Chapter 42
With finals left behind them, Rohan gone for a week long trip to the west and Simran busy with making up for the lost time with Aditya during the peak study time, Keerti spent most of her time with Mira and her family. She had become Sharan's morning sunshine...his day truly started after he woke her up everyday for a run...her warm smile as she stretched her arms to break from her slumber and her messy hair were the high points of his day. He had been very good at hiding his feelings..even from her... no one else knew of the rising intensity of his feelings...
Since childhood he had been excellent with hiding pain..even as a kid he never cried when he was hurt...his eyes never showed any kind of emotion. As he was growing, Mira became worried for him and had to be very careful around him...he never stated his likes or his dislikes, he quietly endured any pain and only expressed what he felt in words..but without any kind of facial expressions, she found it hard to believe...she always felt he was hiding something. He would be bleeding around his knees but would wear a smile and say he's fine..as a child he had never cried. The only time she saw his eyes reflect something was when Ravi and she broke to him the news of him being adopted...there were so many emotions in his eyes all at once - gratitude, sadness, joy and uncertainty... that she found it difficult to distinguish between them. She wondered if she would ever get a peek into his heart...sadly he had denied that liberty to everyone around him...and that day was no different from any other day. Although his heart was beating for her, he had made sure she was kept away from that knowledge.
No sooner they stepped out of the house, she felt something wet against her face. She thought it must be starting to rain but when she squinted her eyes to focus closely, she noticed they were snowflakes. She stopped in her steps to take in the moment she had been waiting for... making him stop as well. She brought out her arms to her sides to enjoy the feel...tiny drops of ice touching her skin making them melt in a few milliseconds...the air was suddenly fresh and energizing around her...she took deep breaths to take in every ounce of its freshness...she seemed to have been transported onto a cloud and felt like she would fly...but something was still amiss...something prevented her from flying away...it was the realization that she was not with Rohan. She remembered him saying once that he liked snow because it was as pure as it can be...when it falls...that the whiteness around him made him happy. She had prayed for her to experience snow for the first time with him..and him not being around at that time didn't let her truly enjoy the moment...
She looked at her watch then...she still some time left...Rohan was returning from his week long trip to the west and although she didn't know the exact time of his arrival, she wanted to get home soon enough to greet him if he happened to come to theirs. This had been the longest and toughest week for her ever since she came to the States...being away from him made her realize how much she felt for him...realization had finally begun to dawn on her...now all she needed to know was exactly how he felt for her...and that she was sure to find out soon...very soon...
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Rohan had gotten home early that morning...he had taken a red eye back from LA and had landed at 6:30...he dropped his luggage at his home and went straight to their apartment for breakfast. To his dismay Keerti wasn't home yet...he didn't know why he had expected her to be back by then. He had known she was at her aunt's place for the week but something inside him made him hope he could see her early that day even though they were going to meet directly at night..for New Years eve. It had been a long week for him...he was tempted to text her and call her but wasn't sure if it would come out as being over-friendly or desperate...but in reality he had become desperate to meet her.
When he thought he had waited for her long enough, he made to go away...his eyes were giving up on him and he needed sleep badly. While he was still climbing down the steps Simran said "Wait a little bit longer...she is on her way..she must be reaching any minute.."
"Who said I'm waiting for Keerti?" he asked matter-of-factly and she caught him right on "When did I take Keerti's name?"
He closed his eyes on being caught but didn't ignore the matter at hand...and that's what Simran liked most about him..he was a no-nonsense guy who didn't believe in beating around the bush...at least not when he was cornered like this. She made him sit on the porch to have a heart-to-heart conversation...and to her surprise he opened up to her completely. Something made him open his heart and show her how much he felt for her...and for a change Simran had been at her sane best...not the naughty self that she otherwise would have been had it been anyone else other than Rohan. She patiently listened to him as he spoke his heart...none realizing how much time had passed...
After an hour or so later, they saw a car pull over and saw Keerti get out of the passenger seat. Simran looked at Rohan and asked "Do you think she has the same feelings for you?"
"I don't know...I hope she does. Coz if she doesn't...there's no way I stand a chance now..." he looked down and said with a smile which looked as fake as a a wax statue...it was subtle but she caught it. When she asked why he said what he said, he looked up again in her direction and she followed his gaze to see her hug the person who dropped her off..."Because she is now in the company of Sharan Malthotra..."
Edited by dolphinUSA - 12 years ago
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