~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Shifali looked at her watch for what seemed like the thousandth time, but no he still wasn't here! If Shifali had one pet peeve, it was definitely tardiness. She should have never agreed to go out with her colleague Arav. She was only doing this as a favor, because he had literally saved her job. She thinks back to three days ago, when it all happened.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Shifali had rushed into her office that morning, stressing out over the major meeting she was supposed to present but that day it really seemed as if God hated her. She had forgotten to print it the night before, and then in the morning her ink had run out. So quickly she put it on her USB port to print at work, but now here she was rummaging through her purse and she couldn't find it.
"Jhanvi's going to murder me," Shifali muttered under her breath.
Right then her office phone had rung and so she picked it up with a startle. "He--hello?"
"Shifali! Thank god you answered," Ravs said on the other hand, breathing heavily. "Why aren't you picking up your cell phone?"
Shifali dug into her pocket and saw that her phone was on silent. "Sorry Ravs--my phone was on silent. Kuch kam tha?"
"Yeah! You left your important file here, when you came for dinner last night."
Shifali groaned into the phone. She HAD printed out a copy yesterday at work and stupidly taken it to Ravs house; deep down she knew she shouldn't have gone over to Ravs house for the first dinner after she had married her high school sweetheart, Yug, but Ravs had blackmailed her, and Shifali had caved in. "I suppose there is no way you could bring it here?"
She could hear the apologetic tone in Ravs' voice. "I'm sorry Shifu. I would--I just won't be able to today."
Shifali knew it was no use to ask--Ravs lived on the opposite side of town there was no way she'd be able to get here in time. "It's okay Ravs--don't worry about it," She hung up the phone and tried to look for her USB again when the phone rang, startling her AGAIN.
"Hello?"
"Shifali! Good thing I caught you," Jhanvi said sounding relieved. "I wanted to inform you that the presentation of yours has been moved earlier to 11 am instead of 1pm like originally planned. Can't wait to see your new idea,"
Shifali grimaced as she put down the phone, collapsing on the chair. Main kya karu? Suddenly a knock sounded at her door and she sighed. "Come in,"
She looked up and saw one of her colleagues, Arav at the door.
"You look stressed," he commented.
"Understatement of the year," she retorted sarcastically.
He widened his eyes as he stepped closer. "Can I help?"
"Find me a fairy godmother?" she pleaded. "That would be the best thing right now. Or wait! A genie! Like the one in Alladin!"
He shook his head. "Seriously--what's wrong?"
"I can't find my USB with my reports on it--and I desperately need to print in within--" She looked down at her watch. "10 minutes!" She got up with a start and started throwing things out of her purse to find it.
"Found it!" She produced a green colored USB and sighed. "Now I need to make like 15 copies. This will never be possible,"
Arav took the USB out of her hand and shushed her. "I'm going to take care of this, you just concentrate on what you have to say,"
Shifali looked at him in gratitude--he was proving to be a really great friend. As he left her office she found herself thinking about something a lot of her other colleagues had said; that Arav had a massive crush on her. She didn't want to believe it she guessed, it would just make things really awkward between them.
During the beginning of the meeting Shifali had started going over the main points of the new idea but when Arav burst through the door, holding files in his hand she felt her heart stop. She'd be able to carry on the presentation! She handled it all with ease after that--appreciating the encouraging smile from Arav.
"Thank you so so much!" Shifali nearly pinned him to the wall with her overly eager hug after the presentation was over. "You literally saved my life. I'll give you anything you want!" The minute those words left her mouth she regretted them. What if he asked for something absurd?
"Anything?" he repeated.
She regrettably nodded.
"How about one date?" He had asked--a certain blush creeping onto his cheeks.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Shifali hears a car honk and snaps out of her thoughts. And that was how she landed in this peculiar situation. She quickly looked in her hall mirror and checked her reflection and put on her black boots and opened the door. She walked up to Arav's blue Honda Accord and opened the car door. Arav looked at her with adoring eyes, while she avoided making contact with his.
