Temptation - Excerpt
10 years ago
Mumbai
Sheena Sehgal wiped a tear from the corner of her eye. “I can’t watch this. They’re going to die. I’m sure of it.”
Her friend Raashi chuckled. “Are you crying? Already? It’s not even the ending yet.”
“Oh, please. She’s a softie,” Keya, Sheena’s other best friend, remarked.
“Enough, you both,” Sheena said, flopping on her bed. Her friends ignored her and concentrated on the screen. Her mind was definitely not on the movie. It was on something else. Actually, someone else. Her phone beeped with a message. Her heart flipped as she read it.
“I hope we’re on for our date tonight.”
Her lips curved as she typed, “Yes.”
“I’ll pick you up from the corner at the side of your house. Can’t wait to be with you.”
Her pulse skittered as she read his reply. She tucked her phone into her pocket and stared at her friends. She couldn’t do this without their help.
The three of them were doing their usual Friday night sleepover at Sheena’s house. As always, they were in her bedroom, pizza boxes strewed on the floor, popcorn in their hands and a movie playing on the TV. The setting in her room was cosy and warm—Raashi had spread cushions on the floor and was cuddled there, Keya had made the bean bag her personal throne, and Sheena was reclining on her bed. She cherished nights like these. Spending time with her girls was the highlight of her week.
Five years ago, the three of them had enrolled at a boarding school in Dehradun. Her grandfather, Janak Sehgal, had introduced her to Keya and Raashi on their first day of school. He’d been friends with their grandparents and had hoped that the three of them would get along, too. That one meeting had changed the course of her life. She couldn’t thank her grandfather enough for this gift of friendship he’d bestowed on her.
She smiled, thinking of that time. But now, school was officially over and they had all enrolled in different colleges in Mumbai to study. Sheena was studying psychology, Raashi was into business management, and Keya was studying computer engineering. These girls were the reason she had opted not to study abroad and stay here in Mumbai instead.
The three of them now had different sets of friends in their respective colleges. They were all mostly busy during the weekdays with those friends, attending college and with their various assignments. However, they ensured that they spent time together on the weekends.
Tonight was one such night, with a slight difference—it was going to be extra special. Tonight, she was going on her first-ever real date. Her heart thumped in anticipation.
“I don’t want to watch this emo drama,” Sheena grumbled aloud. “Let’s do something crazy and wild instead.”
Raashi shook her head. “No, thank you. Keya and I are fine watching this film.”
“Yes,” Keya concurred. “I’m still reeling from the last time you forced us to be crazy and wild .”
“Forced?” Sheena scoffed. “Dancing in that water fountain at school was your dream. Don’t complain now, after I helped you fulfil it.”
“And got us almost expelled in the process!” Keya shuddered.
“ Almost being the keyword, babe!” Sheena smiled.
Keya pointed a finger at her. “You instigated me. You are a bad…bad influence.”
“So bad,” Raashi agreed. “You were the one who snuck in vodka on the last day of school. You got us to drink all those shots, and then you encouraged her to go dancing in the damn fountain.”
Sheena smiled, remembering that crazy night. “It was such a fun night.”
Raashi chuckled. “It was a wild night. I still remember the look on that watchman’s face as he came after us, shining a torch in the rain. The way we ran from him—so hilarious.”
Keya laughed. “I think Sheena slipping on a wet patch of mud and having muck all over her was the highlight of the night.”
“Sure it was, for you,” Sheena said. “For me, not so much fun to be covered in wet dirt. Yuck. In looking out for you, I ended up being dunked in filth.”
“See, there’s the princess we know,” Keya said. “She does come out to play at times.”
Sheena threw a popcorn at her. Keya laughed, easily dodging the small kernel. A cushion landed on Sheena’s face. She glared at Raashi, who was laughing in full earnest at Sheena’s shocked expression. Sheena lifted a cushion and tossed it at Raashi and then one at Keya. It hit them square on their faces. Raashi cursed. Keya swore.
Sheena howled with laughter. Soon, they were throwing popcorn and cushions at one another, laughing excitedly. God! She loved these girls. They meant the world to her.
“Am I interrupting something?”
All of them froze. Together, their heads swivelled to face the door. Sheena’s elder brother, Kabier, was leaning against the wall, his arms crossed in front of him, looking very amused.
