EMOTIONALLY ATTACHED

5. The Work Burden

Anupamaa sat on her desk, her thumb stuck between her teeth and eyes narrowed at one random point as if lost in deep thought. She was early for class and this wasn't the first time but the umpteenth. When she escapes her home this is the place she finds herself in. She had already called Vanraj and he entered in too.

"Hey....", he hugged her. "Missed you...".

"Missed you too... How have you been?", she asked.

"Um... Exactly how you left me last evening!! Why are you asking as if it's been days since we last met?"

She actually felt as if a long time had passed in between. Time just stretches when she's home. "Nothing... It's just my head...!"

"Dard ho raha hai? Let me press it for ya...", he pressed her head with his fingers.

"Vanraj I am fine...", she held his hand. "But so thoughtful of you! I had an argument with Dad..."

"About what?"

"He saw us kissing outside my house and said we can't marry..."

Vanraj got up from his place. "What!! No no no... No!! You can't do this to me Anupamaa!! You can't!! You said you love me t-"

"Vanraj!? Relax!! He said I can't marry you... But... I want to marry you and I will... He can't stop me... Nor could the law...!!", she assured.

"Thank god!! You scared the hell out of me!!", Vanraj hugged her. "What and why did he say so?"

"He said... If I want to romance you I can... He can arrange for some foreign trip for our hanky-panky but he won't let me marry you...!!", she nodded her head as if disapproving of her father all over again like any other time.

'Wow... Foreign trip with the future owner of Merchant's estate... That too with her father's permission... How cool is her family....', Vanraj thought.

"How cheap of a thing to say to your daughter... Isn't it...??", she laid her head against his chest.

"Not that cheap...!! You know that's not a big deal!! He just wants you to be happy...."

"Then he should know what would make me happy!!", she replied. "You make me happy... And not as a timepass but... As a person who I genuinely want to love for the rest of my life with... I am not the type who would want to sleep with every other guy that's hot... It has to be for the sake of love and I would want to just want that one person forever..."

"You know what baby? When you talk like this na... You sound even more beautiful... I love you too....", and she melted in the warmth of his words. With his finger he removed her hair from her nape and put his palm there looking down trying to decode the colour of her bra strap from over the dark coloured chikan kurta.

"I love you so much Anu.... So very much....", he was getting more curious to find out. He pressed his lips on the length of her neck and gripped her kurta over her shoulder and was about to slip it a little for revealation but she held him back.

"Vanraj... What are you doing!!", she spread her hair on both side of her neck. "We are in classroom!! Control yourself..."

"Okay baby....", he set his elbow on the headrest of the bench and looked at her shoulders that he so badly wanted to grip and smear with his love.

She smiled. "You did your assignment??"

"Yeah Kavya did it for me...!!"

Anupamaa gave him a death glare.

"What!!", he acted unaware.

"Why would you ask Kavya?? You know I don't like how she tries to cling on to you..."