"You look gorgeous," He said as she sat down.
"Umm..thanks?" She answered, quickly turning to him and checking out his clothes. He was wearing navy blue pants with a crisp white shirt and blue blazer on top.
"Shifali, umm I wanted to actually thank-you for this, it's a really nice gesture on your part!"
Shifali immediately felt guilty, she didn't want to hurt his feelings but what else could she do? She was glad she had discretely called her other friend Nupur who owned the restaurant they were going to with her brother. They had planned that if the date got a little awkward for Shifali, Nupur would take her away without Arav noticing.
The rest of the drive there was spent in silence. When they got to the restaurant, Arav parked the car and went to open the door for Shifali.
"Thanks Arav, but there was really no need for you to open my door."
"I like being a gentleman." He replied back.
They walk up to the main door, and Shifali tightened the gray beaded shawl around her shoulder. Shifali discretely looks around the restaurant, because Nupur had told her that she would be working the hostess shift and that she would welcome them in. Finally she spots Nupur wearing black pants with an emerald green shirt and a black bartender vest on top. Her hair was mostly straightened with the exception of a few bouncy curls at the bottom. Seeing Shifali, Nupur smiles slightly and then turns her eyes to Arav, and Shifali notices that the minute Nupur laid eyes on him, she grimaced. After a minute more of staring Nupur comes over to them, and takes them to their table.
" Welcome to Antonio's! Is this your first time or have you been to our chain of restaurants before?" Nupur smiled at both of them.
"I've been--but I don't know about Arav,"
"Well then let me tell you our chef's specials and the daily specials,"
Nupur rattled off the names of certain dishes, but Shifali noticed that as she is naming the dishes, she is also writing something on her order pad. She slyly slips the piece of paper into Shifali's menu and walks away. Shifali waits until Arav is engrossed in his menu, to read the note.
"Shifu! Pagal ho kya? Who kaun hai? Why is it him? I figured this date wouldn't be THAT bad--..come meet me in the w/r in 10 min!!"
Nupur
Shifali got the giggles while she started reading the note.
"Something wrong?" Arav asked.
Shifali quickly slips the note on her lap and smiled. "No, no, nothing's wrong!"
"Tum kya logi?" Arav asked.
"Main--" Shifali quickly glanced at the menu. "The Cheese Tortellini with a garden salad."
"And to drink?" He asked.
"One virgin pina colada."
"No hard drinks?" He asked.
"Uhh no," Shifali shook her head.
"Do you mind if I?" He gestured towards the drink menu.
"Oh no go ahead," She smiled at him.
After giving the waitress their orders, Shifali excuses herself to go to the washroom.
Nupur grabs Shifali into a huge hug the minute she enters the washroom.
"Hi! Arre maine tumhe itna miss kiya,"
Shifali shakes her head. "You've been out of the city for a week" she laughs.
"So?" Nupur smiles and hugs her again.
"Why are you working at your own restaurant? As a hostess?" Shifali asks.
"Ssh!" Nupur hushes her. "Prem and I have decided to work here--just to see how well the employees are working."
"Okay-- I better go back now," Shifali groans. "Mujhe wapas nahi jaana,"
Still Shifali leaves the washroom, and goes back to the table which was now covered with food.
"The food's here!" Arav announces.
"Dikh raha hain," Shifali says sarcastically.
Not noticing her comment, he starts digging into his spaghetti and Shifali pokes her fork in one of the tortellini's and brings it to her mouth, but then she inhales the aroma coming from it and nearly shrieks.
"OH my god! This is beef. Main yeh nahi kha sakhti,"
"Hmm?" Arav asks with his mouth full.
Shifali calls the waitress to their table. "I need to meet the head chef."
"Sorry what?" the waitress asks.
"I said I want to meet the head chef right now!" Shifali glares at the waitress.
