Chapter 3

“So, where is Shekhar? I haven’t seen him for so many days. Has he returned from Mumbai?” Sonia asked about Avni’s now on- now off ‘kind of’ boy friend as they drove to the venue.

“I don’t know. I was caught up in exams, hardly had any time to think or contact him”. After 20-25 minutes, they reached Amit’s home. His parents had a bungalow on the outskirts of Delhi. Music could be heard even outside. The party seemed to be in full swing.

Parking the car, they entered the hall. After mixing up with friends and greeting Amit, Avni headed for the dance floor. She loved to dance. And guys loved to dance with her. She was always the most popular girl in school and now in college too.

30 minutes later, she was thoroughly exhausted. Aiming to take a soft drink, she went to the drinks counter. A guy sitting in the corner caught her eyes. He was the only one who was wearing sensible clothes according to the Delhi winter.

He was in a dark blue blazer that he wore over open necked white and light blue striped shirt teamed with jeans and boots. The clothes looked simple, yet suited him to the T. he was clean shaved and had very short hair, trimmed really close near his ears, giving him almost a military look. His eyes were of the darkest color, set off by the strong jaw line. His fingers holding the glass were like a pianist’s or a surgeon’s. Even in the blazer, he looked well built. Almost as if he was an active sportsman. He looked very amused and suddenly Avni realized that he was actually looking at her for a long time with those mocking eyes and a devilish smile.

He was looking at her as if she was transparent and he could see through her. Avni averted her yes and tossed her head. She was used to see admiration in guy’s eyes, but this guy actually seems to look at her as if he could read her mind. She felt terribly self conscious, which was a strange feeling for her.

Her legs were too tired after the dancing. Holding a tall glass full of coke, she searched for a place to sit. The only chair empty was the next one to that man with those teasing, mocking eyes. At first, she wanted to just stand there, but the spoilt stubborn self inside her didn’t know how to be beaten by someone.

She went ahead and sat right next to him.