MIDSUMMER CRUSH

Chapter 9

I invariable tuned into Derek's original show in the morning after returning back from my walk. To my surprise Derek was talking to me as in me. He was in fact begging me to call the studio again and continue my story. "New York wants to hear you, Giselle! You won't believe but your story has struck a chord with of most of our listeners," he announced and what he did next overwhelmed me with the responses he played.

There were recordings of requests to get me back on his show, right from young girls to older men. Suddenly strangers seemed interested in knowing about my life...a waiter's story. I felt like laughing while listening to each requests. New Yorkers were crazy, didn't they have anything worthwhile to do instead of listening to my story.

"You heard that, Giselle? You're in demand right now and the calls keeps pouring in like there's no tomorrow. So please don't disappoint us and call in as soon as you hear this," he said while I sighed.

Nope Derek, sorry but I'm not calling your studio again. Just coz Aariz didn't hear it last night, doesn't mean I go ahead and take more risks. God saved my skin after the blunder I committed last night, I was in no way going to repeat my act again just coz bored New Yorkers found my story entertaining.

"Giselle, I know you're listening to this so here's a song dedicated just for you," he startled me when he played a soothing country number for me.

"Wow, did Derek just dedicate a song to me?" I was left in a daze for I had never expected something like that. Anyway try as much as you can, I'm not giving in, I conditioned myself not to get influenced and for the first time in history turned off the stereo without finishing his show.

Just when I thought that was the end of my problems, I received a call from Katie who claimed that Derek was referring to me. "Oh my God! Derek dedicated a song to you, isn't that awesome?" she squealed in excitement while I cringed.

"Wait wait, I don't know what you're talking about. I'm not the one he's been mentioning on air," I lied and hoped it would convince her but whom was I fooling.

"Duh, I know that was you last night on his show. Oh my God I never knew you had an abusive past, I feel bad for you," she blabbered while I frowned. "That wasn't me, duh I'm not the only girl named Giselle out here, Katie! Besides, what makes you think I'm the one pft!" I made a face and pulled my hair, but she was dead sure it was me.

"Like please, you're the only Giselle I know who's a waitress and has parents living in New Jersey," Katie exclaimed suspiciously while I sighed.

"There can be many waitresses with that name, having parents in New jersey. Katie that wasn't me," I stressed on my words and felt like I was losing the battle.

"Hmm...and explain about Aariz, your Crush? I bet there can be many Giselles out there having a crush with that name. What a coincidence coz I remember you telling me he's your friend," she passed a sarcastic comment and trapped me.

"Fine you win, it was me on his show last night," I finally agreed and pulled away from the phone when she screamed in victory. After that she kept pestering me to tell her the rest of my story, but I refused. She then begged me to call Derek and reveal it on his show, but that wasn't going to work either.

"No I'm not confessing anymore, Katie! Just forget it and let me rest," I pleaded until she finally gave up.

"Alright, sorry I got a bit excited there, but you're a star and like me there are many who would love to hear you ," she stated and grabbed my attention.

"Wait, talking about others, how's the situation in Oh Maria? You didn't tell any of them that it was me, right?" I panicked and enquired nervously.

"Uh...No, but I was about to discuss it with a Fiona who doubts it was you last night," She replied.

"Please brain wash her and tell her it wasn't me! I beg you, just do this once for me and I'll be grateful forever , please Katie!" I begged till she agreed once again.

"Fine, relax! I'll manage them, but you should at least call Derek and tell him why you can't do it! You left so abruptly last night, the poor thing has been talking to you eve since he came on air," she suggested before I hung up.

Let him keep talking, he'll get tired and forget all about me, I thought and opened my laptop for some distraction. No sooner I logged into f*******: I was flooded with posts and messages on my wall. I had never seen so many notifications even in my college days, had it been another time I would have loved the attention, but this time I hated it.

Everyone in my friend list was asking the same question, was it you on Derek's show last night? I

ignored them all and pulled my hair in frustration. Why couldn't I have kept my identity a secret, there were friends from my days in St George who insisted I share my whole store on the radio again.

"You actually had a crush on him?" "Oh my god, you were in an abusive relationship?" "Cool so what happened next?" "Hey, you rocked on his show last night, when are you coming back?"

