We are running in the big courtyard between his both quarters when I hear a bark joining our laughter. I laugh and increase my speed, the fur ball who is barking excitedly will take no time to catch up to me, the only thing I am better than Kiyansh in an exercise is running.

I reach to the magnolia tree when Denver catches up to me and jumps on my leg. I laugh and pick him up, he is a brown and white Lagotto Romagnolo.

His tongue sneaks out and he instantly starts to lick my face excitedly, trying to get on my shoulders with his soft paws.

"I missed you too buddy." I laugh and he licks my nose successfully landing with two paws on my shoulder.

Kiyansh catches us up grinning, "My boy got you."

Denver wiggles his tail and barks at Kiyansh.

"Oh ho! Why you always forget he is in my team, aren't you buddy?" Denver grunts and licks my cheek in agreement.

"You traitor!" Kiyansh says amusingly, with that dimple on his cheek. Denver turns and barks at Kiyansh making him laugh.

Kiyansh doesn't mind sharing Denver with me, actually Kiyansh brought Denver home last Christmas and I named him based on our favourite singer John Denver, I pleaded to Kiyansh to give Denver to me because Kiyansh wasn't a dog lover before, but he clearly said he wasn't going to.

The only thing that kept me sane was Kiyansh agreed to bring Denver at the condo or let me take him to Starbucks for puppucino and that, Denver always took my side.

I cocoon Denver in my arms and give him a kiss, a flash makes me look up and I see Kiyansh smiling at us holding his phone. "Why are you taking-" My heart skips a beat as he moves forward and kisses Denver on the same spot as mine.

"Let's go inside." Kiyansh says touching my arm slightly.

I am grateful for Denver in my arms for the unnecessary shiver that rakes through me. I look into Kiyansh's eyes and nod at him, scrunching Denver closer.

Kiyansh's quarters is made of glass and stones, big silver glasswindows covering ceiling to floor, perched on top of blocks of grey and whitestones. It's so unique and beautiful that it takes my breath away every time Isee it. The glass door slides and we enter to the living room, it's one ofthose open floor plans where the living room runs into the kitchen and thekitchen runs to the backyard, with hardwood floors and lamps hanging in thecentre on the coffee table near the leather sofa and handloom carpets, with amega sized TV plastered on the opposite wall covered in 70's vintage wallpaperfor aesthetic purposes. On the left of the sofa some distance away is an openkitchen with matt white furnishings and shining silver appliances. 

Rami uncle, Kiyansh's permanent housekeeper greets me from a kitchen counter with a vibrant smile on his face, "Hello Shanvi ji, so nice to see you after such a long time."

I smile back at him. "Same here, How are you Rami uncle?" Rami and Raju uncle has been working with Kiyansh for three years now. Both are the only permanent housekeepers Kiyansh has, they stay in the second quarters near the garage and the gym building.

"I am good thank you. Sir said that you two will have dinner here today, what would you like to eat? Would you like to have your favourite Paneer Tikka and Rumali Roti?"

"Yes" I almost yell in enthusiasm, "Thank you so much."

Rami uncle nod and move to the kitchen.

I turn towards Kiyansh tugging Denver in my arms, "What?"

He shakes his head. "Food monster, your eyes light up when you talk about food."

I scoff but can't help the smile myself when his eyes crinkle in corners.

I move towards the sofa and sit, Denver sprawls on my lap.

Kiyansh shakes his head and starts to remove his suit jacket, my eyes snag onto his fingers opening the buttons and I blink with a blush creeping on my face when I realise that Kiyansh is watching me watch him.

I deftly turn towards TV and bend towards the coffee table to pick up remote with one hand holding onto Denver. I switch it on and feel Kiyansh sit beside me, his heat of gaze retracting me to look back at him, ignoring it I turn on my favourite movie.

"It was the turn of Thor." Kiyansh mumbles lazily beside me.

I adamantly push the button to pause the marvel intro, I hate when he uses the boss lazy tone on me, and Ironman is no joke. "As much as I remember, last time we saw Thor and Loki fight a little bit too much. So obviously it's time for Ironman."

"Thor."

"Ironman."

"Thor."

"Ironman."

We end up putting on Avengers so that we can both watch our favourite superheroes in one go.

Rami uncle passes us a tub of butter popcorn, and it feels like old times when we both start to feed Denver one by one. Until at some point of time our hands dip in the tub at the same time and I feel myself freeze. His hands don't move and stay at the same spot.

My eyes reflexively move towards our hands in tub. My breath leaves my body when I see the difference between our pinky fingers. His is so big that it measures up to my index finger, I feel my heart going crazy when it intertwines through mine. He tugs at my hand out of the tub and then looks at my hands awkwardly dangling from our pinky fingers. He makes a humming noise as if this is very usual for him, then in one breath his rough hands completely intertwines through mine and I feel my brain forget every count of scene where Robert Downey Jr. was going to make sarcastic remarks.

And it doesn't know or recognize anything but the hands that are wrapped around mine, and I am constantly praying to god that my hands don't sweat and I don't stare at our hands intertwined like some horrified idiot.

Rami uncle's voice interrupts whatever, just holding each other hands funnily session we were trying to have, and I start to snatch my hand away from his but he pointedly holds onto it, putting it on his lap and giving me a heart attack when Rami uncle comes and puts a glass of watermelon juice on the table.

Rami uncle's eyes glides to our hands on Kiyansh's lap and I notice the subtle twitch of his lips. It makes me want to almost hide in a cave when Rami uncle says, "The dinner will be ready in an hour, I am going outside to prepare the grill with Raju Bhaiya, we will call you after the dinner is ready." And then, he sods off outside.

We continue to watch the movie or at least I pretend to. All I can watch or focus on is his hand holding mine.

When we were kids it was very natural for both of us to snuggle with each other and have movie marathons. But this, it feels different.

At some point in time Rami Uncle calls us for dinner. We stop the movie halfway and Denver runs outside from my lap when Rami uncle calls out his name. Kiyansh gets up and drags me with him, still holding my hand.

We go outside like that, Kiyansh doesn't leave my hand when we sit down near the grill. He is acting so nonchalant and casual about it that it is very clear to me for him it's just a thing we did, I am also aware that he hasn't once mentioned about the marriage thing since the day he came to my place. Maybe he has changed his mind or maybe he thinks that we are better off as friends. Whatever it is, I am not going to make it awkward by taking my hand away from his even when it sends plethora of butterfly inside my stomach or makes me puking nervous.

He leaves my hand when we have dinner, as much as it's relieving from the nervousness it's also disappointing. We have dinner side by side, Raju Bhaiya and Rami Uncle sitting opposite us. He sneaks capsicum from my plate I sneak onions from his. We feed Denver bits of Paneer from our hands and all I can think this moment is how much I missed this.

It's after 10 when we come inside the living room to complete our movie, and we say bye to Rami uncle and Raju Bhaiya who go to their quarters. Kiyansh catches my hand just as I am about to switch on the movie, it's so abrupt that the movie starts but remote falls from my hand near Denver's head on the floor. He barks at the remote as if it fell on itself.

I dare and turn my head towards Kiyansh. He is looking at me in that strange way where I don't know what he is thinking about. He looks at our hands, very slowly intertwining our fingers, and then says the word that spins my heart with the speed of washing machine gotten out of hand. "Marry me."