Chapter 85: chapter 85

SRUTHI“Oh my!” I exclaim pointing to the snake curled inside the glass box. “Madhav, look at that. See, how shiny its skin looks.”“I still can't see what is fascinating about this, Sruthi,” Madhav says with a sigh. We are at a snake park. The very first destination on our list. I am utterly awed and fascinated by the reptiles in this place. For some reason, Madhav looks uncomfortable here. I know most people find reptiles repulsive and creepy but I don't.“Don't be a killjoy,” I say with a shake of my head. “Look how smoothly it slithers away.”“That doesn't make it any more appealing.”“Are you perhaps afraid of these beings?” I joke but at the grim expression of Madhav, I go still.“Wait, so you are really afraid of these. Ah! Finally, I found that the ever-invincible Madhav too has a weakness.”“I am not afraid of them. It is just that I find them repulsive.”“I don't believe you,” I say as we pass another glass box containing a python snake. I want to stop and gush about its beauty to Madhav but seeing how uncomfortable he is looking, I pass it. He follows me close behind. “I mean it, Sruthi,” Madhav's voice is firm and determined, “I am not afraid of that mere reptile. I have seen worse dangers in my life to be intimidated by a snake.”I turn to look at him with a raised eyebrow. He looks so sure and confident that I would have believed it a few months ago. But, now that I am getting to know this man, I am starting to read between his lines.“I will believe if you do something I say,” I say. A challenged glint comes in his eyes and I feel myself getting excited as he says, “What is it?”❤️‍🔥❤️‍🔥❤️‍🔥❤️‍🔥❤️‍🔥The look of utter terror and disbelief on Madhav's face is worth all the trouble of having a snake around my neck. Yes, you read that right. This park has another feature that many find disgusting while I find it thrilling. The visitors can touch and have a non-venomous snake wrapped around them. The green non-venomous snake that is curled around my neck is slithering slowly down my arm. I don't feel good about having a snake around my body parts. It is a weird feeling and I feel ticklish. Madhav is still a few metres away from me watching in terror as the snake curls around my nape. I stand still as it hisses very near to my ear.“Sruthi, you want me to do this?” Madhav asks in disbelief waving at the snake and me.“Yes,” I reply as the five minutes given to me is up and the park employee takes the snake from my neck. “Didn't you say that you aren't afraid of the snakes? Why don't you try this?”My tone is challenging and Madhav understands the challenge because he motions for the employee to give the snake to him. The employee puts the snake around Madhav's neck. Madhav is confident and still for the first five seconds. The snake takes its sweet time to adjust itself to Madhav'a neck. Then it slowly starts raising its head and hisses near Madhav's face. And that is when people, hell start to break loose. Madhav looks panicked striken for a moment before he grabs the tail of the snake roughly and tries to throw. Try being the keyword here because the snake has nicely coiled itself around his neck like a rope. His panic only increases as the calm snake is now threatened. It tries to bite him but the employee quickly holds the snake's head. Madhav looks green in the face and I feel guilty for making him do this. The park employee slowly coaxes the snake and removes it from Madhav who is still shaken from the incident. He is standing frozen with a pale face.“I am sorry,” I apologize hanging my head low. I had no idea that he was this afraid of the creature. I shouldn't have challenged him. I put my hand on his shoulders and squeeze it. “That snake is non-venomous. Even if it has bit you, you won't die from it.”Madhav nods his head. He still looks grim and scared, “I know that but I wasn't prepared for the feel of that snake on my skin.”He shudders and instinctively, I pull him into a hug forgetting the fact that we are out in public. Heck, I don't care for once that I would be the centre of attention. All I want now is for Madhav to feel comfortable.“I am sorry again. I just wanted to tease you a little but I didn't know that you would be uncomfortable with that. I shouldn't have goaded you into doing this.”Madhav wraps his hand around me, “I was not uncomfortable Sruthi. I admit that I was scared. Don't apologise. It is my fault for trying to act strong when in reality I am not.”I shake my head at him, “No, you are one of the strongest people I know in my life. I would have never been able to keep my sanity if I had gone through what happened to you.”