~Next Day~
Nakul's usual companion, his thick black glasses, weren't with him. Getting back to a life without them, felt foreign. After all, they were with him ever since he could remember. He wore them in an attempt to not face one of his biggest fears; to find his chrome.
But despite taking some preventive measures, he still stumbled upon his "the one". And since he found his chrome, he had no reason to wear them.
He was in his school, giving lessons to his class. He had returned back to his grey palate since he had long separated from Dhiraj. And now his mind was a mess. Not because of Dhiraj but because of those colors.
He was trying his best not to get lost in their memories, but it was difficult. In a way he was glad that he wasn't around Dhiraj, since their arrangement won't work anyway.
'That guy is persistent. Hopefully he forgets about me'. He thought as he pouted.
Returning back to his daily routine seemed to be the best option, but in the back of his mind he kept wondering what it would be like to see those colors. He frowned on that thought. That was exactly the reason why he never wanted to meet his chrome.
With all these thoughts, he didn't realize when it was the time to leave work. He was going towards is car, when a call halted him. It was an unknown number and his intuition itched.
'Let it be a wrong number.' He muttered under his breath as he picked up the call.
"Hello-"
"Hey. Its soooo good to hear your voice again"
Red Sirens busted in his head. 'How the fuck he has my number?' A cold sweat ran through the nape of Nakul's neck giving him chills.
'Calm down. He is a rich man with influence and network. Of course finding my info is easy for him. Don't be nervous. Take control.'
Nakul took in a deep breath and exhaled.
"So now you are a stalker?"
"Oh no no. you are getting this wrong. I got your number from... the hospital."
Nakul arched his eyebrows. Of course, he wouldn't buy that.
"Okay. So now I guess I will have to sue the hospital for the breach of my privacy"
"NO!! That is...that is not a good idea. Come on, they took care of you. And-", Dhiraj fumbled, giving the stupidest excuse.
"And- that's not the point. What's more important is: we NEED to go to the counselor-"
"Look...Sir, I told you this the last time and I'm repeating it again. I-WILL-NEVER-IN-A-MILLION-YEARS-GO-TO-THE-COUNSELOR!! It's better for you to leave me alone-", Nakul shouted through his phone.
"Look, right now I'm outside-", Dhiraj tried to overrun what Nakul was saying but Nakul was in no position to stop.
Nakul continued with his threat, completely ignoring what Dhiraj was saying, "DO NOT CONTACT ME OR ELSE THE CONSEQUENCES WON'T BE GOOD FOR YOU" and with that he ended the call.
Breathing furiously, he stomped towards the parking lot. Little did he know a familiar figure was ready to greet him there.
***
Nakul was still irritated because of the last phone call. He reached to the parking lot and made his way to his car. That was when his eyes saw a pair of lips wearing a smug smile. Nakul's mouth involuntarily scowled.
It was the person he desperately wanted to avoid.
Soon their eyes meet. Dhiraj shamelessly flaunted his smile and waved at Nakul. But Nakul was feeling overwhelming amount of emotions at the same time.
Angry, frustration, annoyance and most importantly the color-rush.
The breathlessness from yesterday returned and Nakul found his legs trembling. His eyes were losing focus and all he wanted was to escape that feeling.
'Oh...this can't be happening again. I HATE it!!'
His legs start to give away, so he tried to grab whatever support he found near him. This reaction didn't went un-escaped from Dhiraj. He sprinted and held Nakul in his arms.
'I need to get hold of myself', Nakul thought. He found himself in the other man's arm and steadied himself.
"First, focus on your breathing" Dhiraj's deep voice commanded. Strangely, Nakul followed.
"Take in a deep breathe. and let it out", Dhiraj instructed.
Nakul followed his instructions.
"Good!! Do it again. Don't worry I won't let you fall." Dhiraj's voice was now soft. His face was dangerously close to Nakul's and with his soft whispers he continued.
"That's great. Keep breathing and keep your eyes on me."
Nakul's eyes adjusted with that of Dhiraj's and finally he regained their focus. He saw a face really close to him. It seemed a bit tired. Some dark circles were visible and the brows had a deep furrow of concern. Soon the wrinkles on the forehead vanished and the eyes wore a gentle smile. They were just another ordinary pair of jet black eyes, hooded but reflecting sincerity. It was the first time he saw such an endearing face so close to him.
Soon the lips broke into a small smile and their foreheads pressed to each other.
"Thank god you are alright" Dhiraj whispered with their foreheads pressed.
Nakul realized he was tightly held in the man's strong arms. So much happened in the past few seconds that he didn't realized how he ended up in that position. He was just...too startled to say anything.
It was as if he was too lost in the moment but a pop sound brought him back into reality. It was a 15 year old, eating a chewing gum as she intently started at her teacher.
"I didn't know you were part of our club sir!" her arched eyebrows made her confusion clear.
"I'm not!!" Nakul shoves Dhiraj aside, regaining his composure.
"Club?!" Dhiraj fixed his tie too.
"Well, the LGBTQ+ club. Hi!! I'm Gracy Singh and I'm the president of this club. I'm Bi" she proudly stated with a confident smile.
"Oh! Great. I wish I was this confident when I was your age" Dhiraj was clearly impressed by this teen.
"No!! There's no such club and I'm not a member of it" Nakul firmly pressed his point to Dhiraj and continued, "And you Gracy, don't go on putting labels on yourself you don't fully understand. Plus don't mention such private information to strangers." He turned towards Dhiraj giving him a dirty look.
Dhiraj couldn't help but arch his eyebrows. 'Strangers?! Harsh.'
"But he's not a stranger. He's your boyfriend right?"
"He's not my BOYFRIEND!!" retorted Nakul instantaneously. 'Teens these days sure love to argue.'
"Well, not Boyfriend. But I definitely am courting him."
"Aww!! How romantic-"
"No!! NO!! There's nothing romantic about this-", Nakul made another desperate attempt to handle the situation.
"TELL ME MORE ABOUT IT!!" An enthusiastic Gracy cried out not paying attention to her teacher.
"Well you see-"Dhiraj began. But Nakul leaped forward to cover his mouth. He growled in hushed tones.
"Are you insane?! What are you doing? Why are you causing problems for me?"
"I'm not causing problems, I'm just telling her about-"
Nakul covered Dhiraj's again. He was at the end of his wits.
"Shut up...what will you take to keep that mouth shut?" Nakul glared at Dhiraj; meanwhile Dhiraj was turned on by that glare. He surely can suggest nearly 9 ways in that moment using which Nakul could get his mouth shut. But redirecting his mind from his little sexual schemes, he saw an opportunity. He MUST grab it.
"It won't take much." said Dhiraj, staring into Nakul's eyes. His tone made it evident that there was something he wanted. And that thought made the poor teacher nervous.
What does he wants now?
"Come with me to the counselor." The offer was simple and straightforward.
"NO"
"Gracy...you wanted to know-", Dhiraj called out the child who just thoughtlessly witnessed their small private conversation from a distance.
"Okay-okay...you shit-head. I'll come to the session. When?"
"Now" Dhiraj said wearing that cocky smile of his, after all he was a man who can't be stopped by anything once he set his mind on something.
***