Okay. I'm going to be nice to her. She's helping Dhiraj- No! Us. She's helping 'us' to get through this problem. I'm going to treat her nicely. She's my guest after all.
~Sigh
Nakul let out a sigh. The doorbell rang and he knew for sure who the person on the other side would be. Her. Although he kept repeating all this time that he will be kind to her, somewhere deep within he couldn't let go of those salty feelings.
"Ah...you are opening the door right?" a voice behind spoked him. It was Dhiraj. His man.
Focus Nakul. Focus. Nakul nodded his head in response to Dhiraj as he soon swung the door open and he could only think of this one word. Rather two.
Bloody Hell.
His eyes widened as he witnessed the breathtaking beauty in front of him, Anaya Singh, the actress Dhiraj was "fake" dating. Her face was angelic. Even the word "angelic" wouldn't do justice to her beauty. A small oval face with doe like eyes that radiate pure innocence. But her tall, slim and confident posture made it evident that she was in charge of herself. Her minimal and elegant makeup made it clear to Nakul why Dhiraj must have chosen her. He has a thing for that elegant mature beauty look.
Nakul had seen the actress in multiple pictures and even in her movie gigs, but now that he met her in person, he could exactly ascertain why her fans call her the ethereal beauty. And as much as he was left speechless by her beauty, what he could also feel were a thousand needles piercing throughout his body. Because he was once again experiencing the same feeling he was desperately trying to not acknowledge.
A feeling of lacking. A feeling that he wasn't enough. Not good enough to be with his man. Not good enough when he is compared to the ethereal beauty in front of him. There she was standing like a living Aphrodite and then there was Nakul, a plain average looking guy with an average job and not even a good attitude. We can't even be compared.
"Can I come in?" the young actress asked.
It was only then that Nakul realized he had been staring at her for too long.
He had opened his mouth to respond when Dhiraj gave the answer. "Of course. Come in. Nakul must be like this because he's seeing you in person for the first time." Dhiraj forced a 'business' smile, trying to cover up for Nakul.
"Yeah-yeah. Sorry." Nakul's mind was still not out of the uncomfortable thoughts he was having.
"No worries. I'm simply glad that I got invited for dinner." Anaya showed off her sweet sweet smile.
Nakul was trying to assess her every move, like a hawk ready to find a weakness in his enemy. But looking at that smile, he felt as if she was genuinely happy to be there. He kept analyzing her every move as they made their way towards the dining area. The food was ready and they were those fancy-shamancy dishes that Nakul has no idea of. The sense of being out of place returned to him.
They started with the dinner with Dhiraj and Anaya doing their casual small talks about the "high-society" while Nakul tried his best to keep up with them. Eventually he stopped responding all together. Of course that small detail didn't go unnoticed from Dhiraj's eyes. A part of him was guilty but he was being kind to Anaya only because he was grateful that she was helping them. Had it been a different setting, Dhiraj wouldn't have given two qualms about the world. His heart couldn't take Nakul's downhearted face anymore. He decided it was time to clear things out.
"Hahaha. Yeah. Yeah." Dhiraj finally brought up the topic, "Actually, I invited you here today because I wanted you to meet someone."
Nakul's ears immediately perked up. Is this what I think it is? His heart picked up pace.
Anaya sat up too, wearing a smile on her face waiting patiently for Dhiraj to say what he had to say.
"Actually...Nakul is my boyfriend." Dhiraj stated with confidence, as if didn't care about what that woman would think of him. And that confidence made a certain someone fall for him all over again.
Dhiraj didn't stop there. His fingers soon found their way to Nakul's hand that was resting on the top of the table. Without thinking twice, his fingers intertwined with Nakul's and Nakul simply couldn't help but blush at that.
He's looking so sexy. Nakul's eyes were fixated on his man. There Dhiraj was, sitting with one leg crossed on the other, holding Nakul's hand firmly, not ready to let go as those eyes were on that woman. Those eyes were simply letting her know that he belonged to someone else. And that he couldn't be taken away no matter how much she tried. That stern gaze brought back Nakul the confidence, the assurance that he needed.
He felt as if he was on top of the world. Invincible. And that, that girl can never have what's mine. Nakul's body suddenly felt light as he was floating in the air. She must be so disappointed. I want to enjoy that disappointed look on her face. And with that intention, Nakul turned his attention towards her. He expected her eyes to be left wide open. In utter shock, as she would realize that she cannot get her hands on his man.
But it was him who was met with disappointment instead. She was wearing that same smile. That awful, genuine angelic sweet sweet smile of hers as she faced Dhiraj.
"Oh! That is wonderful!!" She remarked in her honey soaked voice.
