It Started with a Friend Request

by Nagarkar, Sudeep

  Tamanna nodded and Aleesha poured her a cup of tea.

  ‘Why did you call yesterday?’ Tamanna asked while searching for a newspaper and continued, ‘Oh shit, I completely forgot to inform you. It just skipped my mind because of last night’s party. The house owner had called me yesterday evening to inform that he needs this flat vacant for a month for renovation purposes. In six months’ time, he is planning to sell it off. I am extremely sorry but I think you will have to look for another accommodation till then. Even I am shifting to my friend’s house for a month. I am really sorry.’

  ‘I think I can stay in the college hostel now since classes have commenced. Don’t worry. I totally understand. I will tell dad about the issue and shift to the college hostel as soon as the formalities are done,’ Aleesha smiled. Her face didn’t show that she was worried. But, Tamanna’s sudden decision had shocked her as that was not expected. She called Akash and they decided to meet up in the evening.

  Aleesha sent a message on WhatsApp to Akash saying: Let’s meet at Shivaji Park, Dadar, at 7 pm.

  Sure sexy. Muaahh! Akash replied.

  Aleesha blushed after reading his message and sent him a smiley emoticon. She had bunked lectures that day to complete her pending assignments. She waited for the clock to strike 7 for two reasons. One was that she was eager to meet Akash. The other reason was more critical. She had to discuss with him how she should go about shifting to the college hostel.

  She took a cab and left for Shivaji Park. She was wearing a knee length, blue, one piece dress and had left her hair loose, with a few strands falling on her face. She was hardly wearing any make up except a slight lip gloss and blue eyeliner. Within a few minutes, she reached the destination and got down from the cab.

  Akash was waiting outside the petrol pump near Shivaji Park. Seeing Aleesha standing on the other side of the road, he couldn’t resist looking at her from head to toe. She looked perfect. Akash parked the car and walked towards her. He gave her a sweet flying kiss, which was returned with equal intensity. Akash held her hand and they searched for a secluded place at Shivaji Park. There are only a few places left in Mumbai where couples can spend some quality time together without any disturbances and this was one of them.

  Aleesha took out a sketch of Mickey Mouse which she had made for Akash in between her lectures. Akash laughed after seeing it and pulled her cheeks. He loved how innocent she was.

  ‘It’s super cute. I will pin it up on the pinboard in my room. Love you so much,’ Akash said kissing her cheeks.

  Aleesha didn’t say anything. Though she managed to smile, Akash could sense her fear. He held her hands, came closer to her, and asked, ‘What happened, tell me. I will suggest a solution.’

  She narrated the entire story and said, ‘I had a discussion with mom and dad too. They have agreed to my decision of staying in the college hostel. Instead of looking for some other place for a month, it is better to shift to the hostel.’ She stopped for a moment and rested her head on Akash’s shoulder.

  ‘So what’s the problem? You are absolutely right,’ Akash said playing with her hair.

  ‘The only problem is that from now on, I will not be able to stay with you till late nights. And that’s why I wanted to discuss my decision to move out with you first,’ Aleesha said leaning closer to Akash, almost on the verge of kissing him.

  Akash didn’t deny her the pleasure of the kiss. Men will be men, after all. He slowly embraced her and locked his lips with hers. Akash was pretty nervous as he knew other people around them were definitely noticing them. But he decided to ignore them. Aleesha’s tender kiss incited him like fresh blood to a shark. He grabbed her by her waist and kissed her all over again. In the moonlight, she looked ethereal, almost like a painting. He wondered how he could have ended up with such a beautiful girl. His girlfriend. His soulmate.

  Akash looked sideways and saw another couple doing much more than kissing. Akash stood astonished for a moment, asked Aleesha to move with him to another secluded spot, and found a bench and sat on it. They hugged each other and then Akash asked her to sit on his lap. Aleesha didn’t argue.

  ‘Can you just lean on me a bit more?’ Akash said with a naughty smile.

