"Remind me again, why am I here?"
Anvesha Bannerjee Ray looked around the gaudily decorated school hall with a look of disgust. The walls were draped with red and cream sashes and someone had tacked up lots of bright pink cut out hearts. Balloons floated about the crowded dance floor and the music coming from the stereo system was all love ballads. It was, in other words, her worst nightmare realised.
"Come on Ashi, it's fun!"
Vrinda Bhatt, one of her best friends, turned her heart-shaped face up to her with a bright smile. It was the sort of smile that could melt ice. Vrinda was always bubbly and wherever she went she spread a little ray of sunshine. Unfortunately, at that moment in time, Ashi was not in the mood for sunshine. She had only agreed to come because Vrinda had nagged her so much about it, but it was a decision she regretted.
"Fun for you maybe," Ashi told her, glowering across the dance floor at the couples swaying in each other's arms. "But this is my idea of hell, and you know that. Why do you want to torture me? And why on earth did you make me wear this horrible thing?"
She gestured to the black dress Vrinda had insisted she put on. Ashi was not a dress kind of girl. A pair of comfy combats and a t-shirt was her normal clothes of choice, anything that involved heels and laced-up backs had her running screaming in the opposite direction.
"I feel like a doll...or a clown. There's probably not much difference."
Vrinda rolled her eyes and grabbed Ashi's arm, tugging her further into the hall. For someone so short she had a lot of strength and determination.
"Stop complaining," she chided Ashi. "Tonight is all about enjoying ourselves. You never know, you might meet some nice guy."
"I doubt it," Ashi muttered under her breath.
They had not gone far when a tall guy in a turban approached them.
"Aman!" Vrinda cried, her eyes shining with delight.
"Vrinda, you made it. Hey Ashi!"
"Hi," she replied, smiling at her friend's boyfriend, though inside she was grimacing.
"Shall we dance?" Aman asked Vrinda.
She glanced over at Ashi, hesitation in her face.
"Don't mind me," Ashi assured her. "I'll just hang out around the snacks table. They might have something nice and sugary."
"We won't be long," Vrinda told her, totally missing Ashi's sarcasm.
She watched them walked off, feeling glum. Across the room she spotted her other friend, MP in the arms of her boyfriend Varun. With a sigh she decided she may as well head for the snacks table after all. If nothing else at least eating was actually doing something.
Just as she had expected the snacks on offer were cupcakes painted with love hearts, candy hearts and heart-shaped biscuits. She rolled her eyes at them all but started to nibble on a biscuit anyway. Idly she scanned the room in the vain hope of catching sight of one of her friends minus their partners. At first she didn't notice the vision in scarlet headed her way; it was only when she raised her biscuit to take another bite that a flash of red caught her eye. She paused, the biscuit half-way to her mouth, a frown knitting her eyebrows together, and then, slowly, she turned her eyes in the direction of the flash of colour.
The next instant the biscuit fell from her hand. Her face was frozen in the picture of horror. The figure kept advancing, and as they drew near they raised a hand and waved enthusiastically.
"Mummum!"
Sonia Ray, dressed in tight-fitting leather trousers, sparkly top, and sheer long cardigan, stopped in front of her daughter, beaming from ear to ear. Ashi stared back at her in dismay. Although she was used to her mother's lack of fashion sense and her eternal quest to look younger than she actually was, the garishness of this particular outfit struck her. She was suddenly immensely embarrassed for her.
"Mama, what are you wearing?" she demanded. "And what are you doing here?"
Sonia's ruby-painted lips curved into a wicked grin.
"I'm chaperoning," she explained. "What, did you expect me to miss Maurya High's Valentine's Ball?"
Ashi let out an annoyed breath. I should have know, she thought, closing her eyes to keep from snapping at her mother. It was just the sort of stunt her mother frequently pulled. She always had to be in the limelight, always had to be upstaging her, and ruining social events for her.
"But Mama, kyun?" she asked. "This is a school party, not some Bollywood set number. Why do you have to be here?"
"To spend Valentine's Day with you Mummum," Sonia replied, squeezing her in a hug.
Ashi pushed her arms away and glared at her. Undeterred Sonia reached into her purse and brought out a small box.
"Happy Valentine's Day, sweetheart."
