Broken Hearts

House Rules
ARYAN

I sigh deeply while staring Vinisha from afar.

I am sitting on a swing in the garden area of Balwinder uncle's house while she is sitting inside the living room with her puppy on her lap and Preeto aunty beside her.

They both are eating ice cream while talking and chuckling.

While staring her, I didn't realize when Balwinder uncle came up and sat beside me on the swing.

"Ki hoya, puttar?"

I gasp and snap my head in his direction.

"When did you come?" I ask.

"When you were busy staring her." He says while nodding his head towards Vinisha.

My eyes widen in shock and I immediately shake my head. "What are you saying?"

"Ye le, puttar." He ignores my question and passes me a beer bottle.

I sigh and start drinking while he opens his beer bottle and drinks along.

"Tenu woh kudi pasand hai?" He asks all of a sudden.

"What?" I shout softly and again snap my head towards him. "What things are you saying, Uncle? Konsi kudi? Kiski kudi?"

"Vinisha puttar." He clarifies and smiles lightly.

"No!" I exclaim. "Why would I like her?"

"I think you have many reasons to like her." He smugs and cheers his bottle with mine.

"Why do you think so?" I pout and furrow my eyebrows.

"Earlier, the way you were fighting with her, it felt like you have rights on her. And the same I am saying about her too." He tells. "Since the first day, I am noticing you. Whenever she is around you, I feel like you kind of claim her or something as if she is yours and you have all the rights on her."

"It's nothing like that." I argue. "You are seeing things. I don't like her. That's the reason I fight with her."

"How can you dislike a stranger? You don't know her then how can you dislike her." He says while taking a sip from his beer bottle. "Or do you know her?" He raises his brows in a questioning way.

I twitch my jaw and look away.

"What? Say something." He nudges me. "You are neither accepting nor denying. What should I conclude?"

"Nothing." I mutter while staring straight towards the living area where Vinisha was.

I take a huge gulp from my beer bottle while watching her eating ice cream and smiling with Preeto aunty as they talk.

"Fine. Whatever you say." He shrugs while drinking. "But you can't lie to yourself."

~♥︎♥︎♥︎~

I and Vinisha walk in silence as we both make our way back to our house. She was walking ahead with puppy in her arms while I was walking behind her, staring her back.

As we reach the main door, she stops and glances back at me for a second.

That's when I realize that I have the house keys so I step ahead and stand beside her to unlock the door.

I take out the keys from my pocket and unlock the door, opening it.

I hold out the door and let her step in first. As she gets in, I get in after her and lock the door behind.