"Okay, right this way," the waitress leads Shifali to this long corridor and then she pushes open a door. "Hey yo Mr. Head Chef! Aapse koi milne aaya hain,"
Shifali's eyes glare at the man whose back faces her, he turns around and Shifali is completely blown away. He seems about 25 and he must be 6'0" He has a 5-o-clock stubble on his chin, but what Shifali can't seem to take her eyes off is, his eyes, they are a chocolaty brown color with a hazel look in them. He's wearing a "kiss the chef" apron, which automatically makes Shifali look up at his lips, which are curled up into an alluring smile. Finally Shifali pulls her eyes away from him.
"Excuse me Mr. Chef, I don't know where your mind is--but you sent the wrong food to my table." Shifali notices that his smile falls off his face. Usse to laga hoga ke main uska ganda khaana praise karne aayi thi,"
Outside Nupur hears the commotion and runs into the kitchen. "Shifali? Sab theek hain na?"
The chef looks from Nupur back to Shifali. "You know her Nupur?"
Nupur nods. "Yeah--she's one of my friends. Ab tumne kya kiya?"
"I think we sent the wrong meal to her table," the chef grimaces.
"That's right you did." Shifali groans. "This whole night is going wrong."
Nupur leans over and whispers in Shifali's ear. "It's because of your date,"
Shifali bursts out laughing. "But god. Look at this chef. He's got way too much attitude. Ek to ghalti khud ki hai and yet he's still smiling."
Nupur looks at the chef and glares at him while shaking her head.
"Sorry Miss--?" He trails off.
"Shifali,"
"Sorry Miss Shifali, I know it's my mistake, but how about this? You will receive one free lunch date?" The chef tells her.
Shifali gets a puzzled look on her face. "A lunch date? Don't you mean one free lunch coupon?"
He shakes his head, grinning. "No, I mean lunch date! One free lunch date with yours truly."
Shifali's mouth drops wide open at his boldness while Nupur tries extremely hard to suppress her smile.
"Kya hua? Koi jawab nahi hain?" He raises his eyebrow.
Shifali can't help but smile. "Main tumhara naam bhi nahi jaanti. Main haan kaise bolu?"
Nupur interrupts. "You do know his name. This is my brother Prem!"
"Prem--oh my god!" Shifali exclaims.
"Aur Prem, you remember Shifali right?"
~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Prem had never seen such a beautiful girl. She was pretty in a way that no one else would understand! She was what Nupur would call naturally pretty. The way her eyes sparkled when she laughed and her naturally wavy hair flowing down her back. She was dressed in dark boot-cut jeans, with a beaded purple top--wait his sister had told him, it was actually called a halter-top. Draped over her shoulders was a gray wrap, but when it combined with her skin, the wrap shined a shade of silver. Prem liked the fact that she wore minimal make-up not like some of the girls he had liked that dumped a whole truckload of make-up on their faces. She was like "fire on ice*" When Nupur told him that this was Shifali, Prem was ecstatic, he could find many more ways to meet her, if she declined his lunch date--speaking of which-- "Now that you know my name, and I know yours, how about that lunch date?"
Shifali didn't know what was happening to her, she was feeling butterflies in her stomach and her knees were going weak. This was the thing she had seen in movies and books yet here she was; living the moment. But then right at that moment, Arav came into the kitchen looking for her.
"Here you are Shifali! I thought you might have abandoned me on our first date!" He puts his arm around her shoulder.
Date? Oh great! The one girl I actually end up liking ends up having a boyfriend! Prem frowns as he looks down at his shoes. Nupur looks towards her big brother and sees that his smile disappeared; so being the good sister that she is, she went over to him and put her hand on his shoulder and gave him a reassuring squeeze.
On the way out, Shifali makes eye contact with Prem and gives him a small smile, and then she looks at Nupur and gives her a huge smile and says, "Nupur, tell your brother that my answer is yes!" She looks at Prem, who was now beaming with happiness as she left.
She was happy that for once in her life--this spontaneity with Arav paid off--in a very good way.
Okay so firstly I don't think Shifali's vegetarian--but it worked better with my idea so we'll keep it that way. As for the 'fire on ice' line...pm me if you really didn't get the meaning of it! 😳
Love you all loads,
Meera😳
