MIDSUMMER CRUSH

Chapter 13

Aariz’s POV

I waited, waited and waited until I lost my patience. Giselle was engrossed in the lame subway surfer game as if she were playing C.O.D on an xbox. I kept reading her expression to gauge when to break in, but no sooner she finished playing the train hopping game, she switched over to candy crush.

“She’s worse than Naman when it comes to playing cell phone games,” I muttered and ran my fingers through my hair, wondering if I would ever get a chance to strike a conversation with her.

The situation was perfect for us, we had ample time to talk and know each other or rather she could make an attempt to get to know me better. I knew she liked me, but why wasn’t she making any move? I was tired of always making the first attempt, coz honestly she never got the hints.

I stared at her and went deep into thoughts before she caught me staring. She felt awkward and finally kept her cell phone aside. “Sorry I got a bit lost in there…” she sheepishly explained and avoided my gaze.

“It’s cool with me, Naman is just as addicted as you  are,” I replied and realised I was embarrassing her further.  “I mean…I like them too…especially flappy bird,” I lied just to make her feel comfortable though I hated that game equally like the rest.

Giselle merely smiled and lowered her gaze before we fell silent again. “Naman is very cute though…” she broke her silence and blurted.

“Ya I know, but wait till you start living with him, he’s quite the dominating one,” I revealed and this time I wasn’t lying.

“Ha-ha…he’s a lot like his  mother,” she let out a soft laugh and finally met my gaze.

“You mean the dominative part?” I raised my brows.

“Erm…no I meant the looks…he looks a lot like Zehara…” she fumbled and darted her eyes. After a minute of silence again, she asked me something I had been expecting. “Don’t you think Naman’s behaviour is related to him feeling the absence of a mother? I know you guys separated, but don’t you feel he longs for a mother?” she enquired hesitatingly.

Yes, this is your chance Aariz! She wants an insight on whether I have plans on marrying again. I just hope I don’t sound desperate , though I know it won’t make any difference  because she thinks I’m not interested in her. “Nope, he’s perfectly fine without one,” I replied and cursed my tongue for giving her the wrong impression. I wasn’t good at such conversation, and always ended up saying the opposite of what I wanted

“I mean…I sometimes do feel the need of a mother, we both do,” I stated and noticed her shocked expression.

“You’re in need of a mother too?” she raised her brows in astonishment while I cringed at my foolish choice of words.

“No, I meant I’m considering giving love a second chance and Naman a better mother,” I grinned from ear to ear and hoped that made sense.

“Oh, so….you’re seeing someone then? Erm I mean you have a girl friend? She ran her fingers through her hair  and felt conscious as she asked me.

“No, I don’t have a girlfriend,” I answered and noticed a spark in her eyes. “But I definitely have someone in mind,” I added and noticed the spark fade away.

“That’s nice, so haven’t you approached her?” she asked softly and seemed less interested in the topic.

“Not as yet…I’m still waiting for that right moment,” I fixed my gaze on her and wondered why she never understood me.

“Hmm…don’t wait too long or someone might sweep her away before you do,” she smiled while I chuckled.  “May I know her name?” she  added and looked at me.

“Giselle…” I paused and noticed the miffed look on her face. “You’ll have to wait till I introduce you to her,” I added as she relaxed and looked away. I bet she thought it was she for a second when I addressed her.

I expected her to carry on the conversation further, but then realized that I had turned her off after revealing that I was seeing someone which gave her more reasons to believe I wasn’t into her. “Ya Allah! What am I doing?” I sighed and shoved my hands in my pockets when I came across two Hershey’s Kisses and my car keys.

Women loved chocolates no matter which part of the world they come from. Hoping to change her mood, I decided to offer her some. “Would you like some kisses?” I asked and startled her.

“What?” she recoiled and completely misunderstood me.

“Hershey’s kisses….” I corrected myself  with a straight face, while she coyly took one.

“Thanks…” she turned red in embarrassment and popped it in her mouth.

It didn’t strike me that Giselle would bring up the topic about me kissing her that night until I held the chocolate wrapper in my hand. She had every right to know why I kissed her if I already had someone in my life, but I wasn’t prepared to answer her so fast.

“Aariz…how are your friends?” she asked while I shifted in my seat.

“They’re doing good…” I paused and thought of ways to change the topic before she could get there.

“It was fun hanging out with them, remember when we gate crashed that party on the yacht?” she sounded eager and curious while I began sweating.

“Erm…ya kind of…I don’t really remember anything about that night,” I blurted in nervousness.

“You don’t remember anything that happened that night?” she was irked by my reply.

“Honestly I don’t…I guess I was drunk the whole time.  I couldn’t remember anything when I woke up the next day,” I lied and somehow felt bad that I was hiding the truth from her.

