"You dragged me to watch naked ladies dance!" She spat out, furious.
"Please.. Stop.." He huffed, trying to catch his breath.
Kria Ghai was making him climb 300 freaking stairs.
Why, if somebody asked, the Reyaansh would gladly explain to the person, as calmly as he could, THAT KRIA GHAI WAS FREAKING MAD! COMPLETELY NUTS! BONKERS!
He sighed. Who was he kidding? He loved her despite all the madness she contained in that petite body of hers. If only, she would let him profess that love.
They had been friends now for almost two years, right after they merged the weakling-dazzling teams for nationals.
But till this date, he hadn't found the guts or the time to propose.
Go ahead, ask him why?
Simple, cause Kria Ghai wouldn't let him speak. See, when it came to nicknames, Kria Ghai was a born BaatCutter. She just wouldn't let him SPEAK.
So now, he was climbing fucking steel stairs.
Go ahead, quench your curiosity, and ask! What had he done this time?
Apparently, he had taken his best friend, to see a dance which she had been bugging him about since the day they planned the trip to Paris.
But Kria Ghai, as always, had been half-aware of the facts.
She knew Lido dance comprised of feathers. What she didn't know, was it comprised of just feathers!
So, she had gone in, all oblivious to the darkness, the seductive nature of the dance, and the half naked ladies tastefully swaying to the rhythm.
What had resulted was a whole hour of open jaw and gorged-out eyes.
And Rey, he hadn't seen a single step the ladies danced to. How could he?
Baatcutter was completely silent and dumbfounded for a whole hour! That sight was way more precious than some ladies in feathers!
He stopped climbing the stairs for a while, controlling the chuckle that was making its way up his throat.
He hadn't planned her to go completely mad on him. How was he supposed to move on with his plans if she continued to remain so furious?
So, he called out to her.
"Kriaaa.. Please stop.. I know it's killing you too! You have 5 inch heels on for god's sake! Stop naa..." He pleaded.
"How do you know they are 5 inches? Are you gay, Reyaansh?" She retorted, in anger.
Yes, wasn't this her favorite topic? 'Are you gay, Reyaansh?'
Compliment her on her lipcolor... Are you gay, Reyaansh?
Tell her she was looking beautiful... Are you gay, Reyaansh?
Choose a color to match her skin tone... Are you gay, Reyaansh?
Buy her a clutch matching her pretty dress... Are you gay, Reyaansh?
Remember her monthly sick dates to avoid riling her up... Are you gay, Reyaansh?
Correct her ballet postures when she faltered... Are you gay, Reyaansh?
Wipe the excess kajal off her eyes... Are you gay, Reyaansh?
Bring her the sparkly belt she wanted... Are you gay, Reyaansh?
He was so bored of the gay discussion, that quite frankly, he just wanted to shout at the top of his voice, that he had had enough with the sleazy dreams of her for freaking 3 years now.
"Kria, bas! Ab ruk please." He caught up to her and shot, annoyed now.
She was shocked at the outburst. Why was he suddenly so angry? Uptil now, he had taken all her jabbing very graciously.
She halted in her steps, trying to come to terms that he was actually getting mad at her.
"Rey?" Her eyes questioned him, unable to comprehend what had irked him. It was she who was mad, then when did the tables turn?
He sighed... How did she survive being this dense? Alright, this would end today. Or more likely, this would end if he gathered up enough courage.
"Kiri, Wasn't it you who wanted to see Lido in the first place? I had said no, remember?" He questioned back, calmly, trying to make her understand.
She snorted. So what! He could have explained before!
"You could have explained before Rey! Don't Kiri me! I am not falling for it this time! You didn't tell me what the dance was! You just outright said no! You know I can't take a no! You kn..." He pushed his hand on her mouth, the only way she would shut up before him.
"Kiri... Do you even let me talk? We are taking the lift. NOW! I have made reservations for lunch three months in advance. I don't want to lose it just because you sprained your ankle climbing 600 stairs!" He forced his decision on her, for the first time in all these years, and she only nodded, signaling him to remove his hand from her mouth.
Uggh, he thought, when would she let him speak without forcing himself so badly?
Hmm, maybe he could make a deal right now.
They were in the second elevator now, the beautiful, private one, which was amazingly lit to perfection.
"Kria?" He asked, catching her attention.
How beautiful were her eyes when they rounded to the size of saucers?
He jerked himself out of daydreaming, and cleared his throat.
"Fix your lipstick." He strictly taunted, looking away from her.
She mumbled gay... under her breath, and started fixing her rouge lips hurriedly.
