Voting and appreciating is very difficult, I guess. So, I'll just stop expecting it from every reader of this book. I am grateful to all those who do it without asking because they're the only force behind me that makes me want to continue to writing.

Anyways, I hope you all have a good reading day ahead.

💙

|He touched her soul when she herself didn't feel it alive anymore|

by medicallymessedup

•recent past•

"Oh My!!!" The voice echoed against the four walls of the packed cafeteria, "Chocolate! Vanilla! Strawberries! Butterscotch! And Raspberry!"

Bhavesh hollered circling Samiksha while the rest sat back in silence. He, who, just then arrived back from his lecture getting a vivid description of the gossip sent by Vivek. A brief note about the verbal WWE that ensued between Kartik and Samiksha that credibly might've turned into a physical one in no time because the wild cat in their group aka Khanna's eldest twin held the least patience or was 'unbearably quarrelsome' in Kartik's humble words.

"Ice-cream ka thela kholne ka khwaab dekha tha kya tune?" Sarah posed. "Or maybe he's planning to open a condom store." Chhaya suspected aloud.

["Did you dream about opening an ice-cream stall?"]

"Language, Chhaya. Language." Ruchi shook her head in disgust while the others chose not to say anything.

The girls along with Vivek still seemed unsure about Samiksha's mood which had turned worse since the beginning of this day and in the inhumane way she was busy butchering on the long over creamy pasta conveyed well and good about her temper.

"A little birdy told me.." Bhavesh began slowly testing the depth of the shallow waters, "A nymph had a combat with your smartass brother, Baby?" He personified looking at Ruchi for an answer, "Is it true?"

Samiksha cackled her fingers while fisting down the table cloth to curb her punch and shooted up a dangerous peek in his direction only for him to cower away in fear.

"Obviously, you must have won the game of brawling." She left her hold on the fork and Bhavesh flinched at the noise, "Arey, I trust you and your ultra pro skills!" He fumbled, finding the right words to save himself. "Because Kartik wisely can't just always win by words you know." He convinced and hit Sarah and Chhaya on their heads who scowled at him in return. "Tum log bekaar mein hi itni breaking news bana rahe the...I was cent percent sure that our Sammy would win it.." He mumbled nervously, "Rowdy as always.. She had to win it."

["You guys were making so much of a breaking news for no reason.."]

Everybody rolled their eyes at the scaredy mouse while Samiksha ignored the boasting done by this single-ass baboon. He was flattering her just to not get punched square in his face and get Kartik's share of anger poured on himself to get busted into painful flames.

"Arey, since when did you start praising this rowdy twin of Vivek?" Sarah was the one to ignite the lady assassin further.

"Your answer lies in the question itself, Sarah." Chhaya visibly indicated pointing her index finger at Samiksha, "Yeh Samiksha Khanna ka khauf hai!" She continued, "Tu jaan le beta.." Her voice raising interest and seriousness of the topic, "Jab bhi pachas-pachas kos door, campus mein jab koi bacha breakup ke baad rota hai....To sab kehte hai beta chup ho jaa, Chup hoja warna Sammy, Baby ke bhai ko lekar aa jayegi aur shuru ho jayegi."

["This view is the dread caused by the name of Samisha Khanna! You kids understand this theory. Fifty-fifty miles away, whenever a child weeps after a breakup on campus... Then everyone says, you kid shut up, shut up otherwise Sammy will bring Baby's brother and begin their brawl."]

Everyone blinked their eyes rapidly staring right between Chhaya and Samiksha as the latter blankly glared at her before bursting into a heinous laughter catching the attention solely on themselves for the next five minutes accompanied by the snickers of fellow students who were habitual to the electric shocks their infamous Six and Kicks was famous in their years here.

"Sammy!" Ruchi nudged her slowly with a look of marring concern.

"Bol!"

["Say"]

"You okay?"

Samiksha scowled at her causing her to waver away but still adamant on receiving a response for today's unusual behavior as it isn't a common sight when her brother gets to go away without any severe scratches on his face.

"Why shall you ask? Do I look ill to you?" Samiksha had her eyebrow raised in question.

"I'm not Bhavo who'll not notice this because of his own dreamy made-up world." Ruchi replied solemnly, "And you my dear.." She pushed her buttons enjoying the moment with her friend. "Sammy, are acting way out of your way."

"How?"