Sheena threw him a glower. “Privacy is a thing, you know. Can’t you knock?”
“I did knock.” He tipped his head in the direction of her friends. “You, apparently, didn’t hear me.”
His honey-brown eyes searched the room, taking in the pizza boxes littered on the floor, the empty Coke cans thrown about, the popcorn kernels spread everywhere, and the messy quilt on the bed.
She crossed her arms over her chest. “Yes, Mr. Cleanliness Freak, my room is a mess, I know.”
He raised his hands in the air. “I didn’t say anything.”
“You didn’t need to,” she shot back.
Older to her by three years, Kabier was a bit much of everything—too responsible, too clean, too intelligent…too everything. He even looked too fabulous. Every girl within a foot of his vicinity was always swooning over him. Ugh, he was perfect, while she was exactly the opposite of him in every way—wild, carefree, and fun. They’d always been close, but of late, he’d been monitoring her like a hawk. It was like he’d suddenly noticed that she’d grown up and decided that he needed to have a say in her life.
As if sensing her annoyance, his lips quirked. His eyes skipped over her and fell on Raashi. His gaze shifted quickly from Raashi, landed on Keya, and paused. Keya studied him for a long moment before she switched her attention to the TV, seeming absolutely uninterested in him.
Sheena’s brows popped. Well, this was unexpected. Her brother was handsome, there was no denying that. Every girl gaped at him open-mouthed the first time they saw him, just like Raashi was doing now. But Keya wasn’t even looking at him. Strange.
She shook her head, focusing on her brother. “What do you want, Kabier?”
“Aren’t you going to introduce me to your friends?” he asked, confidently striding into her room as if he owned it. He looked dressed to go out, and her mother was already at a party, as she well knew. Hence, it would be better to get this over with so he could be gone, and she could move on to her plan.
She pointed at Raashi first. “This is Raashi, and that is Keya. Girls, Kabier.”
Raashi smiled at him, while Keya waved, her eyes still on the TV.
“You both are Sheena’s closest friends, and I’m surprised we’ve never met before this,” Kabier said.
It wasn’t that surprising, actually. He studied in London, while Sheena and her friends had been in Dehradun, in school, all this while. Sheena met her brother mostly on vacations either here or in some other part of the world. But she did speak to him often on the phone, and that’s how he knew the names of her closest friends.
“Sheena speaks a lot about you,” Kabier continued. His eyes flicked from Raashi to Keya, who suddenly looked far too interested in the film.
“Only good things, we hope,” Raashi chirped.
Sheena watched anxiously as Kabier took his time interacting with her friends. He asked about their colleges and the degrees they were pursuing. While Raashi spoke to him like she normally did, Keya was too closed and responded only in monosyllables.
Kabier’s eyes narrowed on Keya one last time before he addressed Sheena. “I’m going out for a bit.”
“Hot date, brother?” Sheena intoned naughtily.
He ignored her and chose not to give away the obvious answer, which was a big, loud yes. Somehow, Kabier thought it was perfectly alright for him to date a number of girls, but she was too young to date anyone. Ugh…elder brothers sucked, big time.
“I believe Mom is going to be late tonight as well,” he stated. “Will you be alright on your own?”
“I’m almost eighteen, Kabier. I’m not eight. Besides, these two are staying the night.”
He sighed. “Just don’t get into any trouble, okay?”
He gave her a pointed look and a quick wave to her friends before he left, shutting her room door behind him.
“Damn, you didn’t tell us he’s in town,” Raashi said. “And that he’s so...so hot. Isn’t he, Keya?”
“Hmm,” Keya dismissed.
“You didn’t find him hot?” Raashi asked Keya.
“Well…”
Raashi’s eyes widened. “I can’t believe you didn’t find him hot. He’s totally your type. Tall, gorgeous, those drowning eyes... Aah…he’s a dream boat.”
“Enough about my brother,” Sheena cut in, excitement rushing inside her. “He’s going out, Mom’s not at home, and I need you two to cover for me…because I’m going out on a date.”
The girls stared at her. She grinned at the disbelief on their faces.
“You’re going on a date…with whom?” Raashi asked.
