Kabir wasn't sure why his mind kept going going blank; this usually didn't happen to him. The girl in front of him seemed shy and someone who usually kept to herself, and he didn't really mind that. It was nice to meet a girl who wasn't fawning over him or giving him moony-eyed looks for once, as presumptuous as that felt.
He had known he'd had to to break the conversation barrier that had existed between them for the past hour or so. She'd been engrossed in her book, albeit after checking him out and being caught red-handed, and he'd had to go back to reading the rushed texts he'd left for his friends and his brother.
He would've ideally preferred listening to music at a time like this, it was his only escape and he did need some time to process the enormity of his recent actions. But, like a giant idiot, he'd forgotten his headphones at home. And blasting music at this late in the night in a compartment having a family with kids didn't seem like the bright choice.
Besides, he knew he'd be judged by the girl for that too.
He'd gotten a good look at her when she was reading. She had dark brown wavy hair with streaks of light brown in them, and a round face that seemed like it would show her dimples when she smiled. She had almost curled up into a ball while reading and he was fully aware that she was so engrossed in the book that she definitely had no idea that he had been looking at her.
From where he had been sitting, she looked petite and frail in her loose hoodie and trousers, almost as if trying to hide from the world. He understood that.
His eyes had then fallen on the book she had been reading and he had smiled inwardly in victory; he'd found his conversation starter. It's weird he needed one at all anyway, he was used to being the extrovert amongst his friends. His supposed friend circle was larger than he could count, and a simple smile from his side would get people to talk to him.
He felt this girl was different though. For the past thirty minutes, she hadn't even looked up from her book, and Kabir didn't know if he wanted to disturb her just to alleviate his boredom. But after an intense two minute debate with himself, he had cleared his throat and unintentionally blurted the worst line he could have thought of.
She did look completely appalled, and he couldn't even blame her. He literally could have mentioned anything in the whole universe; hell, even talking about his annoying uncle would have been better than talking about the current humidity levels.
Luckily, a quickly mumbled apology and few moments later, she had seemed to relax a little and he had mentally celebrated this small victory. His hands had started to sweat a little, and he had to keep subtly wiping them on his jeans to avoid another disaster.
He liked it when she smiled and approved of his choice of preferred books. He had been right, she did have dimples. And they only showed themselves when she smiled(or laughed, he guessed).
"So what other books do you like to read?" He'd milk this one particular topic for as long as could, he was unsure how big of a window he actually had to talk to her. From what his instincts told him, it was small.
She seemed to think hard about this, as if to make sure that she was a hundred percent certain about her answer. She finally looked back at him and said, "I usually read fiction."
Kabir shook his head in affirmation, but he waited to see if she turned the question back on him. He didn't want to answer the question without it even being asked. After a silence that seemed to last for an eternity, she finally spoke.
"Um, what about you?"
She had a soft, timid voice that could almost lull you to sleep. He exhaled loudly. So she wasn't completely averse to the idea of talking to him, that was a relief. He would've hated pestering her with questions and to not get back any in return.
"I usually read non-fiction, but I occasionally bite into Mystery and Thrillers."
"That's nice."
Kabir couldn't help but feel how stilted the conversation was. He knew it wouldn't be easy to get any girl to get chatty with him in an almost empty train late at night, but he had selfishly hoped the book would be a great way to break the ice. He had been wrong. She still seemed wary of him, despite having smiled at him once or twice. He was almost certain she was only responding to his questions to be polite. Was she waiting for him to stop talking so that she could go back to her novel? He wouldn't blame her if she did.
He hadn't realized his inner battle had made it seem like he was staring at her, and he immediately looked away. He noticed how she was looking at the floor instead of him. He was certain she was getting creeped out by him.
He unknowingly blushed, feeling like an idiot. He cleared his throat again and said, "Well I'm sorry for disturbing you. You can go back to reading your book. Um, goodnight."
Kabir half-mumbled the words and turned away, to look at the passing trees and fields outside his window. Hell, it was late. He should have probably tried sleeping. The coach was dim enough, except for the small bulb near the girl's berth.
He stretched out his legs on the seat and leaned his back against the wall. The compartment was silent, save the occasional sound of the train running on its tracks. He closed his eyes, feeling the sounds pulse through his veins.
"Um, if you're bored, I have an extra book that you can borrow?"
His eyes snapped open and he turned to look at the girl. She seemed nervous and taken aback, like she hadn't expected herself to say those words either. But she had, and Kabir smiled politely.
"Sure. Uh..what book do you have?"
He stood up as she rummaged in her backpack and pulled out a worn copy of a Dan Brown novel. Of course she liked the works of Dan Brown, he wasn't even surprised.
"Thank you, this is very nice of you", he said as he stepped forward to take the book from her outstretched hand. She had slim fingers, and her nails were covered in bright blue nail polish which was chipped at the ends.
She smiled a small smile and lowered her eyes to the floor again. "Not at all, I just hope you haven't already read it."
"Don't worry, it's the only one of his that I haven't."
****
Progress? Yay!
I'm well aware that there might be grammatical errors in this chapter, but I tried my best to fix any I found. If you find any, do let me know.
For all of you wondering(and hoping) if Kabir and Tanika are going to be romantically involved in the future, I'm gonna say - No promises. They are just beginning to form an unlikely friendship, and there are a couple of plot twists that I have planned that will heavily alter their relationship. So all I'll say is, stay tuned to find out how their story unfolds.
Thank you for all the comments, and votes. I love seeing them and they genuinely make my day.
Next chapter will be up in a few days! Meanwhile, I hope you all are taking care of yourselves during these times, and staying safe. We're all in this together.
- Waffle
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Dominoes
Teen Fiction"You often meet your fate on the path you take to avoid it." He needs space. She needs to live. They're both on the same journey, but for different reasons. But is the path of running away from home really a solitary one? *** Kabir's grown up hav...
