Half Girlfriend (1)

inaugurated her hot plate and utensils. An hour later, we ate Maggi
noodles in new stainless steel bowls from which the stickers wouldn't
come off.
I slurped the noodles from my spoon. At one point, she removed a
noodle from my chin. I wanted to spill noodles all over my face.
We finished dinner and cleaned up the kitchen.
At ten, I decided to leave.
‘You will get an auto?’ she said.
‘I can walk to the bus stand,’ I said.‘There is a bus to Dumraon at
eleven.’
‘Maybe I’ll come with you next week. Let me settle in.’
‘You’ll be okay alone?’ I said.
‘Yeah,’ she said, her voice heavy, or perhaps just tired.
‘Sure' I said.
‘I look forward to being alone, Madhav,’ she said.
*
‘You sure your mother will be okay with me staying over?’
‘Of course. It’s a long way to go back the same day,’ I said.
We were riding in her company’s Innova, which made the journey
a lot faster than the bus I usually took. The roads of Bihar are, well,
for the adventurous, to say the least.
‘Ouch,’ Riya said as her head bumped against the car roof.
‘That bump is a sign we are close,’ I said.
*
I showed Riya the guestroom.
‘These rooms are massive.You really are a prince.’
‘Everything is falling apart,’ I said.
I took her to my room. She noticed the basketball posters on my
wall. I sat on my bed, she took the chair opposite me. It reminded me
of us in Rudra, years ago.
‘You still play?’ she said.
I shook my head.
‘Me neither,’ she said.