College Date: A Story
“I really like seeing you.!”
“I enjoy seeing you as well. We are getting along pretty good, no?”
I responded back. I enjoyed his company. It was comfortable. It was fun. He was a lot more than just fun.!! We talked about a lot of things. He was a vivid reader. Thoughtful. Brave. With a vision. A foodie..! Adventurous yet quiet.! I admired a lot of things about him.
But after he’d just said that, he kept looking at me. Like it wasn’t a regular statement. So before I opened my mouth to say something casual I paused. The tension in the air had to be acknowledged. I knew what he meant. I wasn’t stupid. But I wanted him to be more vocal about it. So I turned my face to look him in the eyes.
Darsh spoke slowly, as if he was adding emphasis.
“If your feelings are reciprocating, I’d like to think of this as ‘us’ seeing each other being more than just good friends.”
My mind went blank for a second. I never expected him to say something like that because it was too soon. We have only gone out for a couple of dates together. Five it is, speaking about the exact number. So I asked him,
“Shouldn’t we be taking some more time before rushing things.??”
He took a deep breath and explained.
“These recent gatherings have been fantastic. I’m at ease with you. I’m looking forward to seeing you every single day. Because you are amazing. So…I don’t think there’s a point in waiting for the ‘right time’ to take things forward if both of us already like each other.”
He paused before continuing,
“I want to be with you Ahaana.”
My mouth slightly opened as I considered what he was saying. I shook my head, puzzled.
“See me? I mean are you even thinking about this.?? We have our differences, you know that right.?!”
“Yes.”
He seemed relieved that his context was conveyed to me. But that’s not it.!
“Darsh….”
I stammered for a moment,
“Umm…see…!! You already had a three year old relationship before we met. And I’m glad you shared those details with me. But you were the one to call it off because you fell out of love.”
“And it was a long distance as well. And she was difficult. And I was stressed. And we had grown up to be different as individuals. So that was a better decision for both of us.”
He interrupted me suddenly justifying his actions in his past. And that was sensible.
He watched my face to see how I was taking it. I kept a straight face choosing my words carefully and speaking them out to him softly.
“Yeah I understand your part. But I really cannot do casual relationships. For the fact that it’s really hard for me to not keep strings attached. So if you really wanna transform what we have right now to something better as you see it, then I want you to be sure first that you really want this. I don’t want you swinging through your words later on because that is going to hurt me really bad.”
He didn’t avert his gaze, before opting to continue speaking.
“You have no idea how much I want this to happen Ahaana….!!!”
My mind raced with ideas for an appropriate response.
“What if you feel differently after some time.?”
I said it as a gentle challenge rather than a question.
He shook his head, not believing what I was saying.
“First and foremost, Such a thing cannot happen. And it will not happen. Because it’s you.!! Where do you even get these questions from?”
He returned his gaze to mine. He continued.
“Listen to me. We get together and enjoy each other’s company, don’t we? Can we keep doing that…?? Talk and laugh…
And…”
He exhaled,
“You’re very, very attractive.!!”
I smiled despite seeing the odds of what he wanted. I could feel the flush on my face.
“Darsh you’re undeniably attractive yourself. And I like you too. But… I think we should take some more time. Would that work for you?”
I asked.
He gave me a surprised look and shook his head in disbelief like I was joking.
“You do know how to turn people down don’t you?”
He asked.
“I’m not turning you down because maybe I want this slow. I think this is the right thing to do as of now. And we must take our time in getting to know eachother better.”
I said, giving him a serious look and he nodded in response.
We got up from our seats and started to leave the restaurant as we split the bill like we always did.
I’d only been at his college for two weeks. Because of my mother’s job transfer, I had to take a semester off from my previous college in Pune and relocate. She is my only family. So we moved out of town together.
Darsh was initially reserved. And I discovered that he is the same with everyone. He wasn’t that popular guy who every other girl lusted after. He was a quiet man who went about his business, read most of the time, and treated people with respect. He was a simple guy. And like I said, he was brave as well. He was a foodie with a trim physique. So that’s mostly how we bonded. He joined me in my ‘good food in town’ endeavors.