"For instance, you didn't take up the campus on your head after your little episode with Bhai and here as I look everyone is still stable and standing on their working two limbs." She pointed out, "Did you not sleep last night?"

"I'm alright, Baby." She counter laughed, "Your engineer brother still does not hold guts enough to scramble away my mind but I'll lend you on a secret being my best friend that he has got a lot of scope for improvement." She patted Ruchi's cheeks, "But don't let that shuttlecock on about it."

"But Sammy you-"

Ruchi opened her mouth to retort when abruptly the loud squealing broke away the tranquility and the glass Sarah was sipping her apple milkshake slipped from her hands.

"Have you gone nuts, Khanna?" She snarled, "My shake!! My fifty bucks apple milkshake is dead." She cried.

"Don't worry. Samiksha's slow reflex just kicked in. She finally realized about having a faceoff with Kartik early in the morning. Koi ni, babu! Agli bari na tu use do-teen chaped zyada laga diyo." Chhaya humbly patted her back.

["It's okay, baby! Next time you can give two-three extra slaps."]

"My brother is not her punching bag." Ruchi opposed, "Besharam, kuch to sharam kha le main yahi pe bethi hu."

["Shameless, have some shame. I'm sitting right over here."]

"She is screwed." Bhavesh gestured to each one of them and got away from the reach of three crazy females in their group as a precautionary measure.

"Thanks to my goodness!! You came." Samiksha cackled, "You came!!" She shrieked again and hopped around making Ruchi chuckle headily while she watched her grin behind her chair like a possessed clown.

"Doesn't she get surprised like Donald Duck just now?" Ruchi giggled pulling on Vivek's arm, "She looks so cute and composed even after engaging in a tiff with Bhai this one time. Yeh ghatna kab, kaise aur kyu ghati?"

["When, how and why did this incident happen?"]

"Nah!! To me she sounds much closer to a screeching crow going banshee under the mental pressure of letting go off a battle." He gnawed, causing Ruchi's belly laughter to increase until it hurt too much. She paused and took a breather, "You seem to forget that it biologically makes you a della duck with little ducklings strolling around you, Vivi..."

"I'm sure as long as this phantom is alive, she'll be associated with a sober monk like me by crooks like you, Ruchi Batra!" He bragged, "Even if I always go by the saying, 'sab moh maya hai!'."

[" 'Attachments are an illusion!'."]

"Are you offended, Vivi?"

"Bilkul bhi nahi, meri koi izzat thodi hai na jo is bhare bazaar mein mene tum neech logo ko dost banaya."

["Not at all, I don't have even a little bit of respect because out of all the world I made shitty friends like you."]

Ruchi rubbed her cheeks when they hurt from her continuous laughter, "And yet you prove every time that you both are THE KHANNA TWINS!"

"Abe bandariya ki tarah nachna band kar, jhalmuri!" Chhaya snickered when Samiksha dragged her out of the plastic chair.

[Hey! Stop dancing like a female monkey, puffed rice!"]

"Yeh dekh na, humari Baby se milne kaun aaya hai!" She giddily led them to look into the direction. "Hamare Jeeja Ji aaye hain." Sammy added.

["Look here, who came to meet our Baby! Our brother-in-law came."]

Ruchi turned stiff on the spot and the carefree look washed away from her face like it never existed. Her ecstatic mood was beaten down as she stared back at Aakash who stood outside on the door of the cafeteria, waving his hand towards her equally shocked friends while passing a smile to her.

She had no clue how he got here. She had never shared her college address with him so far in the basic message conversations nor had she dropped any hint for them to meet like this. Then how was he here?

And what if her father gets to know about her meeting Aakash secretly? Even in the modern times, in their families, meeting outside the house wasn't much of a trend and she too wasn't supposed to breach the deal. She couldn't help but think about some important purpose Aakash might've had behind this sudden visit?

Aakash came closer to them and forwarded his hand to Samiksha, "Samiksha, right?"

"Yes, Jeeju the one and only."

[Jeeju - Brother-in-law]

"Mujhe bina bataye tum teeno mein se kisne shaadi ki?" Bhavesh fretted, "I planned so bloody much for your weddings, bitches. What about the shopping I did for each function? Mein toh lut gaya, re baba!"

["Which one of the three of you got married without telling me? I planned so bloody much for your weddings, bitches. Oh Lord, I have been robbed."]

"Gadheda, apni shaadi mein pehan liyo. Har teen ghante mein kapde change karega toh tera paisa wasool ho jayega. Samjha?" Vivek offered.

