Five Weeks by Shruti Omar (any book recommendations .txt) 📕

Anahita closed her eyes, trembling as the fear of flying began to trap her in its steel clutches. She tensed her bottom lip and gave a sideway glance to Yuvraaj who was calm as cucumber, totally involved in his iPad. They had safely boarded the plane and managed to secure seats. For the first time, Yuvraaj's courtesy kicked him and he offered the window seat to her, sitting beside her on the aisle one.

Announcements were being made by the stewardess. They were strolling around to check whether everyone had tightened the seatbelts and it was making Anahita nervous. She was a proper Indian, comfortable in the dancing trains to travel across the country but planes really didn’t go well with her. What if it crashes? What if I die? So many questions flooded in her brain. She peeked at Yuvraaj through her lashes and hesitated, “Yuvraaj?”

“Hmm?”

“Will you please hold my hand?” She solicited, flouncing and he glanced at her, “I won't.”

His eyes darkened and his features constricted. He didn't want to hold her hand because he was afraid, perhaps, he wouldn't ever leave her hand but he knew very well that she would not be with him forever and he couldn't hurt himself anymore.

“Why?” She mumbled, still clutching and releasing her fist in fear. She glanced out and they were leaving the ground.

“I am not here for your petty fears. You're grown up, stop leaning on others. Face your fears.” He gave a mini speech and focused on his tablet again. She clenched her jaw and unable to fight, she clung on his arm tightly. Squeezing him with all her might, she requested, “Please let me hold you. Don't push away, I am afraid.”

Yuvraaj didn't bother to reply and pretended to stay oblivious. Nonetheless, he covered her hand with his and closed his eyes. Gradually, the plane soared up in the air, amidst clouds and Anahita opened her eyes, thankful that she was safe. Untangling her limbs from Yuvraaj, she spruced herself and peered at him. He was stoically indulged in his tablet again.

“Thanks. I am, um, afraid of take offs.” She verbalized her gratitude. He nodded, inadvertently sparing her a look. “I figured, when you jumped upon me like a kangaroo.”

Insulted, she shrunk her eyes at him for his lack of interest. What could've been possibly the reason of his sudden rudeness? Not that he was lovely before but now he had gotten a bit too worse. Perhaps; he has finally chalked out that I won't give up before him. Dominant part of her smirked in glee and she was thankful.

Good riddance!  

“What are you doing?” She asked noncommittally after an hour of boredom. A cup of coffee and twenty minutes of retaliation plans to piss him off for his earlier acts, couldn't enchant her.

“Watching porn,” He apprised her without filter, “Need a little tutorial on new positions.”

Horrified, she choked on her coffee and coughed, fanatically. She cringed at the moment her brain processed his words and supplied her some erotic images. She made a face like she had tasted lemon, “Eww...you are watching it in public? There are people around us. What they will think? Is it the only thing that swings in your head?”

“You're saying as if you hadn't watched any. C'mon, you had a boyfriend. I believe you must've enjoyed phone coital.” He said with a straight face and amended, “Oh, you have a boyfriend.”

“That doesn't mean I could do phone...um...you know what. I haven't and I haven't watched what you're watching.” She retorted, unnecessarily enlightening him as if she were washing off the blame.

“What? Porn! Are you serious?” he was surprised but focused back on his video; tilting it away from her, “Anyway, don't disturb me.”

It was becoming unbearable for Anahita. She looked around to check if anyone was watching them. Every time, the stewardess came near their seat, Anahita gulped in shame. Though she couldn't hear or watch anything but having a man seated beside her who was watching something forbidden in public wasn't tolerable. She was feeling thirsty but she didn't have the nerve to call the stewardess and expose her unapologetic husband.

“Yuvraaj shut it now. It's been an hour. I think they are looking at us.” Anahita said in stage whisper and Yuvraaj glanced at her impatient, mortified face. She quickly made a puppy face, “Please na.”

He sighed, keeping the tablet on his lap. “They don't snoop like you Anahita. Everyone is busy in their own and the only 'people' who's dying to watch, it is you.” He thwacked his cocky words, filled in arrogance and she clicked her tongue.

She leaned back on her seat. She was confused, confused about what to be mad about; that he was doing something which was a taboo and if he got caught, they would face huge mortification or the fact that she was worried for him, even after what he did, even after when he treated her like a trash.

One thing true as being said, she hated him but she was not the one completely right here, he also had so much rights as her to hate her because in a way, she had done injustice to him but all he did was tease her, fight with her and still touch her.

A few moments flew up. Anahita was constantly in stress with the disrobing of privacy beside her. Her head was aching. Since Yuvraaj was a quick-to-answer-without-doing-filter guy, she was not quipping anything. She blinked and craned her neck a little to peak on the screen when he shifted in his seat. Her eyes went wide and jaw dropped.

Temple Run! He was playing bloody temple run and he gave her headache for nothing.

“You liar!” She slapped his arm, “You said you were watching porn but it is temple run. Why did you lie to me? It was all to piss me off?”

“Even though I told you what it was, you still sneaked, bad girl, eh?” He winked at her and turned off his tablet. He quoted her words facing her. “Why are you so self-centered, Anahita? Look around, the world doesn't revolve around you.”