There was this one time when I went in to explore a chinese restaurant in town where I found Darsh as well. We shared his table that day and that’s how it all started.! We have been going on dinners, lunch dates and coffee dates whenever possible.
We began to leave the restaurant after paying the bill.
“I sincerely hope I did not offend or scare you. I wasn’t attempting to. I don’t want you to get insecure over what I said in the future. Last thing I want is to lose you because of what I just said today..”
He said as we opened the door and settled ourselves inside the car.
“It’s okay. Don’t worry. You didn’t scare me or anything.”
I replied.
“So is it really okay..?”
He asked again.
“Yes it is you idiot.!”
I said smiling.
“So is it okay if I do this too.?”
He asked as he cupped my face from the driving seat and tilted it towards him. It completely got me surprised.
He leaned in and I could feel his breath on my face. I looked at him with a warning stare. He didn’t back off or move away. He came in closer and pecked me on my lips. I couldn’t move an inch. His lips touched mine. It only lasted like two seconds. I was dazed as he pressed his lips sweetly against mine and then abruptly pulled his face away. I felt an unexpected warmth rush through my insides.
I sat frozen as I found his lips curled up in a smirk. He moved back and started the car.
“Asshole.!!”
I murmured.
“You liked it though.!”
He said as he drove through the street.
“That’s not what this is about Darsh.!!”
I said. He was being unusually cocky.
“Then what is it about? You could have pushed me away. But you didn’t. Also I didn’t get a slap.”
He said defending himself.
“I gave you a warning glare.!”
“And it seems like it wasn’t enough.!”
He said.
“Okay…maybe now you are mansplaining Darsh.!”
“And maybe you should stay over tonight Ahaana.!”
Ridiculous.!!!! How did I end up in this situation.?! I felt butterflies in my stomach for the first time in a few years as he made our way to the parking lot. He squeezed my hand, and I was surprised myself as I squeezed his hand back.
We stayed in the college hostel obviously and it was common that we sneaked people in and out of our hostel rooms. But I wasn’t planning to stay over tonight. So I got out of the car and reached into my purse for my room keys as he approached from the other side.
I felt him lift my face to him. His mouth was quickly on mine again, and he kissed me passionately this time. His lips were pressing against mine and I couldn’t just be still like the last time. I kissed him back, almost instinctively.! I was cautious at first. The warmth of it all overcame me and I couldn’t stop myself. My lips kissed him back with the same passion.
He got more excited and opened his mouth, coaxing mine to do the same. His tongue inserted itself into my mouth. I started to pull back, but his tongue’s soft wet tease at mine stopped me. I let his tongue work its way deeper into my mouth, and we kissed passionately and deeply standing there in the parking lot. I forced myself to stop when I heard myself moan softly.
“Wow.” He responded.
“That was incredible.”
I was out of breath at first and said nothing. I tried to calm down and compelled myself to regain control.
“I had a good night Darsh. I think we should leave now.”
“I did as well. But I think you should stay tonight.”
He said looking into my eyes, and for the first time, I felt strong feelings for him that were completely unexpected. I shook my head in disapproval and started to walk towards the girls hostel.
“Wait.”
He moved closer to me, placing his hand on my hips stopping me in my tracks.
“Let’s not call it a night just yet.”
He spoke again and I just looked at him.
“Please just crash in with me tonight. This almost feels like I’m forcing you. But just trust me please. You know you can get up and leave anytime if you feel like it.”
I couldn’t help but smile.
“What would you think if a girl came to your room on a very first ‘actual’ date? That’s pretty bad, isn’t it?”
I gave him a devilish smile that revealed a sense of humor.
“This isn’t our ‘first’ date!”
“Oh, it’s not, is it?” I sounded as if I disagreed.
“No, we went out like the previous five times. Some might consider that to be rather slow-paced.”
He made fun of me in return.
“Oh, that’s correct too…”
I held his hand and walked to his hostel room and cursed myself for allowing things to get to this point. Part of me enjoyed the flirting and bantering, but another part of me needed to be in charge and keep things normal and safe.
