“Nilay.”
“You will not like it.”
“Tell me anyway.”
His eyes came back to her — “I want to clarify that I am not ashamed of what I just did.”
“O…kay…”
“I made him feel the same fear he made you feel once.”
Her face lost all colour.
“It was nothing but conversation. I swear, I did not do anything. Ritu, men like him, they need to be shown the space that a woman lives in when she is terrorised. I am not one to use a rumour as sensitive as mine like this. I respect the queer. But this man, any man like this, needs to be cornered at least once in his life to understand what happens when they strut through life terrorising any girl they deem fit for their sick…”
She threw herself into his chest. His arms instinctively went around her — “Ritu. Hey, Doctor…”
“Take me away from here before I start crying.”
He rubbed his hands up and down her bare arms. They broke out in goosebumps. “Shhh, I didn’t mean to scare you.”Fuck. Fuck.He had dredged up old memories.Fuck!
“I am not scared.” Her voice echoed in his chest. “I want to cry out of… it’s relief. Like liberation. I want to cry because something bad is being set free from inside me… Nilay, it’s getting out.”
“Come, come,” he pulled her away from his chest, took off his jacket and draped it around her. He took her down the kitchen exit and out to the alley, away from the music and the noise. She was silent, staring in front of them. The lift dinged open and he pressed for the 9th floor.
“Why are we going to the 9th floor?”
“Because I am not going to have you cry in my car.”
She let out a watery chuckle. “Scared for your seats?”
The doors slid open and he took her hand. striding to the reception, where the staff jumped to their feet. The manager from earlier wasn't around, but it seemed the entire hotel knew he was here.
“Good evening, Mr. Patel. How can I help you?”
“Book me your Presidential Suite. Formalities at checkout.”
He wondered how he had reached this place in life where his bidding was done without question. Then he looked at Ritu beside him, holding herself by a thread. And he was thankful for every ounce of work he had done to earn this because now it would serve her.
“Here are your cards, sir, this way.”
Nilay let the concierge lead them to the elevator. Then — “Thank you, we will manage from here.”
She hung back, waiting for them as the elevator doors fell closed. Ritu thumped her head on his arm — “They think we are…”
“But we are not.”
Her head fell back and she gaped at him.
“I know I am irresistible,” he smirked. “But show some self-control, Doctor.”
Her eyes filled up.
“Shhh. We are here.”
The elevator deposited them on the floor and he led her down the alley and into the suite. As soon as the doors closed behind them, he whirled her into his arms, folding them tight around her. She shook then, the sounds too low, the hiccups only vibrations on his chest.
“You don’t know what you are doing,” her words vibrated into his chest — shrill, broken, whispered.
