Love Lasts Forever Read Online Free PDF Page B

out a deep breath. ‘Nothing much,’ I replied with a smile.
    I fiddled with a stone and then hurled it across the water feeling the emotions surge within me. I glanced over my shoulder and there were couples as far as my eyes could reach. Some of them hid behind rocks and went about their business while others were content like us to spend a nice, romantic evening in company of the sea.
    I wrapped my a rms around her shoulders and scooted closer. The wind had seemed to pick up as the calm sea was suddenly flecked with whitecaps. The sun had left for the day, gulped down by the sea, leaving behind an amber colour in the sky. Soon it would be time for me to leave as well. Then suddenly, out of nowhere, something hit me and I turned to face her, and said, ‘Hey, what if we get married now?’
                  ‘What? Ha, ha, seriously?’ That gleeful spark in her eyes reinstated my decision.
                  I smiled under my breath. ‘Yeah, seriously, what do you say?’
                  ‘What?’ she snorted. ‘Are you crazy? We are just eighteen!’
                  ‘I know and that pretty much is the legal age to get married in India; isn’t it?’
                  She hid her face beneath her hands, and shook her head in disapproval, or out of shyness, or contempt, I couldn’t really fathom. Then she looked at me, smiled, and said, ‘seriously Ronit you want to get married to me at the age of eighteen and that too after knowing me for just about a month!’
                  ‘Absolutely! You heard it right,’ I said without any thought or hesitation. I was so sure I wanted to marry this girl and spend my life with her. What more can I want? I mean what more can anyone want, being in love and getting married, and all that, right?
    ‘ I love you Aisha and where does it say you can’t get married at the age of eighteen or after knowing a person for just over a month.’
                  ‘Yeah, I know,’ she said, ‘but…you are being weird.’
                  ‘Weird? Why?’ I threw a curious look at her. When she had nothing to offer, I asked, ‘Alright, will you marry me or not?’
                  ‘Of course,’ she said, ‘I love you and may be we’ll get married sometime in the future, but not now, I mean as teenagers. You are anyway leaving tomorrow.’
                  ‘Yeah, so what, we’ll get married before I leave. I still have a day.’
                  ‘OK, now, hold on marriage boy.’ She perked up on her seat and freed her arms from mine. ‘It’s getting creepy now, you please go and come back; we’ll date for a few years and then decide if we should even get married in the first place.’
                  ‘What? So you have doubts about that now?’
                  ‘No,’ she said, ‘I didn’t say that, but I think marriage is not child’s play, you have to be sure that you are doing the right thing.’ She rolled her eyes. ‘And with the right guy…’ she whispered under her breath. Her last line wasn’t intended to be heard, but she said it a tad too loud.
                  ‘So you are not even sure about me now?’
                  ‘No! I’m not saying that, I mean, we ought to give ourselves more time Ronit before even thinking of getting married.’
                  ‘OK, look, here’s the deal. I am sure that I want to get married to you right away, just tell me whenever you are ready and I’ll be at your door step asking for your hand from your father, and well…brother.’
                  I only got a wry smile in return.
     
    An hour later I was dropping her home driving past the crazy Mumbai traffic. Silently, I actually admired it. More traffic meant more time with Aisha. She rolled down the window and craned her neck out, enjoying the wind past her face.