She handed the box to her, but Ashi ignored it, staring down her mother with burning eyes.
"Mama this just isn't fair!" she cried. "Why do you have to turn up everywhere all the time? Can't you let me go to one single party on my own? I didn't think this stupid Valentine's Ball could get any worse, but congratulations Mama, you have just officially ruined it for me! Thanks so much!"
Ashi didn't stay to see Sonia's reaction. She pushed past her and stormed out of the hall, feeling equally mortified and furious. As she paced down the corridor to her room she muttered to herself under her breath, railing against her mother for making her look stupid in front of so many people, for making herself look stupid by dressing like a twenty-year-old. Several times she tripped over the end of the dress. As soon as she reached her room she tore it off, throwing it onto the floor where it landed in a crumpled heap. Storming across the room she grabbed her favourite combats and an orange top and pulled them on. Once she had she instantly felt more like herself, but her anger still bubbled away under the surface, making her restless. She started to pace up and down the room, punching her fist into the palm of her other hand, when suddenly something lying on the floor near the door caught her eye.
Curious, she approached it and discovered it was an envelope. She looked around the room as if she expected someone to jump out at her, but nothing moved in the shadows, and the only noise was the distant beat of the music from the Ball. Bending, she scooped the envelope up and ripped it open. Inside was a hand-made card. The front was painted with a clown's face. Despite her mood, Ashi found her lips curving up in a smile at it. She flipped it open and inside was a message, made up of cut-out letters from newspapers and magazines. It read:
So you wanna have fun? Come and meet me if you dare. Tonight: 14th February, 9 P.M.
She read it twice, her interest piqued. There had been nothing on the floor when she and Vrinda had left half an hour ago, so whoever had left it had obviously watched them leave. Just as she was pondering the identity of the sender she heard a crash in the corridor. Her head whipped up and she darted over to the door, the card falling back onto the floor, forgotten. She burst out into the corridor but there was no one there. A frown darkened her face and she stood with her hands on her hips, slowly roving her eyes from one side of the corridor to the other.
It was then she spotted it: another envelope lying on the ground half-way down the corridor. She rushed forward and snatched it up. There was another message inside in the same cut-out letters.
Ready to escape? Then come outside.
The mystery of it all appealed to Ashi. Excitement coursed in her veins and she didn't think twice about what she was going to do. She would never turn her back on a mystery, and this one was far too intriguing to ignore. As quickly and quietly as she could, she stole down the corridor and out into the night. The watchman was asleep at his post so she was able to tip-toe past him and out the gates. As she turned to close the gates she caught sight of a third envelope wedged between the bars. Carefully, so as not to waken the guard, she worked it free and looked inside. This message read simply:
Notting Hill Park.
She frowned and glanced up, scanning the area outside the school in the hope she might catch a glimpse of the author, but everything was still. The light from the streetlights was dim, but she could see well enough to know she was alone. A little further down the road was the main thoroughfare and it was in this direction that she headed. She knew the park; it was not far from the school and she could easily walk it in ten minutes. As she went she kept sweeping her eyes around her, musing that perhaps the author of the notes was following her. She didn't see anyone, however. The only other activity was the traffic passing by on the busy main road.
Notting Hill Park looked different in the dark. There were three streetlights around it, showing up the swings, roundabout, climbing frame and see-saw, but casting long, elongated shadows across the wood-chip ground. It reminded Ashi of the effect of circus mirrors and for a moment she felt a small twinge of unease. What if this was a joke? What if someone had lured her here to frighten her? She quickly shook these thoughts off, however, fear being
something she rarely experienced. Confidently she entered the park, looking around to see if she could spot anyone lurking in the shadows of the trees that lined one side of the park.
"So you came. I thought you would."
The voice came from above. She froze where she was, but her head didn't snap up right away. A shiver ran down her spine and she felt her heart beat painfully against her ribs. Suddenly she was breathing quickly and she felt a little giddy. She knew what she would see when she looked up. That voice was more familiar to her than her own. That rich, deep baritone, always with that undertone of arrogance: it had filled her thoughts day and night for so long now. She knew that when she lifted her eyes she would be met by a pair of bright brown irises, and she knew that there would be pleasure in them, and also a hint of triumph. Usually this would have irked her, but it was a strange sort of nervousness that tingled her nerve ends as she lifted her head and met that glowing gaze.
