Gehna was wondering how many girls Eram had slept with. She decided against asking him straight up. What would be the point? It might be some huge number, like six or something, and then I’ll feel bad. Or even if it’s not that many, I’ll never know if he’s telling the truth. Boys are weird that way.

Then she rolled the window down and forgot all about sex. She even forgot that Eram was sitting next to her, fidgeting with a coin of some sort. There was only her hand on the wheel, her foot on the pedals, so in sync with the machine that she felt like an extension of it. There was the open road and the wind roaring in her ear. The night tasted of freedom when she stuck the tip of her tongue out.

They didn’t speak much until they got off the expressway. Though a college town and a booming Tier-2 business hub, Pune was almost asleep at midnight when Gehna drove on to the arterial Senapati Bapat Road. Most shops were closed, except a couple of vendors who were still selling cigarettes and paan through half-shuttered windows, spotters out to warn them of approaching police patrols. The avenues were broad, clean and well-lit. The city felt safe and welcoming. Pune was now, as always, chafing to shake off the giant shadow cast by neighbouring Mumbai.

Gehna swerved abruptly towards the curb, startling a stray dog into bolting several metres down the road.

‘What? What?’ Eram said groggily. He had dozed off, the poker chip lost somewhere a while back in the mechanism of the passenger seat.

‘Firstly,’ Gehna replied, stopping next to a parked bicycle, ‘your job is to entertain the driver so she doesn’t fall asleep at the wheel and kill both of us dead. And secondly, vada pav. Yay.’

They got out of the car. While Eram stretched and yawned, Gehna marched up to the guy manning the bicycle, asking him for two of the buttered buns stuffed with batter-fried potato, a lethally hot green chilli paste and dry garlic powder. Back home in Mumbai they didn’t use tamarind chutney to sweeten the flavour, but this guy did.

Eram finished his snack first and looked at Gehna. She was chewing with her eyes closed. Her cheeks were flushed from the heat of the chilli and Eram thought he would have to travel a very long way to see anything half as captivating.

When Gehna eventually noticed Eram watching her, she narrowed her eyes in suspicion.

‘Don’t even think about it, mister. It’s mine. Actually, maybe I should get another? This little monster has prob’ly stolen most of my vada pav already.’ She jabbed herself in the stomach.

Eram checked his wristwatch. ‘I’ve a much better idea. Gimme those.’ He took the keys from Gehna.

In the car, Gehna was mystified. She couldn’t understand why Eram was driving at 10 km/h and had already taken two, in her view, totally pointless U-turns.

‘Where are we going?’ she asked.