Chapter Five

The next day I woke up at seven in the morning, excited to get ready for my first day of college. I took a nice long shower and got dressed wearing my favorite skinny blue jeans and white floral top. After blow-drying my long hair and applying minimal makeup, I grabbed my sling bag and phone and made my way outside. It was almost eight when I checked my phone and I noticed a message from Eshika.

'All the best for your first day, babe. Love you and call me later.' - Eshika.

I smiled and typed out a quick reply.

'Thanks, Esh. Love you too and miss you already <3.'

I hit sent and looked around to see if Ray was awake but the living room was deserted. I couldn't find him or the blonde girl he was with last night so I decided to leave the apartment as soon as possible as I didn't want another awkward encounter with his so called 'company'.

I made my way towards the kitchen and had no idea what to eat. The kitchen shelves were stocked with a lot of cereal boxes which I despised to the core and the refrigerator was filled with left over pasta, beer, eggs and some oranges. There was no way I could make parathas for breakfast. I let out a soft disappointed sigh and grabbed a couple of eggs and an orange.

"He better buys some vegetables when he does grocery shopping next time." I muttered under my breath and started to make my orange juice. Within a few seconds, I heard a loud noise of a door being burst open and I immediately stopped my juicer.

"What the hell? I'm trying to sleep, Ridhi." Ray rushed inside the kitchen, looking super pissed and annoyed, still half asleep. I wanted to laugh at his funny expression but didn't want to anger him further.

"What? I'm making breakfast." I shrugged causally and continued to cook my scrambled eggs. He raised his eyebrows at my carefree response.

I was not going to be all shy and nervous around him anymore. Now that I knew he was a player, I was no longer interest in him. He is still hot though, my inner voice reminded me but thankfully, he was wearing a shirt now. I wasn't going to let the fact that he is hot, influence my decisions at the apartment.

"It's so fucking early!" He groaned outloud, running a hand through his messy hair.

"Well, there is nothing to eat around here and I wanted to make myself some juice."

"Where did you even find that juicer? I had no idea we had that in the first place." He grumbled and walked towards the couch. I tried so hard to hold back my laughter.

He was acting like such a kid.

"Do you even cook around here?" I asked in a bored tone and all he did was fall face flat on the couch.

"We better sort this crazy early morning routine of yours later when I'm fully awake. Now, please stop that loud noisy thing." He spoke in a muffled tone and I shook my head with a small smile.

"Fine." I snuck out my tongue, knowing that he couldn't see me.

I was almost done eating and just when I was about to put the plates in the sink, I felt a warm presence behind me which made me turn around so fast and I gasped at how close he was standing, reaching for something from the shelves.

"What are you doing?" I asked almost out of breath and he looked down at me with parted lips and those beautiful green eyes.

Oh, fuck me!

Not interested anymore, my ass!

I think I drooled a little bit as he placed his arm beside my body on the kitchen counter and leaned further to grab 'God knows what' in that shelf.

Dear Lord, he smelled so fucking good!

"Relax," he yawned and moved away from me. I finally let out a huge breath and blinked a few times to regain myself.

Jesus Christ! What the hell was that?

I noticed that he had a bottle of vodka in his hands and he started to pour it inside the juicer which had the remaining of my orange juice.

"Wait, is that vodka?"

Who the hell drinks so early?

"Yup, my sleep is completed ruined. Thanks to you. I need something stronger than coffee to get through the day." He replied, starting the juicer and I pursued my lips into a thin line.

"Want some?" he offered after taking a sip straight from the container.

"Nope. I don't want to pass out on my first day of masters."

"Cool."

"Maybe you can offer it to your 'company'," I added as I walked past him outside the kitchen and all he did was give me a light chuckle.

"She left and FYI, you won't be seeing her again." He stated, making me roll my eyes.

Of course!

"Whatever. By the way, we need to take turns doing the dishes. Alternate days should be fine." I spoke as I wore my sneakers and all he did was stare blankly at me.

"This is why I never cook," he mumbled under his breath but I caught it.

"I'm sorry, what?"

"Nothing. Have a good day!" He smiled at me sarcastically.

