"Why?" I questioned him. "you don't even like me."
He gazed at me, his gaze focused on me. I was taken aback by his unexpected attention to me. Never in my life have I felt a male look at me as if he desired me. I'm the kind of girl who is the supporting character of the heroine and fades into the background, and now he's making me feel like the protagonist of my film. This was not true. It was certainly a joke. But I wanted it to be true. My romantic bookish side wanted this to be true, where the hero falls for the chubby heroine and lives happily ever after.
"I'm not sure, but you're different from the girls I've dated. You appear to be a white dove among the vultures gathered here. I want to know how it feels to kiss an innocent dove." He spoke, then brushed my lock of hair behind my ear.
The slightest contact kindled a fire within me. This cannot be happening, but I knew deep down I was falling for him, and it was not all of a sudden. Something changed inside of me after he protected me from being assaulted last night. Suddenly, I heard voices, so I turned to face the commotion, but nobody was there. The campfire area was now nearly deserted. The couples were heading back to their rooms.
I returned my attention to Vedant, but my hand accidentally came to rest on his chest. I could feel his heart racing as if he had just run a marathon. I widened my eyes as I looked up to see our faces so close. He wrapped his hand around my waist and rested his other hand on top of my hand, which remained on his chest.
"This is what you do to me, Harshita. Ironically, you make me nervous while also calming me down. What kind of magic have you performed on me?" He inquired quietly, and butterflies swarmed my tummy. My lips felt dry, so I licked them, and his eyes fell on them. He began leaning closer, and I felt time slow down. There was hardly an inch gap between our mouths.
At this point, I had two options: be a good girl and inform him good girls do not kiss men randomly, or the second option is to be kissed senselessly by him and I am leaning firmly toward the second choice. I know I should be ashamed, but his hand on my waist is causing something within me. Girls like us will never have an adventure like this.
Someone asking for a kiss from me in the middle of a party is an unusual request. Vedant, a handsome man, does not fall for girls like myself. Maybe he won't remember or acknowledge me tomorrow, but I wanted a kiss from him. I wanted to feel naughty while kissing him. I wanted to understand how it feels to be sinful. I wanted to give in on this. 22 years of life without a kiss or a loving glance from the other sex has never occurred in my life.
We were so close, facing each other. The space between our faces shrunk as we looked at each other's lips. His fingers softly held my chin, his right hand curled around my waist, causing our bodies to contact, and I did the unthinkable.
I suddenly kissed his lips. I'm not sure where I found my bravery, but I did. He was locked in place, and my lips were against his because I didn't know how to kiss. I was about to pull back when he pushed his lips against mine, and my abdomen erupted with butterflies as a feeling of bliss surrounded me.
Our lips met, and I closed my eyes, losing myself in the kiss. I placed my arms around his neck and kissed him passionately, savoring the feel of his lips. I wanted this kiss to last because it was the first time I truly understood what it meant to be truly kissed. Vedant was constantly caressing my right cheek and holding me close to his body. He didn't want to end the kiss either. Our lips came apart. We looked at each other, and all I saw in his eyes was admiration for me.
He claimed my lips again and began moving his lips, as I attempted to sync mine with his. This time, the kiss was slow and soft, as if he were putting all of his love into it. The feeling was so pure that I'd never experienced it before. This was my first proper kiss, and I was overjoyed. I felt out of breath and tapped his shoulder as he let go of me and joined his forehead to mine. We were both breathing heavily.
"This was insane, Vedant; thank you for my proper first kiss," I replied, staring down at my hands, which were in Vedant's.
"Really? You had never been kissed by anyone except me," he said softly. I simply nodded my head.
We then sat close together, just looking at the stars. After the kissing session, I didn't understand what to make of this kiss. It means nothing to him, of course; he's a playboy, but I felt a connection.
Ideally, I should have stopped him because we're not even dating. But I was stuck, as if it was predestined, and just flowed and bathed in his energy, which made me long for my life. I felt his longing for me. I was inexperienced, and he kissed me as if his life depended on it. I still don't understand why he did it. I was astounded by the intensity of that kiss. But He just didn't want to let me go; I can't remember how long it went, but it felt like an eternity. When we kissed, I felt as if we'd been doing it forever. However, the kiss felt like home.
