Half Girlfriend

by Chetan Bhagat

Sometimes it is hard to explain why you find a person beautiful. Was it her narrow face, perfectly in line with her slender body? Was it her flawless skin and complexion, which had turned from cream to pink to red? Or was it not about her looks at all? Was it her passion, her being totally immersed in the game? I didn’t know.

She wore black, skin-tight jeans and a black-and-white striped T-shirt.

Riya Somani, ace basketball player, English literature student, most beautiful girl on the planet, owner of extraordinary eyebrows and speaker of wonderful lines, had yanked my heart out of its hiding place.

The last of the daylight tinted her face orange, making her look ethereal. I wanted to give her a hug.

Did I love her? Did the earth go around the sun? Did night follow day?

The moment you are placed in a higher one, a part of you feels terrified and alone.

soceraphobia.

is funny how, when friendship moves towards a relationship, every message requires awareness and strategy.

‘Let me be clear. I have never, ever been spoken to in such a cheap manner in my life. I let you into my world. We had something together.’

Even though I was in pain, I remembered the golden rule: if you live in a hostel, never throw away food.

‘Live with dignity. Live for others, that is how one earns respect,’