A Promise

"I know you're in Varanasi, and the Diya Textile Factory is in Kanpur. The Mishra family should be easy enough to find, too. I can find you, but you still don't know where I am. So, do you want my contact address?" After saying that, Anjali turned her head away first and laughed.

"Yes. You're so pretty, of course I do!" Aditya said.

"Hmph! You've got a sweet tongue, but I don't think you're all that well-behaved. Where do your eyes keep wandering? Do you really think I haven't noticed?"

"Haha! Those white clouds really are white! Look." As though he had discovered a new continent, Aditya pointed at the scenery outside the window.

Seeing Aditya play dumb, Anjali wasn't angry.

She rummaged in her bag for a little notebook, wrote down a string of numbers and an address, then tore out the page and handed it to Aditya. "This is the phone number for my school dorm, and my home address in Kerala. Now neither of us owes the other anything."

Aditya took it, glanced at it, then folded it and put it in his pocket.

Anjali gave another "hmph." "You really are a strange one."

Aditya said nothing, quietly admiring the fair scenery beside him.

The plane continued onward.

Anjali asked him again, "So how did you learn Chinese? Don't tell me you taught yourself again. I don't believe you."

"I really did teach myself. I'm honestly not lying. I really like Chinese culture, so I learned Chinese. It might come in handy for business someday, too," Aditya said.

"Can you write Chinese?" Anjali asked.

"A little."

"Then could you say something in Chinese for me?"

"Sure!"

Anjali leaned a little closer, as if trying to hear whether it was genuine.

"Hello, I'm Aditya. It's nice to meet you," Aditya said slowly in Chinese. He had actually wanted to say something teasing, but he didn't know whether Anjali understood Chinese, so he just said a few ordinary phrases.

Anjali listened, spellbound. In fact, she couldn't understand a single word, but when Aditya spoke Chinese, his intonation changed, and his face softened, too.

"That's amazing," she praised him sincerely. "If you were in the United States, all the Chinese girls in my class would definitely flock around you."

This time, Aditya couldn't hold back his laughter. "Are all the girls in your class like you?"

"Of course not. I'm much prettier than they are," Anjali said, covering her mouth as she worked hard to maintain her image.

Aditya laughed even more happily. Suddenly, this flight didn't feel quite so hard to endure.

The weariness he had built up over the past few days was about to be washed away by the happiness Anjali had brought him today.

Aditya actually understood that Anjali didn't act like this with just anyone.

She was taking the initiative because she found him interesting, not because she was interested in him.

"I'm a little sleepy," Anjali suddenly said. "I'm going to sleep for a bit. No more sneaking looks at me."

"Go ahead and sleep. I promise I won't look anymore," Aditya said.

"Why? Am I not pretty? Are you tired of looking already?" she asked deliberately.

Look at that. This was women for you-saying one thing and meaning another knew no nationality. Aditya had learned something else.

"You're pretty," Aditya said. "If I keep looking, I'll get hooked. I might even fall in love with you, so I don't dare look anymore."

Anjali froze for a moment, then turned away with a blush. "You really do know what to say."

Anjali closed her eyes, and after a while, her breathing slowly evened out.

Aditya turned his head for a glance. She slept lightly, her long lashes drooping like two little brushes.

After watching her for a while, Aditya withdrew his gaze and looked out the window. The clouds were plump and dazzlingly white. He really wanted to climb up there and give them a couple of licks.

Aditya was probably hungry. Unfortunately, though a feast for the eyes sat beside him, he could only admire it from afar, not profane it by feasting on it.

Halfway through the flight, Anjali woke up. She rubbed her eyes, saw that Aditya was still awake, and asked, "You haven't slept at all?"

"I can't sleep," Aditya said.

"What are you thinking about?"

"Things in Israel," Aditya said.

"You still haven't told me what you're going to Israel for," Anjali said.

"To find someone. An old man's daughter. Her mother died in Israel. Her father's in India, and he doesn't have much time left. I'm going to bring her back," Aditya said.

Anjali fell quiet. She looked at him, as though considering something.

"You've come all this way just for that?" she asked.

"Yes," Aditya said.

"Is that girl very pretty?" she asked softly.

"I don't know. I haven't met her yet. Why are you asking?" Aditya said.

"Just curious! I thought you might have been tempted by her looks," Anjali said with a laugh.

"I owe that old man a favor. I just want to help him out. He's practically on his deathbed. I'm not nearly as shallow as you're making me out to be. You're slandering me." Aditya refused to accept the false accusation.

Though Mary really had been a classic budding beauty as a child in the photograph, who knew whether her looks had gone astray over the years?

"I didn't expect you to be someone who valued affection and loyalty," Mary said, pursing her lips.

"There's plenty you wouldn't expect!"

Aditya and Anjali chatted like this for a while, and soon they were approaching Dubai.

The flight attendants began reminding passengers to adjust their seats.

Anjali stretched and said quietly, "Time really flies when I'm talking to you."

"Yeah. You're almost there," Aditya said.

"Haha, I won't have to keep worrying and fretting anymore, but you still have to fly on to Tel Aviv," Anjali said with a laugh.

"Nothing I can do. I'll just think of it as a trip to Israel," Aditya said weakly.

"When you put it that way, I'm a little envious. You dropped out early to start a business and can do whatever you want. That freedom really is enviable!" Anjali said.

"Aren't you going to have fun in Dubai now, too?" Aditya asked.

"That doesn't count! I'm only staying in Dubai for a day, then I have to go straight back to school." At the mention of school starting, Anjali wilted completely. Her voice grew languid, without a trace of energy.

"School is great. You don't have to think about anything. You have no idea how hard I have it, how many things I have to deal with every day the moment I open my eyes," Aditya said bitterly.

Anjali immediately laughed. "Then the two of us should switch. You go to school, and I'll be the boss. Then everyone will be happy. Haha."

"You have a point when you put it that way," Aditya replied with a smile.

The plane landed, and the two of them stood up.

Anjali fished a little mirror out of her bag, checked her reflection, then put it away in satisfaction.

"What a vain woman," Aditya said.

"None of your business." Anjali shot him a glare, then laughed again.

They walked out of the cabin together, with the passage into Dubai Airport just ahead.

Anjali needed to go through immigration, while Aditya had to catch a connecting flight. They stopped where the paths diverged.

"When are you going back to India?" Anjali asked.

"Soon," Aditya said.

"I'm graduating soon. When I do, I'm going to visit that factory of yours," Anjali said.

"Sure. You're welcome anytime," Aditya said.

Anjali glanced at him, as though she still had something to say, but in the end, she only waved.

"I'm off. Hope everything goes smoothly in Israel."

"Bye." Aditya waved, too.

Anjali smiled especially brightly, then turned and walked toward the arrivals hall.

Aditya stood where he was, watching Anjali walk away.

The girl's graceful figure swayed as she left. Partway there, she suddenly looked back at Aditya, her manner carrying a hint of reluctance to part.

Aditya smiled and waved again.

Aditya headed toward the transfer gate. Dubai's sunlight streamed through the floor-to-ceiling windows, glaringly bright.