Giselle paused for a brief moment. I knew she was shocked coz I had literally kissed her that night. “I thought drinking is considered a sin in your religion?” she suddenly said and caught me off guard.

Wow, she was well read, I’d have to be careful with what I speak. “Erm…no you didn’t get me. I said I got drunk accidently. I don’t drink, might be one of my friends who spiked my fruit punch that night,” I explained and hoped it sounded convincing enough.

Giselle studied my expression and lowered her gaze. “You were drunk the whole time?” her voice trailed off while I nodded my head.

Great! Now I had depressed her further after stating I was drunk when I kissed her. Ya Allah! Why was I messing things up? The more I tried to make the best out of this moment, the deeper I irked her. Things could have shaped differently tonight had I handle the situation better.

I was aware she was heartbroken and now I had to make it up to her, because honestly I didn’t want to lose her. I thought of ways to drop hints at her again when all of a sudden I remembered my friend, Troy. He was kind of a love expert and could definitely help me on this one.

“Erm Giselle…can I borrow your cell phone for a minute?” I requested before she calmly handed it to me. She was upset and I could make it with the way she kept staring into oblivion.

I called Troy but he wasn’t answering my calls, it was way past 12, but this was an emergency! I sighed and lowered the phone when out of nowhere it vibrated. Assuming Troy was calling back, I glanced at the screen only to find a message from her mother.

“Happy birthday my dear, I hope we’re they first ones to wish you. Have fun & call back in the morning,” I read it in my mind and glanced at Giselle. It was her birthday! Maybe this was the perfect opportunity to make it up to her. I got excited and noticed the time, I had whole of 24hrs to make her feel special and this time I vowed not to mess it up.

“Eid meelad sa'eed !”I wished her in arabic.

“What did you say?” She turned and face me.

“Erm, nothing…are you hungry? Coz  I’m starving here,”  I said and returned her cell phone.

“Uhm…not really…It’s quite late though,” she seemed uninterested and looked away.

“But I know of eateries that stay up late, what say, shall we head out for a midnight brunch?” I offered her my hand and noticed a tint of red on her cheeks. “The treat’s on my side!” I added and bit my tongue.  This was supposed to be a surprise and as usual I was messing it again.

“What treat?” she raised her brows and looked at me suspiciously.

“I meant to say, dinner’s on me,” I smiled and waited with my hand forward until she agreed.

“Alright…” was all she said and instead of slipping her hand in mine, she got up and began climbing down the stairs.

Okay that was cold, but at least she agreed to come. I withdrew my hand and caught up with her.  Giselle didn’t utter a word in my car until I took her to Li bia, one of the most expensive luxury restaurants in New York.

“I would like a table for two, please,” I ordered the lady at the reception.

“Aariz…are you sure about this place? I think we should look somewhere else,” Giselle whispered from behind since she felt out of place thanks to the way we were casually dressed.

“Relax, nobody bothers as long as one owns a card,” I assured her  and smirked when all of a sudden the lady at the reception interrupted us.

“Which month shall I book the  table for?” she asked and startled me.

“Month! Well, I want it for this month, particularly like right now,” I crunched my brows and looked at her.

“Sorry, all our tables have been book for this month, we are currently taking reservations for the next month,” she replied and stunned both of us. “So when shall I book it?” she added and scrutinized us from head to toe.

“Aariz come on, let’s move from here,” Giselle giggled behind while I sighed in disappointment.

“Fine, maybe some other time,” I drooped and walked out with her.

“I guess your card didn’t work, eh!” she teased and broke into a smile when all of a sudden it began raining.

“And so don’t the wipers of my car. Hurry up and get inside!” I caught her hand and pulled her across the street where I’d parked the car only to find it missing.

“Where the hell did it go? I had parked it right here,” I got paranoid and left her hand.

“Cough! I guess it got towed away,” she said and pointed at the no parking zone sign.

This was ridiculous, first you don’t get a table and now my bloody car has been towed away and to top it, it began raining out of nowhere. “Aariz, get in before you get wet! We'll figure out something,” she called out to me from the bus stop.

“Thanks, but I’m already wet,” I frowned and cursed the weather.

Giselle stood dry under the roof of the bus stop and watched me as I sulked like my son. I had mentally prepared so much to make this night special for her and now it was all messed up. As I kept sulking I failed to realize  when  Giselle stepped out and came towards me.

“Is something wrong?” she enquired and studied my face.

“Nope, I guess we should walk back home or just wait till the rain stops and then head back home,” I slicked my hair behind and gazed up at the clouds.

“How about we take the subway and book a table at Oh Maria?” she said and confused me.

“Oh what?” I tilted my head and wondered what she was getting at. She pulled out a set of keys from her purse and shook it near my face.

“And what’s that?” I got suspicious and probed further.

“Just follow me and you’ll see,” she smiled before we headed towards the subway.

