CHAPTER 2
MISHTI'S POV
Abir Rajvansh.
I can't believe he is here. He, who I have crushed on for around 6 years now. He, who is my best secret keeper and he, who is my brother's best friend and mine too.
Abir and Kunal have been classmates since kindergarten. Abir lives with his mother here in Rajkot. With him being the single child of his parents, his mother being really busy at her office and his father no more, Abir stayed with us most of the time. He would return back to his house only to sleep and he would be back here first thing in the morning for breakfast. My parents consider him as their son, but that doesn't mean I should consider him as my brother. Right?
Back in our schooldays, both the boys happened to be the school's heart-throbs with their devilishly handsome looks and perfect physique. While Kunal looks more like the nerdy guy, Abir is more of a charmer. None of the boys would mess with me, because these two overprotective guys would beat them to pulp. They would have definitely swept the entire girls population off their feet, together, at the college.
Collecting myself together, I smile at him as he runs towards us, wishes me and gives me a bouquet of my favourite lilac roses and a gift. It is really flattering to know that he remembers my favourite roses. He is giving me his usual heart stopping smile, that sends tingles down my body. I mumble a "Thanks" and collect it from him. He then jogs over to my parents and takes their blessings who are more than ecstatic to know that their son is back. So I guess the two devils have planned to take the life out of me by giving me surprises like these.
With all of them singing the Happy Birthday song making me cringe, I focus on cutting the cake in a perfect shape. I first feed a piece to my dad, then my mom and then Teddy, and then all 3 feed me back. Before I could escape, Naira and Abir along with Kunal apply the cream on my face, making the entire crowd burst into laughter and me, squirm. Excusing myself, I walk towards my room to clean the mess they have created. Washing the cream off, I return back downstairs only to notice most of the guests leaving. Thank God.
On the couch in the living room, Naira was sitting in between Abir and Kunal and the three seemed to be discussing something very seriously. Naira always considered both of them to be her brothers. They share a very cute bond that always makes me smile. Right now, it looks like the two boys are scaring the crap out of her regarding college. Poor soul.
Soon, Naira hugs me and leaves. After we send her off, I watch as the boys catch up with my parents. Now, the house feels complete. Later, as my mom goes to the kitchen, to prepare kheer for the return of her children and my dad goes out to send off his guests, the three of us sit on the couch with a comfortable silence. This feels like the old days. Suddenly, Kunal's phone rings and a huge smile adorns his face, which he tries to hide but fails miserably. Excusing himself, he leaves me and Abir all alone.
Oh, I can't handle staying alone with him. My heart is already thumping very fast. I need time to prepare myself for this. As I slowly try to move away and escape, his hand reaches and grabs mine, and pulls me back on the couch. Uh Oh!
"Mishtipie, if you think I will leave tonight without talking to you, you are wrong."
Oh.
"The nickname? Seriously?"
He grins widely and says, "However old you become, you will always be my Mishtipie to me."
My Mishtipie? Okay, heart, calm down.
So, composing myself, I ask him, "How have you been?"
He shrugs, "Good, I suppose."
I nod, not knowing what else to say.
"How is Naanu and Meenakshi aunty?"
"Naanu still refuses to leave Udaipur and live with us here, but he is doing well. Mom's fine too."
I nod and smile at him. Abir loves his grand-dad a lot. But Naanu did not want to leave his hometown and shift permanently to Rajkot with them. Abir has tried to convince him, but he has been firm with his decision. But he shares a very good bond with Abir. Naanu has been his best supporter and his favourite person since childhood. They share a very unique bond and are more like best friends. He used to come and visit Abir and his mom here often and I have met him during those times. He loves me and Kunal like his grand-children too. He in fact in secret gave me tips to woo Abir. Yeah, he is the only person to know about my never-ending crush on Abir. But back then, I was too afraid and too young to make a move on my crush though. But nevertheless, Naanu is too cool to be a grand-dad. But Abir's relationship with his mom, was never fine.
"So, I heard you're planning to get into Rajkot University. Excited?"
"Yeah, I am. I've been wanting to do this course for sometime now, you know. It feels nice to have gotten admission for it."
"Nice", he says in his usual elongated way, that makes me want to pull his cheeks. I fold my hands to control my urge.
"So, how was Mumbai? Did you like it?"
"Well, yeah. It was nice."
"Actually, Abir, I thought you would work in Mumbai for a couple more years, or roam around the world for sometime before you actually come back to Rajkot."
"Yeah, I thought so too. But I realized Mumbai did not have something that I had here in Rajkot, and I missed that feeling for too long now."
"What?"
"The feeling of being home.", he said looking intensely, which reminded me of a long-lost memory of us.
***
Hello!
This the second chapter! Hope you enjoyed it!
Thank you!