"That's what I thought." I smirked and walked towards the door, leaving him alone with his stupid drink.

Looks like it's going to get tough living with him but I can't back out now. All I can do is hope that it gets better with time.

The university was a ten minute walk from the apartment and I had half an hour for my orientation to begin so I decided to explore my surroundings and took in everything around me. The air was so fresh and beautiful. The people looked friendly and it still felt so unreal to be in the same place where my dad studied.

Once I reached the university, I could see a lot of students around my age but also from different cultural background. For the first time since I reached Texas, I didn't feel so out of place and smiled, feeling better already.

As soon as I reached my class, I could notice that almost all the seats were filled. There were around 20-30 students, adorning curious and excited expressions on their faces similar to mine.

I found a seat at the corner of the class and sat down, ready to get through the day. Knowing my nature, I wasn't expecting to make any friends but when I heard a cheerful voice beside me, I was taken aback by surprise.

"Hello!"

I turned around to find the owner of the voice which belonged to a girl. She was smiling at me warmly. She looked American and had soft blue eyes, silver hair which was styled in a short pixie cut and a nose ring. It suited her face and she looked super cool. I can't imagine her, hanging out with a nerd like me.

"Hi," I greeted her with a nervous smile.

"I'm Katrina Lourdes. You can call me Trina,"

"I'm Ridhi D'Souza. You can call me Ridhi I guess,"

"Cool name. Are you from India?" she asked in an excited tone and for some reason she reminded me of Eshika and I was starting to feel a little bit comfortable.

"Yeah, came to the Texas to do my masters. It has always been my dream. Like, my dad used to go here so..uhh..I'm so sorry. I'm blabbering." I let out a small chuckle and shut my mouth immediately.

"No, it's okay. I love it and I love your skin tone, girl." She replied, making me blush in embarrassment.

"Thank you. Umm...so are you from here?" I asked, trying to make a conversation with my first potential friend in Texas.

"Yup. Born and bred here. My parents didn't want me to move far away for college but I moved out of the house anyway and I'm currently staying with a couple of friends." She spoke so fast and I was finding it hard to catch up to her speed.

"I rented an apartment too. I didn't want to live on campus," I added with a small smile.

"Best decision ever. You should totally hang out with us sometime,"

"Us?"

"Yeah, me, my girlfriend, Mia and one of my guy friend, Simon."

My eyes went wide when she mentioned 'girlfriend' and she caught on my expression.

"Yeah I'm a lesbian." She started to laugh and my face turned a deep shade of red.

"That's so cool. I mean, this is all so new to me. Back in India, it is still not normalized."

"I get it. You don't have a problem with it right?"

"Of course not. I'm actually so surprised you spoke to me out of everyone here." I told her truthfully and she shook her head with a small smile.

"You looked like you could use a friend," she shrugged causally and I nodded in response.

"I really do and I suck at making friends."

"Don't worry. You did well, babe." She winked and we were interrupted by the professor who entered the class.

The rest of the day went by swiftly and I had some of my classes with Trina. She had chosen Business analytics as her major and overall I was just happy to have made a friend on my first day. We had exchanged numbers and by the end of the day, she was already following me on I*******m.

That girl was the exact opposite of me in terms of socializing which might actually be a good thing for me to have fun in this new city.

By the time my classes were over, it was 3 in the noon. After getting my schedule, I decided to head home. I basically had to come in three days a week with around five to six hours of classes per day. I mentally made a note to ask Trina if having a part-time job was a good idea. Not that I had a shortage of money, I just didn't want to sit around ideally and spend my parents savings.

When I reached home, I knocked on the door as I didn't have the key yet but there was no response.

"Great!"

I pulled out my phone and called Ray. After a few rings, he picked up the call and I could hear traffic noises.

"Hey, I'm waiting outside the apartment. Where are you?"

"Yeah wait, I'm on my way. Be there in 10." he rushed out and cut the call without waiting for my reply and I groaned outloud. I was starving and had to wait for him to come only to find nothing to eat.

I googled for some nearby restaurants and found a McDonald's drive-in nearby. I pinned the location on G****e maps and it showed me an ETA of ten minutes.