  Akash kissed her cheeks first and then his tongue nudged her lips to open her mouth. It was another passionate evening for both of them. July 7 marked the beginning of their relationship and their first kiss, and now July 20 would be remembered as the day of the first passionate evening of their life. Their love made them forget the world around them. Soon it was time for Aleesha to leave since it was getting late. Getting up from Akash’s lap, she adjusted her dress. Her hair had come loose in the impromptu makeout session, and while tying it, she came forward and gave a small peck on Akash’s neck. Akash again untied her hair and they walked towards the car.

  ‘You look more beautiful with you hair open,’ Akash said holding her hand lovingly.

  ‘And you look hotter when you smile. They highlight your cute dimples,’ Aleesha replied and they started their journey back home.

  Romance is the language of love. It is the way you show your partner that you care about them. The time she spent with Akash had made her feel much better and she was now relaxed about moving to the hostel.

  While driving back home after dropping off Aleesha, Akash sent a message to her.

  The day you came into my life, everything changed. Your arrival brought with it happiness, hope, and contentment. I was afraid to give you my heart, as I was scared that you would tear it apart. Then I gradually let it commit the perfect crime because you stole my heart with no intentions of giving it back. I promise to love you in every way that I can and to be by your side in every possible way. Your beauty overwhelms me as I wrap my arms around you. I press you tight and great passion fills my inner being. The touch of your lips makes me numb. Your Mickey is on the dashboard and smiling. You are my cutest Minnie. I love you so much. Just try not to dress as beautifully as today. You may cause accidents on the road because the whole city will be gazing at you. Love you so much. Muaahh!

  Aleesha read the message and replied:

  Akash, are you driving or messaging? How many times have I told you not to use your cell phone while driving! Still you don’t listen to me. Anyway, you know what? I can’t stop talking to my friends in Kolkata about you. I love the child in you—so innocent and sweet. The mischief in your eyes and the blush upon your cheeks, makes your dimples look very cute. The tender way you spoke today showed me that you care. Your warm hand that gently touched my hair gave me a sensation of your true love. When I first met you, I liked you but we were supposed to be friends. Who would have thought that I would love you till the end? I love the way you tell me that I am beautiful and the way you make me laugh like no one else. I love the way you move my hair away from my eyes and then kiss me on my face. It feels like I am dreaming. You too are my cutest Mickey. Love you Akash! Be mine forever. Never go away. I will remember July 20 as the day we spent our first passionate evening together. That too in public:P

  Aleesha was content that Akash had no issues with her shifting to the college hostel. It was love all the way! At least for now.

  In a couple of days, Aleesha finished all the hostel formalities and paperwork. The girls’ hostel was not in the college campus but located at some distance from it. She had taken a double sharing room along with her classmate Kritika. According to hostel rules, girls had to compulsorily report for a roll call at 8:15 pm. One late pass was allowed in a week and one stayover per month. Girls on a late pass had to report at 10:15 pm.

  Kritika, though born and brought up in Mumbai, preferred staying in the hostel as her home was located on the outskirts of Mumbai and travelling daily to college was time and energy consuming. She was Aleesha’s classmate and they both had decided to take a twin sharing room. She was a bubbly girl with short hair and cute looks. Indeed she was the girl next door. She carried immense positive energy that could make anyone feel happy. According to he
r, the reason behind her charm and beauty was the crystal she carried with her at all times. She wore a locket around her neck which had an amethyst crystal. She believed that it was a symbol of positive energy and could seduce anyone around her. Kritika was extremely friendly and used to gel very well with everyone. Her friendly behaviour had already made her good friends with Aleesha. They were also together in their project group and thus sharing the room was like a cherry on the cake.

  Aleesha decided to shift on the same day as she had finished all the formalities and Kritika too had shifted a day before. She came back to her apartment from college at around 12 pm and saw Tamanna in the kitchen preparing food. Tamanna had come home early to help Aleesha pack her bags and bid her goodbye. Aleesha felt good, as such a gesture was least expected from Tamanna. She never tried to interfere in Aleesha’s personal life apart from a few nightouts that they had gone on together.

  After packing up, Aleesha look around the place one last time to check if she had left something. She was about to leave when Tamanna hugged her and said:

  ‘Keep in touch. In case you face any problems, feel free to seek my help. I’m not that far from your college. Also if you feel like returning to this apartment, then you are most welcome.’

