Page 131 of 12 Years
Okay, that wasn’t necessary.Why did I even say it?
‘Hmm. True, I suppose,’ Payal said.
‘More food?’ I said.
‘No, I’m full.’
What do we do now? The dining is done. There were still hours to kill before our flights. Should we just go our own ways? Say goodbye here?
‘I have to do some shopping,’ she said. ‘From the shops downstairs.’
Ah, she found the perfect exit plan. Girls always do it better. No awkward goodbyes—just a natural parting of ways.
‘Okay, sure,’ I said. ‘Was nice to see you.’
We stood up to leave.
‘What are you going to do?’ she said.
‘Sit and wait for flight updates. What else?’
She laughed. ‘Want to come with me? Walk around the airport a little? We’re stuck here for hours anyway.’
Okay, so she wasn’t trying to escape.
‘You sure?’
‘Yes, come. It’ll be fun.’
‘All right,’ I said.
‘I have to buy some shirts for Parimal and his dad. Maybe you can help me choose.’
How was this fun? What was I supposed to say? ‘Yay, let’s go buy shirts for your husband and your father-in-law?’
‘Sure, let’s go,’ I said.
‘Which blue is better?’ Payal said, holding up two shirts, each a different shade of light blue.
‘I can’t tell. Both are nice,’ I said.
We had come to Brooks Brothers, a posh store selling men’s clothing.
‘The problem with guys is, there are only three colours that you can buy for them—black, white or blue. So difficult to choose,’ she said, sifting through the shelves.
‘What about the ones with stripes? Or checks? That lavender one is nice,’ I said, pointing to another rack.
In the end, she picked up all the eight shirts I had pointed to.
‘I need another suitcase to carry these,’ she said, smiling, as she looked at the two huge shopping bags in our hands. ‘Good excuse to get a new trolley bag. I’ve been wanting one.’
After Brooks Brothers, we went to Tumi, a high-end luggage store. She bought a trolley bag, which cost more than the shirts had. Of course, for a VP at Blackwater, a sixty-thousand-rupee cabin bag was no big deal. We packed the shirts in the new trolley—I had to press down on the trolley while she zipped it shut.
As we walked around the stores, we passed a perfume shop.
‘May I? Last store, I promise,’ she said, pointing at it.
‘Sure,’ I said.