I was ready to speak with Vedant when my phone started ringing. I retrieved it from my handbag, and the ID displayed Anup's name. Vedant noticed as well but remained silent and averted his gaze. I just excused myself from him and went far away from Vedant to speak with Anup. He had very awful timing.
I said, "Hello".
"Hello, Harshu. How are you?" He greeted me.
"Anup, it's quite late, why are you calling so late?" I asked him, glancing at the vast expanse of the sea.
"Because I was missing you," he replied.
That line struck me by surprise. He was obviously flirting with me. I can't let this go on when I don't feel anything for Anup. My feelings are with Vedant right now, even if he does not share them. I do not want to be a two-time cheater. I needed to clear this up.
"Anup, I'm not comfortable with all of this. So please don't do such things," I added, attempting to seem as pleasant as possible.
"I'm sorry. I'm pretty bad at flirting. I should try some other methods to impress you," Anup suggested. I closed my eyes tightly, then opened them.
"Anup, when we meet, let's clean up this mess. I'm really out of the station, and a lot is going on, so I can't think about dating right now. So please stop flirting with me," I begged him.
"Okay, I'm sorry. Tell me, did you eat dinner?" He said.
"No, I'll have it sometime," I replied.
"Okay, I won't take your time; now sleep well, and good night," he added, seeming upset. Why did I offend him while he was enjoying chatting with me?
"I'm sorry, Anup; I didn't mean to upset you," I responded, feeling awful for him.
"This is what I admire about you, Harshita; you understand me. You could tell I was unhappy just by the tone of my voice. But for now, I'm going to end the call before I fall in love with you again," Anup added, cutting the call. I held the phone to my ear, wondering why he said the term again.
If he was truly in love with me all these years, how could he bully someone who he claims to love? What is going on in my life now? I was just kissed by the person I'm falling for, and now someone else is falling for me. When did I become the female in the love triangle?
I returned to the place back, where I had sat with Vedant, but he was no longer there. I sat alone for some time, contemplating. So much was going on in my life. Life has suddenly gotten much more complicated for me.
After some time I went to the estate, everyone was seated in the living room and having a good time. My sister was not present here. When I questioned where she was, her friends replied she was not feeling well and had gone to her room earlier. I moved on to check her bedroom. She was sleeping peacefully.
I went into my room, feeling at ease and relieved that Riya was safe. I sat on the bed after changing into my night clothes. Thinking about the kiss. It was fantastic today; Vedant kissed me, and I can't express how wonderful it was.
I slept on the bed, staring at the ceiling in my room. I caressed my lips and felt his breath on me. I grinned to myself and told myself that you are losing it, Harshita. I was going to turn off the light when I heard a knock on my door. I opened the room to see the waiter standing in front of me with the plate of meals.
"Ma'am, your food," he said.
"I haven't ordered any food. You've got the wrong number," I responded, going to close the door.
"no ma'am, it says your room number." He said while coming inside, set the meal on the table, and handed me a letter.
"This letter is for you," he continued, handing me the letter. I thanked him and sat on the chair, holding the letter. I tore it open and read.
Hi, Harshita,
Please have dinner; I know you skipped it. I'm not sure what you like, so I've chosen food that I enjoy. I hope you like it.
Thank you for entrusting me. The kiss was amazing to me. I know you felt it, too. I want more from you; I do not want to stop here. Can we explore our relationship further? I swear not to be the unpleasant, arrogant man that I was before. If you agree, please meet me in my room tomorrow at noon.
With Love,
Vedant
I just reread the letter; God, I was dreaming. He felt the same way. I looked at the food, his choices mirrored mine. He had ordered sahi panner, naan, and jeera rice with dal. I enjoy simple cuisine. I ate the entire supper and then realized I was quite hungry.
After dinner, sleep seemed far away. I had a lot of thoughts going through my mind. He did not ask if I was interested in dating; what exactly did he mean by "exploring the relationship"? Does he want to be physical with me? I had to meet him tomorrow to find out what he wanted from me.