  ‘Thanks Tammy di,’ Aleesha smiled and continued, ‘When are you shifting?’

  ‘Most probably tomorrow.’

  Taking the bags out of the lift, Tamanna accompanied Aleesha to the cab. Aleesha gave a last look at the apartment after which the taxi sped off to her new place.

  ‘Kritika, have you prepared the slides for the presentation?’ asked Aleesha, unpacking her bag. Kritika was busy working on something on her laptop.

  The rooms were not as bad as Aleesha had thought. First year students were allocated rooms on the ground floor of the hostel building. There was a long corridor with a series of rooms one after the other in a row. Aleesha’s room had two single beds with an attached washroom. Apart from the wooden beds with cotton mattresses and pillows, each girl was given a small steel almirah to keep their belongings and a small dressing table. The wall above the bed was plastered with posters of latest film stars, probably put up by the room’s previous occupants. What Aleesha liked the most about the room was that it had an AC and a small balcony as well. There was a canteen situated on the ground floor itself and had fixed meal timings. Still Kritika had bought with her a packet of chips which she was munching on while browsing the internet on her laptop.

  ‘I am searching for some hot photos of Robert Pattinson. I wish I could find a nude one. I would take off these posters on the wall and put up just his picture,’ Kritika said with a naughty smile on her face.

  ‘Ya, he is fucking hot. I have watched his intimate scene from Twilight so many times and I still feel goosebumps every time I watch it,’ Aleesha replied.

  ‘Are you engaged? I mean are you dating someone?’ Kritika asked casually. She was a complete mismatch to Tamanna. Kritika liked getting involved in the personal affairs of other people, not because she loved gossiping, but because she was overfriendly.

  ‘Yes. His name is Akash. He is working at the RS Group here in Mumbai itself. We met sometime back in a club,’ Aleesha answered.

  ‘I am sure he is not as hot as Robert. Look at this pic. I could literally bite his lips. They are so juicy,’ Kritika exclaimed.

  They both laughed and together downloaded some hot pictures of their favourite stars. Aleesha was tired from all the unpacking and fell on the bed, tired. They both had a long chat about their past, family, friends, boyfriends, and fantasies.

  It was Aleesha’s first day in the hostel and she was gelling well with Kritika. Aleesha had already started making plans of breaking the hostel rules and bringing Akash in her room at least during nighttime. Even Kritika gave her the green signal. After some time they switched off the lights of the room and covered themselves with a blanket.

  ‘You are a darling. Love you sweetie,’ Aleesha told Kritika for being such a sport and letting Akash come at night.

  ‘Go to sleep baby. It’s too late. Presentations and exams are just round the corner,’ Kritika said jokingly to which both of them laughed.

  Aleesha sent a message to Akash before closing her eyes.

  Good night Mickey. Your Minnie is tired and needs to sleep badly. Miss you a lot. Muaahhh. Love you.

  Exploring the ‘No-Male’ Territory

  ‘You are out of your mind!’ I uttered.

  ‘I am serious dude. Aleesha and her friend Kritika have planned it all out. We just need to act like it’s a scripted show. So chill,’ Akash said trying to convince me. To some extent, he was succeeding too.

  I was still lost in thought and didn’t understand the gravity of the situation until Akash repeated those words. ‘Girls’ Hostel’. I woke up from my dream as if someone had given me an electric shock.

  ‘Crazy? You will be fucked and you will screw her life too if we get caught. Have you lost it?’ I shouted getting up from my seat.

  ‘It will be full on dhamaal. There will be just girls and more girls. The whole attention will be on us,’ Akash rejoiced. Then looking at my expressionless face, he continued, ‘Aadi, calm down. We will take extra care so that no one can catch us and the girls will anyway be there to guide us. So relax.’

  The debate continued for almost an hour and finally I gave up. I agreed to tag along even after knowing the risks involved. One of the deciding factors was that I felt Aleesha was smart enough to handle such things. She had done it brilliantly during the party. The only thing I wished was that Akash would not mess it up like last time.

