The beautiful sight of the sun melting into the horizon, slightly chilly sea breeze, mouth watering aromatic food and some divine jazz music playing in the background. A picture perfect date. Except Dhiraj was on a fake one.
Beside him sat the ethereal goddess, Anaya; enjoying that picturesque view, savory food wearing a smile that will melt a frozen heart. But not Dhiraj's apparently, because all he could think of was, if only he was there with his baby instead. Then all those hues and aroma and symphonies would have been more...meaningful. And of course his soulless presence was only making things harder for Anaya.
Give me a break. That poor woman was trying her absolute best to make things seem more "couple-like" between the two. She was smiling, trying to enjoy her food and pretending to have the best time of her life with her "lover". But that man was only making things harder for her.
"Dhiraj!" She tried calling him out. But the man was blankly staring into space. That irked her. After all she too had her limits. Okay! Cool down Anaya. This is work. Let's try once again. And this time she moved closer to Dhiraj. Sitting on the chair beside him, she took a spoonful of risotto, bringing it closer to Dhiraj's mouth.
"Dhiraj!! Try this!" She smiled once again.
Now Dhiraj was pissed. He got it that they were "Dating" but....does she have to do this extra stuff? Especially when there are people around us. Including paparazzi, who like hawks want just one more picture to post. And...then...he might see those pictures. Dhiraj can't let that happen.
"Why are you doing things like this? There's no need to. You...You don't have to force yourself to do them." Dhiraj made it seem like he was thinking about her convenience.
But the lady smiled more. She was a pro after all. She precisely knew why she was doing the things she was doing. Wearing a smile, she nudged Dhiraj to open his mouth to eat that bite.
"I know." She kept smiling. "But go with the flow once." She played it off as if they were having a playful argument. Nevertheless, Dhiraj obliged and ate that spoonful of rice.
"There you go. It was easy right?" Her eyes twinkled which only confused Dhiraj more. I thought I clearly stated that she doesn't need to do stuff like this. But the woman didn't stop there. She then proceeded to wipe off Dhiraj's mouth. Even going as far as eating the little rice grain stuck to the corner of Dhiraj's mouth.
That was it. He must get things clear.
"I thought I told you there's no need to do things like these?!"
Contrary to his expectation, her smile widened. She leaned into Dhiraj more. "People...are more perceptive than you think they are Dhiraj...." She whispered in his ears, pretending as if she was purring some seductive compliments. "Half of my fans don't want us to be together. Because they think you are a womanizer.....and that you are going to break my heart." She still kept smiling. " And the other half are convinced that..." She traced the wrinkles that were formed on the chest area of Dhiraj's well-fitted shirt, almost making him forget to breathe. But she had a reason to do all of that. It was the gazes that were fixated on them. She continued, "That....All of this is fake. That.....either I'm a gold digger or....an escort. Thankfully, both of their hypotheses are wrong. But.....I believe I still should do my part to make them believe in us."
She widened her smile. He must know why these PDAs are necessary. So why is avoiding them? Wait! Is it because- it only clicked her then.
"Do you....not wanna do this....because...he might see this and won't like it?" She waited for Dhiraj's answer but was 96% sure of what the answer would be. The 96% assessment came true as Dhiraj nodded.
Wow! He's crazy for that guy. Anaya was taken aback for some reason. And although she was mostly a self-assured woman, something about that fact didn't sit right with her. Maybe because: wouldn't she be the obvious choice if it came to choose? But here was the man, who wasn't even ready to spare a glance at her. That kinda hurts my pride. And so her curiosity got the best of her.
"Dhiraj! Can I ask you something?"
Dhiraj knew quite well that someone asking the permission to ask a question means that that question is going to make him awkward. But nevertheless, he agreed. "Sure."
"How can you be confident that he's with you because he loves you?" Her narrowed eyes showcased her doubts. "And not because you are rich or so influential. Like I've heard people talking behind my back that I'm just with you for money. So....how can you be sure that he's not with you for that?" She waited for Dhiraj's response. And that question didn't surprise Dhiraj.
With unamused expressions, he answered, "Because I fell for him first." He tried making that fact verrrrrrrrry clear. "It was me who courted him for months. In fact-" He turned his upper body towards Anaya, a subtle sign that he was greatly interested in talking about his baby. He continued, "I tried using my money and status to impress him. But he didn't even budge. It was only recently that we finally got on the same page." He skipped on mentioning their special 'bond'. His body turned away from Anaya once again. "And we both are fairly new to this. I am still new to relationships and stuff. I've never been serious with anyone. But he.....I-I love him."
Anaya was kind of astonished by the way that man was talking. "Wow! Are you sure you are Dhiraj and not someone else?" She exclaimed her shock.
"What?"
"People will be shocked if they see you talking this way! I mean everyone thinks of you as a...Casanova. It's.....unconventional....to see you be so dedicated to someone."
Dhiraj got what she meant since he too was flabbergasted at his own feelings. He could feel a change within him. A good change. Smirking to himself he muttered, as if to himself, "Love changes you I guess." The staring into the space took over once again. But this time, the man wasn't wearing a frown on his face. Instead, he was smiling.
And that dreamy state of Dhiraj left Anaya thinking about something. He DOES love him...Nakul's lucky.
I wish I was so lucky.
* * *
So....I don't know if anyone is even reading this novel here. I know a few people r loyal readers but I'm no longer sure if it's worth it to post my work here.
Therefore, this is just a head up that I might not continue posting my work here. The novel is available on wattpad. So if anytime you don't find me posting here, do look up the novel there.
Thank you all of ur support till now! Especially rnfarhana, Cheesitz and fizzat_ashad!!