["Donkey, wear it in your own marriage. If you change your clothes every three hours, then all your money will be recovered. Understood?"]

"We are not married yet." Aakash laughed.

"Phir kab karoge?" Chhaya dreamily asked, making plans for her own fat Indian wedding.

["Then when will you do it?"]

"Jab bhi aapki dost ijazat de." He told, "I'm all time ready."

["Whenever your friend grants her permission."]

"Haye!!" Chhaya cooed, "Marry him today itself, Baby." She startled her immobile self, "Itna handsome aur guni ladka baar-baar nahi milega. Heck! Abhi shaadi kar le na tu woh bechara tera kitna wait kar raha hain." She fanned herself.

["Awww!! Such handsome and virtuous men are hard to find around. Heck!! Get married to him like right now, this poor man is waiting for your approval."]

"Please, baitho na Jeeja Ji." Vivek said, pushing Aakash on one of the empty chairs, "Don't mind, huh! Everyone here has some missing nut bolts."

["Please have a seat, brother-in-law."]

"Kya bola tu, silencer?" Sarah glared.

["What did you just say now, silencer?"]

"Wahi jo tu samjhi, Virus." Vivek retorted without a care.

["The same what you heard, Virus."]

"Kya loge?" Samiksha asked, "Yaha sab first class hain siwaye namak ke."

["What would you like to have? Everything here is first class except the amount of salt."]

"Matlab?"

["Means?"]

"Wo kya hain na ki hamare canteen waale bhaiya ko namak pasand nahi hain to daalna hi bhool jaate hain." Chhaya explained, concentrating on her noodles which she forgot while the chaos happened.

["Well, our canteen owner does not like salt, so he likes to forget to add it."]

Chhaya's stomach growled in hunger which was turning cold by Aakash's unseen arrival so she hurriedly took big scoops slurping on the noodle strings to get another judgmental glance for her actions by Aakash.

"Tumhe khana bahut pasand hai shayad?" He voiced out to earn a stinking eye from the latter, "Kyu tumhe koi dikkat hai, mister?"

["You probably seem to like eating a lot?"]

Aakash shook his head and shifted uncomfortably on his chair, openly embarrassed while Chhaya was beyond pissed to hear his mockery about her food. She was a die-hard foodie and the one hitting on her eating habits was an absolute asshole and Aakash had just topped the list.

"Plan cancel, Baby." Chhaya said aloud in her ears, "Tu isse shadi nahi karegi. Main khud, teri, Aryan Mallik se baat karungi aur agar koi nahi mana toh woh tujhe shadi wale din bhagaa kar le jaayega." Ruchi's lips got sealed with the mention of his name while Chhaya continued her idea, "Bhagane ki tension mat liyo woh kaam dosto ka hota hai."

["Plan cancel, Baby. You won't marry him. I will propose you to Aryan and then if no one agrees, he'll take you away on the wedding day. Do not worry about running away that department is always handled by friends."]

"Acha hua Jeeja Ji aa gaye. He would get to know the gang he has to bear twenty-four by seven after he gets engaged to our bestie." Samiksha implored.

["It's a good thing that you came here brother-in-law. He would get to know the gang he has to bear twenty-four by seven after he gets engaged to our bestie."]

"Koi isse shaadi nahi karega." Chhaya chortled, causing Aakash to wince.

["Nobody is going to marry him."]

"Tum sahi keh rahi ho." Aakash came up with a harsh comeback, "Tumhari dost ko mein khaas pasand nahi hoon abhi. Mera yahan hona use acha nahi laga-"

["Maybe you are right. Your friend evidently doesn't like me very much. She did not like me being here-"]

"It's not like that, Aakash Ji." Ruchi mustered up courage, "I just had no idea about you visiting us here like this. Perhaps the shock."

"You're marrying him and you haven't gone on a single date so far with him. This is so unfair for both of you! Agar milegi nahi to zindagi bhar sath kese rahegi?" Samiksha belittled. "Kartik has lost all his brain cells! I wonder why he never made you go out with Aakash? His wife is going to hit him with her heels for his slow-learning skills."

["If you don't meet then you'll spend your life with him?"]

"Oye, tune matrimonial company mein job le li hai kya?" Bhavesh promoted, "Tune toh shaadi nahi karne ki kasam kha rakhi thi. Itni jaldi bhool gayi kya?"

