To Love Or Not To Love| A FEATURED STORY

Chapter 16

After a lot of persuasion, everybody was on board for a catch up on the weekend after. With calculated sneakiness, Anu convinced that a mere get together would not suffice, and they need to plan better to unwind from their hectic lives. Everyone tentatively agreed, and Anu came up with a detailed plan.

She booked for a camping trip near BR Hills, after much thought, which took about five hours from Bangalore to reach. It was a first for her too. She had never been to a wilderness camp and never planned anything of that kind to the T. Rajendra's assistants had planned their trips. These mostly consisted of his business meetings while she spent time at the exotic resorts or shopping. He would join her for a part of the day, occasionally.

They would attend well-orchestrated evening parties with other business partners and their respective spouses or girlfriends or dates for the night. Initially, she was thrilled to be there, and Rajendra would often join her for a quiet night. Soon, it became repetitive. Their quiet nights together never happened, hence she lost interest. However, she had to still be there for appearances.

Anu shook her head to get rid of those depressing thoughts. She wanted to enjoy herself, and she was happy that Ajay would be there. A known person amidst almost strangers was just right for her. She knew Ajay understood her at a more personal level, and she could rely on him for something unforeseen. She wanted to rip away all her shackles and move ahead, be adventurous but not reckless.

Ajay was swamped with so much work that he hadn't given much thought about the upcoming trip. He knew his conscious mind was telling him it was for Anu's sake that he had agreed, but his conscience knew it was for both Anya and Anu. His favourite two As' in his life. He was determined to salvage his friendship with Anya at any cost.

Anya was a little sceptical about spending time with Ajay around but was happy they would be on a trip which may or may not involve a lot of interactions between the two. It was an adventure trip into the wilderness of Western Ghats of India. She knew this trip would fill her yearning for her native town to some extent. She was looking forward, in particular, for the nature walk and jungle safari that were mentioned in the itinerary. She was, however, happy Sanjay could get away from the closed life he led. She was pissed for not doing something of this kind for him earlier.

Though initially, reluctant about spending the whole weekend away from home, Anya persuaded Sanjay to take the much-needed break. From there, it was just a piece of cake to inform his family about it.

Sanjay was a little shocked when his mother smilingly said, "You deserve it Sanju. Just go without second thoughts. Moreover, it's only for the weekend. You'll be back by Sunday evening, won't you? Don't worry about us. Enjoy the break."

His family did not know anything else about the trip, other than that, that he was going out with his anonymous friends.

Finally, the weekend did come by, and as agreed, they started at dawn in Ajay's Ford EcoSport. It was advised in the itinerary to pack dark shades of clothing such as grey, black, brown, dark green or khaki to meld with the forest surroundings along with other essentials like bug repellent, sunscreen, sunglasses and hats. Single-use plastics were strictly prohibited.

While Anu sat in the passenger seat Anya and Sanjay, who met at Anya's apartment complex, bundled at the back.

"Hey, guys. Good Morning," Anu greeted merrily.

As Sanjay chirped a "Hey Anu" with the same enthusiasm, she heard a sleepy, "Hi Anu" from Anya.

Ajay's breath hitched at the sound of Anya's voice. It had a soft timbre and a hint of sleepiness which sounded even sexier. The morning mist and cool air only added to the overall effect she had on him.