63 Endless abyss
Katherine took Akira's phone number and then texted her the location of her house. Initially, she was skeptical if her plan would work or not, but her darling daughter's acting skills didn't disappoint her.
Even after receiving the address, Akira was a bit hesitant to attend Kate's birthday party, but the way Kate looked at her and asked her with her eyes filled with anticipation that she would definitely come, she couldn't say no. She had to go.
Katherine could read the lines of hesitation on Akira's face, so she said,
"Come it would be fun. Actually, only a few kids will be coming, so at least I would have your company. Don't say no. I am banking on you".
"Don't worry, I will be there. If you need any help then let me know. I have always been great at organizing games for kids. I do it often in the residential society that I live in", Akira said.
"Sounds swell to me. See you tomorrow evening then", Katherine said and waved goodbye at Akira.
The cupid was in full form today...
Akira went back to the pharmacy store and picked up the medicines which she had asked for before and then went to her car and sat inside. She sat there silently for some time and then thought to herself,
"Now I need to buy a gift. But from where do I get a gift and what do I gift her?"
She googled for nearby gift shops and headed for one of them. After struggling through all the corners of the store, finally, Akira liked a storybook and picked it up. She got it gift wrapped and then went back to her place.
"Hey, You are back. How was your day?", Mike asked as soon as Akira stepped inside the house.
"Well the first half of my day was super awesome, the second half was like even more awesome. But towards the end of my innings, I suffered some minor injuries and I had to retire", said Akira with a comical expression on her face.
"What on earth are you trying to tell me Akira? And what injuries? Did something happened again?", Mike asked all worried. Then he noticed the dressing on Akira ankle and asked,
"Did you trip on something? Can't you walk a bit carefully? How did this happen?"
"Really of all the things I told, you can focus only on my injuries. Aren't you going to ask why my day was super awesome?" asked Akira in a grumpy tone.
"Ok fine tell what happened?", retorted Mike.
"Well to start with I completed my assignment which I was supposed to finish today and my boss was super impressed with it. He was so impressed that he actually give me a good job, a real one, on my report, with a pen, with his signature on it. Can you believe that? The whole team was in shock to see it. You should have seen their faces. It was amazing by the way", Akira said gloating in all the glory.
"Naaaiiceee", said Mike and then added,
"I always knew that you are going to be a stellar performer. nothing shocking for me".
"Now if your self-gloating is over then can you please bother to tell me what happened to your leg?", asked Mike.
"Well this happened while I was trying to save a girl from being hit by the cars on the road", Akira said.
"Shit, are you hurt anywhere else?" asked Mike with his tone filled with concern.
"I guess there is a bruise on my shoulder blade, but nothing serious. But you know what, I am really happy that I could save the girl. She happens to be my boss's niece", Akira said.
"Wao, small world", Mike exclaimed as he was all surprised.
"Small world indeed", said Akira and left for the washroom to clean up.
Next, she bandaged her shoulder with great difficulty and then switched onto some light music to soothe her soul. She lied flat on her bed and reflected on her day. All she could think about was Raymond. She remembered how he smelled, how his hands which touched her back while tying the scarf gave her goosebumps, how his killer gaze made her heart skip a beat. She was sinking deep in his thoughts into an endless abyss.
She smiled through the corner of her eyes and then got up. She had to tell her diary about everything that happened. She wrote pages after pages and when she was done, she read it again and concealed her heart with happiness. Then she picked up her phone and texted Vikram.
"Hey, are you there? Need to talk" - Akira
"Will call you after 10 minutes" - Vikram
And true to his words Vikram called after 10 minutes.
"Hey what's up?", asked Vikram.
"I am really sorry but looks like I can't make it for dinner tomorrow", Akira said apologetically.
"What happened? All ok?", asked Vikram all concerned.
"Yeah, all ok. Something else came up and I couldn't say no. There is this little girl whose birthday party I need to attend tomorrow evening", said Akira.
"Hmm... I see. You could have done a rain check right?", asked Vikram. He was clearly disappointed.
"Trust me, I wanted to. But she insisted a lot. Probably she felt indebted as I saved her from being run over by cars. So when she asked me to come to her birthday party with those pleading eyes, I couldn't say no to her", Akira explained her situation.
"You got to be kidding me Akira. Some random girl's life you save and the next thing you know, you are going to attend her birthday party. Are you sane?", Vikram spoke with agitation.
"Not random, she is my boss's niece. So technically I know her as I know her mom Katherine. I had met her at the hospital when I was with my boss", replied Akira.
"So your boss is going to be there too?", asked Vikram. His tone changed suddenly.
"I don't think so. It's just a party for kids and I will give company to Katherine and help her a bit too", quipped Akira.
"Ok. Enjoy then", said Vikram and disconnected the call. But inside his heart, he felt unsettled. He somehow didn't like Akira getting close with the family of Raymond.
They say that sometimes before something big happens, you sometimes get a vibe about it. This was a vibe for Vikram. He definitely felt it.
There was something unwelcoming and unsettling about this vibe.
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