Oberoi mansion, 6:20 a.m...

Omkara's pov.....

          I can feel somebody tapping my knee. Not too hard but hard enough to shake it. It means somebody is touching me. Oh my god! Om, just push them away. They might harm you. But I don't want to. I just want to sleep. It feels like I am in coccoon. So warm, so relaxing. The jerking increased and so the panic in my chest. After much effort, I could open my glued eyes.

           But once I opened my eyes, I felt all the effort is worth it. The sight infront of me made my eyes widen in amusement. There she is, Gauri, standing infront of me, with a soft smile on her face. It was not until she started speaking, I realised that I am lying on couch, tucked in a fluffy blanket. I immediately sat upright, pulling down my blanket. It took me few minutes to adjust to my surroundings.I am currently sitting in the Sofa placed in the living room.

           Now, you might ask how I got shifted into this sofa suddenly. But what can I do? After the terrible nightmare I had last night, I puked out all the contents in my stomach. And then, I couldn't sleep at all. Whenever I closed my eyes, I could feel Mamu on top of me. At one moment I felt so dirty and impure that I had to shower once again. Otherwise, the itchy feeling wouldn't leave. After that, I decided to sleep in the living room as it is more brightly lit and spacious.
           And like that, now I am here with Gauri sitting infront of me, smiling.

G: Good morning! Fully awake now?

O: Good morning. Yeah I am.

           Saying this, I gave her a lazy smile followed by a yawn.

O: Gauri! Wh..what's the time?

           She immediately fished out her phone, probably to check the time.

G: Hmmm.....It's going to be 6:30. 6:28 a.m. more accurately.

O: It's early in the m..mmorning. You are so d..dressed up.

           What I said is true. Early in the morning, she is dressed in a beige coloured full sleeved t-shirt, denim blue jeans and a navy blue coloured floral scarf around her neck. She has these heavy ivory jhumkas adorning her ears and a silver bracelet on her right wrist.Normal or abnormal, I don't know, but she is looking very beautiful. Not to forget, the way she pulled up her long hair in a ponytail, now resting on her shoulder.

G: Om! Om! What happened?

         Oh shit! Why am I staring at her like this? Now she might be thinking I am a creep. But she is really beautiful. Should I tell her this? But what if she thinks I am flirting? Hmm...maybe a little bit of flirting is also good. Hmm...fine.

O: Woh...you l..look very beau...beautiful.

G: What? I mean...

O: I am s..sorry.

G: But why?

          You should've shut up Om. What if she stops talking to you. Rudra is right, I am a dumb head.
No Om , no! No self pity. You are good. No worries. You are not a dumb head.

G: Om, why are you...sorry?

O: Aren't you angry?

G: Why would I be angry?

O: Because I s..said you are beautiful.

G: Haa! What's wrong in that? You didn't call me ugly, right!

O: So you don't have any pr..problem?

              She chuckled at me and said,

G: No Om! What happened?

           It feels very nice to listen my name coming out of her lips. So from now on, I think I need not be scared to call her beautiful.

O: Accha! Let's l..leave that. What were we t..talking about? Haa! Are you g..going out? You look different.

G: Not 'you' but 'we'. Don't you remember? Yesterday, at the dinner, Rudra proposed the picnic plan. We are going to leave in an hour. Everybody has woken up, even Rudra. You are actually late.
Get up now.

O: Oh really? Then I will hurry up. See you later.

G: Fine.

         Just as I was about to leave the hall, I heard Gauri calling me. I turned around and saw her coming towards me smiling. She came and stood infront of me. She then gave me an excited smile and said,

G: Did you realize Om? You didn't stutter much while talking to me today.

O: Really?!

         I didn't really notice it. But the fact that Gauri noticed it brought an amused smile on my lips.

G: I know it seems weird. I stopped you here, in middle of the hall, just to say this?! You know....!

O: No, it's fine. It's r..really so nice of you.

G: You know what! You have a beautiful voice.

O: Really! Th..thank you.

G: You are always welcome.

             Saying this, she smiled at me, making my heart flutter in happiness. I don't understand how a person can look so perfect and beautiful. Ofcourse, she is a bit short for her age, but it's not a big deal, right! With a height of  6'1, what did I achieve? Almost nothing.
            Actually, after receiving a compliment from Gauri, my brain entered into a fuzzy state. Now I want to talk more and more, and more. Infact, any guy with a little amount of sensibility, in this whole world  experiences the same thing, when he receives a compliment from his long time crush. I am no different.

          In this same state of  fuzziness I entered into my room and started getting ready for the day. It has been many days since we all had gone together for an outing. The last time we all went out for a picnic like this was after Shivaay and Bhabi's wedding. We really had a great time back then. We thought of planning more trips of that sort, but as days passed by, each of us became more and more busy. The elders are not going to take part in this trip.

