Always Is Not Forever (Breaking Myself - Part II)

24. The One Where I Expose Us

[ K A B I R ' S P O V ]

"Why your girlfriend is blushing too much today?" My head raised from my book to stare at Kriti and Alina, joining us under the tree.

My gaze halted at Alina, or more like the pink glow apparent on her face. Ignoring Kriti, she sat next to me and her shy smile was a giveaway to me. She was thinking about last night. I was thinking about last night.

"Why are you saying to him?" Sagar laughed, clutching his stomach. "He's grinning without any reason today too."

"Shut up, loser." I slung my arm over Alina's shoulder, but she didn't turn her attention to me, opened her novel and started reading it. "Do you even study your course books?"

"As a matter of fact, she does," Kriti interrupted, sitting next to Deb on the ground and waved her hand to remove the sweat rising on her face. "Explain to me who studies in college? I hate her marks. I hate college, too much work, too many assignments and projects and character studies."

"There is a reason I call her bookworm." If we removed the scolding her father had given me the day he realized I called Alina bookworm, but later, he had cooled down and stared at Alina and nodded his head.

"My daughter is a bookworm." We both had laughed. The only sign he liked me and didn't bear any bad blood for me even if he was going to hate me for hiding such a big stuff from him.

From two months, we were in Bangalore, hiding the living together stuff after our big fight in her sister's Rokha and the traumatizing state in which I had found Alina. We were supposed to leave at the end of the year for her sister's marriage and I had no idea how further her nerves would be pulled up during that time. From two months, I had been dodging mom's attempt to come and visit me. She wanted to see if Alina was fine, but how do I explain Alina and I were living together? Mom would be hurt, too hurt, realizing I hid such a big thing from her.

I was used to hiding things from dad, but not her. But what was my mistake? Alina had a fear and I didn't want to encourage the fear to take my bookworm from me.

"Explain why are you both smiling too much?" Kriti howled.

I and Alina shared a look, shaking our head, "We're just happy."

Just happy after working our promise last night of getting shirtless and having a make out.

It was hot.

Too hot that I had to control myself in between when all her torso area was free for me to touch. No doubt I had touched it before when I was helping her with a shower, but it wasn't what we had last night.

She was so beautiful, especially when her skin started to turn red. Her skin was soft and damn responsive when my finger ran across her stomach. The way she arched her back hitched my breath and her shallow breath and sounds she makes were addicting. She was addicting.

How did I get her in the first place?

"You both are hiding something," Sagar equipped. "Tell us before we go crazy."

"I'm not telling my private life to a bunch of perverts." I snuggled my nose in her hair, sniffing her fragrance and grinning when I heard a sharp intake of breath. "What are we doing here? Isn't college ended?"

"Yup, it did." Alina shifted a bit, breaking my hold on her hair and gave me a side glare. "I need to go somewhere."

"Where?"

"The marketing agent I told you about." She closed her book shut, turning all her attention to me. "I never knew writing is like a business. I need to market my book. It sucks."