Such were the kind of posts and messages that wrecked my nervous, especially the ones that claimed they never knew I had a crush on the college heartthrob, Aariz. Thanks to my bigmouth everyone was now aware of it.

"Relax, it's just a passing phase...people will forget it...I hope so," I assured myself and tried to calm down, but it wasn't working. I hoped nobody from Aariz's friend circles informed him about my confession, so far it appeared he had no clue about my act and I prayed it stayed that way.

Tired and irritated with all those messages, I realised the only way to escape my nightmare was to run away from it, coz honestly facing it was too tough for me. "I need to get my mind away from this, maybe I should hibernate in my room or go on a long trip and return after a month?" I contemplated how to break free from all the attention and embarrassments I had drawn on myself.

Without thinking further I got dressed up and left the apartment with an agenda to forget everything. I wished I could just run away from my disaster, but I knew it was impossible. Getting into the subway without knowing where I was heading to, I looked at the crowd and felt like they knew who I was.

It was only when the crowd reduced that I felt relaxed and comfortable. Throughout the journey I considered changing my job or shifting to another city. "Sigh, what have I done..." I felt like a fool and walked out the moment the doors opened.

Walking aimless like a tramp, I stopped at a café and bar and decided to catch a drink. Upon entering, I was greeted with dim lights and a live band playing hardcore music. The ambience was somewhat new and different to my liking, not to forget the wild hipster crowd. I preferred quiet, bright places where one could enjoy reading a good book and sip on some hot coffee.

Pushing a stray lock behind my ear, I took a seat to the far corner and ordered an energy drink. Lost in thoughts I got distracted when the band finished playing and received a round of applause. I applauded them too so I wouldn't look odd, though I did feel out of place there. It wasn't long before the band leader introduced their lead guitarist and blew my mind.

"Brace yourselves as our rockstar, sweeps you away with his tunes," he said as Aariz came forward and seated himself at the centre with his guitar.

"Oh my gosh, he plays for a band in here!" I gasped and skipped a beat the moment he strummed his guitar with his sexy fingers.

"This one is one of my favourites, it's called Hotel California," Aariz announced and with a smile began playing this beautiful soothing song. A chill went down my spine when he sang along. His voice was so deep and intense, I couldn't believe he had such a great voice. Honestly Aariz was full of surprises, I wondered what else I would get to learn about him when all of a sudden our eyes met.

Okay this was awkward, he missed a string on seeing me staring at him. I attempted to smile and hurriedly lowered my gaze. Maybe walking into this place wasn't a good idea after all. Just when I thought of scooting out, the waiter brought me my drink and spoiled my plans.

"Fine...I'll just act like any normal customer and finish my drink," I told myself and avoided looking at him, though I did steal glances occasionally, who wouldn't? Aariz looked so charming playing his guitar on stage.

I choked on my drink when he caught me stealing glances at him. Dammit, this felt just like in the classroom of St George, when I and he would indulge in some flirty eye games. I didn't realize when he finished playing and came towards my table.

"Is this seat taken?" he smiled coyly and asked as I got pulled out of my thoughts.

"It will be once you sit here," I replied and returned the smile as he sat across the table.

"You haven't lost your sense of humour have you?" he stated and surprised me.

"My sense of humour?" I tilted my head and wondered what he was talking about.

"Yup, you always did goofy stuff and said crazy things in college, remember?" He raised his brows and set me thinking.

Wow so this guy knew me pretty well, I used to be the clown but only with my group of close friends I made in St' George. "Ha-ha...not anymore. I take life more seriously now," I quoted and darted my eyes.

"You're kidding me? Life is not meant to be taken seriously...well not every time, you must meet my friends. They know how to party at the funeral without being noticed," he exclaimed and amused me. "Hey, how about you join us for dinner tonight?" he added and startled me.

"Tonight?" I turned pale and darted my eyes again.

"Yeah, at my place! You know the address, right? I live next door," he chuckled mysteriously and made me all the more nervous.

"I'm calling my friends over for a small get together like party, don't worry it's not those base ball matches where we sit glued to the television and hurl abuses. This is going to be civil, besides, I'm cooking," he explained while I merely stared at him.