"Yuvi." Her voice sounded as clear as crystal, but her heart fluttered when she said his name. "So, this is your idea?"
She folded her arms in front of her chest as he grinned down at her. He was standing on top of the climbing frame, his wild mane of black curls blowing in the breeze. His full lips were curved in an impossibly wicked grin and his eyes sparkled in the darkness. There was something so irresistible about him, surrounded by the dark and with the moonlight falling on him that Ashi had to swallow before she could speak again.
"I'm waiting for the punch line. Oh, oops, did you forget about that part? A joke can't work without one."
"Anvesha, Anvesha, Anvesha," he said, drawling her name lazily. It irritated her that her skin prickled with little sparks of electricity when he said her full name. She scowled at him as he dropped down onto the ground beside her.
"Wacko, have you ever thought that not everything has to be a joke?"
His eyes were practically glittering with humour. She deepened her scowl.
"Psycho, you forget that I know you," she told him. "You are incapable of taking anything seriously. And anyway, the note said this was meant to be fun, so where's the fun?"
Yuvi stepped back, spreading his arms out to encompass the park.
"Yahan," he declared. "For one night you can have this park to yourself. Climb the frame, ride the round-a-bout, try the see-saw, whatever you want to do you can do it."
For a moment Ashi just regarded him in silence, trying to read his expression. He stared back at her unblinking, his eyes clear and shining, his lips still smiling, but not with the usual arrogance. He looked genuine and he sounded genuine. Something fluttered in her heart and she had to look away as her cheeks began to feel hotter than usual.
"So, what, you've brought me to a park so I can play like a kid?" she said.
"You said you wanted fun right?" he replied. "And I know you were dying of boredom at the Ball."
Her head suddenly snapped round and she met his eyes, studying his face carefully.
"You were at the ball?" she asked quietly.
"I overheard you talking to Vrinda about it a few days ago," he told her. "I knew you wouldn't enjoy it, so I decided to plan something that you would enjoy."
She hesitated, her heart suddenly racing in her chest. His eyes were staring into hers, clear as a summer sky, and for once deadly serious.
"Why?"
It was barely more than a whisper but she didn't trust herself to speak any louder in case her voice betrayed the nervousness she suddenly felt. Yuvi stepped forward and took her hand. His touch sent fire leaping down her arm and her pulse jerked where his thumb rested on it. She wished she could look away, embarrassed, but those bright brown eyes held her captive.
"Because I wanted to do something special for you," he told her, his voice equally quiet. "And because...it's Valentine's Day, and this is my gift to you."
Her breath rushed out of her lungs in one large rush, leaving her gasping for air. If he hadn't been holding her hand she thought she might have sunk to the ground. It wasn't like her to feel light-headed, but then she didn't normally feel as if her world had turned upside down. For so long now she had dreamed of being with Yuvi, but she had never admitted it to herself, covering up her attraction to him with sarcasm and bantering, convinced he would never feel the same way. To find him standing here before her, telling her he wanted to make today special for her felt unreal. And yet his hand still gripped hers, she could feel his breath gently tickling her cheek as he stepped closer to her and the hammering of her heart was very real in her chest.
"Happy Valentine's Day, Ashi."
He whispered the words against her lips. She closed her eyes and surrendered herself to the moment. If it's a dream I don't care, she thought, I just want to live in this moment forever. His kiss was soft and sweet and when they broke apart she felt breathless. Her eyes met his and the way he looked at her with such intensity, as if she was the only thing he could see, made her skin tingle.
"Yuvraj Dev has brilliant ideas, who ever knew?" she said with a shaky laugh.
His laugh echoed in the still night air of the park and she knew she would never forget that sound for as long as she lived.
"So," she said, stepping back a little from him but not letting go of his hand. "Last one up the climbing frame has to buy the other lunch for an entire week."
She had started running before she had ever finished talking. For a stunned second Yuvi just stood there watching her dash across the park.
"Wacko!" he cried, chasing after her. "That's not fair! That's cheating!"
"Loser!" she called over her shoulder.
Their shouts were mixed with laughs, echoing across the park and drifting up into the cold night air of Valentine's night.
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