Part 12:Maan & Geet were inches away from each other, their noses almost touching. They were lost in each other's eyes. Maan continued moving forward slowly, making his move. Geet felt her heartbeat quicken. They were just about to kiss when the sudden clap of thunder made them both jolt. Maan quickly realised what he was doing & moved away as fast as he could. Geet was shocked; how had she allowed him to get so close? Flustered by what had just happened, Maan started the engine & drove away.
The journey was awkward & silent, & the rain was pouring down hard, with the occasional lightning striking too. Maan was thinking of apologising to Geet, but couldn't bring himself to.
"Stop the car," said Geet quietly.
Maan did as she said.
"Why?" he asked.
"Because I've reached home," she explained, as if it was obvious.
"Thanks for the ride."Geet stepped out into the cold, pouring rain. She hugged herself as she went through the gates & did the doorbell to Pinky's house. Maan was still sat outside - he didn't want to drive off until he knew Geet was inside safely.
Geet knocked on the door again.
"Why isn't anyone opening?" she said to herself.
"Pinky would have been home by now... unless she went off somewhere with Adi..."Maan got out of his car.
"Geet!" he called.
She turned around to face him.
"Don't you have a key to the house?"Geet shook her head.
"I thought Pinky might be home by now but no one's in.""Why don't you wait in the car until someone gets back?" Maan offered.
"No thanks, sir."Maan got annoyed - why did she have to say no to everything he said?
"Geet, I'm asking you to get back in for your benefit. You'll catch a cold in the rain."
"I don't care. I didn't ask you to stand here & wait. You can go if you want.""Fine." Maan said angrily. He got in & drove off.
Geet sighed, and stood by the gates. She was completely soaked through. She liked the rain, but right now, she could kill for a cup of hot tea & some dry clothes.
Maan had only driven off a few minutes ago, but he was already worrying about Geet.
What if she catches a cold? he thought.
What if she gets into trouble? What if no one opens the door & she has to stand in the rain all night? What if she wanders off somewhere & gets lost? He decided to turn back & drive past the house, just to see if she was still there. He could hardly if she was still there because of the rain, so he stopped the car & decided to get out. His heartbeat quickened when he saw Geet stood by the gate, her long, curly brown hair open & pushed to one side. She was running her fingers through her hair, completely unaware of the fact that Maan was stood a few feet away, mesmerised. She pushed her hair back & only then she saw him stood there, in the rain, staring at her.
They stood in the rain for a while, staring at each other, when Maan began to take a few steps towards Geet. He was getting closer to her when Pinky appeared. She had left from a rickshaw, & was carrying an umbrella.
"Geet!" she called. Maan stepped back immediately & they both felt awkward. Pinky ran past Geet to open the house door.
"Geet, come on!"Geet walked towards the door. She took one last look back at Maan, who was still staring at her, then went inside. Maan got into his car & drove off, thinking about Geet all the way home.
Once Geet & Pinky had changed into dry clothes, they were sat at the dining table. Pinky was eating some nuts. Geet was fiddling nervously with her dupatta.
"Geet... can I ask you something?" said Pinky.
Geet was lost in her thoughts of Maan.
"Geet?"
"Huh?... Oh, yeah, of course."
"Is there something going on between you & Maan sir?"Geet remembered all the moments she had shared with Maan... was there something there?
"Your silence says it all," said Pinky.
"I didn't say anything was happening."
"You didn't deny it, either."
"Can we not talk about this right now? Anyway, why were you & Adi getting along so well?"Pinky blushed. Geet smiled.
"Oh, I get it now. You & Adi sir, right?"Pinky giggled shyly.
"No, Geet, I-""I had set you both up to help me out with Sasha-"Geet stopped. Sasha had blown her off earlier, claiming Maan was interested in someone else... she began wondering about his behaviour towards her... could it be that Maan sir was in love with her, & everyone else knew apart from herself?
She pushed that thought away from her mind.
Why would he fall for someone like me, she thought.
"So, when's the wedding?" asked Geet, raising an eyebrow.
Pinky just giggled in response, nudging Geet jokingly & popping another nut into her mouth.
Later that night, Geet was in her bedroom, getting ready to sleep. She had let her long brown hair down, and prayed to Babaji before she climbed into her bed. Her window was open, and the cool breeze of the night made her curtains sway with the wind. She was closing her eyes, just about to doze off when a tap on the window woke her up.
Curiously, she got up & walked out to her little balcony which was attached to her bedroom window. She looked to her left, & saw nothing. But she was about to turn to her right when someone backed her against her balcony, holding her closed hands tight. It was Maan.
"Geet, I have to tell you something..." he said softly.
(What does Maan tell Geet? Part 13 up soon!)
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