Hues And Blues

Chapter 3

(unedited)

It was half past twelve yet they haven't reached her home . They had been waiting at the same bridge for over an hour now, And seeing how slowly the vehicles move, even a tortoise could do better.

One word. Weekend and Chennai Traffic.

Alina had a hard time keeping her eyes open. Her upper eyelid were dying to kiss her lower eyelid, to teleport her into the world of moon and stars. But she couldn't let the sleep consume her since she still didn't trust the stranger who is giving her a "lift" to her home.

Out of boredom, She studied the Homo sapien seated in front. He was tall, his raven hair was tousled, His magenta formal shirt was still crisp whose sleeves have been folded up to his elbow. His hazel eyes perfectly complimented his olive skin. He was fit; his visage seemed too familiar yet distant. His ruby lips had a faint smile adorning it. And he had a sharp nose and a stubble beard.

Not bad. Her mind complimented; He is what the society would often label him as "handsome"

"So, What has made the kind man to give a lift to some strange woman?" Alina questioned not being able to shut her curious mind.

The man at the front, Looked at her eyes through the mirror, momentarily surprised that the spooky 'specie' can speak.

"I have always looked up to Alexa. She is like my sister who guides me and is immensely passionate about what she does. She has a clear vision of what she is chasing after, calculative and highly ambitious. We have worked together in this project and trust me, I have seen her pull all nighters consecutively for 3 days and haven't seen her had a proper slumber. In the last two years of companionship, she often speaks about you apart from her family. Her cheerful face often had creases of worry when she speaks about you, her tired eyes twinkling when she speaks about your achievements, her disappointed look when you had upset her... You were intriguing to me. I mean, what you two share is beyond friendship, it's something so sacred. And today, when Alexa was worried sick about letting you book a cab at this late hour, I offered to drop you and To which she had already uttered more than thousands of Thank You. She cares about you a lot and I know you do too" Replied Aakash with a small smile.

That is Aakash Mathews for you, straight forward and blunt with his answers. He speaks his thoughts and ideas out loud, not caring about anyone else or their opinion. He believes in speaking out his heart, for of all the things the world had taught him, He learnt not to feel oppressed about his thoughts and speak out freely. The country had fought hard to attain the freedom of speech, right... so why not exploit it?

It took exactly 20 minutes 35 seconds for Alina to process what she had just heard from her chauffeur.

Alexa – Alina was an equation that was highly complicated yet a beautiful one. They couldn't just label each other as 'best friends'; they are something beyond that. It was never a 50 – 50 relationship. But they oathed to be there for the other at their highs and equally at their lows too. An unbreakable vow, perhaps.

A 15 year old Alina would have had zero idea about how the 17 year old kind and beautiful girl would become a family to her while accepting her candle, which the elder girl offered at the prayer hall in the Sunday Church.

Alexa offered her a candle, well lighted it and brought lights of hope, love and care into the lonely life of a secluded Alina. The white colored half used wax candle is still standing proudly in her showcase, as a symbolism of Love and Friendship.

Aakash knew Alina was baffled by his honest reply, and remained mum to offer her the much deserved silence. He sensed she was lost in her very own little world, processing what she just heard from a stranger. Though he might be a stranger to her, he sure knows the importance the two girls give to each other. He had to endure Alexa's endless complaints about how Alina couldn't make it to her big day. He was tired of her ramblings yet he could never forget the way her eyes widened and glistened when she saw her best friend.