The Guests. #1

× Hidden Intentions ×

It was time for Tara to leave. She hugged me goodbye, as she hopped into her own car. Adi was going to drive her to the train station, where she was going to get off at Mumbai Station and then take a flight to Goa from the airport. Her journey was going to be tiresome, so I packed in a lot of homemade food for her. She was extremely touched by my gesture.

"Thank you, my jaan. I will miss you a lot."

I watched them leave, as I went back inside. The bungalow was all to myself, as I perched myself on the couch. I decided to make dinner before Aditya came home. I went to the kitchen to prepare a vegetable curry and roti. After I finished cooking, I decided to wash my clothes and hang them on the line outside. As I was putting up the clothes, I noticed villagers walking about the gravel roads and green hills. I really craved to see more of Conoor than just Tara's fancy bungalow. Ever since I came to Conoor, I hadn't had the opportunity to explore it. I finished putting up the last clothing item when I noticed a girl coming towards the bungalow. From far, I noticed she was tall and slim. She was fair skinned and had long black tresses. She was wearing a black leather jacket and black denim jeans. I made my way towards the door, as I closely noticed her light brown eyes and sharp nose, that was reminiscent of those beautiful Kashmiri like features. She was about to ring the bell when she was surprised to see me coming towards her.

"Oh hey! Does this bungalow belong to Tara Desai?"

I smiled, staring at her gorgeous face. Connor had no dearth of young, attractive girls that were residing in this town.

"Yes, it does. But she's away on a business trip. How are you related to her?"

"Oh, there's no relation between us. But I've been trying to get in contact with her for a while now. I even tried to find her at her tea estate."

"Well, she's not here either. Did you want me to pass on a message to her on your behalf."

"Sure. Just tell her that Zara Khan wants to meet her."

"And who are you exactly?"

"Her boyfriend's ex."

Aditya's ex? Woah! She realized that my expression had changed.

"What? Do you know him as well?"

"No. I've just heard of him. But why do you want to meet Tara?"

"It's personal. I prefer to tell her in person. But who are you by the way?"

"I'm her guest. But now I'm the caretaker till she comes back."

I didn't want to tell her much since she was a strange stranger. It was best I kept things to a minimum.

"Oh okay. I heard my ex has been staying with her. Is he inside?"

"No, he's not inside either. He's actually going away with Tara as well."

I lied. God knows. She could be a jealous ex.

"Right. Off course he has. Alrighty but just let Tara know that I need to meet her soon. It's really important that we meet."

"Sure."

"Thanks. And what was your name?"

"Ileana Singh."

"Wait, your Ileana Singh?!"

"Yeah?"

Great! Even people in Conoor knew who I was. I was famous, but without any choice. She looked at me with wide eyes, as if she wanted to tell me something important. She was about to speak, till we heard a motorbike approaching.