Page 4 of That Same Old Love

He cursed viciously, even though he didn’t usually swear. Not because he thought it was bad, but because he didn’t allow his emotions to get to the point where using bad words was necessary.

This is going to be a complete disaster.

CHAPTER 2

Mahi walked away from Samrat’s house in a daze. Her mind was blank and she was beyond tired. What she needed was a nice hot bath and a long nap.

She got into her house and dragged her bags along. It wasn’t even seven in the morning, but the heat was slowly setting in. She had forgotten how hot it got in her hometown even during mid-February.

Grabbing a fresh towel and some toiletries from one of her bags, she headed towards the bathroom. She stepped into the shower and let the cool water wash away part of her fatigue.

As she stood there, her mind wandered.

Even though she promised herself not to think about the past, the images of the night when she had accused Samrat of kissing her rushed through her mind.

It was their final year in college and most of them had been drinking or playing cards to celebrate their friendship. The finals were only a couple of months away and they wanted to let down their hair before scrambling with finals, visas or jobs. Around twenty people were crammed inside Chandra Kumar’s apartment while his parents were away for the weekend.

Mahi was sitting in her boyfriend Sidhu’s lap and playing poker with six other couples.

She had been recklessly betting and losing money, while Sidhu was smiling and indulging her by pulling out the currency notes from his wallet.

“Mahi, I think we have lost a thousand already. I don’t think I have any more money left in my wallet.”

“Ohh come on Sidhu. Borrow then. We can’t lose… you know I hate losing.” She pouted at him.

Sidhu kissed her softly on her cheek. “Okay, maybe we can join back in the next round. Let’s get you some fresh air, since you are slurring a little. I have to drop you home in couple of hours and I need you to be completely sober by then.”

A delicious tasting mango based cocktail was giving her a light buzz. She was used to having alcoholic drinks, but the fact that she sipped it too fast got the alcohol into her head right away.

Sidhu wasn’t drunk, since he was both a vegetarian and a non-alcoholic. But he had never insisted that she adapt to his lifestyle and she loved him even more because of it.

He held her around her waist and hugged her close as they walked towards a balcony. Even though they kept their other heavy make-out sessions private, Sidhu had always shown his affection publicly, by kissing her cheek or laying his hands across her shoulders or waist, making her feel loved and cherished. He was one of the best things that had happened in her life.

Before they could reach the balcony for some fresh air, someone stopped Sidhu for information on the visa documentation.

“That’s okay Sidhu. You go ahead and talk. I’ll be near the balcony,” she said.

When she got there, she realized that someone was already occupying it.

It was Samrat.

He was staring at some distant buildings, lost in his own thoughts when she stood next to him, breathing in some fresh cool air.

He turned to look at her for a couple of seconds, before turning back to stare at the buildings some more.

“I saw that,” she said, slurring slightly.

“What?” he asked, sounding uninterested.

She scoffed. “That judging look you just gave me. You already think I’m pretty bad with lots of character flaws, and now you want to add ‘is a drunkard’ to the list.”

“Your words not mine. And believe me, I don’t spend any of my time thinking about your character flaws, or adding your habits to an imaginary list,” he replied, still looking away from her.

That annoyed her.

She recalled how he had always ignored her at their college and near their houses. He behaved as though she was invisible. And she didn’t take kindly to anyone being indifferent to her or ignoring her.

Huffing, she turned away and tried to ignore him.

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