Safe Space

One and Only

Zee and Nunew have just gone back home after doing some food shopping. They are putting all the groceries away when Zee's phone rang.

"Hello Mark? Whats up?" Zee said as he opens the fridge.
"Lunch Tomorrow?" Zee stops and looks at Nunew.
"Uhmmm, I cant. Nunew is here with me." Zee said as he went back to putting food away to the fridge.
"Yes, The Nunew. The one and only. He flew in yesterday." Zee finally closed fridge.
"We'll see. I'll ask. He might not want to meet an ass like you." Zee told Mark laughing.
"Okay okay, we'll see. Yep. Yes I will ask. Okay. Bye " Zee ended the call.

"The Nunew? The one and only?" Nunew raised an eyebrow at him

"Yes the one and only Nunew. My friends know you. I talk to them about you a lot. So when Mark, who is my friend from Uni by the way, heard you are here. He wants to ask me to ask you if you want to go to lunch with them tomorrow." Zee told Nunew

"You talk about me? To your grown up friends?" Nunew was a bit surprised.

"Ofcourse. You are The one and only Nunew so i have always talked aBout you" Zee teases.

"I wonder what lies you told them. " Nunew rolled his eyes on his Hia's playfulness. Zee just laughed at him.

"On a serious note, they all know about you because i have always mentioned you to them. And I am sometimes with them when I answer your calls so they are pretty much curious as to what you are like" Zee explained

"So that's why they are eager for me to go to lunch with them? Nunew questioned

"Yeah, but we dont have to go if you dont want to. They guys will understand" Zee explained

"How many people will be there?" Nunew asks

"There's Mark, Boun and Prem. Then it's just you and me. So its just 5 of us. Its just casual lunch at a laid back restaurant. Nothing fancy" Zee said

"Hmmmmm.. okay I'll go. I want to know what you've been telling them too." Nunew looked at him intensely

" I didnt say anything bad!" Zee protested and Nunew just laughed and shook his head

"Im just teasing. I know you wouldnt. Im going because i want to taste the food." Nunew told him.

"You and your love affair with food" Zee smiles at him.

Zee and Nunew arrived at the restaurant. They were five minutes late because of traffic.

"Hey, we're here. " Zee told the boys when they reached the table.

"Finally! I was getting too hungry. We've already ordered. I hope you dont mind" Mark said

"It's fine. Sorry. The traffic was so bad today. I forgot its sunday." Zee explained as they sat down

"So is this the famous Nunew?" Prem asked. Nunew just smiled at him and nodded.

"Hi im Mark. And im the most handsome among us." Mark extended his hand. Nunew looked at it.

"Guys, Nunew doesnt like........." Zee stopped midway when he saw Nunew took Mark's handshake. He was so surpised at the younger one's actions.

"Hi im Nunew." He said

"You shook his hand" Zee who is still in shock said.

"Ofcourse he is. Why would he not?" Boun asks him.

"Nunew doesnt do handshakes. He doesnt like being touched." Zee is still staring at Nunew.
"Why did you shake his hand?" Zee finally asks him

"Hia, they are your friends. If you trust them, I trust them. And besides I need to atleast learn to get over giving handshakes. I think i read somewhere that good handshakes are key to good opportunities, or something like that" Nunew explained. Zee smiled at him, he is beaming with proud as his Nunew is really maturing.

"Good job Nu" he said as he patted his head and Nunew smiled

"Ahem. Anyway, Im Boun. Dont listen to what Mark says." Boun offered his hand and Nunew shook it.

"And im Prem, its nice to finally meet you." Prem softly said to him as he shakes Nunew's hand.

"Its nice to meet all of you as well. Now tell me, why does it make the THE ONE AND ONLY NUNEW? What does Hia been telling all of you?" Nunew asked. Zee is still looking like he is in a state of shock.
"You are talking to all of them." He said once again looking so amazed. Nunew just laughs at him and shakes his head. Zee smiled and sat closer to him and patted his head again.

"This. This is what THE ONE AND ONLY NUNEW means. He only smiles and becomes soft when he talks about you or when he talks to you. He is not like this to anybody. Hell, we thought he had a stroke before that's why he wouldnt smile. If we didnt know the back story we would have thought you were his faen. " Mark said as he looks at the two. Zee crumpled a tissue and threw it at him. Nunew just softly smiled at their antics

"He always tells us about you. About how you are doing so well now. About he is so proud of you." Prem told him. Nunew looked at Zee who just casually sips his glass of water to hide his embarassment.

"And thats why we are so curious to meet you. We want to know who THE NUNEW" Boun joked with them.

"Okay. Thats enough. You've embarrassed me enough for the day. Have you all ordered drinks?" Zee said as he looks at them. They all nodded and he stood up.
"Im going to order for Nu and me. Nu, what do you want?" Zee asked Nunew

"Just a regular iced tea please." Nunew told him.

"Okay, just stay with them. Dont believe whatever they tell you okay?" Zee told him and Nunew just smiled.

"So. Tell me about Hia." Nunew's eyes sparkled as he asks them.

Zee saw them laughing when he came back to their table, he was carrying a tray with Two iced teas and two glasses of cold water.
"What are you laughing about?" He asks them as he hand Nunew his drinks.

"Oh nothing. Just about the time when you cheered for the whole class with your awesome dance and stoic face" Nunew told him as Zee becomes red faced.

"Ahem, atleast I just did it in the classroom. Mark did all of those infront of the whole university." Zee reminded Mark who nearly spat his drink.
"Dont remind me" Mark said in between coughs.

Nunew was enjoying his time with them. He is laughing at all the groups ridiculous antics. He became thirsty for a bit so he reached for his iced tea.
Zee then noticed Nunew's face looking as if he's going to puke.

"Nu whats wrong?" He leans forward to check him. The other three looked at him with concern

"This is not an iced tea" He said as he tries to swallow the whole glass of water just to flush the taste.
Zee took the iced tea from him and tasted it.

"This is not a fucking iced tea! It's a long island!" Zee shouted in a very low voice indicating his anger.
"Im gonna complain"

"Hia. Hia! Im fine. Look. I just had a sip. I didnt swallow the whole thing." Nunew tells him. Zee looks at him with worry in his eyes.
"Hia, im good. Dont worry much about it. Lets not make a scene okay?" Nunew smiled softly at him.
"Okay. But if you feel unwell we get you checked. Okay?" Zee asks him and Nunew added.

"Are you allergic to long island iced tea?" Prem asked

"Uhmmmm, im not sure you can call it an allergy. I can still drink alcoholic drinks. It's just that my body reacts differently to it. My tolerance is very very low. I can drink but i might be the first one to sleep. Meaning im more prone to alcohol poisoning. I will probably get a bit of redness from the sip i just had but that should be it. I dont mind not drinking any alcoholic drinks, I dont like the taste anyway." Nunew just shrugged his shoulders. Zee is still looking at him very closely. Still very worried about him

"Hia, im fine. Look! Im not red yet" Nunew showed him his neck.

"See. This is why YOU are the ONE AND ONLY NUNEW. If this is us he would have probably just drown us with more alcohol." Boun joked as he tried to lighten up the mood.
Prem observed the two of them and smiled. He's been the one observing the two all afternoon.
"Now i know why" he thought to himself.