"S-Sidd...." it felt weird saying his name.

"Yeah?" He replied from the kitchen, buttering a stack of toasts.

"Uhh, I have to go to Sunrise cafe...." I said nervously.

I saw Sidd lifting his head up at this with realization. I knew he had found this startling.

"But, why?"

"I don't kn.... well -"

Should I tell him the truth?

I sighed. "I got a text message."

He sat himself down at the dining table where I was and stared into my eyes.

I stared back in fright, not knowing what he was going to do.

He softened his gaze and looked away.

"Don't go." He warned.

"Why not? I thought maybe you were just pranking me or something....?"

Sidd jerked his head up at this disbelievingly.

Alright alright, that was a dumb thing to say.

"Err, I meant -"

"Maybe Kalia's drama wasn't enough for you?" He looked in me in disgust.

"No, it's not that.... but -" I trailed off, realizing his sarcasm.

"Reem, don't be careless. You're an investigator graduated from London College. Come on - I mean seriously?"

This time, I jerked my head up at his statement.

He looked at me in confusion. "What?" He shrugged.

"London college.... how do you know?" I asked him suspiciously.

"W-well....."

"Wait a minute...... Sidd, Siddharth Nigam -"

"Reem, no - it's not that.

"Class R.5 - Professor Smith...." I spoke over him.

Sidd rolled his eyes and sat back in his seat. I had worked out this little truth.

"You went to London college." I said hoarsely, getting up from the table.

"Alright, sit down - have your breakfast." Sidd got up and tried to calm me down.

"Siddharth Nigam how could you? Ahhh - Tara right? What was that little chirpy chicken's name? Tara." I scowled, folding my arms.

"God, you remember so much!"

"Do I look like I have amnesia?" I said sarcastically.

"To be honest, yes!" Sidd teased, letting a few giggles or two slip out.

I eyed him fiercely.

"Out of all those times you remember Tara?" He shook his head.

"Girlfriend right?"

"What's that got to do with you?"

My mouth fell. "I thought we were frien...." I trailed off, realizing what I was saying.

Sidd glanced at me.

"Friends huh? I didn't know that. Hello friend." He offered a hand for a shake playfully.

"I mean - I thought you knew me...."

"So?"

"Well...."

"I thought that can only be discussed with special people?" He whispered, coming closer to me.

I kept walking backwards until the hardness of the wall thumped my back.

Sidd's mouth was centimeters away and I could feel his hot breath condensing on my cold-blooded cheek. The unevenness of his abs pressed against my stomach and my heart was in my mouth. I held my breath for a minute or two until I felt my lungs deflating. His bright eyes tricked me into thinking him delightfully wicked.

Suddenly, he burst out into laughter.

I rolled my eyes. That was intense.

I saw him clutching onto his stomach and even cringing with laughter.

I stayed, stuck to the wall and I watched him with a slight smile.

"Look, I'm not SRK but I can manage to woo petty little girls like you in a jiffy." He stopped laughing abruptly and winked, making me jump.

He left me, but I blinked at what had just happened.

Why wasn't my smile falling off my face?

I could still vividly see him near me; all his perfected features, his breath, his warmth, his muscles....

Two fingers snapped in front of my face. "Come on! Don't wait for me all day - time to go to Sunrise cafe! Oh my lord - did you just hear that pun?"

Sidd jumped around enthusiastically and I laughed inside my mind at his humorous personality.

"Wait - why are we going to Sunrise cafe?"

"Your boyfriend texted you right?"

"WHAT?! Boyfriend? No - it said unknown identity...."

"You have relationships with people you at that cafe anyway so -"

"Sidd, I swear......" I started feeling anger in my veins.

Sidd threw back his head and laughed. "Just joking, chill bruh. We're going to.... Tunisha's house.

"Huh? Tunisha - oh my gosh! My friend! I haven't met her in years?!" I whispered to myself.

"That's why we're going."

"Wait - you're still in touch with her?"

"Which touch do you mean, numerical or..." he rolled his tongue seductively.

"Oh shut up." I pushed him slightly.

He laughed.

"Well - what are we waiting for, let's go. I need to meet her too." He said, slipping on his leather jacket.

"You do?"

"I do."

We sat in the car and for the first time, a decent song was playing on the radio.

When our destination was finally here, I stepped out and looked at a beautiful villa that had an awe-inspiring view of a huddle of palm trees.

"Tunisha's house." Sidd looked up and smiled proudly.

"Are we going to go in or..." I remarked.

"Wanna meet Sumedh ay?"

"Who's he?"

"What the? You don't remember him? He's Tunisha's best friend. And mine too."

"Ohh, the one with the Harry Potter spectacles right?"

Sidd laughed. I loved hearing his sweet chuckle.

"24 Oaks Meadow, Sunrise street." I read the engraved notice board on the side of the door just when the door hinge creaked and it opened to reveal a face which was smiling contently at us.

"Hiiii!" Tunisha flung herself on Sidd and he giggled at her behavior.

She pulled back and saw me watching them.

"Oh, errr - Rhea? No, Maria.... right? Or Tina...?" Tunisha looked at me and frowned.

"Reem. Reem Sheikh." I offered a hand.

"Oh. My. Gosh. Don't tell me your Reem Sheikh from London college?"

"Yes!" I said unexpectedly, not expecting her to forget me.

"I remember you now! You were studying forensic weren't you?"

"Uh huh." I nodded.

"Hmmm..." she nodded back and welcomed us in.

"Meet Sumedh. Sumedh! Get up!" Tunisha spoke softly through her gritted teeth.

Sumedh was comfortably munching on popcorn while watching "I'm a celebrity get me out of here".

"Oh wow." I sneered.

Sidd and Sumedh had an emotional hug and they did a weird handshake thing which I thought was pretty extraordinary.

"Oh the geek's back!" Sumedh hugged me tightly so I almost spat with my strangled throat.

"Guys. Maybe we should go to my cafe for a bit."

"You own a cafe?" I asked Tunisha, sipping from my glass of water.

"Oh... yeah. Not everyone manages to become a forensic scientist like you ya know." She winked.

"Oh no no, it's not that. I was pretty impressed." I said quickly.

"Haha, come - let's go. You get everything you need."

We walked over to the cafe in about 2 minutes and somehow it felt familiar.

"What's the n....."

"Okay what do you want?"

"Oh, a coffee would be good."

"A coffee?! In this weather?" She looked outside.

I saw myself that the sun was glaring into my eyes and heating up the metal bars beside me.

"Hmm, true. Then a cold coffee."

My drink came and I gulped it down, despising of the natural heat that burnt my arms.

"Alright then, let's go back to my house."

I suddenly felt hazy. My eyes didn't feel like blinking and the heat seemed to toast my eyeballs.

Hi everybody! Hope you're well x This is my little check point where I announce some news😂 I just want to say that firstly, I ended this chapter at an odd place but the next few chapters are quite mysterious. You might even spot some subtle clues in this one ;) (warning!) might have some mature content as well because it fits with the plot. Don't worry I'm not perverted😂 keep reading and I promise it will be just as exciting! Love y'all💓