WHEN FATE BRINGS YOU HOME

CHAPTER 7

Will it look too bad if I just stand up and start running away from this humiliation? It will. And it will look more bad if I start talking. Isn't it usually at these situations in movies that something unexpected happens? Like hearing gunshots, speedy cars screeching and stopping around us, the bad guy showing up from the fog of dust. I am praying all the thirty three million gods of Hindu mythology for any kind of possible diversion. Please help out from this and I'll gladly (lie) sacrifice twenty five percent of my daily chocolate consumption. Nothing. They know I'm lying.

I start gathering up my courage by taking a sip from my latte. I settle the cup down so slowly that if someone was watching me, they might find it necessary to do it for me. Because that cup is going to take forever to reach the table at this pace. I'm buying time, fellas. Watch and learn. It's impossible to come up with something cool to counteract him. I'll probably find a solution to this tonight, while showering. Winning the already failed arguments and some singing is all I do while I'm in my shower. They're still expecting me to say something and I can't even look back at them. They will find out that I'm nervous. And him, I'm not taking any chances. 

Seriously? What am I being afraid of? That I shut the door on him? Big deal. Like I'm going to jail for that. I'll just say that it's the wind, right? Ugh, I'm pathetic. Okay, one last bid, God. Fifty percent of my total brownie consumption... Seventy five percent... Eighty percent... Ninety percent. Lastly, ninety nine percent -

And ninety nine percent it is. Cause my phone starts playing Night Changes by One Direction, my ringtone. The heavens really want me to stop eating all the chocolates, don't they? I pick out my phone to see who they have sent for my help.

"It's Daksh."

My face lightens up like I've never been this happy before. I stand up and walk over to the alley near the coffeeshop building. When I pick up, the screen shows a wall from his apartment.

"Hey, I need help."

"Wait, let me adjust my audio."

I wait for him to do whatever it is that he was adjusting. When he was finally done, he appeared on the screen, still in work clothes, yellow light from his table lamp highlighting his features in the dark.

"Take a bath, dude. You stink."

He gave me a fake laugh before straightening himself to ready himself for the conversation. He ran a hand through his hair, his face focused down, and returned to my attention soon after.

"Tomorrow is a day off. Thought I would give you a call."

"Your call couldn't be any more punctual, Mr. Savior."

"It's that professor guy, isn't it?"  Woah. Sharp as ever, friend.

"He's a bully, Daksh. I don't like him." 

He's the only one I can complaint about this to. And he's already laughing at my whining. He thinks I'm overstating everything. Maybe I am. This new place is freaking me out.

"Well, what did he do now? Should I be worried?"

"Maybe."

"What is it?"

"Remember I talked to you Saturday about -"

"Insulting someone bigtime? Yeah, I do."

"Come on. Not you too. It was impulsive and stupid I know. But he insulted me too."  

He raised an eyebrow at me. Fine, it's my fault.

"Since, we are even now, I thought we could do this whole thing again."

"And?"

"Hera brought him along now to this coffeeshop we were meeting and I asked her who it was, thinking that he'll play along."