CHAPTER 2

ARYA

Sri and Raghu were beside themselves with happiness. They couldn’t believe the level to which I had gone to procure them the seats.

“What came over you?” Sri demanded on our way back.

“Same thing that came over you, I have never seen you so quiet, ever,” I remarked. Sri blushed a bit.

“Do we need to remind you that you have a rather long-term boyfriend, Ajit, who is also kind of your fiancé?” Raghu pointed. The blush faded from Sri’s face.

“Alright! Alright! He was just so handsome that I was caught off-guard,” she confessed. “Don’t tell it to Ajit though, please,” she continued in a begging tone. Both Raghu and I laughed.

“But seriously, how did you do it?” Sri asked again.

“I don’t know, I just thought that we had wasted six hours today waiting for him. My ass  literally hurts by sitting in that damn chair. So, I took pity on my painful ass and decided to try until he breaks or throws me out and see, it worked,” I chirped merrily. Both Sri and Raghu gave me a suspicious look.

“What did he say in your ears? You were so smitten that I could swear that even your hair was turning red,” Raghu asked.

“He asked me to call him by his name. Nate. It is such a beautiful name, isn’t it?” I spoke dreamily.

“Do we need to remind you as well?” Sri demanded.

“I haven’t forgotten my orthodox family. Thank you very much!” I snapped. “Anyways, I did you both a huge favor and see where it has landed me. What the hell am I supposed to do for the next two days? Just sit and doodle?”

“Or you can just ogle at him,” Raghu smirked.

“Too funny. I think I will find something better to do instead!” I hissed but deep down I knew that this was all I was going to do for the next two days. Stare, desire, fantasize and what not, with him right in front of me.

*

NATHAN

Could allowing a small wish of some girl be so satisfying? I didn’t know that. She was so different, yet so incredible. I have never done something so foolish in my entire life. Forcing an Arts student to sit through my Finance orientation program, a program for which students from all over the world apply; a program for which any finance student would kill another! And she had no respect for it!

“I see that the young lady caught your eye,” Daniel spoke. Daniel Gonese was the head of my security and nothing less than a fatherly figure. Very little went through my head that Daniel didn’t know about, and I knew that Daniel knew very well what was going through my head and my body presently.

Daniel had a look of curious surprise on his face, and he was not alone. Even I was surprised by myself. I had been with a few women in my life, and this girl was literally nothing compared to them. I have never seen anyone so invisible, yet noticeable. Her confidence and stubbornness bordered at the level of irritation, yet I found her charming. She was daring, who else would grab me in the middle of my security. I wonder why she was trying so hard to be invisible. I had not even noticed her until she skidded to a stop in front of me. And when I had caught her in my arms, I realized how slim and delicate her figure was, and yet she was hiding it from the world by wearing those baggy clothes. And when her weird glasses had fallen off, oh dear God, I was stunned by how mesmerizingly beautiful her eyes were, unique forget-me-not-blue with golden streaks in the middle. Why was she hiding those stunning eyes?

I was so lost in her eyes that I had even forgotten to stand straight. Her body, against mine, felt so perfect. And the way the color of her blue eyes had darkened, indicating the desire she was harboring inside her, even I was smitten by them – this was a first.

“What is her name?” I demanded, and it was now Daniel’s turn to laugh.

“What?” I asked, shocked.

“Oh, it is a mouthful, but her last name is the same as your first,” Daniel laughed harder as he handed me the paper with all the details of the new attendees. I looked at the paper and was at a loss for words. Who had names like these?

I was still staring at the paper when Daniel pointed at the second name, “This is your girl.”

Your girl! Could she be mine? I wondered.

“How do you pronounce it?” I asked aloud.

“Maybe Jay here can answer that,” at this, Daniel passed on the paper to my assistant.

“Vishwaswamini Arya Nathan, Sir,” Jay spoke loudly. It sounded gibberish and in an alien language to me.

“What?” both Daniel and I asked together.

“It is a South-Indian name. She must belong to one of the southern states of India. Her friend’s name is ‘Sridevi Malaikar’, she is from South India too. The boy is Raghav Banerjee, surely from West Bengal.” He finished and both Daniel and I exchanged looks. I only understood Raghav’s name as it was quite common in South Africa.

“Vish what?” I asked, trying to add her tongue-twister name to my vocabulary. “What does it even mean?”

“It means the queen of the world,” Jay laughed.

I raised my eyebrows at this. Queen of the world suited the man with my stature. And not to mention her last name!

“You can call her Arya, Sir. I heard her friends call her so,” Jay continued. “And her friends as Sri and Raghu,” he finished.

“Finally, some names that I can hope to remember,” I sighed wondering yet again, who had names like these!

“You invited an Arts student to the Finance program, should I expect some kind of budding friendship with this Arya girl?” Daniel asked suspiciously and I just shrugged. I didn’t know what was going to happen in the next two days. I could only hope that it goes the way I was feeling currently – mysterious yet charmed.