["Did you take up a job offer at a matrimonial company? You vowed to never get married. Did you forget so soon?"]

"Bhavesh, keep quiet. Please." Ruchi instructed him, else everyone on the table was turning the place into a circus literally.

"Tu mujhe hi chup kara diya kar bas iss nautanki ko kuch mat boliyo kabhi." Bhavesh complained.

["You always just make me shut up, don't you ever say a word to this, drama queen."]

"Kya aapne kisi ko bataya ki aap yaha campus mein humse milne aaye hain, Aakash Ji?" Ruchi asked politely.

["Have you told anyone you're here in the campus to visit us, Aakash?"]

"Tumse milne ke liye mujhe kisi ko batane ki jarurat nahi hain, Ruchi." Aakash replied without any second thoughts making Chhaya simper again. "We're going to be married."

["I don't need to tell anyone to meet you, Ruchi. We're going to be married."]

"I'm telling you Ruchi, he's only going to shut you up with his humorless dialogues but will never buy you a double cheese pizza. He's going to keep you on a diet, Baby!" Chhaya cautioned. "So, you will not marry him." She adamantly repeated.

"What's wrong with you, Chhaya?" Ruchi soughed, "Stop nit-picking. Aakash must've not meant to rub words on you in a wrong way."

"Ruchi Batra don't you freaking dare to take that miser's side." Chhaya screeched. "You saw it!!"

"Are you free now?" Aakash disrupted their discourse curtly, "We should've lunch together." He aired much to everyone's surprise.

"Bataya hai ya puch rahe ho?" Chhaya insolently inquired because his tone wasn't gentlemanlike. "Shut up! He's asking her out on a date." Samiksha annulled watching the couple with heart eyes.

["Are you telling or asking her?"]

"What will you get her to eat?" She again superficially aimed. "She has got a habit of eating double servings of everything."

"Jo bhi yeh kahengi." Aakash answered.

["Whatever she desires."]

"So that you can taunt her later for causing a dent in your pocket?" She argued and jumped upon the chance when Aakash didn't correct her, "Men I tell could never be trusted especially NRI's. What do you say Sarah?"

"Main kya hi bolu ab!?" Sarah corrected her statement earning a murderous look from Chhaya, "But that's a true fact. We don't trust Pardesi's."

["What can I say now!?"]

[Pardesi-Foreigner]

"Neither does our Ruchi trust you." Chhaya told and Ruchi's eyes turned wide-like saucers.

"Kya bakwas kar rahi hain, Moti!!" Samiksha kicked her under the table.

[What rubbish are you saying, fatty!!"]

"Yeh shaadi karna chahta hain apni ladki se, let me have enough proof that he's the right one for her." Chhaya convinced. "Jigri dost hu main, koi sauteli maa nahi."

["He wants to marry our girl so let me have enough proof that he's the right one for her. I'm her dear friend not some step-mother."]

"Then who the hell is the right one?" Samiksha glowered, "That STD transmitter Aryan-?"

"What is happening here, Geetika?" A distant voice caught up with Chhaya's ears, "Shit just got real, bro!" Geetika assessed in urgency.

Meanwhile Chhaya hurriedly rushed and called out for their attention by her high-pitched howling. "Aryan! Aryan! Here! Look, we have a NRI on our campus. The one claiming to be marrying our dearest Baby."

Aryan's ears trumpeted and his eyes stopped at Aakash's frame, burning the said man under his gaze, he who sat near the girl who had his heart surrendered like some intolerable dust in her feet.

🖤🖤🖤

Ruchi was vividly aware that her friends were a bunch of blunt knives but never had she believed them to be big-mouthed lunatics eager to peel off the veiled tag of dumb sloths. If each of them weren't crazy enough then her friend chose this very moment to become Murkhon ki Mukhiya.

["Leader of dumbheads!"]

With her eyes transfixed on Chhaya, Ruchi watched her walking over and dragging him to their table. She had no deuced idea of what had got into 'Chhaya's imbecile self' or what she was trying to do when none in their group liked to get in an interaction with Aryan or anyone on that side.

"You fool!" Samiksha screeched at her before she could've explicitly done the same, "What are you doing?"

The shark passed a cultured smile to Aryan who stood there dumbly and forcefully being at odds with the massacre mounting inside him.

"I just wanted to make this NRI aware of how the Indian society here works. He isn't standing in Canada anymore, right? He needs to get well-familiar with the faces around here and the ones related to our Ruchi significantly."

