Previous cut:-Hearing those words, Sormishta lowered her head. Her fair cheeks turned a deep shade of red with shyness. Manoj felt an overwhelming urge to plant a gentle kiss on her cheek.
Sormishta whispered, "What do you mean?"
Manoj – I mean… you!
Sarmistha – Me?
Manoj – What are you saying? Since when? How do you like me?
Sarmistha was completely stunned. For the past three days, she had been dreaming of him, thinking about him from dawn till late at night—and now this very man was standing in front of her, confessing his love so suddenly? Her mind turned upside down like a storm. She had never imagined that Manoj had made so much space for her in his heart.
Sarmistha – What is the reason you like me?
Manoj – (with a gentle smile) Now that you've switched from "apni" to "tumi," it sounds so much sweeter.
The familiar blush spread across Sarmistha's cheeks again. She lowered her eyes in shyness, but a strange, sweet smile played at the corner of her lips. In an adorable, soft voice she said,
"Okay… fine."
Manoj kept gazing at her—with that deep, piercing look, as if he wanted to see every corner of her heart through her eyes.
After a while, Sarmistha spoke again,
"You still haven't told me the real thing."
Manoj paused for a moment, then said softly,
"The real thing? Oh, you want to know why I fell in love with you?"
Sarmistha nodded. "Hmm."
Manoj took a deep breath and began,
"I haven't known you for very long, it's true. Just a few days. But in these few days, every little thing about you has etched itself into my heart. Your taste, the dimple that appears on your cheek when you smile, the faint crease at the corner of your eyes when you speak… your intelligence, the way you think carefully before saying anything. And most of all… this shy nature of yours. When you lower your eyes in embarrassment and your cheeks turn red—it feels like this moment should last forever."
Sarmistha felt even more shy now and bowed her head. Then, after a small tongue-slip, she said,
"You— (biting her tongue) sorry, I mean… have you loved me since the very first day?"
Manoj gently lifted her left hand and brought it close to his chest. The warmth of his palm spread through her fingers.
"Yes. The first day I saw your face, I felt like this face had settled permanently in some corner of my mind. And today, when I saw you again in the morning… I just couldn't look away. It felt as if the whole world had stopped—only you and I existed."
He paused for a moment. A strange light glowed in his eyes. Then, very softly, he asked,
"And you? Do you… love me too?"
A faint glimmer of tears appeared at the corners of Sarmistha's eyes. But these were not tears of sorrow—they were tears of joy, of the delight that comes when long waiting finally ends. She had been waiting for this very moment, yet some unknown fear choked her throat.
In a gentle voice she said,
"Give me a little time, Manoj."
The hopeful smile that had been lighting up Manoj's face vanished in an instant. A deep shadow fell over his eyes. Sarmistha noticed it, but she couldn't say anything. She slowly withdrew her hand from his and said,
"I should go home now. Baba will start worrying."
Manoj said nothing. Silently he stood up, took her to the street, and helped her into an auto-rickshaw. The journey felt endlessly long. Both remained quiet. Only the outside breeze and the sound of the engine filled the silence.
Around 6:30 in the evening, Sarmistha reached home. Her father opened the door and asked,
"What happened, my dear? Why so late today?"
Sarmistha gave a light smile and replied,
"I went to a café with a college colleague for coffee. Got late."
She went straight to her room, sat on the bed. A gentle breeze came through the window, fluttering her hair. Everything that happened today kept swirling in her mind. Manoj's intense gaze, the warmth of his hand, his words—everything had stirred a sweet storm in her heart.
But along with it, an old fear rose up again. Love—this word had once brought terrible pain into her life. Even remembering that incident made her shiver. Somewhere in her heart, a small wound still remained, and it woke up the moment she heard words of love.
She stared out the window. The first stars had appeared in the sky. In her mind she wondered—would she be able to overcome that old fear this time? Or would she lose again?
A single tear rolled down her cheek. But this time, that tear carried a new hope—that perhaps this love was truly waiting for her.
She made up her mind: tomorrow morning, she would go and tell Manoj what was in her heart.
But...
To be continued....