"Good to see you lost in it once again."

Natasha was indeed lost amidst the world of MrAdventure's words when Riya's voice reluctantly dragged her out of it. After munching on Riya's letter for breakfast, she had devoured MrAdventure's words for both lunch and dinner. She was sure she would have had them for dessert too it Riya hadn't disturbed her. She felt a bit angry, but then she let it go.

Watching her best friend stand at the door like a stranger, Natasha felt a pang in her heart. She knew she was extremely lucky to have someone like Riya in her life. Such close was their friendship that if she was the heart, then Riya was its beat.

And yet, she had allowed their friendship to drift in a corner of doubts.

Natasha chuckled thinking of how silly she had been in this last couple of days. All Riya had done was hide some minute things from her. Riya may be her best friend, but by no means did that relationship bound her to share each and every thing. Even she had a life to live. And then, who could understand the value of privacy more than Natasha. After all, that was the only thing between her and that online world. That's why, she just didn't understand why her heart was forcing her to make a big fuss about it.

Maybe it was all that time alone in the darkness which had turned her into this devil. Yes, I am a devil. There was no other way to explain her boisterous behavior. That devil in her wished for her to stay alone forever. And that's why, she tried to push away the angel of her life at the first chance she got. She pushed her away so far that the angel had to retort to an informal way of a letter. And if Natasha didn't take control of her heart, the distance between them would just keep on increasing, never to be scared back.

No, the thought shuddered in her mind, I won't allow that to happen.

"I wish to get lost in a hug right now," Natasha said with her arms outstretched and a sheepish grin on her face.

Riya didn't need a second invitation. She rushed into Natasha's open arms and both the girls buried their face in the other's shoulder. Both the shoulders were getting wet, but none of them was going to complain. It's a beautiful feeling when you get to cry on your best friend's shoulder, and when your friend cries with you too, that feeling amplifies a thousand times. What both of them were feeling at that moment was pure bliss.

"I need to tell you something," Riya said pulling out of their hug. One look into Natasha's eyes and she noticed that hint of pain. It didn't feel like an angry pain or that sad kind of pain, it had an entirely different shade about it. It was something like realization. Those were the eyes of the person who had realized her mistake.

Riya's deduction wasn't wrong at all. Natasha had indeed realized her mistake. There was no one in this world who loved her more than this angel sitting in front of her. She was sure there won't be anyone in the future as well. It was just a matter of giving all that love back to her best friend. And that was the path she didn't know how to travel. It was more like she knew how to do it, but she just couldn't find the words to convey those feelings.

But then, words had never been a barrier among friends. That one look in Natasha's eyes told Riya everything. Giving Natasha a knowing nod, Riya once again engulfed her friend in a tight hug, shedding some happy tears.

Natasha soaked in the joy of having someone beside her before coming out of Riya's embrace. "You wanted to say something," she started but trailed off. She quickly realized that she was once again going down the same path. If Riya wanted to tell her something, she would do it by herself. There was no need for a push. And so, she tried to make things right.

"However, it's completely alright if you don't wish to tell," she gave a couple of blink to accompany her words, "I mean to say that just because we're best friends doesn't mean we're not allowed to keep secrets. We women are a really interesting species, you know that? We may have all the world's emotions in our armory but still, secrets will always remain the most dangerous weapons that we can ever posses. And so, it's totally fine if you don't wish to share it with me."

Riya laughed out loud watching Natasha say all that. Her friend had always been a bookworm and such emotional dialogues were kind of expected from her. Yet, they never failed to make her laugh whenever Natasha's mood allowed them out. Today was no different. For a second, she wondered what has her friend been thinking to go down those lines? But she allowed it to pass. There were more important matters to discuss.

"Haha...nothing like that Nat. Actually, I needed your advice on a matter. That was why I came here in the first place. I just don't know how to ask."

"There's nothing in those bushes girl, pounce on the deer. Come to the point."

Even in that glum situation, Riya couldn't hold back the smile which emerged on her face hearing that metaphor. She always believed that the readers were a peculiar brand, and her friend, she knew, was even more unique. The soft part of her brain once again started to drift to those happy memories they shared in the library. And once again she mentally scolded her brain for distracting her. She was her for a really important matter.

"I want to talk about Tanmay," she said quickly before any other thoughts clouded her mind.