“Karan…” Sheena beamed. “Can you believe it? He’s the most sought-after guy in college, and he likes me. Me?! I’m so excited.”
“First of all, why not you? You’re way too good for him, in fact,” Raashi said.
Her friends shared a look, and then Keya spoke up. “Why do you need us to cover up, though? You should tell your mother and brother that you have a date.”
Sheena shook her head. “Oh, please. My mom is so protective of me, you know that. She’d never agree to me going on a date with anyone until she’s vetted them properly. And Kabier’s worse. In his eyes, no one is good enough for me. Besides, now that he’s home, he’s always questioning my comings and goings. Not to mention the fact that he thinks I’m too young to date anyone. Also, this is my first date with Karan, and he’s asked me not to tell anyone about it, but you know I can’t keep anything from you two.”
“I don’t like this secrecy. What is there to hide?” Raashi asked. “If he genuinely likes you, then he ought to tell the world, not hide you like a dirty secret.”
“Please don’t be so dramatic,” Sheena said. “It’s not a big deal. Now help me plan my date.”
Keya rubbed her chin. “Planning something like this, when it’s only your mother we’re worrying about, is one thing, but trying to do it while your overprotective elder brother is also in town is a completely different ball game.”
“Neither of them is home.” Sheena put her hands on her hips. “The three of us have sneaked out for late-night drives so many times in the past. Tonight, you just have to lock my room, pretend we’re all sleeping, and then sneak me inside the house when I return.”
“Uh…this is dangerous,” Keya said.
Sheena rolled her eyes. She couldn’t understand why her friends were making such a fuss. What was so dangerous about a date anyway?
Raashi clucked her tongue. “We were always together in the past when we did something that we weren’t supposed to. This, what you’re asking for, sounds like trouble.”
“And feels unsafe…” Keya added.
“Unsafe?” Sheena scoffed. “Why would you say that? Karan will pick me, and drop me back. He will wait at the corner of my house.” She looked at the clock on the wall across. “He’s going to come in an hour. You need to help me choose something to wear. He’s having a party at his house. His parents aren’t in town.”
She moved to go to her dresser but found no movement from her friends. She turned and arched a brow.
Keya wet her lips, taking her time to respond. “I’m not sure of him, Sheena. You hardly know him. From what you’ve told us, he sounds like a man-whore. You were the one to tell us how he’s never been in a stable relationship with any girl and moves through them faster than a bee moves through flowers. And now he’s targeted you.”
“Hey, he’s not targeted me. He likes me.”
Raashi shook her head. “Be that as it may, we don’t like you being alone with him.”
“I won’t be alone all the time with him,” Sheena argued. “Rohini and the others are all coming to the party. I’m going as his date, though.”
“Still, we don’t want you to go,” Keya said boldly. “Neither of us likes him. There’s something just…off about him. His vibe is all wrong.”
Her jaw dropped. She’d met Karan through her college friends. He was a final-year student and the hottest, most popular guy in her college. He had been asking her out for weeks. But she’d been rejecting him every time, until tonight. He’d finally worn down her resistance, and she’d agreed to go out with him. Agreed, her friends had met him just once, but they didn’t know him enough to judge.
She pursed her lips. “Why have you never told me this before?”
Keya pushed her long hair to one shoulder. “There was never a reason to worry because you always hung with him in a group.”
“Besides,” Raashi began, “You’ve been rejecting his advances since so long that we never had anything to be concerned about. We just don’t like the idea of you being alone with him at all. And that too in his house.”
“Yes, we know it’s a party, and your other friends will be there. Still…” Keya rose from the bean bag and walked to her. “Please, Sheena, think through this. Introduce him to your mom and brother. Let him meet them, then go on a date with him. You are the Sehgal Princess. Anyone ought to be proud and delighted to go out with you. Yet, he’s insisting on you sneaking out. I don’t like it.”
“Yeah,” Raashi concurred. “We just want you to be safe, okay?”
She looked at her friends, at the worry lining their faces. They were two of the most important people in her world, and they were begging her not to go out tonight. Her phone beeped in her pocket. She knew it was him.
She had to choose between listening to her friends’ advice or taking a chance on a boy she was beginning to like. She only hoped that whatever choice she made was the right one.