SHE KEPT ME WARM IN DECEMBER

It all started on a summer evening. It was around 5:30 pm. "It's damn boring. I'll put on my shoes and go to the court, just to watch my friends playing badminton." But little did Venkat know, a great turning point in his life had already stepped into the court. By the time he reached the court, a beautiful girl with a racket in her hand, trying to defeat her little brother, came into view. Venkat was awestruck looking at her. He sat down, thinking, "Why is she so cute? I at least would have liked to know her name." All of a sudden, the kid screamed loudly, "Bhanu! I will never forgive you!"

"Bhanu!!! Woah, she even has a beautiful name," Venkat pronounced. Bhanu, with her almond-shaped eyes highlighted with mascara, looked at Venkat with a weird look. "Who is this creep?" Bhanu's mind voice was actually portrayed by her beautiful eyes. "Ah, shit, I think she heard it. What an awkward situation," thought Venkat.

"Who are you?" asked Bhanu with a smirk on her face. When Venkat started to introduce himself, Bhanu said "whatever" and turned to her brother, continuing the game. "So arrogant!" thought Venkat, and the next second he realized it's okay for a girl who is so cute to be arrogant. After a while, Bhanu was tired and walked to the bench Venkat was sitting on. Venkat thought not to start a conversation with her, as he was afraid that if she said something hurtful, he would also reply arrogantly and it would come to an end.

Bhanu was dripping in sweat. The court was surrounded by three buildings and a Hanuman temple on the left side of it. Because of the summer evening, the sun was bright orange. When the rays of the setting sun hit Bhanu, the dripping sweat droplets caught the rays and Bhanu looked like an orange Jessamine. Venkat had never seen something like that. He badly wanted to talk with her. She drank some water and spilled some on her waist; she was irritated by the sun rays and sweat. Venkat tried to give her the towel he had brought, but Bhanu did not even look at him once.

Bhanu is a 17-year-old brown girl who is friendly but somewhat shy about interacting with strangers. When Bhanu first looked at Venkat, she thought he was cute, but after he said that, the impression was gone. A few minutes of silence passed until Venkat turned to Hanuman and said, "Do some magic, please." The very next moment, a ringtone was heard: "I got a blank space, baby, and I'll write your name," and some music continued. Bhanu was searching for her phone. Meanwhile, Venkat answered the call, said "that's fine," and ended it. Bhanu looked at Venkat with an amazed face, asking him, "Are you a Swiftie?" Venkat replied with a smiling face, "Yeah!! Who on earth doesn't love Taylor Swift?" Bhanu smiled, and the same song played again. But this time it was Bhanu's phone. Venkat became so happy that he already found a reason to talk to her. Just to impress her, he started singing, "Rabba ne tujhko banane mein kardi hai husn ki—" Bhanu understood that instantly and tried hard not to blush. Venkat asked her, "Do you know this song?" Bhanu replied, "Are, isko kaun nahi jaanta, ye toh mera favorite hai." Venkat was out of words. He had always wanted to meet a girl who looks this cute and listens to good music. Bhanu liked the way Venkat was approaching her.

"Up for a game?" asked Bhanu. "Oh my god, got more time to talk with her," thought Venkat. "I'm not really a pro in badminton," he said sarcastically. "Neither am I," said Bhanu. The shuttlecock tossed into the air. "I live in Nellore," said Bhanu. "Then why here?" asked Venkat. "My grandparents live here. I came here for my vacation. I think I'll probably stay here for 2 weeks," said Bhanu. He thought, "Huh, that's enough time for me to stay with you."

"What do you do?" she asked. "I'm pursuing my B.Tech, and I'm 21," he said. "Oh, that's nice. I'm 17 and still in my +2," she said. And the conversation went on. They were talking about their likes and dislikes until a loud voice called, "Bhanu Sree, it's late already, come on now." "It's my mom," she said. He found out that the house next to the court is Bhanu's house. "I gotta go," she said. "Yeah, fine. It was great talking to you," said Venkat with a sad face. Bhanu left without saying a word while Venkat was expecting that she would give him her Instagram. Nothing happened that evening. Venkat went home and returned the next evening, only to find out that Bhanu did not show up to play. He waited, but nothing happened. Three days passed by, but it was the same. He thought, "Okay, this is it. I'm unlucky, I guess. I just can't keep staring at that window of her room all evening and sit idle. I will just go out today and watch a movie." But his heart was saying, "One last try today."

He went to the court, and she was not there. He started listening to some songs. Bhanu came that evening. Venkat was happy and angry at the same time. "Us two again?" asked Bhanu. "Yeah, I told my friends not to come. I don't want to play with them when you are around," he said. She understood it and said, "Oh, nice." They both started playing. Venkat did not really want to ask her where she had been, but Bhanu, who saw him every day from her window, that he was waiting for her to show up, also remained silent.

"It's Ugadi tomorrow, right?" asked Bhanu. "Yeah, it is," he said. Out of nowhere, she said, "I love pink and orange." She thought he understood the hint, but Venkat was too dumb to get the point. After a while, "Here, take my Instagram. You can text me when you come here. There is no need to stare at my window and wait for me," she said. Venkat understood that and said, "No, I was waiting for my friends," he said. "Okay, I'm leaving now. I will come to the temple tomorrow," said Bhanu. The next day, he brought some flowers from the market: roses for Bhanu and hibiscus for Hanuman. After the puja was over, they sat together and Venkat said, "Here, I've seen these roses this morning. I thought the only place they look beautiful is when they are in your hands," he said. Bhanu blushed a little and took them. Days passed by, and they grew a special bond with each other. Their tastes were alike. Bhanu slowly started liking Venkat; she loved the efforts he put in to impress her. But she was afraid to confess it, thinking he might stop those cute little gestures if she said she liked him first. Bhanu kept quiet and enjoyed them. Even Venkat started liking her; he always used to think about her until one day, Venkat thought to ask her out.