Aakash alibied, "I thought knowing Ruchi was enough."

"Sadly, no!" Chhaya negated, sounding least apologetic, "Tumhare alawa aur bhi kuch bahut khaas log hain Ruchi ki zindagi mein." She hinted. "And Aryan is one of the closest ones to begin."

["There are many other special people in Ruchi's life besides you."]

An inscrutable quiver of resistance marred up Ruchi's face; she visibly clutched her pants under the table while Aryan's laser eyes gruesomely targeted Aakash who was flummoxed by the mishap.

Vivek tried to control the adversity of the situation and intervened, "That's really not needed, Chhaya. We know Aakash and Ruchi themselves agreed for their alliance. They are mature individuals and know how to uphold their decisions."

Before Chhaya could've argued with a valid point against Vivek's statement, Aryan's chilled voice cut through the tension in the air, condemning Ruchi's bane of thoughts.

"I wonder about the girl who forgets and fidgets while interacting with new people as being unsocial is an inseparable part of her habit, why would she so hurriedly pick out a man?" He entrusted.

"What does that mean?" Samiksha glowered.

"Believe me, I didn't say anything out of the blue. You should know that I know your best friend too well to make things on my own." He proclaimed, penalizing the person in question, "As much I know her she is fond of breaking her side of promises."

Ruchi remotely heard Samiksha when the accusation jolted her nerves. She was unaware of the promise he was addressing and as much from what she remembered, she had not even unknowingly tried to go against her own words let alone forgetting a promise she made consciously.

"Exactly, the other day she forgot to get me chhole bhature prepared by Aunty Ji." Bhavesh exposed groggily, "Tu bhi na Ruchi, bhulakkad ho gayi hai. Chaar badaam bhigo kar khaya kar roz subah."

[Chhole Bhature - A dish from Indian cuisine; combination of fried flatbreads and tangy chickpea curry.]

[Aunty Ji - An Indian form of respect given to an elderly lady.]

["Ruchi, you have become forgetful. Eat four soaked almonds every morning."]

"Tu apni peepni band karega ya pitke hi maanega!!" Samiksha gritted her teeth in anger causing Bhavesh to stagger away, "And you Mallik-!!" Aryan had predicted her words beforehand, "Leave from here now. Nobody wants to prove anything."

["Will you shut up yourself or shall I do the honors!!"]

"Why, Samiksha?" Geetika adeptly taunted, "Did the NRI get scared?" She plopped down on an adjacent table betting her bucks for the ensuing drama, "At least give the poor guy a fair chance to prove his worth for the girl he came so far to take away."

"It's alright, Sammy." Aakash replied, "Let's not forget all of you are still in university and it's obvious that here everyone is notably immature." He reinforced while Chhaya braved a biting remark, "I've no problem to prove my need for Ruchi."

"Aakash Ji, please! You don't have to do this." Ruchi sculpted uncertainly.

"You are innocent, my sweetheart." Chhaya invigorated, "He can do a little effort for you and this wannabe relationship-" Ruchi shook her head in disapproval at her friend, "only if he wants ofcourse."

Aakash nodded his head well aware that Chhaya was taking revenge for his comment on her eating habit but he was clueless as to what got the entire place so interested in their fiasco especially the guy who was brought along in the conversation.

"Let's make some arrangements for the deal breaker then." Chhaya announced, reaching out for her bag and taking out a register and pen.

Aryan curled his fingers watching Aakash pass heart smiles to Ruchi once in every minute and she continued to pretend it was nothing more but a genuine gesture of assurance. His fist was itching to break Aakash's blinding battisi so he wouldn't dare open his mouth out of mortification let alone for passing a full-blown smile to his girl.

[Battisi - Indian term used to refer to 32 sets of teeth.]

He had struggled to overlook Ruchi's mysteriously intriguing presence around him in these three years regretting not confronting her debatable actions including the reasons behind her disappearance from the face of earth and the abandonment of their promise which he was one-sidedly following while dreaming about a forever but how could he forget that forever's never existed and promises were meant to be broken sooner or later.

Still he found it hard to believe that she chose him with a fake american accent over his desi vibes being the same girl who preferred drinking masala chai with dipped parle-g biscuits over mac n cheese.

[Masala Chai - Masala Chai is an Indian beverage made by brewing black tea with fragrant spices, sugar and milk.]

Then why the hell was she eager to marry this imported donkey?

