Yours Accidentally by Madhur Nevatia Read Free Book Online

Sanjay would be coming soon, a secret that she had managed to keep from
him. It would help distract him from his work and would help with his mood
swings.
    ≈

 
    THIRTEEN
     
     
    “Surprise!”
    Gautam
looked up, startled by a loud shout. His face split into a grin when he saw
Sanjay, Tanya and Sameera standing in his room. He struggled to his feet,
remembered Sameera’s instructions and gingerly wrapped his arms around his
friend. “Sanjay, tu yahan ? This is one hell of a surprise.”
    The friends
hugged for a long time. Then Sanjay pushed Gautam away in mock anger. “Such a
big accident and you don’t even call me.”
    Gautam
smiled. “I was hoping you would get to hear about it and come over to meet me.
Was dead bored, yaar . Can’t tell you how thrilled I am to see you.”
    “Why didn’t
you call me? Too much of a dude to tell me that you were hurt, hmm? Pagal
hai .”
    “Excuse me
boys,” Tanya interrupted, “if you long-lost friends permit, can we at least come
inside and sit down?”
    Gautam
brushed Sanjay aside and held out his hand to Tanya. “Sorry, Tanya. Please do
come in. You look gorgeous.”
    Sameera was
pleasantly surprised to see Gautam’s charming side. Tanya hugged Gautam warmly.
    ”Mind the
arm,” warned Sameera. Her concern made Gautam smile and he hobbled gallantly
towards her.
    “Thanks for
bringing my friend over, Sameera,” Gautam said politely, “and thanks for coming
along,” he added, avoiding her gaze.
    Tanya sighed.
“Aww, Gautam you are so charming. Sam always complains that you are too severe
and cold. You are too critical of these poor guys, Sam.”
    “It’s nice
to know that you talk about me to your friends even if the context’s not
flattering. Better than being ignored.” This time Gautam looked straight into
her eyes. Sameera blushed. “I didn’t mean to corner you. I was rude and
bad-tempered earlier but hope to make up for all that.”
    “See, I told
you. He’s a gem, but you need to be a johari to value him,” Sanjay
joked.
    The four
settled down in Gautam’s small but neat living room. It was an uncluttered,
masculine room where utility, not aesthetics, was paramount. Tanya insisted
that Gautam sit comfortably on the couch; the girls fussed around him, putting
cushions under his leg, reprimanding him for moving around too much. Sameera
sat on the other end of the couch while Tanya snuggled in with Sanjay on the
beanbag.
    Gopal
entered the room carrying a tray laden with hot mugs of tea and a platter full
of mouth-watering snacks.
    “Gopal, no
tea today. Sanjay and I will have a double Jack Daniels with Coke. Ladies, I
have Bacardi and wine at home and can call the wine shop for anything else you
want.”
    “White wine
is perfect but if you don’t mind, I would love to have Gopal’s tea first. Tanya
try some, it is awesome,” said Sameera, smiling at Gopal.
    Gautam and
Sanjay regaled the girls with their teenage stories.
    “The first
time Sanjay and I had Jack Daniels was at his elder sister’s wedding when we
were fifteen years old. We lounged around the bar acting all grown up and at
every opportunity kept swigging peg after peg. Before we knew what was
happening, we were both sky high. Tanya, your darling fiancé morphed into Shah
Rukh Khan and started singing ‘tujhe dekha to ye jaana sanam’ at the top
of his tuneless voice. I, being the less vocal of the two, decided to get some
sleep; so I swept off the all bottles from the bar counter and made myself
comfortable.”
    The room
erupted with laughter. “Dad was quite okay with his teenage son and his friend
getting drunk. Which Punjabi wedding is complete without some drunken drama
anyway? But it was the broken bottles that landed us in trouble.”
    “I had
thought you were born a cynical adult; I cannot, for the life of me, visualize
you as a crazy teenager,” said Sameera, shaking her head.
    As the room
fell silent Gautam declared, “I promise there is a lot more to me than