"I can walk that far." I spoke to myself and took off.

As I was walking, following the map, I looked up from my phone and realised that I was in the middle of nowhere. It looked like some kind of a highway and I was so confused.

"Where the fuck am I?"

I kept pinning the address and each time it kept showing me a different lane.

"Oh, Fuck it. This is crazy!" I was starting to get pissed off now and pushed my hair away from my face. I couldn't see anyone in sight and thought of giving up and taking a cab back to my apartment.

"I thought I told you to wait. What are you doing here?" I heard a deep yet familiar voice from behind which made me instantly relax and I let out a huge sigh of relief.

I turned around slowly to find my roommate on a motorbike, wearing a white polo t-shirt, khaki pants, and a black leather jacket along with a backpack and sunglasses. It was like he was trying to prove that he can get even hotter each day.

"It's way past ten minutes. Aren't you supposed to be back at the apartment?" I asked, raising my eyebrows and he removed his sunglasses to look at me.

"I was running some errands. Do you need a ride?"

"Well, I'm hungry and I know for a fact that we don't have food at the apartment. Thanks for your concern but I can find my own way." I snapped in anger and being hungry was not helping the situation at all.

"Look, I can just drive, leaving you right here where you can't find a single cab or you could shut that smart mouth of yours and get on my bike." He replied in a demanding tone, making me swallow hard.

That was so freaking hot.

I took a deep breath and licked my lips before answering, "Fine." I muttered before grabbing his spare helmet and getting on his stupid fancy-ass bike and sat far away from him.

"Do you wanna be thrown off the bike? Jesus! Sit closer." He snapped at me, which made me even angrier.

"I know how to sit on a bike. Shut up and drive."

"Suit yourself."

He started the bike, making me jerk immediately and I held on to the back handle but he continued to drive faster on purpose. I had no choice but to move closer towards him and I started to feel all kinds of butterflies in my stomach. I haven't even hugged a guy in real life and this close proximity to a guy was all new to me.

"How far is the apartment? You seem to be driving for a long time," I asked him but he remained silent.

Jerk!

"Can you at least slown down?" I shouted, hoping that he hears me amidst the blowing wind.

"No. Just hold on to my jacket," he yelled back, making me roll my eyes in annoyance. I had no choice but to grip his jacket tightly and closed my eyes, hoping that I don't end up dead.

"Get down." He spoke after a while and I noticed that we had stopped at a strange place that wasn't our apartment.

"Where are we?" I asked, removing my helmet and adjusted my hair that must have looked like a bird's nest by now.

"I thought you were hungry," came his response as he placed his helmet on top of his bike. I got down and looked around to find an Indian restaurant which looked almost deserted expect for few elderly people.

"How do you even know this place?"

"It's not that hard to find. Let's go." He started to walk ahead of me and I followed him like a lost puppy. The smell of fresh aromatic spices hit my nostrils, triggering my already hungry tummy.

"Wow," I sighed in content as I admired the authentic Indian restaurant and for a brief moment, it made me feel like I was back in India. We found a table at the further end of the restaurant and sat down to order some food.

"One hot ghee sambar rice with pickels please," I placed my order and looked at him. He was starting at everything with wide eyes and I could help but smile at the irony of the situation. He felt so out of place and I was enjoying this.

"Shall I order for you?"

"Nope. I'll stick to my burgers." He grimaced, taking just a sip of water from the glass.

"Suit yourself." I added sarcastically and rested back against my seat.

"Here is your keys and the rental agreement. I haven't mentioned any time period so you are free to move out anytime," he spoke in a robotic voice, pulling out the keys from his jacket and the agreement from his backpack.

"Thanks." I mumbled as I took the agreement from his hand and started to read it. Everything looked good so I pulled out a pen from my bag to sign it and gave back his copy.

We both remained silent and I started to tap my feet to fill the silence while going through my phone. Thankfully, my order came soon and I couldn't wait to eat it. It smelled so damn good.

"Oh thank God!"

I started to eat and closed my eyes in delight as soon as the food touched my taste buds.

"This is so good. Thank you so much for bringing me here." I spoke with my mouth full of food, not caring if I looked unattractive.

