It was only when everyone had left that Aansha got into our van. I knew she didn’t want any rumours about SHINee and her starting over a mere lift home. Well I don’t know why but I was really excited that she was riding with us even though it wasn’t the first time. We had given her a ride earlier to college but I guess today it was a bit different. Today she was riding with me as a friend to be and not just as a teacher.

The van started. Key, Minho and Taemin were sitting at the back, Jjong was sitting next to our driver Hong and me and Aansha were on the middle separate seats. Ten minutes passed by, the van was rushing through the streets, Jjong was playing his playlist in the van but no one spoke a word. I thought of restarting my conversation with Aansha but as I turned my head towards her I saw that she had already dozed off. She looked so innocent, sleeping with her head tilted on to the window for support that I couldn’t get my eyes off her. Minho saw me staring at her and said “ So Hyung you made your move today! What you say to her? Did you tell her that you love her?”

“No Minhoya, I don’t know yet what I feel for her, I just told her that I like her and want to know and be friends with her. You know her response was pretty different than normal girls. She said that she barely knew me to be friends but would like to know me for it will be interesting and fun! Key, has any girl given you that kind of answer? What about you Jjong, I mean you’re the two guys who have known the maximum number of girls”

Jjong and Key thought for quite some time, Key started shaking his head while saying “No, but hearing her reply I guess she is a practical girl. Ya, Hyung, as she said ; it will be fun seeing you two for she seems to know how to handle guys and you have zero experience when it comes to girls. It came to me as a surprise, that you were able to tell her that you want to be friends!” All the other three nodded their heads in unison trying to state that I am totally dumb in matters of girls….well I am. I was now thinking how I refused all those offers made by pretty girls wanting to date me and now the wheel has turned around. Now I am trying to work hard to make a girl like me. These thoughts occupied my mind when Jjong interrupted the thought process stating that I couldn’t use the stereotype wooing tactics on Aansha to make her like me for she wasn’t a Korean girl and who knows what taste an Indian girl has. He was right, with Aansha I would have to find my own way to get to know her and make her like me.

After an hours journey we reached Aansha’s house. I didn’t want to wake her for she was very peacefully sleeping and who better knows the value of sleep than a Kpop idol ! As I moved my hand to reach her, she woke up and said “Ghar aa gaya kya?”

I couldn’t make head or tail as to what she said and stared at her in surprise, she looked at me with her half sleepy eyes and then said “Oh, I mean are we there yet?”  “Yes Aansha, we’ve reached your place.” She sat up, thanked Hong, got out of the van and then thanked all of us, said goodnight and waved me bye”. I looked out the window and saw her climb the stairs as the van moved forward. Suddenly I thought that doing things Gradually was the way into Aansha's heart!

I slept like a baby that night.

It was 6 am when I woke up. It was quite early because I got back at 2am last night but I guess the sound sleep I had in JinKi’s van made up for it. So I went for a jog, tidied my place, took a shower and had breakfast. Today was a day off from college so I and Rachel decided to go shopping, by 4 pm I met Rachel at the mall.

“Do you like the mall, do they have such malls in India”, I didn’t want to disappoint her but I told her that there are malls like this in even tier 2 cities of India and there is a place near Delhi, capital of India, that has such a big mall that you have to ride those golf carts to go from one end of the mall to another. Rachel smiled and said she would like to visit India some time. Well I told her she was always welcome. It is like a well-known fact that girls gel together through shopping and that was what we were doing. Later we were joined by Rachel’s younger sister Sarah who was a graduate in Fashion and Makeup. Well Rachel called her there to help us shop good things at reasonable prices for Sarah knew her way when it came to shopping.

After 3 hours of exhaustive shopping, I passed by a sneaker and caps shop. There was a pair which really caught my eye, so I told the girls to wait for me at the food court and I went into the shop. I was trying out the shoes when a familiar voice said “They look good on you!” It was Key and JinKi. I stood up in surprise,”What are you guys doing here?”

“I don’t know Hyung, what do people come to do in a shop!” Key tried to tease me on my stupid question…”Well they look good on you, should buy it”. Well I wanted to buy it but was way over my budget, so I lied that I didn’t think they suited me well and with a heavy heart kept them down. It was real sad for they were these perfect blue sneakers with red and bronze lining on the top. I was about to leave the shop when I realised that the door of the shop was jammed by a flock of fan girls clicking photos with the speed of lightening.

The whole scene was frightening. Tens of girls were pushing each other at the closed door of the shop which was being guarded by two heavy built men now. I wanted to get out but couldn’t gather the courage to get pass the flock of over excited girls. In lack of confidence I took a step back when I felt somebody grabbing my hand and dragging me to the back of the shop and my shopping bags falling down.

It was JinKi. He was holding my hand and we three were heading for the back entrance of the shop. “My shopping bags”, I yelled but JinKi said in a calming sense that they will be delivered to me. We exited the shop through the back door, got into the van and started to drive….all this time I was thinking, do these 5 boys go through this every time they go out in public or do all the idols experience this lack of freedom!