Neel smiled at her, amused at her enthusiasm.
‘Okay, so just listen. I’m in full tour guide mode now,’ she said, starting to walk again. ‘So, Come in Carmen used to be a generaldealer store way back when the town was just starting out. It wasn’t called that then, obviously. It was just The General Store. Very creative.’
Neel followed, listening as her voice picked up speed with excitement.
‘But the owner’s son,’ she continued, ‘he took a fancy… oh my God, did I just say “took a fancy”? Wow. I’m such a great tour guide.’
Neel laughed. ‘Can you get on with the story, Kaavi?’
‘Yes, yes, okay. So. The owner’s son fell for a new schoolteacher in town. Her name? Carmen.’
‘Wait, seriously?’
‘Yep. Carmen. Every morning, she’d walk past the store, and every morning, the owner’s son would be out front, smiling like an idiot, saying, “Come in, Carmen”. Like clockwork. Every single day. “Come in, Carmen”.’
Neel shook his head, grinning.
‘Eventually, the whole town started calling the store Come in Carmen because of him and how he said it. Finally, one day, she did. She went in. They fell in love. Got married. And now? Their grandkids run the place.’
Kaavi threw her hands up as if finishing a dramatic monologue. Neel nodded, impressed. ‘That is … quite a charming story.’
‘Well, obviously it’s a charming story because Rally is a charming town. I once told Sen, when I first moved here, that Rally reminds me of a town in a Christmas movie. Don’t you see it?’
She stood back, arms crossed, surveying Main Street like it was the set of some wholesome Christmas film.
Neel glanced around, hands in his pockets.
‘Oh, wait, so that makes you the hot CEO who’s come to town to shut down the cookie factory.’
‘Would that make you the small-town girl I’m supposed tosteal away from Rally?’ He paused. ‘Because Kaavi, let’s be real. You’re no small-town girl. You can pretend all you want, but I know you.’
Her smile faded a little.
‘You’ve been around the world. You’ve stood under spotlights brighter than anything this town could dream of. You’ve felt the energy of cities that never sleep. And you cannot tell me, honestly, that you don’t miss it.’
She didn’t say anything. Just looked down the street, quiet now.
She thought back to the email sitting in her inbox. Yes, she enjoyed playing the small-town girl. The routine, the simplicity, the familiar faces. It gave her a kind of peace. But modelling? No. She didn’t miss that. Not the long shoots, the shallow conversations, the constant pressure to perform. Still, if she was being honest, she did miss the pace of a city. The buzz. The feeling that something important could happen at any moment.
Rally was good to her. It gave her space to breathe. But was it her forever? Probably not. Fun, yes. Healing, sure. But forever?
She wasn’t sure anymore.
Neel felt like kicking himself. He didn’t mean to ruin the moment. Not now. Not when they had just started laughing again. But even after they walked into Come in Carmen and ordered chocolate cake for her and strawberry cheesecake for him, he could tell she was different. Not angry. Just quiet. Like she was looking at the place with new eyes.
‘Kaavi, did I offend you by saying you don’t belong here?’
She looked up at him, blinking fast, and he saw it: her eyes were damp.
‘Oh no, Kaavi. I made you cry. I’m sorry. I really didn’t mean to.’
She shook her head. ‘Neel, this is the thing between us. You don’t have to say sorry every time I feel something. That’s what’ssupposed to be real, right? We’re supposed to be real.’
He sat back, unsure.
‘I get what you were trying to say the other day,’ she continued. ‘That we’re doing this thing because of … S-E-X.’ She spelled it out again, and he gave her a weak smile. ‘But you weren’t wrong. That’s how it started between us. That was always the glue. But I want us to say things. To talk. Even if it hurts a bit.’
Neel nodded.
