake date or not."
"You... you... you cunning boy!"
And this guy had the nerve to give me a smug grin. I mean why is he so egoistic. What am I supposed to do now! If I know something, I'll make him pay. I'll wait like a quite lion hiding in the bushes before hunting it's prey waiting for the perfect opportunity. Like quite snake confusing its prey before bitting it. Like a quite heron standing quietly with one foot in the water and then cleverly and efficiently hunting its prey. And when I do I'm gonna destroy his ego shatter it into pieces. And then he would remember that he isn't the only one who knows how to be a little trickster. He'll remember never to hurt someone again. He'll remember never to mess with the wrong person. Wait am I going back to who I was. Or was it a change I could never undo. The day I stabbed my first target was the day I realised it could never be undone. That was the day I was no longer innocent, pure, naive, kind and decent. In that flash of a moment I felt something in my chest. Probably the realization that I had became a blood stained assassin. I remember staring at that lifeless body before leaving. At nights I wondered what I had become. But then I simply accepted that my purpose was to kill. But here I was playing family. Stuck to find a new purpose, a new meaning to my pathetic life. Pretending to be someone I was not, pretending to be a student, to be a pure soul. Sometimes I just wanna disappear. Disappear into thin air. Disappear so no one could find me. Erased from everyone's memories. No matter where I am, how I am, what I am, there is this one constant unwavering feeling 'Sometimes I just want to disappear.'
"Chandni!"
It was only when I heard Aarush's voice that I realised we had finally reached our destination. It looked like a mall.
"So here's the plan." Went cheerful Rani. "First, we have our lunch, then we watch a movie."
"Wow Rani you are a great planner."
"You think so."
Wow! Rani you are such a great planner. Now I have my whole day to ruin pretending to be the girlfriend of my worst classmate. We are gonna have so much fun. I will remember this day as long as I shall live.
"Let's go."
****************
So after waiting for what felt like a decade our lunch was here. And we all started eating. Then the two lovebirds sitting besides the two pretending to be lovebird (yeah in other words me and Aarush), started feeding each other. Normal lovey dovey stuff. I was quietly having my lunch and then Aarush kicked me under the table. I looked up. And the two of us made eye contact. He was motioning his eyeballs towards Sushil and Rani. Wait! Is he asking me to feed him.
"Excuse me, I need to use the restroom."
So I went in and opened my phone and messaged that airhead.
'I am not doing this.'
'Yes you are.'
'First you force me to go on a double date, now this!'
'I'll post it and then see you make a fool out of yourself.'
'You, you moron!'
'I have you under my thumb. 😏😏😏'
'Fine. Just this once.'
I came back and then did it. Neither in my previous life nor in my current one had I ever gone on a date. And I am pretty sure these will not be my proudest moment. Finally we were done eating. We went for ice cream.
"Two scopes please."
Rani and Sushil started eating from the same ice cream. But this time we had our plan.
"Two scopes one butterscotch"
"The other strawberry."
"Wait then make them different ice crems each with a single scope otherwise it will taste weird."
Finally he cooperated.
After ice cream it was time for a boring movie! Suddenly my brother Kush's words echoed in my ears 'Hey Chandni when you get a boyfriend don't go to watch a movie with him or else you might get dumbed.' What if he posts it. I will simply not sleep.
****************
So we were watching a super boring movie. It was about a boy who found his true love in college and confessed to her, the girl was in love too but she was gonna get married after their last semester. I was struggling to keep my eyes open and before I had known it I was asleep.
I was having a nice sleep feeling peaceful and safe. I woke up hearing two soft giggles.
"The two of them look so cute together, don't they?"
"Yeah, look at them high-school sweethearts."
"They seem to be having the time of their lives sleeping while resting their heads on each other."
"Ahh.. so cute let's click a pic before they wake up or the interval ends."
I was about to open my eyes before I heard a voice.
"Aarush you woke up."
"Umhum..."
I woke up too. And we went out to get more popcorn.
"I tried waking you up but no you were having your beauty sleep. You know my shoulder is hurting after being your pillow." He whispered
"Didn't you fall asleep too."
"I got tired waking you up."