I was  soaking wet and so was she when we  got in. We preferred standing by the pole rather than sitting on the seats though the subway was empty. I was tempted to ask her where we were going, but changed my mind on seeing her smile there lost in her own thoughts. At least she had forgotten all those lies I had said and irked her.

It wasn’t long before the subway halted with a jerk and Giselle fell on me. “Are you okay?” I held her arms and helped her stand straight. She merely lowered her gaze in embarrassment and rushed out as soon as the doors opened.

“Hey wait!” I called out to her as I darted out.

The rains hadn’t stopped, we walked till she paused and pulled out her keys again. I was sceptical to see her open a door that lead inside a restaurant. “Hey, isn’t this the place you work at?” I said in amazement the moment it dawned on me.

“Yup, welcome to my aunt’s humble and  economical restaurant where you don’t need to wait a month to book a table,” she joked and switched on the lights.

The place looked different than what I had seen earlier. Chairs were placed on top the  tables, the display counters were  empty and the lights  were a bit dim since she had only switched on a few. As I examined the interior, I failed to realize that Giselle was setting the table  behind me.

“Whoa, let me do it or you’ll sprain your ankle,” I rushed to her side and pulled the chair from her arms.

“It’s alright, Aariz I do this every morning. It’s part of my job as a waitress,” she laughed it off and pulled the chair back  in her possession.

“You do this every morning? I thought you majored in business to join a multinational company!” I looked at her and wondered what she was doing wither life working as a waitress here.

“As if you never knew I was a waitress,” she smirked and laughed it off again. “You know it’s tough getting a decent job, as long as I can pay my bills I’m cool with being a waitress,” she said as she dusted the table.

“By the way you didn’t join any multinational company either, may I ask why you chose to be a part time music teacher?” she questioned me and raised her brows.

“Fine you win, I guess you already knew I had an inclination towards music,” I replied and sighed.

“Hmm…Aariz I keep forgetting to ask you this, but what do you do apart from teaching music. I know you told me about playing in a live band, but you said that was occasionally…” she stated and put me in a fix.

“Erm…I…Uhmm….enough of asking about me, now if you let me….” I pulled out another chair for her and made her sit. “I would like to know where the kitchen is and where you keep all your stock,” I added and leaned forward.

“Wha-t? Aariz, what are you doing?” she seemed miffed and got up.

“Uh ah! You sit here and let me do the job, okay,” I smirked and withdrew myself when she blankly pointed at the kitchen.

“Aariz….” She called out to me but I warned her not to move.

“Don’t move, I’ll be right back. Promise me you won’t come after me,” I gave her a stern look until she sighed and agreed. With that done, I barged in the kitchen to cook up a perfect dinner for the birthday girl.

Giselle’s POV

I sat idle at the table, wondering what was going on inside. I knew Aariz was hungry , but had he let me in I could have just heated something and served him in a minute. Aariz was taking so long, I felt curious to step  in and see if he needed my help when all of a sudden the lights went out.

I panicked and looked around in the darkness. Worried what had happened to the lights, I stood up and was surprised to see Aariz coming in with a tray lit with candles.  What followed next was a happy birthday song that he sang along as he approached me.

“Oh my God! It’s my birthday…but how did you, oh God, Aariz…” I gasped and ran my fingers through my hair. This was totally unexpected from him. how did he know? And how didn’t it strike me? I thought and blushed uncontrollably till he placed the tray on the table.

“Candles on spaghetti and meat balls! Ha-ha Aariz that’s so cute, but if you’d have told me earlier I could have showed you where the cakes are kept,” I laughed and couldn’t seem to believe that this was actually happening to me.

“There’s no fun in revealing surprises before hand, anyway I got my hands on some candy from the candy dispenser,” he smiled and gestured me to sit.

“Aariz, this is total unexpected, I don’t know what to say,” I felt embarrassed and avoided his gaze.

“Don’t say anything, just blow off the candles, make a wish and cut the spaghetti,” he replied and teased me.

“Cut the spaghetti! Wow this sounds interesting, did you make this?” I laughed and met his gaze.

“Yes, now hurry up and make a wish!” he rubbed his hands and sounded just as excited as I was.

I closed my eyes and made a wish before blowing off all the candles together. “Oops, it got dark again,” I giggled when I opened my eyes and noticed how dark it was.

“ I’ll keep bringing you out of darkness  as long as I’m around,” he said and light a candle stick. I must admit, Aariz had prepared everything quite well. Though he said it in such a manner that for a moment I felt he was seducing me and had brought me on a romantic dinner date.

“Stop daydreaming Giselle, he’s into someone else already,” I told my heart and cut into the meat ball when Aariz yelled.

“Hey, you didn’t tell me what you wished for,” he leaned forward and smirked like a devil. Aariz looked more charming in candle light. If only he knew how weak he made me in the knees every time I saw him.

