Chapter 2

Under the Table Dealings?

'Stop it, Stop it...just freaking stop it!', he muttered incoherently to himself,frustrated at how his mind (or heart, or maybe both) just WOULDN'T listen. Crap. He tried to stare back at the book he had opened infront of him on the table, but could feel himself unconciously move his feet, tapping the bar under the table with the slightest of sounds. He was still anxious.Oh,wonderful.

Shifting in his chair,he looked up once again, and sighed dejectedly.She still wasn't here.Which was..obviously not a very abnormal thing,since all people in the word weren't idiotic like him,who came in the library everyday to get a glance at A GIRL. Well, it is kind of rude to put it like that...since it is kind of something he clearly had no control over.And although he does like books, and initially it was the hunger to READ that had brought him to the library,but since a month, it had...well,lets just say,been different.

He remembered the day he'd first seen her. He had been searching for a title,and he finally found it. Satisfied,he pulled out his notebook and his pen from his bag that was casually slung over his shoulder to one side, and started on his way to his favourite(or,call it regular) table in the library.The city library was huge and familiar,he'd been a fan ever since he'd seen it. And he absolutely adored books.Well,few generes specifically,but still. So,finding the table that was in one of the quietest corners of the place,and had the best view out of the window(HIS table),was not very difficult.

That day,however,was one of the very first days that he dropped his pen while twirling it.It was one of his favourite passtimes-the twirling of the pen between his fingers and he was quite good at it.Obviously shocked at the pen slipping,he bent down under the table he'd reached,and reached out for his pen.

The faintest of jasmine perfume hit his nostrils and he couldn't help looking up.He saw a cascade of shiny long deep brown(almost black) hair at a distance of about four to five inches from where he knelt,the hair covering a very fair face, of which he could make out only the ear, and the tiny diamond stud that winked at him.

He was oogling at someone's hair. 'Incredible',he thought sarcastically to himself.Before he could look up, the most beautiful pair of chocoloate brown eyes met his blue-grey eyes. The eyes were warm,embaressed,and utterly captivating. He allowed his gaze to stare at the face-which was,if not equally,but maybe even more beautiful than the eyes.

The face of the girl was shaped perfectly,like someone had taken eons to think about it. And now those fair cheeks tinged a deep shade of pink,and he was embaressed himself.What the hell was he doing? Flustered,he looked away,grabbing his pen hurriedly and standing,from under the table.And the girl followed,holding the notebook..that was probably the thing that had fallen down, and after a final little blush,turned away towards the bookshelves. It was then, he realised with irritation(mostly directed at himself), that he'd been staring again.

And maybe,it was right from that day,that it all started.The mindless staring,stealing glances and waiting for her to turn up.

He checked his watch again.It was 5:15 pm already,and she always used to be there,sharp at 5..selecting a book and sitting down at a table across his, and reading with full concentration.He now faintly wondered,had he even bothered to see what books she read? He should have.Maybe...just maybe,it would help him to approach her and talk to her about something.Seriously,how stupid could he have been?

Absent-mindedly,he checked his shirt.It was absolutely funny how he took almost half-an-hour to decide which colour,which print shirt to put on-and for whom? The very pretty girl across his library table,who evidently never spared him a glance? He wasn't really bad-looking...well,alright,he was handsome. Atleast that's what the girls in his college said. And he'd got a compliment on his blue shirt that he wearing today,from his neighbour, who happened to be a single,beautiful 25-year old female. He remembered that he even had a teeny-tiny crush on her when he was 10. His first crush.

But then,the thing that was happening at present...the girl at the library,the oogling and the sudden,strong but somewhat unavoidable liking...it was a first for him.Not that he had never persued a girl before,it was just that he had never been so serious,so anxious,or so bothered about just SEEING someone...he was kind of used to quick starts and quick ends when it came to his relationship status.

"Hi.",a soft, slightly melodic voice broke into his reverie. 'She's here!', he thought joyfully.

Her hair was open like every other day, and it slightly fell around her shoulders, as if carefully embracing her. Her blue jeans fitted her just right, and the long, light blue top complimented her figure. She looked pretty, beautiful and seemingly taller as she stood infront of his table, her gaze fixed on him.

She had actually approached him. And was giving him a very puzzled stare.

"Um...it's okay, I'll just-",she started to move away, clearly puzzled and somewhat insulted that he wasn't giving an answer. And that very sentence, pulled him back to reality. Had he been doing it again?

"No wait!",he replied somewhat frantically, trying to find a way to stop her. It was too precious a moment to be let away from his hands. "I er-...We never talk!",was the only thing that he could manage out in his half-real state of mind.

'Obviously, you never talk. You just stare at her everyday.', his mind retorted back, which he thought was wiser to ignore in the present situation.