And that voice made.....Nakul feel upset for some reason. It was as if the devilish joy he was looking forward to got robbed from him. That response hit Nakul's nerves. In no way can she be happy about us. She's just pretending. She's an actress after all. She can act well. I must make sure she knows who Dhiraj belongs to.
Dhiraj on the other hand broke into a small laughter, mostly out of relief. He half expected that lady to give him a weird-out look. But her responding as if that IMP detail was no big deal, made Dhiraj feel relieved for some reason. It wasn't that he was seeking her approval. But more than that he didn't want the person he was working with to disrespect Nakul and his relationship. Okay! She's cool with it.
More talks continued between the two parties but Nakul was biting his tongue. His mood was sour and all he wanted was a chance to have a good "talk" with that girl. The opportunity presented itself, when their dinner was interrupted by a call. It was Dhiraj's phone ringing.
"I will have to get this." Saying that, Dhiraj left the table.
Now it was only Nakul and Anaya, sitting at the table.
~silence.
Finally Nakul broke that silence. "So, how did you get the contract?" Nakul asked out of curiosity.
"My manager told me. At first I didn't know who the sponsor was and the NDA scared me-" She said, with a polite smile pressed on her face. "-but once I met Dhiraj, my anxiety dissipated."
Nakul didn't like that sentence, but he forced a smile. Anaya on the other hand continued. "He is just...so amazing. He's so kind and so respectful. And he takes great care of me!"
Now Nakul was pissed. Those dreamy eyes and smile of her as soon as she started talking about her sponsor lit up. And one could easily conclude how much she appreciated that man. But again, the person she was praising was Nakul's man. An urge to shut her mouth grew inside Nakul. And so, he remarked saltily.
"You know....you don't have to smile that way when you talk about him." They both knew who Nakul was referring to. "People might.....misunderstand something." Nakul gave her a petty smile. He thought he made himself clear that she better know her boundary, but this woman was something else.
"Well... People do need to understand that things are...a certain way between us." She too returned Nakul's petty smile with an equally fake one as she continued, "I'm just doing my job."
Now Nakul was reallyyyyyy pissed. He clenched his jaw tight. I NEED to make sure that she knows her place.
He snapped back, "You need to do your job outside. Not when you are sitting in front of me. At MY boyfriend's place." He stared dead in her eyes, trying to intimidate her.
But this girl was not that easy to bend. "Yeah. And you are right. This is his place. And he invited me here." She too made sure to let Nakul know that she wasn't going to accept being treated as a doormat.
Another tense moment of silence prevailed. And this time it was Anaya who broke the silence.
"I see something in your eyes. Fear? Doubt?" She narrowed her eyes, using her theatrics on the man in front of her. She got it right. She struck the chord. And Nakul's response only made her sure of her hypothesis.
His eyes widened as he heard those words. As if one had put all of his dirty laundry on a full display. All those ugly feelings he was desperately trying to hide; his anxiety, a feeling of lacking, his bitter jealousy; everything was shone light upon in that very moment. He felt pathetic hearing those words.
But Anaya wasn't aware how deep the muddy water ran. So she continued, "Are you insecure that he's going to leave you?" She tried ascertaining what exactly it was that Nakul was afraid of. She didn't stop there. "Are you doubting him? So like....you don't trust him?"
The thin string that was holding Nakul's decency broke. That last question especially made him feel as if....as if she was mocking him. Now Nakul wasn't left with a reason to be "nice" to her. With a firm voice he stood his grounds, "I trust him. It's you I don't trust."
A part of him expected that Anaya's face would turn sour at that remark. After all, he knew what the underlying implications of his statement could be. But to his surprise, that girl was still staring at him with that mysterious and confident smile on her face that Nakul had absolutely started to despise.
"You know what 'having a sponsor' in this industry means?" She nonchalantly asked Nakul.
Nakul simply kept staring at her. Because although he had a great dislike for her guts, he knew the horrors that were associated with that term. He simply was unable to answer that question.
Upon not getting an answer from Nakul she took it upon herself to clarify what she meant. "You have no idea how disgusting sponsors can be. When I first got the offer from Dhiraj I didn't consider it. Especially since I had heard so much about his reputation. But upon meeting he was.....so different."
Suddenly Nakul sensed a surge of energy in her eyes. She was no longer defensive. Rather she seemed to genuinely believe every word coming out of her mouth. "He is kind. And so respectful to me. And he never made me do anything that I was uncomfortable with. He is....He is so nice...." The smile on her face returned as she kept talking.
But only seconds later she sensed the scornful looks from the person in front of her. Ohhhh.....he was absolutely fuming. She could easily see that Nakul was barely holding in his fury but she still continued to finish what she had to say. And this time her tone was serious.
"You are lucky you have found a person like him, Nakul. You should be grateful. If I found someone who loves me that much..."
A pause.
"....I would risk the world for them."
* * *