10 I Spy with My Little Eye
I Spy with My Little Eye
W hen i’d agreed to decorate V’s new boutique, I hadn’t taken one thing into consideration: her mom, Kavita Aunty, could be a bit of a witch – pardon my French.
V had occasionally complained about her bossiness over the years, but I think the respect and fear she carried for her mom prevented her from openly discussing the woman’s she-devil abilities with me, which meant I was entirely unprepared coming into this.
‘These just won’t do, Ananya.’ She was holding the pieces of fabric I had shortlisted for the couch. ‘They’re too patchy.’
‘Well, the idea was to use patchwork to bring out the nature of the customised services you offer,’ I said, trying again.
She shook her head, moving the sample book aside. ‘Why don’t you give it another go?’
It had been a long day of sourcing, assembling and facing rejection. The problem wasn’t that V’s mum didn’t like my ideas, it was that she didn’t like my ideas after I had put in the work. I doubted she’d even read the emails I’d sent her with reference links a few days ago.
‘I could go check out that store in Sarojini Nagar for you,’ V offered with an apologetic look on her face.
It was already 4:00 p.m. This side gig was turning out to be more exacting than my actual job. The idea of staying here alone with V’s mother for a few more hours was terrifying. I’d choose a crowded market and a sweaty evening any day over it.
‘Why don’t you stay here and help Aunty sort through the rest of the stuff? I’ll make a quick trip to the market,’ I said, eager to get away.
I hugged my friend, promising to be back in a few hours with more fabric options.
I’d fully intended to keep my word until I spotted a red Kia while walking away from the boutique in South Delhi’s Shahpur Jat.
I was fairly certain it was Aadar’s car, seeing as Café Bistro was just around the corner.
Without intending to, I turned left and walked towards the entrance to the joint.
It had glass windows that made it possible to see indoors, but the red and white awnings on the patio cast a shadow on the faces of those seated inside.
Even though I knew it was a terrible idea, I couldn’t stop myself from pushing open the main door. I didn't know what I was hoping to achieve from this, but a strange curiosity had gripped me. Was he going to be there? With her? What was she like?
I just had to know.
I snuck inside, willing myself to be invisible. I was grateful for the pastel blue shirt dress I was wearing, which helped me blend in. Without wasting too much time walking around, I sat down at a corner table on the far end of the cafe. Then, hiding behind the wooden menu, I began my espionage.
I didn’t spot them right away. They were seated five tables away from me, on the other side of the room, which was separated by the entrance door.
He had his back to me, but I recognised his curls instantly.
His frame was another giveaway – he was the tallest person in the room. But it wasn’t him I’d come to see.
The first thing I noticed about the girl was the way she ate her sandwich.
She used a knife and a fork to slice it into tiny pieces and stuck each one into her mouth at regular intervals.
I wondered if that was how she always ate bread or if it had something to do with the bright red lipstick she had on.
She was a pretty girl. She looked young, perhaps twenty-three or twenty-four, and from what I could tell, she was confident and chirpy. She laughed more than a few times while I was sitting there watching them, making me wonder about what Aadar was telling her.
A waiter interrupted my little secret mission, asking for my order.
‘Just a water for now, please,’ I said dismissively.
He stayed there for a few seconds, and I had to smile at him sweetly before he finally got the message and left me alone.
Back at their table, Shruti had launched into a story of her own.
Okay, I had no way of knowing if that was her name, but she looked like a Shruti to me.
Her smile became broader as the story progressed, which, I’m not going to lie, was stressful to watch.
They looked like they were getting along. And that was definitely bad news.
My phone rang just then, and I glanced down at it. It was Vrinda. She must have assumed I had reached Sarojini Nagar market by now. I declined the call, hoping she wouldn’t think much of it. I could be bargaining with a shopkeeper. The call could wait.
When I looked up from my phone, Aadar’s table was empty. Panicking, I glanced towards the door and caught a glimpse of Shruti’s daisy sundress leaving the cafe.
What had just happened? Had they left already? When did they pay the bill?
I pushed my chair back to get up and follow them outside, only to come face to face with Aadar himself. I hadn’t seen him approaching me. He must’ve walked from behind the counter to get to me unnoticed.
