Just in a day

RIVAAN

I'm finally done with college and I was called here in ‘the literary lantern’ to ‘learn and understand’ how the food business works. ‘It is quite ironic that when I was told to arrive on time , the person who told me cancelled and told me an hour later. I feel like he must've been a jerk’.
‘That ‘jerk’ is your father Rivaan and it will not do any harm to you to call him dad for once.’
‘You know i've always called you pappy but i think now i should call you grumpy grandpa, no i have a better one, ‘THE OLD MAN’ i said to my ‘pappy’ while taking the cigar out of his hand and putting in my mouth.
Pappy sighed and leaned from at the table from behind that counter and said ‘It's not funny and he loves you just as much as I do and just as much as your mother did’.
My mother did! But she can’t anymore and I don't have her anymore and I never will and it's all because of him.
I could feel a tight knot in my throat and stinging tears in my eyes and I could do just one thing that I always do, I put my hand in my jacket’s pocket and closed my fist as tightly as I could.
I finally looked up and gave a wry smile to Pappy and told him that sometimes it feels like you are his dad and not my mother’s.
‘I know that you pick up this mocking expression when you are hurt and i know you are but you are grown up now and you cannot hold a forever grudge against your father’
‘Watch me Pappy’.
‘You know i'm not here for long to watch you, i'm already 60  and i would very much like it if you just talk to him’. 
Before I could say anything to him cut and continued what he was saying.
‘ You think that your father didn't love your mother but that is stupid, it wasn't his fault. The accident wasn’t his fault and you can pretend to not to believe it but deep down you know that he loved your mother more than anything and since then he is trying his best to connect with you’
‘and that must be why he cancelled on me again?’ I shrugged him off.
‘Okay, let's drop this for now on’ said grandpa.
‘I think we should but pappy let's not be in this serious uncomfortable awkward phase and to get past this i have a great pla-’
‘No, you are not smoking my cigar but you can have a drink since you are graduate now’ said pappy and then he went behind the counter to make me a negroni. This has been an official drink all the ‘Awasthi’  men have had after their graduation. The drink was good and it's not like i haven't had a negroni before, it's just that my family doesnt know that i have it yet and it was like a ritual and  i didn't want to disappoint pappy and so drank it and gave him the most realistic expression i could. Pappy and I kept on squabbling.
I was spinning on the revolving chair looking at the negroni that I couldn't seem to finish when I saw her. I dont for just how long i  kept looking at her  but i knew it was long, as she was ordering food before and now her ‘oh captain, my captain’ meal has arrived.
‘ Love her yet?’ Pappy teased with a grin.
‘Uh- wha-. No, she was just-, i was just-, Wait! And stop with that smile Pappy, I was just looking in a direction and she is pretty and I looked at her just for a second okay?’
‘Just for a sec huh, son, it's been fifteen minutes and I know you would know that as her order has arrived. Go talk to her or you can wait for her to catch you staring’. Pappy teased AGAIN!
I told him I will do whatever I want and that he doesn't tell me what I should do and then  shamelessly  I got up from my chair and walked into her direction.
I have been with girls before, I have been with many girls before actually. That is one of the perks you have when you are rich and decent looking and when you start to hit the gym at the age of 16.
But this time, it was different and it was not like that i fell in love at first sight or anything like that, it was the attraction that she had. She was beautiful like BEAUTIFUL beautiful, not pretty beautiful.  She was wearing a black turtleneck with blue denims and a brown jacket. Her hair was open and a claw clip was hung on the edge of the jacket.
I walked towards here and then her gaze fell upon me and i said
‘Hi’.