“Do you pity me for my pathetic childhood?”I shake my head and meet his silver eyes that gleam in the sun, “I don't. Pity isn't what I feel for you.”“Then what do you feel for me?” Tell him, Sruthi! Tell him how you feel. This is the second time he is asking and you should come out with the truth. Tell him that you are attracted to him. Tell him that you feel safe in his arms. Tell him that he gives you the confidence to go against the whole world. Tell him that he makes you feel things you have never felt before. He Tells him that he makes you desire and yearn for more. Tell him that you love him. Woah!Wait!What was that last thought?Do I LOVE Madhav? No...no...no. That can't be true. I don't want to make the same mistake again and mistake a crush for love. One heartbreak is enough for a lifetime. Even if I love Madhav, he still has another woman in his heart. But he is as invested in our relationship as I am. I am damn sure he too felt something on the beach. Maybe, I just take a leap of faith and confess to him about my feelings. As I contemplate what to say, I have become oblivious to our surroundings and I don't realize we are having an audience until someone whistles and shouts, “Yo! Get a room.”The voice startles me and I pull back from Madhav with a face the colour of tomato. I am about to open my mouth to apologize when Madhav's finger intervenes with mine. He looks livid and glares at a boy who is in his late teens, “Mind your business!”Before the boy could reply anything, I pull Madhav away from the place. I don't want to have unwanted conflicts. I just keep walking with no specific place in my mind. Madhav follows me wordlessly. I stop at a place where there are very few people. I am out of breath with all the fast walking but Madhav looks perfectly alright. “God! That was embarrassing,” I say putting my head in my hands. “I don't see what was there to be embarrassed,” Madhav says with a sigh. He still looks ticked off and I am not sure why he is having that look on his face.“You don't? We were hugging in public,” I answer.“So? If you have forgotten, then let me remind you that we are a couple whose marriage caused quite a stir in the media. Our first kiss or the almost kiss was telecasted for the whole world to see. Stories about our love stories were talked about and discussed for days on the internet. So, this is nothing to be embarrassed about. We just gave the media another topic to talk about for a couple of days. This will take the attention off your brother.”Madhav has a valid point but, “I am not used to the spotlight on me, Madhav. My brother thrives in it but I feel uncomfortable and icky when I am the centre of attention.”Madhav gives me a gentle smile, “No one is comfortable in the spotlight. People don't enjoy having their lives discussed by others. Your brother hates the spotlight more than anyone else but he acts confident because he knows showing weakness would mean he would be belittled and scorned. We don't have to show our real selves to the media, Sruthi. All it wants is a juicy story to gossip and dissect. Just play the role they expect you to. It is just as easy as that.”“You talk like you have experience,” I comment.“I do have experience,” he answers meeting my eyes with a meaningful look. Hell! Yes, he has experience. He is playing the perfect role of a jewellery shop owner so that no one would suspect him of being a ruthless assassin. “I am not sure how I can do that. I was always bad at controlling my facial reactions in the media. All the flashlights, mics and loud noises scared me. Another reason why I opt out of politics.”“When the time comes, you will know what I mean.”I hope that time never comes!“You still haven't answered my question?” Madhav asks with a hopeful look.My heart races fast. I should tell him the truth but I am still not sure about how I feel about him. I don't want to make a hasty decision like last time. I want to be sure about my feelings for him before I tell him anything.“You are a good friend and listener. Someone who makes me do things that I haven't done before. I am lucky to have you in my life, Madhav,” I look around making sure there is no one before going on my tip toes and kissing him lightly on his cheek. And then like a shy teenage girl, I walk away to the exit leaving Madhav in shock.❤️‍🔥❤️‍🔥❤️‍🔥❤️‍🔥❤️‍🔥