          Dadi rarely goes out of  the mansion now-a-days. She is getting weaker day by day. If our parents join us for the trip, Dadi would be alone in the mansion. Ofcourse,  servants are there to take care of her, but still she needs someone from the family to be beside her. It is usually Chote papa who takes care of her needs. If given a chance, I would happily stay back and take care of Dadi.

            I love her so much. I love only very few people in my life. Priority wise, firstly it is Shivaay and Rudra, then Dadi and then Prinku and Bhavya. Both of them are like friends I never had. I sometimes feel guilty for not including my parents in this list. But it is something I can't help. I can't lie to myself at the end of the day. It is the least I can do for myself.
        Coming to Gauri, what I feel for her is completely  different from what I feel for my family. I cannot give her a place in the list I said above. She is completely different, in a good way. It would be utterly meaningless for me to compare the love I have for her with the love I have for my siblings. Sometimes, I feel like I need someone to let out all these feelings. But I also know that nobody has enough time to listen my thoughts which do nothing good to anyone.

        With all these thoughts running in my mind, I freshened up. Today looks like a pleasant day. Not too hot, not too cool, just as per my liking. I decided to go with a grey coloured V-necked t-shirt paired with a deep blue jeans. Though I am an artist, I realised it many days ago that vibrant colours are never my thing. My wardrobe is mostly filled with black, white and grey colours. Even most of my things also.

             As I am straightening my hair for one last time, I heard somebody banging on my door. Just by the intensity of  banging I knew it should either be Rudra or Prinku. Their excitement always stays at peak during trips like these. I hurriedly grabbed my backpack and stuffed my phone, wallet and other essential things in it. I picked up my black hoodie from the couch but decided to not  wear it. I just decided to keep it with me so that it will come to use when I need it later.

           I went and opened the door. Rudra stood infront of me dressed in a black full sleeved t-shirt and grey shorts. He looked at me and his eyes and mouth wide open.
Note to exaggeration.

R: Wow O! You look dashing. If I were a girl, I would now be on my knees with flowers in my hands.

         You believe him? I don't. At times, Rudra's exaggeration can be so irritating, I tell you. Never believe him.

O: I'm really glad you're not a girl  Rudra. And one more thing! I wish I could tell the same thing about you, but no! You look like a monkey  ran off from a zoo. Can't you dress more properly Rudra? Because, the whole family is going to be there.

         Hearing this, a scowl made its way on to his face. True to say, he is looking more handsome today. I don't know what he does, but he always looks handsome, in any outfit, at any place. I just got jealous. I felt insecure about Gauri. I now realised that I hurt him.

O: Hmmm....sorry. I was just joking....Now come on! Just erase that scowl  from your face.

         I think he had enough of making me beg because he started laughing and said,

R: It's okay O! If not you who would make fun of me? Chalo chalo! Everybody would be waiting for us.

        Saying this he wound arm his around my neck pulling me closer. Did I tell  you that Rudra is the ball of sunshine in the Oberoi family? He can even melt the hardest of rocks with his words. You might think of me as a stupid moron for feeling jealous of him and Yes, that I am!

        We soon reached the driveway where everybody are waiting for us. Soon we started from mansion, just like yesterday in two cars. But this time boys in one car and gorls in the other one. The car ride is a silent one, each of us lost in our own thoughts, except Rudra who is hell bent in involving me and Shivaay in his baseless conversations.

          The road turned bumpy as we neared our picnic spot. We have come so far from the mansion. Oberoi mansion is located in the central Mumbai and now we are almost at the outskirts of the city.

         After a long time we reached our destination. By the time we reached there, my whole body has gone stiff. It feels likes my legs are replaced with logs of woods. My long legs didn't do any good. The girls reached earlier than us. There is one more family at the site along with us.

          The place is actually very  nice. There is greenery surrounding us in every direction. The land below us is carpeted with soft grass. I immediately removed my footwear and put it back in the car. I love walking bare foot on grass. The tingles it leaves under your feet is so wonderful. The grass is slightly wet here. It is nice.

         We reached the girls who are busy setting the chairs and picnic table under the shade of a large peepal tree. There is also a lake in this park which I only noticed now.

        Soon 7 of us split into small groups and occupied various places. Shivaay and Bhabi are sitting under the peepal tree while Rudy, Prinku and Bhavya are sitting on rocks, a little far away from them. I took a look of the  whole place and Gauri is sitting far from everybody, by the lake, clicking it's pics using her camera. I smiled a little noticing that it is the camera gifted by me.

