Fantasy- MaAn shots

Act 8B

The road back home was empty save for a few hawkers. The sun had set already, and the two walked side by side. While Anupama folded her hands to shield her arms against the evening breeze, Anuj played with his fingers, his lips puckering out every now and then as he looked at her, tried to speak something but then decided against it.

She may have been looking at the other side, but she could sense his dilemma, and coupled with her bubbling discomfort, Anu decided to break the silence.

"You should not have gone to Shah house", She remarked, her features schooled and her tone masked.

Had he crossed a line? He pondered then, but shook his head in the next moment. He was impulsive when it came to her. No two ways about it.

Looking straight ahead, he replied."I cannot stand your character being questioned every time, Anu. I want to give you happiness, and for that, if warranted I will do this over and over".

When no response came, Anuj turned to his side to find her missing and looked back to see Anu rooted to her spot, her head bent down.

"Anu?" He called out to her but to no avail. Turning around,as he walked back to her, he bent slightly, craned his neck and tilted his head,to get a look at her face."Anu?"

She acknowledged his voice then and raised her eyes to meet his gaze, her eyes wet.

Anuj leaned back in shock, his brows furrowing. "Anu..you are crying? Why?! Agar tumhe acha nahi laga toh I swear I will never—

"Nahi laga mujhe acha jab baa ne aapko wo sab kaha!" Her proclamation stunned him as she furiously wiped the corner of her eyes and stepped forward,forcing him to back a step.

"Mujhe bilkul acha nahi lagta jab koi aap se aise baat karta hai! Mera kya hai, mujhe unn sab cheezon se farq nahi padta. Par aap kyu sunenge ye saari cheezein!"

"Mujhe bahot farq padta hai, Anu. Every time your face falls and you despair, I feel like punching someone. I feel like, I should just destroy whoever is bringing you pain.

"Then you should just do it, rather than taking all those insults!"She burst out, surprising him.

"How could I? Tum unse pyaar karti ho", Anuj replied, deeply worried by her suggestion. It was his first- seeing her lose control like that.

"Pyaar toh main aaps— Anupama clamped her lips instantly then, as she watched the man's eyes go wide as saucers.

"Pyaar toh main aaps....kya Anu?" He repeated, staring into her widened eyes.

"Anu?" He watched focused, as her eyes closed briefly before she rewarded him with a glare, muttering something under her breath and stepped past him.

Bewildered, he cleared his ears to reconsider her words and jogged after her. "What did you say, Anu?!"

"You Are Exasperating!" She repeated on his insistence and proceeded to walk forward.

He followed after her, deeply curious. "What did I do?" He asked innocently and earned another stink eye from her as she muttered few colorful words in Gujarati.

"Anu!"

"Anu!!"

While Anuj pestered her incessantly, she shut her ears,trying to sort her thoughts.

It was valentine's eve, for god's sake! She was planning to confess today but he had to walk into a war zone and worry her too. Had he not walked off like that, she would have made some preparations for the occasion.And now, there was no time!