She was giving him the puzzled look again. "Yes, well...I just wanted to ask where you got the book from, I was searching for it too...",she trailed away unsurely.

He glanced down at his book. As he did, he realised he had no idea what book he'd selected. And somehow it had to be the very day that she decides to come and talk, ironically, about the book. He quickly inspected the title and sent up a silent thanks. He knew exactly where he'd taken the book from - because the library was almost like his second home. He knew every corner of it by heart.

"Um..",he looked up at her, who was still looking back at him expectantly.

'Finally',he thought with a surge of joy,'She noticed me!'

"Yeah,so..it's on the shelf that come when you turn round that table to the right..",he pointed to the table before his,"..fifth row from the top.",he finished,and exhaled, feeling the nervousness finally slipping away.

"Thank you.",she said, smiling at him.

Of all the days that he'd stared at her,he'd faintly wondered how she'd look smiling. Now he knew- her smile made her face glow,lifting her cheeks in a way that she looked prettier than she ever looked before.

It was, for him, the start. A new kind of start anyway, but a start. He'd heard her voice, she had talked to HIM, and SMILED at him. Definetely a start. He couldn't help the smile that crept up his own face, as he noticed her go.

*****

It was maybe,the slowest episode of his life-but he somehow realised,that he has no problem waiting. Which was a shock even to his best friend when he told him. And although he did not have the slightest idea WHAT he was waiting for, he was enjoying the small smiles and the rare glances that he got from her, twice during the whole week after she'd first talked to him. Yes, it had been a week alright...after he'd sat in the library waiting for her to arrive, after she had approached him,after which he had finally stopped scolding his head for stealing glances - and let his mind take over his small voice of conscience.

There was one thing that he'd practiced during the week...he had tried to juggle reading and staring(um...glancing),so that if by any chance she decides to approach him again, he'd be able to rant about his book and engage her in some conversation. And although he personally wanted himself to be the one to be approaching her this time, he wouldn't mind hearing her voice again, talking to him, without any effort from his side.

'One month,one week,',he thought silently to himself,as he entered the library sharp at 5.

He wasn't really cheerful on the particular day.Not depressed...it was more likely exhaustion that had taken over his good mood. The fest practice was on in full swing, and as the outgoing batch,his enthusiam for perfection was wearing him out. Yes,it had struck him that he need not go to the library everyday, and anyway the girl wasn't interested...but somehow,he did not want to let go of the habit(that was probably what it was...or maybe more,he was too tired to find out) so easily.

So,as he walked to his table,he decided he'd go back after just one glance at her.He sighed at himself,his state, and as he accelerated his pace to rest his weary legs as soon as possible, he bumped into...Her.

Her hair brushed against his chest in the same flicker of the moment that the bundle of books she was carrying to her table hit the floor with a sound, and she staggered away from him instinctively,as she steadied herself. Both looked down at the books, then back at each other. She had a flush of pink in her cheeks again,just like the day he'd first seen her,he noticied with precision.

He knelt down after her, and almost simultaneously, both of them reached for the book that had gone under the table,farthest from all. Although he tried to ignore his now-accelerated heartbeat,he could not ignore the colour in her cheeks that now hinted at a blush more than embaressment. Quickly forwarding his free hand, he grabbed the book,allowing her to duck and stand from under the table. He stood up two seconds later, his hands full of books. All of hers. As he glanced down at his hands, he had looked up just in time to see her nervously tuck a strand of her hair behind her ear.

"So many..",he could not help but mutter, and fortunately or unfortunately,she had heard him.

"Project.",she explained with a sheepish smile,"But thank you so much."

"My pleasure.",he said smoothly,passing her his best dimpled smile as he inspected the titles.

Faintly,he was aware that all his weariness had slipped away. Oh great, what was she now,like a energy booster to him? He had to suppress a laugh at the thought.

"Dan Brown.",he said, impressed,holding a copy of 'Angels and Demons'.

"One of my favourites.Have you read 'Inferno' yet?",she asked with ease, as if they were childhood best friends discussing a book.

He frowned,"Um..I've been meaning to, actually. Haven't got hold of that yet...so,you're interested in thriller.",he raised his eyebrows,genuinely interested.

She smiled,seeming at ease with him, as he himself felt.

"At the moment...Yes.",she answered.

"At the moment?"

"Well...I read according to my mood, I can't really pick any favourite genre specifically."

He was more interested in her while he was talking to her, a distant part of his mind notes. And this getting-to-know-her bit was good, and easy, presently, atleast.

"What do you like?",she asked.

He shrugged."I'm not really broad in my reading choices-preferrably thriller,mystery,science fiction...those kinds."

