Half Girlfriend

‘Nothing more? What is more?’
‘Well, you know what constitutes more.’
We heard a knock on the door.
‘It’s the maid. Can you sit on the chair again, please?’ she said. I
moved back to my seat.The maid brought in a tray with two glasses of
orange juice. Riya and I took one each. We sipped our drinks in
silence.
I wondered what she meant when she said ‘half-girlfriend’.Where
was my expert panel when I needed it?
‘What were you saying? Half?’ I said after the maid left.
She nodded. She seemed clear on what she had in mind.
‘So we are more than friends?’ I said.
‘Well, more than just casual friends ’
‘But I don’t get to kiss you?’
‘You are obsessed with kissing, aren’t you? Is that all I am to you,
a pair of lips?’
She finished her glass of juice. It left a thin orange moustache on
her face.Yes, I wanted to kiss that orange moustache.
The maid knocked on the door again. She brought in a giant
bouquet. It had three dozen fat pink roses with thin silk ribbons tying
them together.
‘Wow,’ Riya said. ‘Who sent these? You?’
I shook my head. I couldn’t afford such fancy flowers.
The maid placed the bouquet on the bedside table and left.
‘It’s Rohan,’ Riya said, reading the ‘get well soon’ tag.
‘Isn’t he in London?’
‘Yes, but he has contacts here.’
‘Are you in touch with him?’
‘Aha, my half-boyfriend is already possessive.’
‘I’m just asking.’
‘Not really. Dad must have told him I’m sick.’
‘Why is he sending you flowers?’
‘Don’t read too much into it. He owns hotels. It’s easy for him. His