Chapter 2
"Stop the car!" shouted Abhi. He sprang out of the car. That's when their eyes met. Rain drops and ongoing traffic hindering their view. Shanaya was looking at Abhi after 5 years. His hair and face were wet. His white crisp shirt and grey suit had been drenched with water from standing in the rain, still. His chauffeur tried to hold an umbrella on his head but his eyes were only on Shanaya. The elderly lady was calling out to Shanaya as she was getting on the bus which finally arrived 20 mins late but she did not pay heed. It was like the rest of the world had stopped for both of them.
Abhi crossed the road, his eyes never leaving Shanaya's face. As he came to the bus stop, he began to notice all the changes. Instead of the bubbly girl that he knew before, there was standing the much mature, more thin faced girl partly due to out growing her teen years and partly because of the hard work she did now. Her hair was much longer, falling to her elbows instead of the shoulder length. Her hair made a slight wave as she does not have time to straighten it like she did in high school. Her relaxed, not dolled up look matched with her attire. No designer clothes, shoes or handbags. To anyone else, it would have seemed like it was not even the Shanaya they knew. But not to Abhi. He is the only one who ever saw through all that, and got to know the actual person that Shanaya was. Money or no money, Shanaya was the same to him, he realized. He realized that those brown eyes under those long eyelashes was staring at him. With a sigh, he took in the whole view of her and realized she is more beautiful now at age 22 than she has ever been.
"Abhi." Shanaya stopped finding nothing else to say other than his name.
His ears were alerted by his voice. How long has it been after the last time he heard her voice.
"What brings you to Mumbai?" asked Abhi. He had looked every inch of Mumbai to know that she wasn't there all this time.
"Work." Said Shanaya.
"Come, get in my car." Said Abhi indicating in the direction of his car with his head.
"I am not doing that," said Shanaya like she means that is the last word on this topic.
"You are cold and wet," said Abhi concerned.
"I will get on my bus," shrugged Shanaya. Her bus got stuck in the traffic so it was still there. "You can come if you want, to my place," she added.
He followed. He realized that he never saw her in a saree before as he noticed her exposed waist from her back.
She took the window seat and he sat beside her. She was looking outside when she said,"You are doing well. I saw in the papers that you achieved a lot of milestones." She looked at him and smiled, "I am happy for you. You got everything you wanted."
"Not everything," he said looking at her.
Shanaya led the way to the place she was living as a paying guest. He followed up the dingy stairs, only cement he noticed. She unlocked the green doors with her key. She directed him to sit on the sofa as she asked him if he wants anything to drink. He smiled as he got a flashback to when she made a drink and fed it to him and Rohan and they almost puked. Remembering that he asked for tea. She started making it in the kitchen which was in the sitting room itself.
"So, why did you disappear. And why are you living on your own," asked Abhi.
"I didn't disappear. I just left without telling any friends, not that I had friends after the Student of the Year competition. None of us did."
"So, what happened to make you leave?" asked Abhi.