‘It won’t take more than half an hour, and we have fifty minutes,’ he said, taking a quick glance at his watch.
‘It’s not that simple,’ she mumbled under her breath.
‘Why not?’
She didn’t answer because she didn’t know how to explain that every part of her life had been measured, monitored, and pre-approved by her father. How could she explain that spontaneity was a foreign concept to her?
‘I shouldn’t,’ was all she said.
‘But you want to,’ he said.
Siya couldn’t argue with that. With every word, the thread holding her resolution was coming undone. She grasped at the scraps of it as she said, ‘You have no idea how many levels of trouble I’d be in if my father saw me leave.’
‘You’re with the right person for that. I came in through the staff entrance, so I know another way out.’
Siya raised a brow. ‘Is that supposed to reassure me?’
He shrugged. ‘Just letting you know I’m a professional in breaking party protocol.’
‘And if I told you I hate heights? I’ve never even been on one,’ she asked with half a smile.
‘I’ll be right by your side,’ he said, like a matter of fact, and her heart flipped in response.
‘That’s a very confident promise from a guy I’ve just met,’ she said, skeptical.
‘I’ve been told I’m good under pressure,’ he smirked.
‘How can I trust you? What if I’m in the headlines tomorrow for being a wild, spoiled brat running around with you on the streets of Mumbai?’ she asked, pinning him with a glare.
He looked at her for a long beat, then said, ‘I don’t know who you are.’
‘You don’t?’ she asked, caught off-guard.
He shook his head. ‘Nah, and I like it better this way.’
‘If you knew my last name, you might leak it to the media. They pay good money to ruin the reputation of a rich kid,’ she said, thinking about the worst-case scenarios.
‘Then why don’t we keep things interesting? Let’s give each other nicknames. No real names,’ he dangled it in front of her.
‘You’re kidding,’ she laughed, but deep down, she was tempted.
‘Not at all. That will allow us to just be ourselves, nothing more. No expectations, no promises, just living in the moment.’
It was then that she finally began to truly think about it. Kashvi was being herself tonight, away from the burden of being a Kashyap daughter. Maybe, just this once, she could do the same.
A slow smile spread across her face. ‘Alright, then I’ll call you Junglee.’
He huffed a soft laugh. ‘Why exactly? No, really, I want to hear the logic behind it.’
‘You show up in a scary way, sweeping me away to a wild adventure wearing a hoodie that has probably never seen an iron. That counts asjungleein my world.’
He laughed again, shaking his head. ‘Unbelievable.’
‘Hey! It is a compliment. You should own it.’
‘Fine, Junglee it is,’ he agreed with a bow. ‘Only if I get to give you my version of a wild nickname too.’
She raised an eyebrow, waiting for his response.
