As I mentioned in the last chapter, I had talked to that boy, and I was very happy about it because talking to my crush was nothing less than an achievement for me. Since I am the youngest child in my family, I can never keep anything to myself. I usually tell everyone everything. Even so, I did not tell anyone that I had talked to a boy—except my sisters. Both of them knew everything about me. They told me that they had no problem with me talking to someone, but they advised me not to forget my limits. Every time I talked to him, I showed my chats to my sisters.
This happened in February when I was in 11th grade. At that time, I had joined computer classes, and I used to go there with my sister. None of my friends knew that I had joined computer classes except one. That boy knew everything about my daily life because I used to share every little detail with him.
I never felt like going to computer classes because I have never felt comfortable going out of the house. I only used to go out for school. This time, I often regretted joining computer classes because after getting tired from school, I had to immediately go to class, and that too on the third floor, climbing all the stairs.
I had no idea that he had returned home, and he had not told me about it either. One day, when I finished my class and came downstairs to go home, I received a surprise that I had never expected.
He was standing right in front of me and smiled when he saw me. I just kept looking at him without any reaction. At that moment, it felt as if my heart had stopped beating. My hands turned cold, and my fingers started trembling. My sister, without noticing him, asked me why I had stopped. I did not say anything. Then my sister looked at him but did not recognize him. He walked toward us and said, "Assalamualaikum." At that moment, my mind stopped working. My sister replied to his greeting. Then he greeted me again, and this time I replied in a trembling voice, "Wa Alaikum Assalam." My hands were shaking, and I kept staring at his face because I was seeing him after almost ten months, and I had no idea he would be there.
My sister understood from my trembling that he was the same boy. She had difficulty recognizing him because she was seeing him after fifteen months, and that too only for the second time. Then he leaned slightly toward me and said, "Did you recognize me?" Hearing his voice, I stepped back and replied, "Is that even a question to ask?" Before answering him, I did not even understand what was happening inside my body—why I was trembling and why my heart felt cold. But in those few moments, I realized one thing: even if my mind considered him just a friend, my heart felt something more.
After looking at him continuously for a long time, I asked him why he had given me such a surprise. He replied that our meetings are always a surprise, so this time too he wanted to keep it a surprise for me.
I asked him what he was doing there because his house is very far from that place. He answered that he was going back to Bangalore the following week, so he thought he would surprise me once again before leaving. I told him that I did not understand why his presence should be a surprise for me. He replied that even if I did not consider his presence a surprise, my face gave a very clear reaction—as if he were reading subtitles.
Hearing this, I felt that my reaction had been too obvious, and I started feeling shy about it. Then he said that he had come to meet me because it had been a long time. Seeing him made me feel a different kind of happiness, as if someone had tickled my stomach—like butterflies in my stomach. It also seemed as if he was very happy to see me.
My sister was standing beside me, listening to our conversation. Then she told me that we should go home.
He looked at my sister with disappointment and said, "You're leaving early just because you saw me."
Then I said, "She's just like this. She prefers going home early."
After that, he said, "Appi (she's my eldest sister and also older than him), please stay a little longer today."
She replied, "I'll get scolded at home."
I said, "We'll make some excuse." Still, she wasn't agreeing to me. After convincing her for a long time, she finally agreed.
Then that boy asked me, "What will you eat?" I didn't say anything and just kept looking at his face because that day he was looking even better in a black T-shirt and blue jeans. He was smiling while talking, and when he smiled, his eyes became smaller. I was observing every feature of his face without paying attention to what he was saying.
Suddenly, he came behind me and started opening the chain of my bag. I asked him, "What are you doing?" He didn't answer. My sister also asked him the same question. Then, smiling, he said, "Today is Chocolate Day." Saying this, he put bundles of chocolates into my bag. I just stood there quietly.
Then he said, "Consider it a gift from me." I replied, "I don't want it." My sister also refused, but he said, "It's a gift for all three of you (sisters)."
He leaned slightly toward me and gently asked, "How are you?"
I replied, "I'm fine."
Smiling warmly, he said, "That's good to hear. Come on, let's go somewhere."
I asked, "Where will we go?"
He answered, "Wherever you'd like."
I said, "I don't really know any places around here."
Laughing softly, he said, "This is your hometown, and you don't know any places here?"
I replied, "If I don't know, then I don't know. What's so funny about that?"
He smiled and said, "It's less funny and more concerning."
I teased him, "Only you can worry about such small things."
Then he said he would take us somewhere himself, and we started following him. After walking a short distance, we stopped in front of a bakery. He turned to us and said, "Let's go inside."
Surprised, I asked, "Since when has this bakery been open?"
He replied, "It has always been here."
I didn't say anything after that. Once inside, he ordered pastries for the three of us. Then he asked, "Which flavor would you like?"
I said, "You've already placed the order, but I like chocolate pastry."
He laughed and said, "You should have told me earlier."
I replied, "Did you even ask me?"
He said, "I asked you three times what you wanted, but you didn't answer."
Hearing that, I realized he was right. Just then, our order arrived — and he had ordered chocolate pastries for all three of us. Seeing that, I couldn't say a word. I began to wonder why I always argue over the smallest things, and a wave of regret quietly settled in my heart.
My sister asked him, "What's the occasion for these pastries?"
He replied, "I cleared my foundation exams, so this is a small celebration."
I said playfully, "It's been over nine months since your result came out, and you're giving the party now?"
He smiled and said, "We hadn't met before — when else could I give you a treat?"
We kept bickering over little things until my sister grew tired of us and said, "We should go home now."
While paying the bill, he got two extra pastries packed and slipped them into my bag. I gave him a dramatic glare and said, "Do I look like a glutton to you? Why are you doing this?"
He burst into laughter and kept laughing for quite a while before saying, "Those are for your sister and your mother."
Hearing that, my expression instantly changed.
Then he added softly, "And I've kept some extra chocolate separately in your bag — just for you."
Hearing this made me smile, and I said teasingly, "When you clear your intermediate exams, I expect a much bigger celebration."
Laughing, he replied, "Of course. Why not?"
We started taking pictures together, but just then I received a call from home. My elder sister began scolding me, and I had to say goodbye to him and return home.
Later, I gave the pastries he had sent to my sister and mother. My mother asked, "Who gave these?"
Smiling, I replied, "A friend."
She seemed a little surprised and asked my sister for more details. My sister explained that my friend had passed his exam and was celebrating.
My mother asked, "Which friend?"
I simply said, "Ammi, he's a good friend. That's enough."
Later, my sister must have explained things to her in her own way. But I was quietly happy — happy that he had come to meet me that day.
That night, I couldn't sleep. I kept thinking about him. The feeling of meeting him was so special, so warm and comforting, that I didn't even have the right words to describe it. It was one of those rare moments that the heart understands deeply, even when language falls short...