‘What the hell are you doing here?’ he asked, placing one hand on his hip.
‘Um, hi,’ I said sheepishly, tucking a stray hair behind my ear.
‘You’re spying on me, aren’t you?’ he asked, his suspicion spread across his clean-shaven face.
‘Pfft.’ I blew a puff of air, then said, ‘I was just in the neighbourhood, helping out a friend with her boutique.’
‘I see,’ he said and crossed his arms. ‘That still doesn’t explain why you’re at the cafe I told you I was going to be at.’
I cleared my throat, feeling my cheeks turn red. There was nothing I could say or do – I’d been caught red-handed. Luckily for me, the waiter showed up again, this time to hand the bill to Aadar.
‘Why did she leave like that?’ I couldn’t help but ask.
Aadar was silent as he retrieved a few five-hundred-rupee notes from his wallet. After the waiter had left, he looked up at me with a curious expression.
‘So you were watching us,’ he said.
I blushed again but didn’t deny it. We walked out of the cafe together in silence. Outside, he pulled out a cigarette pack from his pocket and lit one. We stood side by side on the patio, watching people walk up and down the street.
‘She wanted me to meet her boyfriend and explain to him why she was marrying a stranger instead of him,’ he said as he exhaled the smoke, then added, ‘I said no.’
‘Uh … what? ’ I exclaimed and burst into a peal of laughter.
‘Yeah,’ he said, shaking his head.
‘She said it was her boyfriend … not her ex?’ I had to clarify.
‘Yeeep. She is still very much dating him,’ he said, his face blank.
I laughed some more, feeling a strange heaviness being lifted from my gut. I wasn’t going to lose the bet. Not today.
‘I hate how much pleasure you’re deriving from this,’ he said, keeping his gaze locked on the street, away from mine.
‘This really is the highlight of my day,’ I said when the laughter had died down.
He took a few more puffs from his cigarette before chucking it into the standing ashtray outside Café Bistro.
‘You know of one of my dating disasters. It’s only fair you tell me one of yours,’ he said, finally turning to face me.
‘I’m not sure if you should be calling this a date … but sure,’ I said, shrugging innocently when he threw me a dirty look.
I knew I didn’t have to, but I decided to narrate the story of my date with Ajay, the Grand Gesture Dude.
Why? Aadar looked like he needed a win and for some reason, I wanted to oblige him.
And sure enough, his spirits visibly rose as I told him about all the silly, extravagant stunts my date had pulled.
When I was done telling him about the a cappella group, he was so stunned he could barely speak.
‘Wow,’ he said. ‘Just wow.’
‘I know.’
‘You know, some girls would die for shit like that,’ he said, trying to sound earnest, but I could sense a tinge of sarcasm in his tone.
‘Well, they’re more than welcome to have at him,’ I said, waving my hand in the air.
He chuckled and asked me something I didn’t quite register, because I was busy looking at a BMW driving past us.
To my horror, it stopped a few feet ahead of the cafe and out popped V.
She shut the door behind her and began walking towards me.
I realised I had five seconds to come up with an airtight excuse for why I wasn’t at Sarojini Nagar. It was far from enough.
‘Annie, what? Are you back already?’ she asked from a distance.
When I didn’t answer right away, she continued to navigate through the pebbled path to reach me. Her orange-heeled sandals bought me some extra time.
‘Uh …’
‘I tried calling you. Mom had to leave for some work, so we could’ve delayed the trip …’ she trailed off as she spotted the man standing next to me.
For a few seconds, the two of them stared at each other, both trying to piece the puzzle in their heads.
‘I know you … we met at the car launch?’ Aadar took a step closer to V.
V nodded lightly at him before turning her attention to me. ‘What’s going on? What’s he doing here?’
I racked my brain for the right thing to say.
I couldn’t possibly tell her I’d blown off sourcing for her mom’s boutique to spy on Aadar and his date.
That wouldn’t make any sense to her, especially since she didn’t know about The Bet.
And this was certainly not the right time to come clean about that.
A warm breeze had started blowing, which was throwing my hair all over my face from behind. V, who stood against the direction of the wind, had her wavy locks dramatically flying away from her face. She waited for me to say something.