"And let me do the talking today." He hurriedly finished, watching her face instantly jerk in his direction, smudging the lipstick in her hand on the rim of her lips.
He couldn't help but let out a small chuckle, watching her bewildered face. He raised his palm to bring near her lips, and very leisurely, started rubbing away the excess lipstick smudge from there.
He felt her goosebumps rise, and couldn't help feel elated inside. This was so his Kria. Her mind could never comprehend what was going on, yet, her body was impeccably honest with reactions.
She felt as if she was being electrocuted on a really pleasant voltage. Why did it feel like that with him at times?
Whenever they danced, whenever they were alone in the fire exit, it always felt like she was being shocked to impossible pleasurable levels possible. Not to mention, the amazingly vivid dreams she had of him since time immemorial, which got worse each passing day.
It was only last night, when she had dreamt, their bodies being entangled, completed bare, in throes of passion. It wasn't as if she liked teasing him about the gay thing, it was just a pure, simple defense mechanism.
And the bloody stupid naked dance today had flared her heart, pinching, burning to no ends, thinking that he wanted to see OTHER women naked, not her.
"Kiri?" He asked, unleashing the molten hazel upon her, making her relive the last night's fantasy.
She didn't trust her voice just now. So she just nodded in agreement, which made him smile that heartbreaking smile of his, in turn making her into a gooey puddle.
The lift opened up, and they were taken by the warm French hospitality of the famous Michelin star restaurant, Le Jules Verne, to their reserved tables.
Kria gasped at the view. It was so unbelievably beautiful. No wonder he had to reserve three months before!
Rey was so happy watching her smile in glee. Finally! He could gather up the courage to say what he wanted today.
"Kiri, you know that the Eiffel tower gets about 6 inches taller in the heat of summer." He tried to divert her mind a little, knowing full well that the childish facts would just do the trick.
"Sacchi? Wow! That means we visited the longer Eiffel tower.. Thank you Rey!" She bounced with energy, as they started serving the Fine Pea soup and the Crab Claw.
He smiled back; preparing her was going to be tough. Maybe he shouldn't be doing it after all.
"Mind if I ask something, Kiri?" He pushed his luck, making her stop in between the soup.
She felt scared. The look on his face made her scared a bit.
Had he started mind reading? What would he ask?
"Why won't you dance a duet with anybody but me?" He shot straight forward. Maybe not the best course of action, but still, he had to try.
She was right to be scared. Did he know she felt good at the touch of his skin? Did he know she wouldn't let anybody else feel that way with him? Did he know she felt as if only she had the right on him?
NO. There was no way she would answer him. It was way too embarrassing.
"Rey, shut up and eat. Not a word more." She replied, going silent afterwards.
His heart sunk. So, no chance anymore.
They had reached the dessert, and even after finishing the wild fruit sorbet, she refused to say even a word.
They got up and he paid, all the while cursing himself for blurting something like that in the first place.
It was almost the time of sunset when they got down, and Rey still was thinking why she got this mad.
Had he asked something outrageous? Of course not! They were friends. And she had never refused him a duet. Nor had he refused when she would possessively take him from Sharon's clutches.
Then there could only be one reason! His heart leaped!
He clutched her hand, making her turn backwards. They were just below the tower, making their way into the garden.
"Kria?" He breathed life into her name with his voice, "Do you know why I only dance duets with you?" He smiled crookedly, watching her eyes turn to saucers in amusement...
"I can't let anybody touch you but me. I can't let anybody hold you but me. I can't let anybody breath in you mint-vanilla scent but me."
She breathed in a sharp breath, and held it in, not believing what he was doing right now.
"And off late my Kiri, I have been wanting that nobody kisses you but me..." He flashed that grin of his, making her knees weak.
"So..." He held on to her hand more firmly, and went down on his knees, "Ms. Kria Smriti Ghai, will you grant me the permission to kiss you and make you happy for as long as I live?"
The instant he said that, a thousand yellow lights flashed everywhere, lighting up the tower, the lighthouse above, the whole city, echoing the ecstasy he felt at proposing her.
She couldn't find her voice again, and all she could do was nod her head aggressively, blink away the tears she didn't know had started flowing.
He grabbed her in his arms as he got up, and went in to claim the rouge lips as his own, possessively, as he had wanted to do for god knew how long now.
She kissed him back with equal vigor, as the sparkling lights pinched the whole tower above them, making both of them as warm as possible.
They parted to catch on their breath, and she said, "Not gay after all!"
"You bet!"He replied with that crooked smile of his, and went into the teasing kiss again.