Rhea got on her haunches and patted Teucer gently, "There aren't much street dogs here," She noticed.
"There aren't much people here so dogs usually die out of starvation," Ember told her while he fed the old dog. Rhea looked at the wilderness around, "No wonder people don't live in these areas," She looked at the sky, half covered with the shade of trees and the smell of algae and decaying wood filled the cold air. As the breeze moved past the trees, the yellow, ripened Neem berries fell on the wet road. Rhea looked at Ember as he patted the dog.

"You really love dogs, huh?"
"You know, the world's best anti depressant is a wagging tail. We call them" He laughed as Teucer licked his face.
"Dogs?"
"Fur angels,"

An old man walked out from the shop with a walking stick supporting his old stature, "Oh, Ember. Met you after a long time, my boy," He said in Hindi. Ember got up and Teucer jumped at him, with both his paws on his shoulders.
"Okay, you're heavy, Teucer," Ember laughed.
"Teucer, shoo!" The old man rebuked the dog and it got down and walked to a corner.

"Namaste, Mr Seth," Ember joined his dirty hands.
"Let's wash your hands first," He went inside and came out with a bowl of water. He poured the water down and Ember washed his hands. Mr Seth looked at Rhea, "Who is she?" He inquired.
"She's that girl I told you about," Ember said.
"Oh!" Mr Seth smiled as he fixed his glasses, "You love painting?"

"Erm, I guess?" Rhea looked at Ember.
"Ember told me a lot about you. Come inside,"
"Yes," She quickly walked towards Ember and whispered that she didn't have enough money on her.

"Don't worry. You can just look around, buy something the next time we're here," He assured her and they walked inside and looked at the shelves full of paint cans, hundreds of colours, all of them covered with dust and a money plants running down all the shelves, marking its territory. 

Different types of brushes from round, flat to filbert, aligned themselves on the wall. A small shelf just dedicated to pencil cases that harnessed every shade of pencil, erasers and pens occupied a corner of the shop. Rhea walked to the shop and touched the stationary aligned on the walls. Watercolor paper and hardcover sketchbooks took yet another section of the small shop. It quite literally was a painter's paradise, with almost every supply-Canvas boards, Masonite boards, acrylics, oils, inks, watercolor, poster paint, easels, varnishes and even equipment she had never seen.

"What is this?" Rhea picked up a stick-like accessory from the bottom shelf,
"It's a Mahl stick," The old man replied, "It is used by painters to support the hand that holds the brush,"
"I've never even heard of this," 
"You're still a beginner, I suppose?"

"Yeah," Rhea kept the Mahl stick aside. Right on the opposite wall was an array of colour palettes of different designs and patters. There was so much she wanted to buy, but she knew she'd never have enough money. And she didn't wanted to ask for money from her parents because her father was already cross with her and her extravagent painting supplies.

Ember picked up a box of Specialist's craft drawing ink, "These are your favorite ones, aren't they?"
"Yeah!" She laughed, "What the hell! I usually never find these in normal Indian stationary shops," She took the box from him. He smiled "Let's buy this. Mr Seth, how much?"
"Well, its shipping cost me a bit on the high side. It's nine hundred and ninety five rupees,"
Rhea looked at Ember, "Nevermind, we can look at something else,"

"Why? That's your favorite brand, it's not even that expensive,"
"Not for you, Ember," She walked towards the canvas boards. He walked towards her and sat beside her, "Hey, what's wrong?" He asked.
"I have such an expensive hobby. My dad is..."

"Who cares about your dad?"
"I do," She said, "I'm still financially dependent on him,"
"Well, what about your allowance?"
"What allowance?"

"Erm, pocket money?"
"We don't have anything like that,"
"That's...weird,"
"Welcome to a middle class Indian family, Ember," Rhea rolled her eyes and got up with two canvas boards, "For now, this board is the only thing I can afford," She took them to Mr Seth.

"It'll be two hundred and thirty rupees for two boards," Mr Seth said.
"Thank you," Rhea wrapped the boards into a newspaper and picked up her paper bag, "Let's go,"
Ember looked at the box of ink kept on the shelf.

"Ember?" 
"Coming," He walked after her, "Rhea, if you want, I can buy that for you. You can pay me later,"
"No," She protested, "I don't want your help,"
He looked at her back as they heard the birds chirping on the trees overhead, "Rhea,"
"Yeah?"

"I look up to you,"
"What? Why?" She looked at him.
"I mean," He looked at the algae covered road, the plants growing through concreate, "You're brave even when you're afraid, standing against a world who isn't ready to accept what you love. To me, that is insanely courageous. I like people like you. Messy people, who don't fit in a box or stay between the lines, whose integrity is greater than any rule book out there, and who know how to love life well. I'm so proud of you,"

She stopped walking and so did he.
"Is something wrong?" He asked.
"No one has ever said that to me,"

As he looked at her back, he moved his hand towards her, to hug her tightly, but he remembered his promise to her and held himself back, "Doesn't it bother you? They refuse to see the good in you,"
"It shouldn't," She looked at him, "We're all bad in someone's story,"
"I never thought about it like that,"

They were getting closer to the metro station, "I've bought the boards but...I frankly have no idea when the love of painting will come into my heart again!" Rhea wined.
Ember smiled, "It will come...When your heart is ready to carry it,"

Rhea looked at him as he walked beside her. 
"Yes, I hope so," She smiled.

After that little trip back home, Ember lay on his bed and looked into his phone, at the videos he made that day. Suddenly, a message popped at the top of his screen,

"Hello Ember! I'm Nikita! Arorhea's best friend. I just wanted to befriend you. Please reply me back"  He read and took a deep breath. Then, he typed,

"Hello, nice meeting you :)"

He kept his phone aside and stared at the ceiling. The reply was almost instantaneous, "Me too! Although I haven't met you, but I know you are an amazing person by the manner in which Arorhea talks about you,"

"Wow, I'm getting the fame," He typed.
"I know you love her," She texted.
He looked at the text for a while, "No, I don't,"
"Yes, you do! I can tell it,"

"You don't even know me, ma'am,"
"So, make me know you :3 We are friends now!"
"I decide that" He typed.

"Ember, we don't text while eating," Mr Helberg said and asked him to put his phone away so he did. They were sitting in the dining hall, eating their dinner.
"It must be that ignominious woman," Loraine ate his salad.
"Loraine, we don't talk while eating," Ember smirked.
"Whatever,"

. . .

"Ember, are you really blonde?" She texted but Ember only replied once he was back in his room again, "Yes, but a very light shade of blonde,"
"I never met someone with natural blonde hair, can you share a pic? Here's me!"
She sent a picture with a filter. He just clicked a picture of himself and sent it. 

"Yeah, that's me,"
"OMG! You look so gorgeous! I'm jealous of Rhea!"
"Why?"
"You like her even though she's so cold to you. She even forgot about you! I would never forget someone like you!"

"She lost a close friend when she was only five. If I were her, I would forget everyone else too,"
"Wait what? Wow! Rhea was into childhood depression once?"
"I didn't say that, stop manipulating my words, Jesus Christ," He typed but then erased and rewrote something else, "I'm kinda busy. I'll talk to you later, 'kay? Bye,"

"Yes, yes, bye Ember!"

Ember went offline after that and Nikki lay on her bed. She looked at his photo saved into her phone's gallary, "He looks like a porcelain doll," Her cheeks turned red, "So pretty,"
Ember lay on his bed and looked at the dark ceiling overhead, "Friends are not like that. Rhea is so naïve"

-To be continued

Nikita Chandwal
Can't I Touch Your Heart?