'Fuck!' He cursed.

Neither were her studies over yet nor did she actually begin her dream of becoming the best businesswoman, Aryan was himself catching up with his real passion and getting married was an out of syllabus question for them. They're in the age of shaping their career, then from where and how did this piece of mouth-burning raw kaali mirch dare appear amidst their half-baked biryani.

[Kaali Mirch - Black Pepper]

[Biryani - Biryani is a delicious rice dish peppered with scrumptious spices like saffron and cumin and further layered with spiced meat or veggie protein. Typically, this layered rice dish is enriched with added yogurt or ghee, a clarified butter, for an extra boost of luxurious flavor.]

Nobody is going to save him from his wrath. He'd wipe out the tangibility of this rotten green weed and drain him into the gutter until he is disposed of in an out of reach area or maybe deported to the foreign land he flew here from.

'What kind of unreasonable parents are hers that let her get married to this smelly marijuana? Don't they have any kind of responsibility towards their only daughter?' He thought.

'They didn't know you existed, master. It's not too late, let us go with gifts and proposal to their house.' Braine suggested.

'Who in the right frame of mind would give his daughter's hand to a stranger? And what is he going to say over there? Mujhe NRI pasand nahi aaya. Reject that foreign good and get your bright daughter married to a guy with severe mood swings?" His conscience mocked, "Konsa baap apni beti ka hath aese ladke ko dega? Kabir Singh dekhi thi na, boss. Phir bhi itni jaldi bhool gaye?"

["I didn't like the NRI. Which father would give his daughter's hand to such a boy? You saw Kabir Singh, didn't you, Boss. Yet you forgot it so soon?"]

'Main kya tujhe koi sanki roadside romeo lagta hoon?' Aryan wanted to scream or better pull the hairs off his head.

["Do I look like a creepy roadside romeo?"]

"Sab ready hai bhai log!" An excited Chhaya vociferated, gaining everyone's attention, "There's a list of questions I and Sarah had prepared. And these are the right answers of these questions certified by Ruchi." She explained, "Aryan is going to question you and Mr. NRI will have to guess the correct choice on behalf of our, Babygirl."

["Everything is ready, pals!"]

Samiksha pulled her aside to threaten, "Agar kuch gadbad huyi na Chhaya toh tujhe mein nahi chodungi."

["If something goes wrong then I'm not going to spare you Chhaya."]

"Fikar not when I'm here." Chhaya consoled. "Okay, then. Let's begin."

[Fikar - Worry]

"What genre does Ms. Batra follow in movies or more specifically what's one of her favorite movies?" Aryan started up the questionnaire.

Aakash nodded his head thoughtfully before answering with a smile.

"Romance."

"Sub-genre?" Sarah piqued earning a black eye from Vivek while she casually shrugged her shoulders.

"Ruchi's simplicity sparks from afar. I think she would be into chick-flicks." He was sure.

"Would be-" Aryan chuckled unbelievably. "Is your proposal also stable on a 'would be'?"

"Pehle sawal mein hi ludak gaya yeh toh. Race to kya, Aakash toh iske sath jogging bhi nahi kar payega. Aryan's stamina is unmatchable!!" Bhavesh spouted near Samiksha who then obtruded to advocate the wrong answer, "This is their first alone unofficial meet."

["He already rolled out in the first attempt. Let alone race, Aakash won't even be able to jog with him. Aryan's stamina is unmatchable!!"]

Chhaya ignored her and pouted dramatically at Aakash's face.

"Sorry to say but Ruchi loves romance but comedy and that makes Welcome her all-time favorite."

"Aryan, next!"

"What would be Ms. Batra's favorite literary work?" Samiksha added, "Or the author's name would serve too."

Aakash sputtered to find the right answer for the next few minutes when Bhavesh jumped in with enthusiasm, "Yaad aa gaya!" He shouted, "I know!! I know this!!"

["I remember!"]

"What-?" Vivek damned but he yakked anyway, "Kabuliwala. It's a short story by our very own Rabindranath Tagore."

"Oye langoor, tune kyun bola?" Geetika condemned, annoyed.

["Hey, baboon! Why did you answer?"]

"Wahi jese tu boli bandariya." Bhavesh countered and Geetika's blood boiled, she walked away on her heels while he sang in a breathy voice, "Tu chal chuhiya, mein bhi aaya!! Oh tu chal! Main abhi aaya, Geetu.."

