Ajay found Anya gaping at him and apologizing through his watery eyes.

"I'm so sorry, Mr Mullapudi, I did not expect you. I thought it was that scumbag who nearly assaulted me."

He still felt a little sore, where her knuckle connected with his jaw, "That's fine. It was my mistake. I shouldn't have crept behind you."

"Unfortunately that's true. Still, I'm sorry. Shall I get you some ice, or maybe a cold bottle of water for the bruise?"

Her stricken expression amused him, and the corner of his lips quirked up.

"Nah, I'm good. Where did you learn to punch like that? It was a good one," he muttered, his expression a mixture of amusement, admiration, and disbelief.

She only smiled in return, instantly getting over her earlier predicament. She was, however, glad that he wasn't fussy about it.

Again, he was struck with her smile, as she had a heart-melting one and kept looking at her in amazed silence. He felt he could do anything to make her smile like that and somehow wanted all her smiles for himself. He was not sure where these thoughts were coming from and mildly shook his head to clear them.

She turned back to look for her friends. She was puzzled of Samantha's whereabouts —that girl usually followed wherever she went.

"Looks like your friends ditched you," Ajay commented, standing very close to her.

She looked up, "I think so. I must leave now. It is pretty late. I better book an Uber. Catch you later, Mr Mullapudi."

She was happy to find her sling bag on her and pulled her phone from it. It also contained apartment keys, her debit cards and some cash. She even remembered putting a small bottle of water and chocolate bar in there.

"It's Ajay," he mumbled.

Anya looked at him questioningly. He sighed and repeated, "Please call me Ajay".

He, briefly, mused where his charm had gone off. He was mumbling and stammering like an adolescent in her presence.

"Would you mind if I drop you instead of a cab?" he asked her, as usual taking control of the situation.

Anya was in a dilemma. Though she had been leaning about him, there were a lot of things she didn't know. She was not sure if she could trust him enough to accompany him.

He noticed her hesitation and calmly insisted, "Anya, I promise nothing untoward will happen to you, and I'll take you home safely."

His penetrating gaze and grave voice somehow reassured her.

"Did you drink, today?"

"No, I did not drink today," he added as she followed him out of the pub.

He handed over his ticket to the valet to get his car out of the parking lot. While they waited for the car, they were silent —immersed in their private thoughts. It was a clear cloudless night, and surprisingly Anya could see the stars. Bangalore was a cosmopolitan city filled with skyscrapers, the city that never slept. The nights here were no longer dark enough to have her fill with the stars.

She hailed from a small town but was from a prosperous family. Her parents were scholars and had a laid-back attitude. They had never wished to earn more than that was required. They dedicated a lot of time to intellectual pursuits than materialistic comforts. 

She was always surrounded by books, books and more books. She had read enough of these to know the differences between a small town and a big, happening city like Bangalore. She wanted to leave that town, live in a metro and experience something different. 

Karthik was her ticket to the capital. Her parents approved of her choice. They trusted her immensely to take her decisions and live her life.

She was now disenchanted, after living there for four years. Life was fast-paced. There was hardly any time even to wish a fellow human being "GOOD MORNING!"

She did not know her neighbours in her apartment complex anymore. She had lost track of the number of people who changed dwellings.

Somehow, she did not like apartment complexes. Life in confined spaces with more people living under the same roof, to make ends meet was despairing.

She scarcely knew why she was still here, working in a routine job, instead of going back to her parents and like them pursue something worthwhile. Of course, the pay was very competent. She wondered how long would that be a motivational factor to keep her there.

She knew her parents would welcome her with open arms and support her decisions. Yet, she was here, about to board the car of an unknown man. Her PRIDE was keeping her here to prove that she could live on her own and achieve something.

They clambered into the car as soon as it arrived. It was clear that she was still lost in her thoughts. She mechanically secured the seat-belt while Ajay took charge of the steering. Once they buckled themselves in the confines of the car, and he fired the vehicle, for a long time, they sat in silence.

Ajay realised that Anya was very much comfortable with silence. She did not fill them with unnecessary chatter, and it was anything but awkward. He could smell mild jasmine scent which was soothing and not overpowering.

"So, where do you live?" Ajay broke the silence, only to find Anya jump. She looked at him and chuckled. He glimpsed at her and focused back on to the road, "What's so funny?" he asked curiously.

Anya shook her head, "I just wanted to tell you, wherever you live! But I realised it sounds cliché as if I'm desperately trying to joke or something," she paused to rein in her sudden burst of silliness and said, "I'm just rambling on and on. So yeah, I stay in Jayanagar."

She had a sense of humour somewhere hidden behind her calm façade, or was she trying to flirt with him? Either way, he wanted to go with the flow.

"Unless you want to spend the night with me, it doesn't sound cliché," he added with a tinge of mischief.

Anya shook with laughter and mocked him, "So the charming Mr Mullapudi doesn't waste words I guess. An excellent try but don't you think it's too presumptuous of you?"

"I guess it was worth it," he replied all too seriously which caught her off guard.

Anya's eyes widened in disbelief, and she stared at him for a minute. It was one thing for her to take an interest in him, after all, he was the unattainable Ajay Mullapudi, and it was a completely different thing for him to even look at her, not that she lacked in any department.

She knew her flaws, readily accepted those as part of her. At the same time, she was not vain to gloss over them. She was a good-looking girl on any given day, but with proper care. She liked wearing light makeup and was always presentable. After all, she worked in a corporate environment and interacted with clients on a day-to-day basis. First impressions are forever the key.

But after keeping track of him for the past month, she knew he did not take an interest in people like her, specifically, from the middle-income families. She couldn't construe if he had meant it, or if he was only flirting.

"Oh My God! Seriously, Mr Mullapudi. I thought you were a pro in this. Looks like you are losing your touch, trying to charm a mere mortal like me? " she teased.

"Call me Ajay, Anya. Is the charm working? Or should I add my brilliant pearly-white smile too? What do you say?" he glanced again at her and smiled with his mouth open.

Now, she knew for sure that he was only flirting with her, and she was very much enjoying it. Who knew if there would be another chance to interact with him? Though his smile was brilliant, something sounded off about the way he spoke. It was as if his genuine smile was a limited-edition commodity.

"If it works any more than this, my insides will ache from the laughter that I'm trying to hold back," she added dryly.

"You hurt me, Anya," he feigned outraged.

"Maybe you should add PUN intended?"

Ajay laughed aloud. It was a burst of full-blown laughter which reached his eyes and warmed his heart. He couldn't remember the last time he had so much fun with a woman, other than the fun in between sheets. Nah, he couldn't remember it.

They spoke about other random topics. Ajay was surprised to note that Anya was a well-informed person. She took a special interest in sports, especially, Badminton and the inevitable Cricket. Like any typical Indian male, Ajay took a keen interest in Cricket, and they set off discussing the latest series. They clashed like pros, agreed on some and disagreed on a lot more such as strategies, strengths and weaknesses of each player, and an ideal game plan. Anya was a delightful companion. She was intelligent, witty and had a great sense of humour.

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