She nodded,as if absorbing the information. "You should really try science fiction- you seem like an avid reader.",he said,hoping silently that he wasn't boring her.

"I am.",she grinned,"By the way...you seem to know this place really well. I mean from that day...your instructions sounded very confident.",she said, a hint of the fact that she was impressed was evident in her tone.

"Yes.",he smiled,"I've been a regular to the place since I was 9 years old. It's one of the places I always love to come to...and not just for reading.",he couldn't help but smirk at the literal meaning behind his sentence.

"9 years old..wow.", she said,looking all over,as if trying to picture him as a child,in that very library.

"By the way,I'm Reyaansh.", he said, sticking out his hand. It was safe to introduce himself...wasn't it?

"Kria.",she said,shaking the hand gently and leaving it too soon for his liking,"Guess I'll see you around.",she smiled.

'Yes,oh yes...you surely will.', his mind said with ill-concealed glee.

"I guess so,too.",he said, feeling his heart sink at the thought that the conversation was over.

He gazed at his table and sighed. Maybe it was the first time in his entire age here that he did NOT want to go to his table and sit there alone.

"That's your favourite table here, right?", he turned at her voice.

"How did you know?"

"Not very hard to guess...since like the first time I saw you, you never sit anywhere else but at that table."

"You notice me?",he blurted out without thinking, in pure surprise.

Could it be, that the girl he'd been admiring for so many days, had actually been doing the same in his case? Wow.Actually sratch that-It's Unbelieveable!

There was this blush again. "Umm...I,er-..if..it-I mean, ever caught my eye..",she stammered nervously.

He didn't know how to reassure her that he hadn't meant his thought to sound like that,when he clearly had.

"I love my table.",he murmured instead, feeling like a complete idiot.

"I should really be doing my project..",he heard her murmur,looking at her watch.

"Yeah,alright..",he said in a small voice, not wanting to say goodbye. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw her sit down and arrange her books.

"Oh,Kria?",he said, and liking the way her name sounded off her tongue, continued,"Would you um...mind to join me sometime,on my table? It's in one of the best locations of the whole place.",he offered, though he had no idea why he'd said the last bit.

He hoped it did not sound too cheesy, or was he too fast? His heart raced with anxiety. She seemed to consider the offer, and after a pause,she smiled slightly.

"You know what?",she said,"I'd actually love to."

*****

Fast-forwading to four months later!

"Um,Rey?",she called softly, feeling utterly stupid as she stood at his table, looking all around his empty table. It was 5:05 pm,after all.

He had to stop himself from laughing out. She looked so cute doing that, so he had to stick his head out from under the table

and say,"Hi Kria.",he grinned.

She was startled to hear his voice from God-knows-where,and then as she looked down,her eyes widened."What the hell do you think you're doing right there?",she hissed.

"Come and sit!",he whispered back,ignoring the question, and she looked around hurriedly and then shot a indreculous glare at him. "Reyaansh!"

"Please?"

She had to roll her eyes. Apparently her boyfriend wasn't as sane/intelligent as she'd thought him to be,during their initial interactions. She huffed, looked around one more time, before carefully ducking her head under the table to sit beside him.

"Hi.",he said,looking utterly happy.

"Hi.",she couldn't help smiling back. It was impossible to be around him and not like him, especially when he was giving you that smile,"So..what the hell are we doing here?"

He easily reached for her hand and storked the back of it with his thumb,"Our story started right here.",he said seriously.

"Rey?", she looked at him unsurely. What the hell was happening?

"Um..can I say something?",he looked nervous all of a sudden. She nodded.

"I love you.",he said,his beautiful eyes boring into hers, shining with sincerity.

"I know.",she said, still puzzled at the serious turn of his mood.

"You know? How? I never said this before!",he demanded.

As realisation dawned, she giggled slowly at him. He frowned, not understanding.

"Kria.."

"Rey seriously? We've been dating for three and half months now. I know you haven't said this in words before, but to me it was always pretty obvious that you loved me.",she said matter-of-factly.

"I was practising the whole morning.", she heard him mutter, obviously not pleased with the reaction his girlfriend had given at his confession. She edged closer and turned her head so that she could kiss his cheek.

"It was nice to hear,though.",she said in his ear, smiling.

"Nice to hear? Not nice enough to answer?",he was pouting now. Good God- where had the sober guy gone, who was discussing Dan Brown with her?

"I love you too. Happy?"

He nodded, smiling his new-found shy smile.

She looked around,"Now can we get up from here?",she asked.

"I like this place. Under the Table. Kinda our place.",he said, and she had to smile at him, shaking her head.

Who would've thought? It all started here. Under The Table!

****

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Love,

Maitree :)