Chapter 6 Surprise Surprise

“Aparna, what you are doing in my room so early in the morning?” I asked Aparna while shaving.

“Nothing, just packing your bags,” She replied

“Buy why? You should get ready, or else you’ll be late for school.”

“Chhavi called me during the night, she requested me to pack your bags.”

I got surprised, starring at Aparna, wondering about the reason for it. I didn’t pay any heed to it. I thought they might be trying to pull a little prank on me or something. I went to the kitchen to prepare the breakfast, I made some avocado toast, Aparna’s favorite, with black coffee. It was seven a.m. now, and I was ready to drop her at school. The doorbell ranged. Since I was the closest to the door, I opened it, and it was Chhavi. It surprised me to see her this early in the morning. She was wearing a maroon-colored tight T-shirt top, with blue jeans and white sneakers. And was carrying a shoulder bag on her back. She was looking like a sweet melody.

I saw Utkarsh at the back, sitting on the car’s driver seat, honking it to the loudest. Chhavi saw me and immediately jumped on to, and hugged me passionately. She was fully charged up in the morning; I was still amazed and was wondering what she was really doing on?

“Good morning Avi,” she whispered in my ears and then kissed me. She was getting more intense, flattering my hands. I was trembling in shyness. My face turned red like a tomato. She was seducing me, but I tried to look calm and composed. I was scared that Aparna might see this from behind and then Utkarsh, who locked the car door and came coming towards us. I deftly pushed her little back, signaling her about Aparna and Utkarsh, who might see us. She chuckled and moved back on to her position.

“You too, where are you going early morning?” I exclaimed.

“Aparna, didn’t told you that we were coming,” Chhavi smirked and got inside the house to look for her. As she entered, Aparna was coming downstairs with a fully packed suitcase.

“Chhavi, help me, this is too heavy to handle alone”, Chhavi sprinted upstairs and helped bring it down.

Utkarsh patted on my shoulder, “Get ready, bro. We are going on a trek, so no college today, no shop, just we three,”. Before I could respond anything Chhavi, communicated, “Utkarsh and I made the plan yesterday. For the Gerbett trek, we wanted to give you a surprise. That is why, Aparna was packing your bags.”

They surprised me with their plan, and I was thoroughly excited to know about it. I was looking forward to something light-hearted, a quick trip. This year was upsetting for me; I definitely needed a break. For the past few months, my body felt caged, I could not get out of the deprivation, but my friends were there for me. I didn’t express my feelings about it, but my friends knew about it. They opened up my world to a new dimension of joy. And for that particular reason they could help me to fly high.

...

“Unexpected trips are the best,” I thought as it was a little emotional for me when I left Aparna at home because of her studies and because of Dad’s responsibility. But I didn’t care because she was a grown-up girl now, and I was confident that she could handle things pretty well.

We left for Gerbett Trek, which was around a hundred kilometers away from our place. We set out the plan; first, we needed to travel sixty kilometers to the one-stop Mathern. After that point, they allowed no cars. Only small buses could run at around a 30-kilometer stretch. Then, it was around a ten-kilometer trek through narrow rocky passages and steep slopes. Utkarsh had purchased a travel agency package, which we were to join in before the start of the hike. Utkarsh volunteered to drive till Mathern village, as Chhavi and I sat in the backseat. She was getting raunchy with every passing minute. I was still feeling shy about what to react or what not to. She aroused her hand across my shoulder and came in closer to me, and took the support of my body support to rest.

She closed her eyes, but her aroma was not settling down. I kept myself calm, and tried to keep my passion within a set limit, until we could find some privacy. Utkarsh was discussing about the upcoming semester VIVA exam, while Chhavi was still trying to put my love on fire. I kept it all cool and closed my eyes.

I felt someone as if was pushing me. The touch was getting intense, and along with it, I could hear some voices. I opened my eyes, “Avinash… Chhavi…wake up guys”. Utkarsh was tugging us to wake up.

I opened my eyes and saw we had reached Mathern village. I could see over the small cars and the natural landscape along with the beautiful and extravagant road. Two hours passed like a snap. I was still feeling sleepy. As I urged to drink some water, I moved my left hand to pick up my bag, but I could not do so. Chhavi was sleeping on the left side of my lap; she looked so cute and sexy. I saw Utkarsh getting the bags from the hood, and I took opportunity of the situation. I kissed her on her cheeks first and then on her lips. She was awake and knew I was kissing her. She cuddled me with love.

“Hey Chhavi, you are awake now,” I said as I disengaged myself.

“So, why did you stop have to stop kissing me,” She said as she brushed her hands on my face.

“No, not right now, Utkarsh might see us now.”, “Buy why?” she whined.

“Not now Chhavi, after we finish the trek,” I mumbled and came out of the car to help Utkarsh with the baggage. She was looking at me through the back window with a big smile on her face. She assured her love for me.

We got on the bus. It allowed only thirty people inside the bus. It was a relatively small bus than a normal one, which could accommodate up to sixty people. The government had made this rule; it allowed no cars to travel on this steep road. All of the buses had t experienced drivers to get through it, unlike the other tourist spots. Anyhow, I just wanted to enjoy this trip to the fullest. So that it could rejuvenate my soul, especially with Chhavi alongside me, holding my arms. What else I could hope for?

My feelings were pulsing like these carefree mountains, creating a bold silhouette of love. Through the window, I could see the peaks roaring high. I saw those mountains at a glance sloping wayward, giving so much life, along with their foundation of trees and shrubs, and ferns all of which were enriching my mood with jubilation. I just knew it would be a good day, at that moment I just knew that my life was going to be back on track.

Before lunch, we had reached the Mathern base point and had joined up with the trekking team. And now we were ready to climb to the top. Chhavi was soo excited, Utkarsh looked a little scared, but still, he was savoring the moment. Now, there was twelve of us in total, who were thoroughly thrilled to climb to the top. We were at least 1000 feet above the sea level; we intended to trek to the top which was more than 1200 feet high. They planned the trek to be completed in 2 phases; for the first 400 feet, we were to go by horse riding as the hill was steep, and going by foot could be more dangerous. So, we went with the safest route and sat on our respective horses.

The horse ride started pretty well. We were going through the rocky roads of the valley, along the mountain side. The horse ride was going smoothly; I tried not to turn my head backward instead kept on looking forward, and tried to overcome all types of evil thoughts. Whereas Chhavi looked stress-free, she was nearly jumping on horse shoulder, enjoying every bit of it.

I just concentrated on that moment and enjoyed the scenic beauty of hills while riding the trip of a lifetime. We reached

the second point quickly. We stopped near the mountain side eatery shop for thirty minutes, ending the much-entailing horse ride. We all were on our own for the rest of the nine kilometers from here to the Garbett Point.

The air had become thinner and it was getting a bit cozy too. From here on, the view was spectacular, a serene lake, a misty forest, and a relaxing environment away from the daily hustle of the city. After the thirty minutes break was over, and as we were about to go ahead, suddenly the ground shaked.