Unrequited

Chapter 6

That's it. We had said it. Said the words. He loved me. LOVED ME! My heart swam in a warm tide of affection and pure adoration for this gorgeous and charming boy.

I felt my nerves loosen and relax. My eyes fluttered close for a moment as my head played his ringing voice again and again like a stuck tape recorder. And then he bent down to nuzzle the cold tip of his nose on my overheated cheek.

He lightly brushed his lips before he pulled back to look me in the eyes. Light brown orbs shone in the warm sunlight that kissed them. They looked more gold than brown. How did I become so lucky? How did this angel of a boy fall in love with an average looking girl like me?

I must have said it aloud because he replied with a tender smile, "Because you are you. And you are stunning". I hugged him, maybe a bit too hard, but he didn't budge and neither did he push me away.

We stayed like that for what seemed like hours. I felt blessed and grateful for this wonderful miracle that had now become my life. A part of me as were my heart and brain. He laughed mirthfully into the crook of my neck and pulled me in tightly.

God!! We love him!!

Friends oohed and aahed as I told them my fairy-tale love story. We had turned 4 months now and people tried desperately to find a chink in our armour.

Girls told me rumours that he had been a play boy with his previous girlfriends. Said that he cheated her. That she still loved him. He looked at this girl today. That they didn't think he was so much into me. That they thought he was faking it. That he was lying.

But I brushed it all away. It did not matter to me what he had done in the past. He loved me with all his heart and that was more important. We were the strongest when together.

And I didn't even tell him what people told me, I didn't think it was even worth mentioning. He did flirt with other girls, but I didn't feel bad because I knew he loved me. It was true and real. And I knew it. I saw him hold hands with other girls but it didn't hurt. He loved me. Of course, he did.

Are you sure?

Shut up Kia! Yes, he did, he said that to me every day. I loved him too. At home, I would be smiling constantly and mom would shake her head.

My family knew about him too. Of course, not the parts that we had kissed and hugged. My mom had turned half-paranoid when I told her. Papa just coolly said, "Shouldn't affect your grades Kia, be careful".

Soon we were going to upgrade to 8th. More studies, more tuitions, less time for Ayaan. But we would manage. We did not spend time together in the recess as we used to do, because he spent time with his football teammates and other friends.

We just occasionally looked up to spot each other at the opposite ends of the corridors and smiled. His smile would fill the small little vacuum bubbles that had appeared in my heart, with warmth and passionate love. But they were miniscule, so negligible.