["Just as you did, female monkey. Go on, mouse, I am coming too!! Oh come on! I will follow you too, Geetu.."]

"Tape your mouth else I'm going to run a scissor over it." Chhaya berated, motioning Aryan to continue with the next question in the list, "Who would Ms. Batra choose between a childhood friend and partner?"

"Of course, partner." Aakash grinned victoriously.

"There's where you misunderstood her Mr. NRI. Ms. Batra is prone to breaking away from relations, be it blood or not. She would neither sever the old ties for the new ones nor betray the person she loves." Aryan mentioned.

"The question remains the same then. She wouldn't pick up any one." Aakash pointed out waiting to be justified.

Meanwhile Aryan kept back the paper and relaxed back into the chair engaging into a staring contest with the latter with a saccharine smile.

"She would end up hurting herself for the sake of the people who couldn't sense her agony when asking her to pick up a single person from the bunch of her loved ones because she could tear her heart and soul to just make them happy regardless of her own pain."

A compleancy of eerie silence fell over each face including Ruchi who was thunderstruck by his explanation.

How did he know so much about her? Was it just a coincidental prediction or something more into it? She was prohibited to speak a word into the happening by Chhaya but she heard and processed the entire sequence digesting every bit and piece of it.

The hard ones include the monologue of Aryan Mallik who never paid a fair glance to her unnoticed existence let alone have such a deep explanation of the question on her behalf. But his act never failed to appease her.

This guy is so infuriating-ly honest that she had to stop her twinging curiosity to walk up to him and get an answer of his plain ignorance directed towards her for the last three years.

"I rest your case here, Chhaya." Aryan postulated stuffing the paper in her hands, "And remember one thing by your heart and soul."

"Now what?" Samiksha probed as she impatiently waited for Aryan to leave them alone.

"यह इश्क भी बड़ी नाचीज बीमारी है, मोहतरमा...
देने पर आये तो दुश्मन भी मेहरबा हो जाया करते हैं,
पर अगर लेने पर आए तो रूह भी खाक कर देती हैं|
अपनी नादानगी की चर्चा;
अनजान महफिलों में ज़रा गौर से कीजिये गा,
वरना बिखर तो शतरंज के मोहरे भी जाया करते है|"

["Love is a very trivial disease, my friend. When blessed, then even the enemies turn kind but when it demands a bargain, it might lead to dusting of your soul. Be cautious while unveiling your secrets of innocence during foreign receptions otherwise even the chess pieces are used to scattering within a blink of an eye."]

Aryan leaned away with his eyes caging Ruchi's unmoving sight for a fleeting second but before her lashes could've lifted up to discern, it was gone. She could never realize the gentle breeze that had inadvertently caressed her restless mind had disappeared like it never existed before and also the fact that it belonged to him.

"Are you done?" Samiksha asked sarcastically, "If yes then fuckin' leave."

"For now, I am done." Aryan granted thoughtfully, "Also, short stuff, think thrice before interrupting me again." He shoved away her head using his index finger as she was breathing down his neck all this while.

He walked away infuriating Samiksha who yelled after him on her lungs to dare her to order ever again. "Arrey! Woh toh gaya!" Bhavesh implied, to get deafened by Samiksha's temper who charged Chhaya. "Toh mil gayi tasalli tujhe? Kyu bulaya tha tune is gareebon ke shehzaade ko yahan? Have you heard what he said?"

["He's gone!"]

["Did you get peace? Why did you call that dockyard prince here?"]

"Kya galat bola hai usne?" Chhaya offered, "Tu sach mein hamesha chillati hi toh rehti hain."

["What did he say wrong? You always keep on shouting."]

"Aakash, tu apna dil chota mat karna." Vivek spoke up during the ongoing argument, "Jab tak Ruchi ki haa hai tab tu tak shadi pucci hi samjhna."

["Aakash brother, don't lose your heart. As long as Ruchi agrees, till then you should consider the marriage as confirmed."]

"Haan!" Chhaya murmured rolling her eyes at Vivek's vain consolation, "As if Aryan Mallik ne is defaulted piece ko mandap tak bhi pahuchne dena hai."

["Of Course! As if Aryan is going to let this defaulted piece even near the aisle."]

Amidst all the chaos, Ruchi sat numb and too bewildered to utter a single word because a certain unfamiliar guy was artlessly lording over her.

Slowly, she was losing it all.

Lots of Love,

ANKITA