Mansi was having breakfast with her parents. It was a Sunday and she woke up late. Even her mother took liberty and woke up leisurely.
She was relishing her favourite gobi parathas when she heard the shrill sound of someone's phone ringing. Her father's ringtone.
Both her and her mother's eyes moved to the man who picked up the call with a smile on his face. They exchanged looks with Mansi’s mother asking her through her eyes who it could he and Mansi shrugged having absolutely no clue about who could make her father smile that much.
“Arree bhai? Kya baat aaj bade logo ko hamari yaad kaise aa gyi?”
Her father started making her frown. Must be some of his friends. His smile told so.
“Bade log hi ho bhai. Kaha hum chhote log kaha aap US rehne wale NRIs.”
Her father teased and she saw her mother's lips turn into a smile as she caught on who it could be.
“Saale! US jaane ke baad doston ko bhul gaya na. India mai bhi aapke tuchh dost baithe hai. Kabhi yaha bhi aa jaaya kar.”
She too smiled seeing how freely her father talked to whoever it was. Her mother hit his arm at his language with a smile making him look at her for a brief second.
“Favour? Ab tu favour mangega kamine?”
There was silence for some time. Maybe the person on the other hand was telling something as her father seemed to be listening very carefully.
A smile formed on his face again as he spoke.
“Arre isme bolne wali kya baat hai? Apna hi ghar hai uska. Jitna marzi din rahe. Yaha toh koi dikkat hi nhi hai.”
There was silence again. Her father nodded and spoke again.
“Tu mujhe uski flight details bhej de. Mai pick kr lunga airport se… arre kya formality. Apna bacha hai isme kaisi problem?... Aisa kaise? Ek toh bacha itni lambi flight se aayega, phir wo khudki cab bhi book karaye.”
Her mother nodded agreeing with her father as if she understood everything. She probably did because that's how their bond was. They understood each other. And she adored that.
“Tu na mujhe uska number bhej. Mai khud baat kr lunga. Teri toh formality hi puri nhi ho rhi.”
He laughed at something, talked about random things and finally hung up with a smile still lingering on his face.
“Kya hua?”
Mansi asked, really curious now. Who was coming? She understood it might be the person's child but she wanted to know the full story.
“Arre mera friend hai na. Karan. Karan Malhotra. Wo US wala. Tu jyada baar nhi mili hui. Shaadi ke kuch saal baad hi US shift ho gaya tha. Uska beta aa rha hai yaha. India mai hi settle hoga wo. Toh jab tak yaha uska ghar wagerah setup nhi ho jaata yaha hi stay krega. Uske liye call kr rha tha.”
Mansi nodded and went back to her parantha while her father started telling her mother about his flight details as he was informed.
Apparently the guest was coming next week.
“Wo guest room khaali kr dena Madhuri. Bache ko problem na ho na.”
“Waise naam kya hai iss bache ka?”
Mansi asked curiously. She needed to know her guests name. Wouldn't look good asking him now, will it?
“Ranit Malhotra.”
Her father said while still talking to her mother about something and Mansi stopped. Ranit? Ranit Malhotra? Her Ranit?
No! There would he thousands of Ranits and hundreds of Ranit Malhotras in the world. She shook her thoughts off and focused on her breakfast.
Mansi cleared the guest room with her mother, putting all the necessary stuff in place. Even her spare things were put there, which she shifted back to her room.
She was too tired that night. With all the picking up heavy stuff, her back ached. She stretched herself and slumped on the bed.
That night she had a dream of him again. After a long time. Ranit Malhotra. The guy she had a crush on once.
She got admission in her dream university. Delhi University. She entered the premises with a wide smile on her face. The energy and the vibe around here was different.
She liked it. Just looking at the students' faces filled her with happiness and a weird charge.
She was walking in the campus looking around everything with a glint in her eyes when something cliché happened.
Her foot got stuck with her own and she fell forward. Just as she had accepted her fate of breaking a few bones on the first day, she felt an arm hold her from her waist and the other hold her arm to stabilize her.
She muttered a quick thank you to God and got back on her feet. She pushed her hair behind and looked at the person who helped her to thank him but froze.
Handsome would be an understatement for what she was seeing. The man in front of her was so so much more than that. Beautifully handsome. Almost 6’3 ft in height, coal black wavy hair, which looked too smooth for a man. Striking honey brown eyes. A sharp jawline that made her want to run her hand over it. Lashes so lucious and thick that it made her jealous. Perfect lips that made her want to test how it would feel to kiss them.
All in all he was perfection. And she realised she was staring. Clearing her throat she looked away awkwardly.
“Umm-thank you.”
She mumbled. He nodded and left without a word, making her frown. ‘Banda it's ok hi bol de. Awaaz toh sunai deti. Kya faayda hoga itni hotness ka agar awaaz hot na ho toh.’ She sighed but then shrugged thinking ‘Sanu ki?’ and moved to her classroom.
The guest was arriving today. Her mother was in the kitchen making all sorts of delicacies she could think of for a day. Her father had gone to pick him up. He would be adeiving at any minute now. The flight landed almost an hour and a half ago.
Mansi had just settled down when the bell rang. She got up and went to open the door.
Her father came into view. He was carrying a trolley bag.
“Jaake ek baar baaki saaman nikalwa de uske saath gaadi se.”
He said and Mansi moved out. The man was leaning into the trunk of the car picking out his luggage.
“Need any help?”
She called standing at a respectable distance from him. He shut the trunk and turned to her making her eyes widen in shock and her body froze.
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