wooing Meera Rai

XXV | day five - the date (part two)

XXV | day five - the date (part two)

"Seriously?"

"Yes. That is how I got into the field of architecture."

Meera shook her head in disbelief. She almost choked on the spicy lemonade she was slurping when Vihaan narrated how he got in the field.

"I don't believe you."

"No, it is true." Vihaan removed the paper cover of the corndogs he had bought them and offered one to Meera. "I was in the eighth grade, and I asked a girl out - just because I was provoked by my asshole classmate and she created this whole scene, yelled aloud in joy -" Meera rolled her eyes, "- and that caught the attention of a teacher who clearly hated me and had me punished. The punishment was to stare at the blank wall behind the school building for two hours and I remember being so angry. I mean, you cannot just punish Vikram Singh Chauhan's son like that right -" Another eye roll from Meera, but this time with a small smile to counter Vihaan's cheeky one. "And just when I was about to phone my father, there she was..."

The old building built in the Victorian era had mesmerised Vihaan in a way he explained that was equivalent to what Meera termed as breathtaking and mesmerising. He was in awe those two hours when he looked at the building and the structure, the bricks that lay on top of each other, the worn out scratches and holes, the layered beautiful floors and most of all, how everything looked perfect when the sun shone right above it.

Vihaan was in love. He was in love with the school, the walls, the architecture and most of all, the idea that a man could build this.

"That was it. I forgot all about the punishment and immediately went to my career counsellor. Hurriedly, I ran past the students and begged him to listen to my new career - and he was more than happy to guide me. I had no ambitions before that." Vihaan winked at Meera who was eating all of his stories, "and lo and behold, here I am, the best architect in town, nay the state."

"Sure." Meera concluded, taking a small bite of the very delicious snack. She really liked the way Vihaan's eyes lit each time he spoke about his career. "If you say so."

The entire day was nothing short of a beautiful rollercoaster. After the book cafe, Vihaan had taken Meera to an art gallery - precisely, an architecture gallery where he couldn't help but flaunt everything they had to offer. Then they had lunch over a cutesy, sea side restaurent and caught a rom-com movie in the theatres. They then got themselves enveloped in a fun fair that was happening at the outskirts of the city and Meera and Vihaan got in the competitive spirit where they played every single game in the stalls. That took most of their evening as they sat beside each other facing the lake, on a wooden bench with some hot delicious corndogs Vihaan bought for them.

After that long day, they deserved a snack and devoured the snack within seconds. Meera was trying so hard to find ways to reject Vihaan's offer but forgot about it each time he spoke to her. The day had gone by pretty fast and equally fun. She didn't remember the last time she had so much fun, and with a man, to say the least. She smiled as Vihaan continued speaking about his firm and the new building he was working on, and watched a man relay his passionate side to her.

Sure, Vihaan Singh Chauhan was still the handsome, rich, and annoying man who couldn't help but flaunt his status and lifestyle but what separated him from the lot was his eyes - his brown chocolate eyes that spoke more than his words did. She could read them, just as easily as any of her books, she could see the lack of light in them, she could see her soulless reflection in them and she could see how hard Vihaan was trying to push his darkness aside.

Those eyes, Meera knew, that some day those eyes would cause her immense pain. Because they held so much pain, she was sure it would overflow some day, and she wished to be there - not as a mere spectator, of course. But to be there with him, for him.