“Wishes aren’t supposed to be revealed,” I replied and lowered my gaze.

“Let me guess! You wished for someone special to sweep you off your feet, right?” he said and startled me.

“No, I don’t think I’m ready for that,” I laughed it off and confused him. “I wished to travel the world alone or maybe get lost in an island. Sigh! If only I were rich, life could have been so much better,” I took a deep sigh and looked at Aariz.

Studying his expression I realised my wishes had not gone down well with him. “Trust me, being rich has its own baggage. Life gets a lot more messy when you have to deal with powerful families and their wealth,” he said and sounded serious.

“Anyway leave that aside and tell me how’s your birthday cake?” he came back to his cheerful mood and looked straight into my eyes. “It’s awesome, you should have been a chef, mister music teacher,” I teased and suddenly sneezed.

“Rahimaka Allah!” he said and smiled.

“What was that?”I enquired curiously.

“God bless…” he explained as we shared the spaghetti.

Aariz language never seized to amaze me. Though I never understood what he said, his accent and tone always sounded sexy to me.

“Hal tuħibb an tarqus̱?” he suddenly said and left me confused after we had finished.

“I didn’t get you,” I looked at him with a dumb expression while he took my cell phone and played one of my favourite songs titled Dessert Rain by Edward Maya. It was then when he brought forward his hand and repeated the same words again that I realised he was asking me to dance with him.

“Aariz….” I told myself not to blush, but my emotions were exploding from inside and before I realised I had slipped my hand in his.

What was I doing? Why did I agree to this and why was he doing this to me, though he had someone in his life? Thousands of questions perturbed my mind before he slipped my phone in his pocket and pulled me out.

From the moment he glided his hands around my waist and pulled me closer, I forgot everything that mattered to me. Absorbing in the sensual ambience that he had created, I left my inhibition and let him sway me to the rhythm of the song. I didn’t know why he chose this song in particular, may be because it had a mix of Arabic tune to it or maybe because it completely depicted my feelings for him. Whatever may the reason be, I just wished this night would go on and on.

I was slow dancing in his arms, his every touch sent waves of excitement in my body. Why Aariz, why do you keep doing this to me? One moment you make me feel like there’s something between us and the very next moment you pretend nothing ever happened, just why do you tease me so much? I looked deep into his piercing eyes and questioned myself while he occasionally sang the lyrics and gave a flirtatious smile.

Hearing the lyric made me wonder if he was hinting at something coz honestly the lyrics and my situation matched perfectly. “Try to find a way to love you. Deep inside, and I’m just a boy who lives next door. You are the light inside my heart. Deep inside, and you’re the girl who lives next door. Don’t you wanna feel my touch, don’t you wanna be my light next door,” he whispered the lyrics in my ear as he twirled and pulled me closer into his arms.

Just then the song abruptly stopped followed by a ringtone. Snapping out of my daze, I left Aariz’s arms and pulled back while he picked my phone and handed it to me. I avoided his gaze and hurriedly answered the phone, maybe  this was the perfect way to get out of this awkward situation.

“Hello, dad?”

“Hello, who’s this?” I crunched my brows and wondered who could be calling up so late.

“Why should I tell you? My dad was the one to call me through this number,” he said when I realised who he was. “Naman! This is you, right?” I said and glanced at Aariz. “Just a minute,” I added and passed on the phone to Aariz.

Aariz’s POV

“Hello, Naman! Is everything alright?” I enquired after being pleasantly surprised by his call.

“Everything was until I opened the door and found you missing,” he answered sarcastically.

“You opened the door already? Naman, shut it and don’t open until I return, okay” I advised and got worried.

“Where are you?” he ignored my advice and sounded upset.

“Just around the corner, son. I’ll be up there in a few mintues,” I assured him and gestured Giselle that it was time to head back home.

“You’re with the girl next door, aren’t you?” he said and startled me.

“Erm…I’ll explain, but just promise me you will go to bed once you let me in, okay?” I asked while he replied with a deep sigh. “Are you angry with me? You sound upset,” I enquired and hoped he wouldn't create a scene  on seeing Giselle.

“Yup, I’m very upset,” he replied and got me worried.

“I’m sorry, Naman. I promise it won’t happen again,” I apologised before he revealed the real reason he had been upset.

“It’s not you dad, it’s Dora! Her questions were darn hard today,” he grumbled while I laughed.

“Ha-ha, Naman….I love you,” I said as I and Giselle got into the subway.

“Ya whatever! Just don’t land up when I’m in the toilet, I hate interruptions,” he warned me and cut the  line.

I returned the phone and looked at Giselle. She seemed quiet and low again. “Hey, don’t sleep already! Remember you’re staying over at my place,” I said and grabbed her attention, but she seemed least bit interested.

“Yea…” she sighed and looked elsewhere as we headed back home.