"You do realize that you are like a little dinosaur when you are hungry, right?" he asked, giving me an amusing look and I blushed a deep shade of red.

"Sorry, I guess." I said in almost a whisper, tucking my hair behind my ears.

"Note to self. Stay away from you when you are hungry," he added, making me roll my eyes.

"Here, have a taste." I offered him a spoon of food but he shook his head.

"Trust me. It's so good."

"It looks so mushy and yellow like baby food." He scrunched his face in disgust.

"Just open your mouth,"

He slowly opened his mouth and licked the end of my spoon at first and then took a full bite. I noticed his expression changing from shock to surprise which made me smile.

"How is it?"

"Okayish but like I said, baby food." He replied, not making a big deal out of it and cleared his throat.

"Jerk!" I muttered under my breath, making sure he hears it and I continued to eat my food.

"What do you do?" I asked after a while out of curiosity.

"Why do you want to know?" he asked with a slight smirk, resting his arm in the table and looked straight into my eyes, making me go speechless for a second.

"I--Well, you are my roommate and I need to know basic things about you, right?"

"Don't worry, I'm not a serial killer." He scoffed in response.

"Come on, I'm serious. What do you do? Are you from here?"

"Would you stop with your questions if I answer these two?" he asked, letting out a huge sigh and I nodded eagerly even though I was dying to know more about this sexy guy right in front of me.

He was unpredictable and clueless to read. All I know about him till now is that he rides a bike, never cooks and probably has sex everyday.

Maybe it's normal here to have sex everyday!

"I'm a freelance architect and yes, I'm from Texas. Born and bred here," he replied, making me raise my eyebrows.

An architect?

Wow, I never would have guessed it.

I was about to open my mouth to ask more but he stopped me by placing his finger on my lip and I stopped breathing for a second.

"Eat. No more questions." He stated in a low voice but all I could focus on was his burning touch on my now trembling lips.

Okay! I need to calm the fuck down. Just one look or one touch from this guy is making me go all crazy and hormonal.

This is bad!

"Okay." I replied in a meek voice and looked down at my food immediately. I could feel his eyes on me but I didn't look up as I didn't want to blush for the millionth time that day and I most definitely didn't want him to think I was some boy crazy chick.

"What about you?" he asked after a while and I finally looked up to meet his gaze.

"What?"

"Same questions."

"Well, I moved here from India to do my masters and I got a scholarship at the University of Texas. Lucky me," I grinned proudly and he shook his head with a small smile.

"Nerd!"

"Woah! I'm not a nerd. I do have fun sometimes." I defended myself and let out a small pout.

He must think I'm so lame and ugly.

"Like what?" he asked, throwing me off guard and I started to think about all the  cool things I've done with Eshika.

"Umm... well...you know, not the kind of fun you have with your 'company' but the common stuff like...uhh...wait, I'm not gonna answer that. No more than two questions right?" I smirked, folding my arms in front of my chest and he let out a small chuckle.

"Sounds fair. Shall we go?" he asked, standing up and I pulled out my purse to pay but he stopped me.

"It's okay. I'll take care of it." He stated and walked towards the cash counter without waiting for my response.

"But you didn't eat anything. I want to pay, Ray." I whispered, tugging at his jacket sleeves but he paid me no mind and went ahead to pay the bill which pissed me off.

"You are so annoying," I stomped and walked outside the restaurant to wait near his bike. He joined me after a while and I kept glaring at him.

"Oh God, stop being mad now. Just consider this as my welcome treat, Ri." He spoke, letting out a loud sigh and I bit my lips, trying so hard not to smile at the cute nickname he gave me.

Fuck, please don't blush, Ridhi!

"Okay, fine. Thank you." I responded in almost a whisper and noticed his lips curve into a small smile.

"What was that?" he asked again and I stared at him, knowing that he was asking me to say it again on purpose.

"You heard me." I rolled my eyes, trying not to look at him.

"No, I didn't."

"I said thank you."

"You are welcome, of course." he smirked, looking at me a little too longer than usual and turned around to grab his helmet. I copied his actions and hopped on my dead ride all the while praying that I get home safely in one piece.