First Date to Forever

The First Date

     They were now settled in the car , when Sujay turned towards Shonali and handed her a single red rose and a small box of chocolates ! She blushed and thanked him. She loved chocolates but how did he know these were her favorites ?! And she always thought a single rose is more romantic than a bunch or a bouquet . Sarika ! It has to be Sarika's suggestion . She mentally noted to thank her later.

    Shonali was born and brought up in Mumbai .  She found it a bit difficult initially to settle here in Delhi but the warmth of people and the way her friends made her feel comfortable here she can now not imagine her life any other way! And the Delhi winters , they are amazing ! Today was one such January morning . Shonali was looking outside in awe . It was still slightly foggy and as if the universe too was conspiring, it was slightly cloudy making the weather look like a scene straight out from a romantic movie.

   Sujay kept stealing glances at her and saw how engrossed she looked. He broke her train of thoughts and asker her to secure her seat belt , "Safety first " he chuckled.

     They spent the drive talking about places he loved in Delhi , while he also kept pointing out important landmarks which they found on their way. Shonali was seeing Delhi in a new light , from his perspective .

"What do you miss the most about Mumbai ? " he asked .
     She thought for a while and then replied " Vada Pavs and The Marine drive !! The food here is delicious no doubt but sometimes I just crave the original Mumbai Vada pav . Have you ever been to Mumbai ?  "

"Not yet "

"Oh you should !! I will show you around whenever you are there! " She exclaimed .

He smiled at her statement.
She quickly realised what she said , and bit her tongue . He was happy she was opening up to him .

"Where are we going ? " She asked .
"It's my favorite cafe here , I am sure you'll absolutely love it ! " He smiled.

      Shonali could see the Qutub Minar in the distance and pointed it out to Sujay. He just smiled , how easily she was amused by things around her.

          They were now in the parking lot of the cafe, Sujay stepped out and quickly sprinted around to open the door for her . She was not used to such chivalry , she blushed at his guesture.

   They made their way towards the cafe and as soon as they entered , Shonali was awestruck !! It was a beautiful and a cozy rooftop cafe with a direct view of the Qutub Minar. They found a seat near the edge and settled down . Shonali was still looking around the cafe as if trying to capture every little detail. Sujay used the opportunity to steal a quick glance at her . She was glowing today.
  
    She turned towards him and praised his choice , "This is such a beautiful place Sujay ! I am impressed ! "
"This is my favorite place in Delhi " he told her .
Slow romantic Bollywood songs were playing in the background , the weather was very pleasant and a comfortable silence surrounded them .

       Suddenly Shonali craved a nice hot cup of tea , but she found it silly to order tea on a date. Sujay signalled a waiter and immediately they were served two cups of freshly brewed masala chai and a plate full of french fries !
       
         Shonali looked at Sujay , who immediately responded " I promised you a cup of Tea , plus the weather called for it " . Shonali felt a slight tug at her heart . She immediately looked down to hide her blush . He caught on to her action and was hopeful , maybe this date can turn out to be better than expected !

           They spent the next few hours talking about their lives , their friends, sharing random anecdotes with each other ... Shonali noticed he changed topics quickly whenever his family was mentioned especially his parents , and Sujay noticed she didn't talk much about her school life. They were still getting to know each other thus refrained from pointing it out. Maybe a conversation for some other day .
   
      It was around 4 pm when Shonali checked her phone for any messages. She had around 20 messages from her friends asking her about the date already . Maitri had asked her to respond to atleast let them know that she was alive !! Sneh asker her to just drop a message if she needed rescuing. She let out a chuckle , such amazing friends I have .

     That is when she realised the time. They had been here for more than 4 hours !!!! She couldn't believe she just spent 4 hours with this guy without the conversation becoming boring or coming to an end . As if reading her mind , he checked the time and exclaimed " Wow we have been talking non stop for four hours ?? "
       He couldn't believe it . Time just passed by when she was with him . He had never been this comfortable around anyone before. Even Jeet did not know many stories which he shared with her today. As evening dawned upon them , he felt sad that he had to drop her back and end this date.

   They settled the bill and knowing her enough he let her split the bill . She was the happiest ! They entered the lift as they exited the cafe and suddenly a group of about 5-6 people entered at the same time leaving them with no other option than to stand close to each other.

   Shonali was visibly nervous standing this close to him. She could feel her back touch his chest . She could not dare to look up at him. Meanwhile he too was having a difficult time having her this close to him. He could smell her perfume , the same faint rose scented perfume ! He was falling for her hard. But he quickly gathered his thoughts. He had promised Sarika he will respect whatever Shonali will decide.

     As soon as the elevator doors opened , they quickly stepped out without uttering a word and walked towards his car. The drive back was very quiet. They did not want to break the silence . Both of them were lost in their own thoughts.

      Shonali decided to break the silence ,
"I really had a nice time today Sujay . Thank you for everything ! " She smiled.
"Me too Shonali " , He replied. He did not know what to say . He had so many questions but did not know if he should ask them.

    The atmosphere suddenly turned heavy , both of them were running high on emotions . They had no idea what the future behold but both of them were sure of one thing , they did not want this day to end !