Questions were evident in Natasha's eyes and along with them, a look of astonishment too.

"Has my girl found a boyfriend while I was away?" she asked with a sparkle in her eyes.

"What?" Shock was evident on Riya's face as she tried to contemplate what Natasha had just said. "No, ofcourse not."

It was Natasha's turn to play a layman.

"Why are we talking about this Tanmay then? Is he in our class? Our town? Am I supposed to know him?"

Riya realized her mistake in an instant.

"Silly me," she slapped her forehead dramatically, "Ofcourse you're supposed to know him. Actually, you know him very well. It's just that you don't know him as Tanmay."

"Have I got a bit dumber or you're really not making any sense?" Natasha flailed her hands in the air as if trying to grasp some meaning of Riya's words out of thin air.

"You know him as MrAdventure."

The sound of that name, MrAdventure, snapped Natasha back to the present. She stopped all the antiques she had been performing and sat in attention to hear what Riya had to say.

"Yes, your favorite writer goes by the name Tanmay in real life. Don't ask me how I know all this because I'm not going to tell you, for now. Let's just say I know me more than you, okay?"

Natasha nodded.

"So I was saying that I have got into a kind of, um..., a kind of situation with him. And since it involves you, I need your advice on how to get my hands out of this mess."

It was a lot to take in for Natasha all of a sudden, but being a reader always has its benefits. She was considering this whole situation as a story she was reading for the first time. That way, it allowed her to cope with it in a better way. Slowly and steadily, the mystery started to clear in her head. However, there was still this one thing that her recovering mind failed to grasp.

"I don't understand why you're asking me for help? It's just been a couple of days since I've woke up. I'm sure you know your answers better than mine. But then, I know that sometimes we need someone else to tell us what we already know. And so, I will help you."

Riya looked excited, but there was still that confusion on her face.

"Why do I sense a but here?"

"Because there is a but here," Natasha replied in an instant, "I will help you, but only on one condition."

"Condition?"

"Yes, condition. Before I can help, you have to tell me what the problem is."

And just like that both the girls laughed the tension away. As some normalcy returned, they again got back to the topic at hand.

"You read the letter I left, right?"

"Yes."

"So, you remember I wrote about how I accidentally used a line from your personal messages while talking with him?"

"Uh-huh..."

"So now the problem is that he thinks I'm you."

"Seriously?" Natasha couldn't control her laughter once again. She knew the situation was tense. Somehow she understood what Riya must be going through. And yet, she didn't know why she found the whole situation really funny.

"And how am I supposed to help in this?" she managed to ask in between the laughs.

Riya punched her lightly on the elbow. "It's not funny, okay? Stop laughing and tell me how to tell him the truth."

Trying her best serious face on, Natasha held Riya by her shoulders and looked at her with concern.

"You already know the answer girl. You have to tell him the truth."

Riya just couldn't believe the innocence of her friend. Or, was that ignorance?

"You don't understand. If I tell him that I'm not you, then I don't have any strong reason as to how I know that line. One thing will lead to another and it'll eventually end with the question of how do I know you. It's not as easy as it seems. You get that?"

"Oh," was all Natasha could say as the realization dawned on her. "It means you have to compromise my privacy to get your hands out of this."

At that moment, it was the best option the duo could come up with. And ofcourse, it being the only option made that decision a lot quicker. Natasha, being a true friend as she was, agreed to let a part of her privacy be revealed to correct the mistakes of her friend.

"Let's tell him the truth then," Riya began to type the message on her phone when Natasha stopped her.

"The truth will be revealed at the right time. But before that, let's play a little game."

The plot was hatched, stage was set, and the warriors had their thumbs ready. Right at the stroke of midnight, both the girls hit the send button on their respective phones.

A second later Tanmay's phone buzzed with two notifications.

'A message from Riya.'

'A message from MissMagician.'

***

1st September 2017

"In the armory of emotions, secrets are our most prized weapons."

***

And so, the stage is set for a grand ending.

Yes, we're nearing that point where we've to go down the different paths. Destination might be same, but the paths need to be different.

But that's all for the future.

For now, what do you think of Riya and Natasha right now?

What game are they going to play with the innicent Tanmay?

And finally, how many secrets would be revealed?

Well, all answers in the next update...