He had looked at himself in the mirror, it was Karthik's birthday and he had invited all his friends home for a party. Karthik had a single point agenda since weeks, to get wasted on his birthday. It was going to be a pool of alcohol and pool of vomit, later on. Maan had made his mind up to face the upcoming mess. He had come to like Karthik and his cousin over time; he was least interfering and judgmental when Geetha told him about her part time job. He probably believed in giving some space to his cousin, to function as she desired. Whatever it was, Maan had liked the bond they shared. No overt display of affection but they found a hint of support and sense of comfort in each other as they both stayed away from their families.
Maan was happier as compared to his previous version. He still missed his home made food, but got used to the flavors cooked by Geetha. They faintly resembled home as they were his mom recipes. Also, Geetha had gotten better over the time and she experimented with different cuisines when she found her comfort zone at his place. He didn't mind trying the new dishes either. She had recently cooked a fusion of Konkani and Thai food, the dish's name could have been coconut reloaded. He was new to having a tinge of sweetness in gravy, but he had come to appreciate it somehow. If not anything, he had increased his knowledge on flavors across various regions. Food was far from being a problem, off late.
He had reached Karthik's flat earlier to help him in the settings and arrangements. "Look who is here so early for a free round of drinks?" She walked in with a bunch of snacks for the night. "Not sure who was that jab being directed at?" he replied.
"Who said, it's a jab? And of course, you. You are the Punjabi in the house, who else?"
"You know Geetha, earlier I thought it was the South Indians who were the most stereotyped. Thanks for clearing my misconceptions.
"Come on, Maan. You people have drinks during wedding. How am I stereotyping? Isn't it a fact?"
Maan chuckled as Geetha continued with her dramatic declarations. "Do you drink? he asked knowing that her reply would most probably be a no and he was right, no it was. "Neither do I, he replied."
"Wow, going to be one hell of a party with us trying to take care of crawling babies who would be out of their senses."
"Indeed", they shared a laugh as they anticipated a hectic night.
Geetha stared at Karthik's friends who gulped down glasses of alcohol, one after the other. Sometimes with an excuse of a game, and sometimes with an excuse of some random challenge. So much capacity, she wondered. As the songs on speakers started hurting her ears, she excused herself from the drawing room and walked towards the balcony where she hoped for a little peace.
"Here you go", he tapped on her shoulder and slipped the glass in her hands.
"What is this?" she questioned as she smelt the liquid in the glass.
"Mocktail. I prepared it"
"Wait, does this have coconut water in it?", she questioned as she tasted the drink.
"Yes, thought you would like it."
She laughed as she took another sip. It wasn't bad at all. "How did you find coconut water amidst this mess?"
"Karthik had bought a few for tomorrow, said will help him in staying hydrated."
They laughed as the ventured on their own drinks party.
"You know, you should learn cooking as well. It helps in the long run."
He smiled as he looked at the skyscrapers visible from the balcony, "Won't get defensive, yes I should. Mom says the same thing."
"Miss your family?"
"Totally."
"How is your course going?" he sipped his drink as he tried to initiate a conversation.
Despite knowing each other for days, they hadn't talked much. Busy in their own lives, all they discussed was food and some jokes. From his little experience, he gathered that Geetha was a little hot-headed and was very particular about cleanliness. Apart from that fact scaring him a bit, he got along with her well during normal days and casual conversations.
"You know, sometimes I wonder how coconut has become such an intrinsic part of my life. It's crazy. When I had dengue once, I was force fed tons and tons of coconut water. Had been running away from coconuts ever since."
She laughed as she shifted her gaze towards him, "Really? That's quite a story, man. No wonder you have been on the verge of a break down owing to your food concerns."
"Then you came to my rescue, you know, I like the coconut dishes you cook occasionally."
"Well, that is a recipe by my ex."
"What? Wow!"
"Yeah, well he was, as in..is a chef and this is one of his revered recipes. Felt like abandoning everything of his' once we broke up, but why inflict so much pain on self by saying no to good food." She raised his brows as he stared at her in slight disbelief.
"That is quite interesting, by the way."
"Well, what's more interesting is that, he is lying over there, in the drawing room, completely wasted."
Maan almost spat his drink as he looked towards the room, trying to get a blurred glimpse of him. "Ok, what? He almost shouted, this time in stronger disbelief than earlier. "Didn't even notice any awkwardness between you two."
"Oh, there definitely was .You missed the subtle and boring drama we shared. So many people and noise around, remember?"
She laughed quietly as she continued, "He is a family friend. And this happened a while ago."
"A while ago? How old were you?"
"That was the point, I was young, he was a bit older and mature. I was fascinated. Wanted to marry him even. Didn't last longer though, he moved on pretty quick, I took some time but found better things in life, like this course and this cooking job."
He laughed as she continued, "You know, my sister thinks I'm a lunatic for taking up this job. Parents don't even know. Actually, I think dad knows, but he is pretty chill that way. But mom would fire me."
"And what was your reply?" he questioned
"You seem curious too, you think I'm crazy too?"
"Crazy you are, but also my savior. However, yes, a little bit curious, I definitely am."
"Don't know really, took this job on impulse. Didn't think much and after all these days, I don't even regret. Doesn't take much time and I earn some extra money."
"I'm pretty sure; the money isn't a lot for you."
She smirked as she turned her eyes towards the sky, dramatically.
"Too much curiosity, macha"
"Sorry, sorry" he threw his hands in the air and zipped his mouth for a while. They sat in silence for a few moments as the traffic disappeared and the noise fizzled.
"Maan"
"Hmm"
"Aren't the drunk ones supposed to blurt out stuff, and not the sober ones." She said, faintly pointing towards herself. She paused for a while before she continued, "But its okay, I trust you that much anyway."
They shared a warm smile as he looked on, he was glad he was sober, she was sober. He was glad they shared this conversation. She was the one who spoke, but he was not much of a speaker anyway, he mostly listened and this time he enjoyed doing so.
"One more round of a mocktail, this time a different one?" he asked as her eyes twinkled.
"Yes, please. No coconut this time, but."
"Really?", he exclaimed, "Did you not like it?"
"I loved it, but let's try something absolutely new."
"You mean, some beer?"
"No way. It is bitter as hell. I have tried it once, with that loser of chef lying over there."
"Ouch"
She laughed, "Have you tried it ever."
"I was a drunkard once, woman, until I almost died while I was drunk driving. Didn't feel like touching it afterwards."
"Oh my god, really?"
"Naah, not that dramatic."
"Thank God.", she heaved a sigh of relief before he continued.
"Actually, it is true. I was found lying in some bushes, was on bed rest for weeks."
"Maan, you don't look that way."
"Like I was on bed rest?"
"Shut up, you! Like you could be so careless!"
"Unfortunately, I was. A bag full of stupid."
The night simply refused to end and neither of them seemed to mind. The laughter and the exclamations continued as the giggles and whistles from the drawing room turned into snores, which no longer bothered their tales amidst rounds of mocktails
Book Talk
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