IT’S A VALENTINE’S DAY STORY

"Where are we going?" I asked my husband.

"You will see," he said.

Our car stopped outside a small cafe that was dressed up in red for Valentine's Day.

After removing his seatbelt, he looked at me and said, “I didn't bring you for the food. For that, we can go to some other restaurant. This place has a comic store that I have heard is brilliant. You are a book addict yourself right, so I thought this would be fun.”

I wasn't happy. In our first year of marriage, this was our first valentine's day together and he had chosen comics over something more romantic. "I love reading novels. There's a difference between comics and novels,” I said irritated.

“Do you want to go somewhere else?” he asked calmly.

For some reason I replied, “No, let’s go.”

We entered the cafe and asked about the store, the server pointed to a staircase and corrected us, “It is actually a library.”

We slowly climbed down to land in a cozy place full of shelves of comic books. The space was optimized to set mattresses under the half shelves for folks to sit and read.

Removing my shoes, I quickly glanced through the shelves. Nothing looked familiar. I looked around. He was talking to a girl sitting next to a computer.

“She is the owner,” he said, then held up a big book. Sitting in a corner, he opened the book, which sat nicely on our laps.

“Calvin and Hobbes!” I exclaimed enthusiastically.

He looked surprised and asked, “You know them?”

Everyone reading an English newspaper was familiar with the two characters. I on many occasions had found myself laughing on their antics. I didn't say anything. We each focused on reading from the book. Five minutes later, I got up.

“Where did you get this one?” I asked.

“The owner gave it to me,” he replied a little miffed.

I got another volume of Calvin and Hobbes and sat opposite to him in another corner. A few minutes later, I thought I heard my name being called in a soft whisper. I looked up.

“Reem, why did you move away?” he whispered.

“Your reading speed is too slow,” I said bluntly.

“But this is Calvin and Hobbes, honey,” he said animatedly, forgetting to whisper. Continuing to talk, he went on to tell me about Bill Patterson and the influence the comic strip had on him as a child.

I don't recall when his words faded away and all I could see was his face with shining bright eyes and his kissable lips that moved as he spoke.

Ours was an arranged marriage. Rishi was the matured one, giving me time and space to adjust to the married life. He in innumerable ways had shown and confessed that he loved me. I just respected him. That was until this moment. As he spoke, I realised, why I was so concerned about where and how we spent our Valentine’s Day. I was in love with Rishi.

“Reem, Reem. Are you listening? If you are getting bored, we can leave,” he stated, a little concerned.

“Sorry!”  I exclaimed, then trying to understand what he had just said, I remarked, “Wait. Let's stay.” Then gesturing to the store and us I confessed, “Everything’s just perfect.”

“Really?” he asked unsure.

I don’t think he understood what I was really trying to say. So, I got up, walked and sat next to him. Wrapping my arms around his mighty shoulders, I said, “Yes,” and quickly kissed him on his cheeks.