Unsaid Love_Chapter 2

Greedily enjoying her Baskin Robbins’ strawberry ice-cream, Riya noticed the bookshop across the road. Following the footsteps of her mom, Riya was an avid reader since she learned how to read. She loved reading the stories and especially the fairy tales. As soon as she finished a story-book, she craved for another. At the age of eight (or i-will-be-nine-in-a-month as she says), she was far ahead of the kids of her age group.
“Mom! Look there’s a bookstore there. Let’s go please!”
“Riya you haven’t finished the book you are currently reading. Finish it first then I will get a new one. C’mon lets go home. Mumma has lots of work to do.”
Being a single mother isn’t easy. Managing work and home, that too with a little daughter to take care of, can be tiring. But Avni was still lucky. With her own boutique, she had her own schedule and can easily squeeze out time for her daughter except for some times when she would be too busy.
“Mom Please! It’s almost done. And it’s my birthday next month. I deserve one for my birthday gift as well.”
Riya was only demanding in the case of books. At the age when girls ask for dolls, she asked for books. Avni could see her younger self in her daughter and she knew she couldn’t say no to this one.
“Ohk. Let’s go. But only one book at a time remember. Because I have something special planned for your birthday this time.”
“What’s the plan mumma?”
“it’s a surprise darling”
“tell me pleaseeeeeeeeee”, said Riya widening her eyes and making a puppy-like face, her usual way of melting her mom to her demands.
“it won’t work sweety. It’s your birthday surprise and you will know it then. End of the discussion. And here we come to your favourite place. Go search yourself a book. I will be in the ‘Design’ section”
“ohk mom”

Books!! That’s how they had met the first time! It wasn’t actually a meeting though. Avni had gone to library with her friend Priya. Priya hated books unlike Avni. Always Avni used to drag Priya to library but this time it was the other way round. It was Priya who wanted some book on ‘Product design’ and dragged Avni along, or rather Destiny did! And Avni happily agreed. Priya rushed to look for her book and in the meanwhile Avni strolled in her favourite section-‘Apparels Design’. She loved it! Being in the library of premier design college of the country, was an experience in itself, and she savoured it to the fullest. It had each and every book related to design and design was her life. She picked up ‘Elle‘ and went to ‘Reading Section’ of the library.
She was just about to take a seat there, when she noticed a guy on the next desk colouring little mickey mouse figures with his Staedtler oil pastels scattered around the sheet. He was so engrossed with his colours that he didn’t even notice Avni standing there for full ten minutes. For that matter, even Avni hasn’t noticed that she had gone so near him, staring the cartoons. Avni was one of those who usually doesn’t go around poking their heads into others’ world. She minded her own business. But this was something unusual. Curiosity caught hold of her before she could get hold of herself and she blurted out sarcastically-“Mickeys! What an innovation!”. Immediately regretting what she said, she bit her lower lip embarrassed and murmured a polite apology-“Sorry” turning away.
But the guy answered before she could turn around- “CD project, Revival of Old times”
Avni looked at him and he kept doing his work, ignoring her.
“Oh”, murmured Avni, waiting to say something, but didn’t know what.
Seeing Avni still standing there perplexed, he finally decided to have a break and said- “Myself Akash Awasthi, Communication Design, Third year”. He looked straight into her black eyes.
A few seconds later, Avni realized that she was being expected to introduce herself as well.
“Avni Agarwal, Apparel Design, Same batch”.
“Same batch? Never saw you before”, said Akash, surprised.
“Same here”
And before the conversation could further continue, Priya came searching for Avni.
“Oh Avni you are here, I have been looking for you everywhere”, said Priya, out of breath.
“Umm.. I just… yah lets go”, said Avni.
“Oh Hi Akash! I didn’t see you before”, said Priya in her usual chirpy tone. Avni gave her a puzzled look as if saying you-know-him-and-i-never-even-saw-him-before!
“Hi”, said Akash, as if terribly wanting to get back to his work. He wasn’t used to any kind of disturbance during his work and he hated it, which was particularly why he chose library for his work.
Sensing that their presence wasn’t welcome there, Priya said goodbye and they left.
As soon as they were out of the library, Avni asked Priya-“You know him?”
His personality had a strange effect on her. She couldn’t take him out of her mind. There was something weird that was stuck in her head.
“who?”, asked her back, having totally forgotten the meeting in the library.
“Akash”
“He was our classmate Avni, back in our foundation year before we chose our specialization”, said Priya as a matter of fact.
“Really? It was like I saw him for the first time in college!” Avni was still unable to track him as her batch-mate.
“yes really. And it’s no shock you don’t remember him. Did you ever notice anyone apart from your little own world”

“Mom? Mom??”
Riya shook Avni and brought her back from the world of her memories. It took her a few minutes before she could take in the surroundings. She was sitting on the couch of the book store holding “The Secret” in her hands. His favourite. She didn’t remember picking up this book off the shelf and sitting down on the couch.
“Mom, I am done. Let’s go now”, said Riya holding her new possession- Enid Blyton’s The Enchanted Wood.
“And Mom we already have that book on our shelf “, said Riya, now pointing to the book in her mother’s hand.
“yeah, yeah, I remember! C’mon lets go”