"Wow, you know to cook?" I enquired, feeling impressed.

"Well, I spent most of my academic years in boarding...that's how I learnt to cook for myself. Trust me, the canteens at boarding schools are gross," he said and made me laugh.

"Hey love birds, mind if we take him away for our next performance?" the band leader came forward and tried to whisk Aariz back on stage.

I blushed and dug my heels on the carpeted floor while Aariz spoke to him, "Uhm...I'm done for today, bro. I've got other plans..." he excused himself and gestured me to leave along with him.

"Oh I see, plans with the lady huh! Tell us how it goes, bro...you're a stud," he winked and said it out loud, leaving both of us embarrassed.

"No it's nothing like that..." Aariz cringed and corrected him before escorting me out.

"Sorry about that, he's a bit outspoken," he apologised as we walked along the street with his guitar strapped on his back.

"A bit too much If you ask me," I added and smiled. "But I don't mind it, I must say it's pretty cool to have a band of your own. So this is where you work, huh?" I asked inquisitively.

"Yup, kind off...I'm not a regular though, I perform when they call me sometimes," he explained. "I hope I wasn't too noisy for you, I never expected to find you here," he added.

"Same here, but you play beautifully...and sing too. Jeez, I never knew you could sing so well," I said and noticed him gushing.

"Thank you ma'am, I have to admit I got a bit nervous seeing you there," he chuckled and shoved his hands in his pockets.

I giggled and ran my fingers through my hair, "I wish I could play as good as you, I even had one but Crusher chewed it off," I pouted and sighed.

"Whoa, he really lives up to his name, doesn't he?" he laughed. "By the way, I could teach you to play," he added.

"No, it's okay. I don't want to trouble you," I smiled.

"It's no trouble, it's my job! I'm a music teacher at the Arts Academy....you can check it out if you like, I'll teach you for free," he smirked and completely took me by surprise.

"You're a music teacher? Oh my Gosh, you're full of surprises, aren't you? I mean I thought you would join the white collars after graduating from college, but a music teacher is completely out of line," I expressed my amusement.

"Ya, that's what everyone back at home said, but Music is my first love! My session starts in the late afternoons and may stretch up to evenings, but I presume you can remove time from your restaurant and spend some with me," he explained and paused abruptly after realising what he said. "I meant practising..." he hurriedly corrected while I smiled.

"Sounds tempting, but I don't own a guitar anymore...remember Crusher?" I laughed and so did he till he paused at a supermarket across the street.

"Mind helping me make this party a success?" He enquired eagerly and raised his brows. "That's if you don't have any other plans," he added and felt less positive about my response.

"Tell me where to begin from!" I showed my enthusiasm before happily walking into the super market with Aariz.

We got all that was needed and headed to his house. "Where is Naman?" I enquired after finding him missing.

"I left him with the nanny, the boys are really loud sometimes and I don't want Naman to experience all this so early," he explained and made me realise how concerned he was for his son.

The evening was fun with helping him prepare dinner for his friends. I was left embarrassed when he realised I was a disaster in the kitchen, but he was sweet to pretend that I was merely nervous to cook a feast for a large group. "Is that shawarma you're preparing?" I asked casually.

"Nope, just coz I'm Arabian doesn't mean you stereotype me as the shawarma addict," he made a cute angry face while I laughed.

"Sorry, jeez look at all that's left to prepare, wish you had a magic lamp so we could call a genie  to help," I joked and noticed his expression.

"Sigh, I sensed that would come sooner or later from you," he sighed and wrinkled his nose while I continued laughing.

"I wonder how Mrs. Partridge permitted you to throw a party, she hates loud noises," I said after we finally set the table dot on time.

"Permit what? You mean you need to take her permission?" he gave me a confused look when all of a sudden the doorbell rang followed by loud noises.

"They are here!" he announced excitedly and rushed to open the door. What burst in were a group of five noisy dudes and two over excited ladies who couldn't stop admiring Aariz's new home.

They were louder that a flock of hungry birds, spreading across the living room, creating a loud commotion. "Thank God, Naman isn't here," I thought before Aariz began introducing me to his gang.