‘My boss called a little while ago. I had to come back from the market for a meeting with Stellar Spirits,’ I said, pointing my thumb at Aadar.
‘Oh,’ V said, still sceptical.
I fully expected Aadar to rat me out. He had no reason to go along with my lie, especially since he had zero context about why I was telling it in the first place. I counted to three in my head, waiting for a miracle to happen.
‘I think it’s going to pour,’ Aadar said, directing our attention from the awkward conversation to the rumbling thunder in the sky.
As soon as I looked up, a fat droplet of water fell on my cheek. Two seconds later, we were being ambushed.
‘To the car,’ V shrieked, gesturing towards her vehicle parked not too far away.
The driver had already stepped out to retrieve the umbrella from the trunk, but I feared he wouldn’t make it in time to be of any help.
I ran to the car and quickly got in, leaving the door open for my friend.
But she wasn’t behind me. I peeped out to find her struggling to walk on the pebbles, hand in hand with Aadar, who was trying to help her get to the car.
By the time both of them ducked in, Aadar after V, they were drenched. They were also giggling. Sitting there on one end of the backseat, looking at two attractive, tall and fresh-out-of-the-rain people, I felt like a third wheel in a ticklish romantic scene.
Don’t be stupid. V has a boyfriend, I reminded myself. And this is Aadar, for God’s sake. Who cares?
‘I know you from somewhere, I’m sure of it,’ Aadar was saying while he studied V intently as the driver got into the front seat.
‘The car launch, like you just said,’ I offered.
But neither of them was paying any attention to me.
‘I followed you on Instagram a few days ago,’ V said, and I felt a wave of panic rising in my throat.
Oh my God. V was going to tell him about how I’d stalked him on social media. And after he’d caught me keeping tabs on him today, he’d definitely think I was a creep. A major one. Why was she doing this to me?
The sound of her betrayal had stunned me into silence.
‘I wanted to see who my best friend was being forced to marry,’ she said.
I hadn’t realised I’d stopped breathing until she said those words.
‘Forced to marry?’ Aadar threw his head back and laughed, then added after he had regained his composure, ‘So you guys are best friends, huh.’
‘Yep, since school,’ she said, leaning back into the leather seat so I could finally feel like a part of the conversation.
There was a loud honk from behind us. The driver turned his head to ask us where we wanted to go.
‘My car is just around the corner. I’ll walk,’ Aadar said.
‘Don’t be stupid. We’ll drop you,’ V said, instructing the driver to turn the car around.
The street was too narrow for a U-turn, so we had to drive around the block to get to his car.
The two of them chatted throughout the short journey, and I sank deeper and deeper into my seat as the conversation went on without me.
By the time we pulled up in front of his red Kia, it had stopped raining.
‘Well, it was nice to meet you, Vrinda,’ Aadar bent down to say after he had stepped out of the car.
‘Same here,’ V responded, giving him a bright, warm smile.
‘And you …’ he said, directing his gaze towards me for a microsecond, ‘meh.’
With that, he waved a dismissive hand in my direction, straightened up and banged the door shut. My jaw almost dropped to the floor in indignation.
‘Oh boy, if looks could kill,’ V said when she turned to face me.
‘I hate that guy,’ I muttered bitterly.
‘I don’t know, I thought he was sweet,’ she said.
‘Of course you did,’ I mumbled under my breath as the engine roared to life.
I put on my earphones and pretended to sleep for the duration of our journey home.
I would’ve taken the Metro back to mine instead of letting her driver drop me, but I didn’t want V to think I was mad at her.
Because I wasn’t. It’s just that sometimes I felt a little bit …
jealous. I loved her to death, and I didn’t wish any hardships on her of any kind, but sometimes, I felt like life was too easy on her.
V was beautiful, rich, ambitious, talented, had a long-term boyfriend who loved her and always got along with people.
Every single person she met adored her. She was perfect, and my own imperfections stood out loud and clear next to her.
Take today, for example. The guy who’d been a royal pain in my ass for the last few weeks had met her, and she had managed to bring out the best in him.
I may have actually liked him if I had met this version of him before.
But no, the guy with the nice-to-meet-yous was reserved for incredible girls like my best friend.
All I got was meh.