How To Date A Greek Boy

The Hypnosis of Fran and Marie

“Hermes? Kon? Hector! Anyone? Open up!” I yelled through the boys’ room door urgently. It was 8 in the morning. I didn’t expect them to be up already. They seemed to be allergic to early mornings.
“Uh, who? What? What happened?” Kon stumbled out in a shirtless daze.
Let’s take a moment here, ladies and gents, to admire the structure of the Greek body.
I sighed deeply, and tore my gaze away from Kon’s body, to his face. “I can’t find Marie and Fran.”
“Hmmm.” He muttered sleepily. “That’s good..”
“ARE YOU EVEN LISTENING TO ME?!” I shook him hard. The heat from his bare skin transferred to me.
“Yes. Marie. Fran. Can’t find them…” He sleepily nodded, his eyes fluttering shut.

And then all of a sudden, it hit him.
“Wait, WHAT?!”
“I don’t know what happened! Fran texted me they were going for a walk, but that was at six! It’s been two hours, and they’ve still not returned!”
“Just one second.” He turned back into the room, still in a slight daze. I almost followed him in.
“NO NO! You can’t come in!” He blocked the entrance and I almost bumped into him.
Are you stupid?! You should have walked right into him! You get to touch him and his shirtless chest! What’s wrong with you, Lee!, my Inner Girl lamented. You are not a girl. You are a walking, talking, pile of stupidity, I swear.
“They.. The boys… Not decent.” Kon averted his eyes from me.
OH MY GOD THAT’S DISGUSTING. They all sleep naked TOGETHER?, The Inner Girl was almost fainting. I ignored the deep blush that covered my cheeks at that thought.
“I mean, not naked! Just a little.. not decent.” He seemed to be reading my awkward thoughts.
“I’ll just be right here.” I stepped outside the room.
I can’t believe two of my friends are missing and here I am, drowning in awkwardness.

“Right, they’re decent now. Just coming.” Kon nodded, stepping out after a few minutes. He’d thrown on a shirt, but was still in his shorts and his face was dripping, like he’d just splashed some water on it.
“What happened to Frankie and Marie?” Hermes literally jumped out of the room a few seconds after Kon, and Hector was close to follow. And he didn’t look so put together- his hair stood out in different directions, and his slippers were mismatched. So were Hermes’.

Actually, they’d worn one of theirs, and one of the others. But I wasn’t about to waste time exchanging fashion tips.

“Come on.” I beckoned to them to follow me. On the way out I told them what had happened.
“Crista?” Kon asked.
“Still sleeping. Wouldn’t budge.”
“Drunk too much.” He chuckled. “We need pills. Bad hangover.” He nodded toward Hermes, who looked like he was nursing the worst hangover ever. “But first Fran and Marie.”

And that was how one girl and three boys got out on the streets of Mumbai, with nothing except some money, our phones, and a hangover. Everyone around us was in formals, heading towards office, and we were in night clothes. Thank god I’d thrown on my bra before I got out.

We went around flashing Fran and Marie’s photos, asking shopkeepers if they’d seen the two girls. After about an hour, and at least fifty shopkeepers in all, we found one shop in a by-lane, where the shopkeeper claimed to have seen them ‘shopping’. We followed his directions to where they were.

The scene as we reached the place where we finally found them was interesting, to say the least.

Fran and Marie looked on, in absolute rapt attention, as a man in orange robes with a long flowing beard, with three lines of ash on his forehead and a beaded necklace and bracelet swung a crystal on a string in front of them.
“Now, you will feel a warm feeling inside. You will feel happy. Do you feel happy?” He whispered to them.
“I feel happy.” Marie stared on, wide eyed, her eyes never leaving the pendulum.
“Exhilarated.” Fran said, copying Marie’s actions, following the pendulum.
“Good. Now feel the happiness running through you. Feel it in your veins. Your toes will tingle. Do they?”
“They tingle.” Fran said.
“Hmmmmm.” Marie said.
“Now you’ll hear a voice inside your head. Do you hear it? It’s telling you to give me money…” He continued.