            I initially thought of sitting with Rudy and others, but decided otherwise after looking at the boring game they are playing. Sitting with Shivaay and Bhabi is not an option because currently, they may be discussing some personal matters and I have enough common sense to not disturb them. So I have only two options left. Either sit with Gauri or sit alone. The first option is so tempting and I can't stop myself from grabbing the chance to sit with Gauri.

          I slowly made my way to her and sat on rocks, a few feet away from her. She immediately looked at me and gave me a genuine smile. I am happy that I didn't piss her off.  She then started saying in a sing-song way,

G: Hey, Om!

O: Hey, Gauri!

           I replied back in the same sing-song way. She immediately giggled and turned completely towards me and I did the same. She then looked around her dreamily and said,

G: Yaar, Om! This place is so beautiful, really. A perfect spot for family picnic. The lake is really the
'cherry on top'. Have you been to this place before?

O: You're right. It looks amazing. And yeah, I have been here before today, after Shivaay and Bhabi's marriage. Then even the elders had come with us.

G: Oh! Accha, you want to see the photos I clicked? Tell me how are they.

         Saying this she forwarded me the camera. I looked at the pictures, one by one. They are absolutely fantastic. I am not saying this because I love her.They really are beautiful. I am still going through the pictures but I can feel Gauri's eyes boring into me. I don't know if I am just imagining things, but the feeling only grew stronger.
I slightly gulped and looked at her. And I am right. She is 'staring' at me, very intently. It is getting awkward and I decided to break the silence. I forwarded her the camera and said,

O: They are very nice.

          She took the camera with a troubled expression. I didn't understand why and I couldn't stop myself from asking her if everything is okay.

O: Gauri! Is everything f..fine? You look tr..troubled.

         She again stared at me for sometime before speaking.

G: Om! Do you have any friends?

        I couldn't understand how it is related to me.

O: Friends! I don't have any friends specifically. It's just my s..siblings. If I want to share anything I....

G: Om! Would you like to be my friend?

          I don't know if I heard it right. She almost whispered it to me. I am shocked. What can I say. Now it's my turn to stare at her. I have been trying to befriend her for god knows how many months. Now 'she' asks me the same thing and I don't know how to react. I think I have been lost in my thoughts for quite sometime, because her expression turned into a frown. I immediately came out of my stupor and said,

O: Y..yeah, I would l..love to. But c..can I ask w..why, I mean w..why only m..me?

         Her frown disappeared and concern laced her features, probably due to my increased stuttering. She then sighed and started speaking.

G: Why 'you'!.....Because you are special Om. You really are, atleast to me! You know, I have been feeling so lonely, recently. Till few days back, I was only me and didi. But still, I never felt lonely. Now, everything seems to be changed.
         I stay alone in Delhi. I don't have anyone to atleast smile at, there. And if there is anyone to be blamed, it is only me. It feels like I am punishing myself. You know? When I was coming to Mumbai, I didn't have any expectations from this place or for that matter, from your family. But once I came here, I felt at home after many days. And you know what, it's mostly because of you. You don't know it Om.
      I have decided Om! I am giving myself a chance. I am going to get new friends and you are going to be my first as well as my special friend Om.

          I suddenly felt a pang in my chest, because Gauri is considering me only as a 'friend'. But then it striked me! What's so wrong in being friends? There are many beautiful couples in this world who started their relationship being friends. A few days back, I had been a mere stranger to Gauri. Today she is giving me a chance to be her special friend. Tomorrow she might reciprocate my feelings of love. I decided to be optimistic. So far, it's the only thing which has helped me in my life.
            I know our relationship doesn't end here, it's only the beginning. Our relation ship is going to 'bloom'. It is going to bloom into the most beautiful thing in the world, atleast in my world.

          This thought immediately brought a smile on my face and I said no, promised her with utmost sincerity that,

O: Gauri! I am glad to be your friend. And I'm sorry for what you had to go through in the last few months but, I promise that, as long as I stay in your life, be it as your friend or in any other relation, I will always stay by you. I will never let you down. And you will never feel alone again.

G: It is mutual Omkara. Remember, whenever you need me, I will be right away, beside you. It's my 'promise' and I never go back on my promise.

         Saying this, she smiled and I smiled back, happily. She was about to say something, when Rudra called us to join them. We reluctantly got up and I said enthusiastically,

O: Chale, my 'friend'?

          She motioned for me to move and said,

G: After you, my 'friend'!

           I giggled and started moving forward, with her following me.
            This would be one of the most memorable days in my life and this place, especially this lake is now, one of my most favourite spots, for my whole life.
....................................................................................

Hey guys😀

I know I have been a little late this time. But this chapter took me forever to complete.

Anyway I updated it...

Read and enjoy....

Take care and bye😊