They were a boisterous bunch and fun to be with, just like Aariz had mentioned earlier, they knew how to party hard even with limited resources. They were truly crazy, and I got to experience it when Mrs. Partridge came upstairs and threatened to call the cops if Aariz didn't send them away.

"I'm sorry guys, I wasn't aware one's not allowed to have parties here. Sorry to spoil your mood," he apologised and felt bad, but his wacko friends had other plans.

"Chill, the party is still on," one of the guys exclaimed and gestured the rest to get inside his car.

"I think you didn't hear the land lady. She'll call the police and even kick me out of her apartment if you guys party any longer here," Aariz said while I cleared the mess.

"She mentioned about not partying here, but she didn't mention not partying elsewhere, right?" he said and confused him. "There's a midnight yacht cruise that's partying right as we speak, he added.

"Cool, so you have the passes?" Aariz enquired.

"Nope, we're gate crashing!" he winked and pulled him out the door.

Aariz turned and asked me to join them, he seemed pretty excited too, except me. "Erm...I don't think party crashing is a good idea, anyway I have to get up early for work," I excused myself, but his friend grabbed my hand and insisted on me joining the fun.

"You take life too seriously, girl! Take things slow and let your hair down for a while, trust me you'll love it," he said and forced me to join them in the car, before we all set out to enjoy NYC's nightlife.

This was crazy, but for the first time I gate crashed a high profile party on one of the most expensive yacht cruises in NYC. I was the odd man out amongst the elite ladies because of my casual dressing sense, but nobody gave a damn about it. In fact I got a compliment or two from strangers, since they felt it was quiet nerdy which was currently in fashion.

Taking his friend's advise, I let my hair down and danced like there was no tomorrow. The night was fun, entertaining and beautiful as the yacht passed the statue of liberty that glowed amidst the breath taking city skyline. It wasn't long before I realized that Aariz was missing from the dance floor.

"Where did he go?" I suddenly felt awkward, dancing with his friends while he was nowhere to be seen.

Drinking some tasty punch, I walked around looking for him and finally heaved a sigh of relief on finding him sitting all alone on the railings of the yacht. "I thought you liked loud music," I said as I approached him from behind.

Aariz turned to look at me and smiled. "Not always though...I do prefer tranquillity sometimes," he replied while I leaned over the railings.

"Do you listen to radio?" I asked casually and to my relief he replied with a no. "Nope, I'm a busy person, I hardly get time for myself," he said and stared at the waves below.

"What are you watching?" I enquired as the wind blew in our direction.

"My future..." he replied vaguely and amused me.

"Aha, and what does it say?" I thought he was joking and hence played on.

"It's uncertain..." he replied with a faraway look in his eyes.

"So you can read waves, huh? Try reading my face and tell me what you see," I suggested and smiled.

Aariz turned to face me and stared into my eyes, his gaze was intense and made him look all the more desirable. Lost in thoughts, I kept staring into his eyes, wondering what was going on in his mind when all of a sudden he leaned forward and gently kissed me on my lips.

A chill ran down my spine as I stood there numb while his lips still lingered over mine. Closing my eyes, I could feel his warm moist breath brushing my lips as he kissed me passionately. His long romantic kiss didn't seem to revive my heart that kept skipping a beat every time he caressed my lips with his.

I could have pulled back, but this was more like a dream that I wished would go on for eternity. Swept off my feet by his romantic gesture, I mustered courage, and reciprocated to his kiss. Pulling an inch away from his lips to breath, I ran my fingers over his face and traced the outline of his chiselled jaw before moving closer to kiss him.

Aariz held my waist and pulled me closer as we immersed ourselves in some intense hot kisses. Clutching my hair, he pressed his body against mine in an embrace while I locked my arms over his shoulders. It wasn't long before his noisy gang found us and teased.

"Aariz and Giselle sitting in a tree, K-I-S-S-I-N-G!" they shouted in unison and distracted us on account of which, Aariz lost his balance and fell in the water. His friends laughed at him from where I stood, while I got worried and embarrassed at the same time. "Relax, he's Aariz...he'll be fine in any situation," his friend said after seeing how paranoid I was. "Hey, bro! How's the water down there?" he asked him and hurled a life tube, while Aariz slicked his hair behind and showed him the thumbs up before getting back on board.