  Akash messaged Aleesha who was busy with studies and preparations for the approaching presentation.

  Aditya has agreed. You look in to the rest of the things carefully. Let’s have fun this Saturday. I won’t disturb you much until then. All the best for your presentation tomorrow. Love you.

  Aleesha read the message twice and replied with a kiss smiley. She was tensed about the presentation because even Kritika hadn’t prepared for it yet.

  ‘We hardly have any time left. Let’s prepare some basic slides and Google the rest of the content. We need to be spontaneous tomorrow,’ Aleesha said looking worried while Kritika started jotting down the points.

  ‘I think we will do well. We hardly need to speak for ten minutes. Quite manageable,’ Kritika assured her opening her book to look for further information on the topic.

  ‘Darling, we have not been told to talk about our boyfriends or crushes that we can go on speaking for hours,’ Aleesha joked. ‘Even then I wonder if I would be able to speak for more than fifteen minutes.’

  ‘Why not? You just need to talk about Akash and your relationship. If it’s worth listening to, then I will record it too so that I can make him listen to it. He will go crazy hearing you talk about him,’ Kritika laughed.

  Realizing they had very little time left before the exam, they became serious and in the next couple of hours, their entire presentation was ready. Both of them had not only prepared the slides but also studied a bit for the coming examination. It was around 1 am and both of them were feeling really hungry. Kritika had chips and dry fruits with her. They were busy gorging on chips when Aleesha’s mobile beeped. It was Akash. Kritika couldn’t stop herself from asking out of curiosity,

  ‘What important thing does he have to tell you just before going to sleep?’

  Aleesha couldn’t stop smiling. The message read: I want to tell you that your dressing style needs a makeover. I know exactly what will look good on you… and that’s me. Try it!

  She read the message aloud for Kritika and they both started giggling. They decided to play a prank on him. Kritika took her cell phone and said, ‘That’s called phone swap. Your poor boyfriend. Now let me continue the chat. I hope you don’t mind,’ she winked and sent Akash a message.

  Your size will be too small for me. My friend says I need one size bigger. What do you think?

  Both of them were
enjoying this act and waited anxiously for Akash’s reply. Within a few seconds, a message popped up on the screen.

  You don’t need one, Minnie. I am there to cover you.

  Kritika was in no mood to stop. She sent another one:

  I prefer to be without cover, my Mickey. But I am not your Minnie. :P

  Akash must have been in a state of shock after the message as he called up Aleesha a couple of times after that.

  What do you mean? he replied.

  I mean, I am not Aleesha. I am Kritika. :D :D

  They waited for some more time for him to reply after the secret was out, but Akash didn’t. Aleesha called him up a couple of times as well but he didn’t pick up his phone.

  Kritika couldn’t stop laughing. She was busy browsing through a magazine.

  ‘What are you reading?’ Aleesha asked.

  ‘Dumb ass, it’s Cosmopolitan magazine. Only for girls,’ Kritika answered closing her laptop.

  ‘Oh is it? I have heard about it but have never read it. Show it to me too.’ Aleesha couldn’t hide her excitement.

  ‘Wait, I will read it out for you,’ Kritika said, picking out an article. ‘There is a column in this edition titled, “30 Things To Do With a Naked Man.” Another one says…’

  Aleesha interrupted her before she could read any further. ‘Does this magazine really have such kind of things written in it? I had thought that my friends used to lie on BBM when they talked about reading such articles in magazines’

  ‘Try reading this one. It’s quite an eye opener,’ Kritika said and handed over the magazine to Aleesha.

  Once Aleesha began reading it, there was no stopping her.

  ‘You are taking so much of interest in the article, almost as if you are going to apply them on Akash. He might get lucky someday then,’ Kritika teased.

  ‘Shut up. He is better than me and knows how to handle such situations,’ Aleesha said in a naughty tone.

  ‘Is it? Do tell me your stories. It will be fun. You know what happened when I was in a relationship? It’s been almost a year now. When I made love to my boyfriend for the first time, the experience was not so great. He called me up the next day to ask me if I had told my best friend about it. I told him, “Of course!” Needless to say, he made a greater effort the next time we made out.’