Coming Home!!

Chapter 49

"What kind of an idiot are you?" Charlotte exclaimed on the other side of the phone. Inaaya replied, "It was a right thing to do"

"How was it a right thing to do? You are thinking about your sister who already thinks of you as an enemy. It is not a crime to want something same as hers. He loves you and you love him. Don't complicate things anymore. Just go to him and apologize. Right now...You don't know how mad I am right now at you. If I could fly back right now and kick you, I would have done it already"

"I have said many things to him but this time what I said, might have hurt him the most. Do you think he'll forgive me?"

"I don't know. Just go before I come out of this phone and slap you" Charlotte hung up. Inaaya couldn't get his words out of her head. She took a deep breath as she remembered Grandpa's advice: 'Never be afraid to apologize if you are wrong'. She leashed Vanilla and walked out the house. It was already evening. She knocked on his door. She had practiced what she would say to him but her heart was racing faster than usual. She felt scared that maybe he would not even look at her. While she was going over the scenarios in her head, she was surprised to see Mrs. Kapoor smiling at her. She greeted, "Hello Inaaya"

She hestitated a smile, "Hello Mrs. K. I thought... you were supposed to return tomorrow"

Mrs. Kapoor walked inside with Inaaya and Vanilla following her, "I don't know. I got a call from Ayu that he is not feeling well. So, I hopped on the next flight and came home. I got home like an hour ago. You want anything to eat?"

She shook her head, "No, actually I was here..."

Ayaan climbed down from his room. He had something in his hand. He had a smile on his face but when he saw her, his eyes turned cold. He had wished for her to come but anger rose inside him when he saw her. He turned to his mother saying, "Mom, where is the scotch tape?"

She shrugged, "I'll check"

When Mrs. Kapoor went in her room, he whispered, "Hi"

She bit her lower lip controlling herself as his cold eyes stared at her. She swallowed before she started speaking, "I am sorry for this morning. I..."

Mrs. Kapoor came out and handed him the tape. She turned to Inaaya, "Sweetie, I'll get you and Vanilla something to eat. Come on"

Ayaan's mother walked in the kitchen. Ayaan held her hand and whispered in her ears, "I don't want anything from you. Just an answer"

He gave her something before returning upstairs. She opened her hand and saw a beaded bracelet with a note. She thought she had lost Saki's bracelet. A small smile appeared on her face. Slipping the note in her pocket, she wore the bracelet when Mrs. Kapoor called her.

Inaaya was walking back to her house after a walk on the street with Vanilla. She wanted to open the Ayaan's note but kept it in her hand. When she walked out of his house, her mind was puzzled. Since when he had this bracelet, she wondered. She saw her parents' car in the garage. Walking in the house, she found them resting on the couch in living room. She unleashed Vanilla who ran to Mr. Nanda and asked, "How was the trip?"

Mrs. Nanda replied, "It was good but it would have been way much fun with you"

Vanilla had crawled up to Mr. Nanda's lap who asked, "What did you do when we were not here? Tell me you didn't throw a party"

She laughed, "Dad, I don't like parties"

Mrs. Nanda nodded, "She is not like other kids. I knew she would have been a responsible kid."

Inaaya laughed nervously as reflections of last night came rushing back to her. 'A responsible kid', she didn't know how to tell them that she had a boy stay in her bedroom for three days. Mr. Nanda started playing with Vanilla while Mrs. Nanda went to unpack the bags. She told her father, "I'll be in my room, if you need me"

Quickly, she ran upstairs but found her door ajar. She found Zara in her room, sitting on her bed. A fear crept inside her. She closed the door behind her asking, "What are you doing here?"

Zara murmured as she stroked the sheets, "You shared this bed or was it in my room?"

Inaaya gulped, "What are you talking about?"

She threw Ayaan's shirt at Inaaya's feet saying, "I bought him this shirt last Christmas. Imagine my surprise when I went to wash away a stain from my dress and found his shirt in the laundry. I know he was here"

"What are you going to do? Tell mom and dad, go on. I'll tell them what really happened. I didn't do anything wrong" she replied secretly wishing that her sister will not do that. Zara smiled, "Really? Nothing happened. Sweetie, you should cover the love-bite over your neck before you say that"

Inaaya touched her neck reflexively. Zara got up and walked closer saying, "I am not going to tell anything to mom and dad, SISTER. I just came here to warn you. Stay away from my boyfriend"

"Ex-boyfriend" Inaaya corrected to which Zara fumed and walked out of the room after saying, "It is not over"

She picked up the shirt and sat on her bed reflexively tracing the beads of the necklace. She took out the note which read:

If you come to the rehearsals tomorrow, it will mean that you love me. If not, then I'll never bother you again

-Ayaan

She knew it was time for her to make the decision, to choose between Ayaan and Zara. No matter how much she wanted the feud between them to end, she knew Ayaan was real, her love for him was real. Looking at the shirt, she remembered what he said last night, how her heart raced when he touched her. She shook her head, "I am not like my sister"

Vanilla jumped on the bed and started staring at her. She smiled and said, "Let's toss a coin"

She took out a quarter from her pocket saying, "Heads, I go to rehearsals. Tails, I don't"

Then, she tossed the coin in air.