Nothing could stop Shivaay when he immersed himself and sang; it was mesmerizing. Not even in his sober state. Anika just leaned on the chair she was sitting in and listened to him like she always does. At the end of the song, tears automatically crossed her eyes, feeling him while singing. She felt like he was actually conversing with her heart through his songs and his voice. She can forget the whole world hearing him. And the smile when he passes at her after singing the song gives her a reason to breathe. She really loves him, beyond everything, and he owns her heart forever.

She didn't wait for him to give her the tightest hug when he walked down from the stage towards her, having his guitar in his one hand. He held her upwards with his other hand to hug her and kissed her forehead; he always does that after every performance. She smiled widely at his gesture.

"YOU. ARE. AWESOME" - Shivaay exclaimed to him, who was still in his hold. He didn't reply, but he smiled at her. He didn't respond but looked at her reaction. She knew he always likes to see his cherished face after he performs. He released her from his grip after a few seconds.

"Are you hungry?" - He asked her again while throwing her hands on her shoulder, while Anika was busy uploading the whole video on his YouTube page. And she started promoting his page. He looked at her phone, her face, and gave her a tight kiss on her cheek.

"Eww. PDA." - She said and wiped off his kiss from her cheek and silently smiled at him when he responded shockingly to her reaction. He was actually making her walk in the right direction by holding her when she deeply immersed herself inside the phone. When he stopped walking, she turned her face towards him, who looked cold while looking at a girl's face before her. Over then, she met his ex-girlfriend face to face for the first time, and she already hates her. And she again believed with the fact, hate at first sight.

"You're good!" - She said with a smile while glancing at Anika who was still in his hold. He didn't leave her, which was actually liked by Anika.

"Thanks. Honey! I told you about my childhood friend, remember? Meet her. Ragini Solanki" - Shivaay introduced Anika to Ragini, whose face slightly went down looking at him holding his girlfriend.

"Nice to meet you, Ragini." - Anika forwarded her hand even she didn't want to. They both shook hands.

"Okay! Let's go, Honey! We are getting late." - Shivaay said holding Anika's both shoulders by hanging his guitar on his body. Anika wondered, has he become so keen on buying her favorite food?

"Why so hurry?" - Ragini questioned him while a person came next to her and held her shoulder, probably the person with whom Ragini cheated on Shivaay.

"Because my girlfriend is hot." - Shivaay said unexpectedly. Anika almost stopped thinking for a while. But she heard a chuckle from that man who stood next to Ragini. She couldn't even meet their eyes. She knew he just used it casually, but Anika felt so weird and sad at the same time. How could someone objectify like that? Did he convey to them that they are having sex or going to have it? He never thought about that when he was with her. She knew about him, but why did he do that? She was confused and eventually became silent. And they left the place the very next moment.

**************

It has been twenty minutes since Anika spoke a word to Shivaay, and he had been trying to get her to talk about every single idea for his next song. But she almost became numb to everything and just responds in monosyllabic. He brought her to the best restaurant even though he felt a bit drunk, but he didn't fail to notice her changed behavior. They walked towards a restaurant; it was a fancy one, and Shivaay was very keen to make her feel special after what she did to him this evening. More than him, she wanted him to win.

"Uploaded!" - He asked her when she tried to upload the video and ignored his talks for the complete twenty minutes.

"No. A problem with my mobile data! Wait a minute, does this restaurant give access to their wifi?" - Anika asked him while looking at her phone. Meanwhile, the waiter came and asked for the order.

"Can you make some mac 'n' cheese, honey chicken, along with mashed potatoes? Shivaay, what about you?" - She asked and met his eyes after twenty minutes, and he smiled widely at her while acknowledging the waiter who stood opposite her. She stayed stuck seeing his smiling face, and it always works; he knew it.

"The same!" - He said in his usually flirty tone which never works on her, just like his smile. She's different from every other woman in this world; that's what every man feels when they find the right woman for them. She switched her eyelids from him to the waiter in a second and asked for the password for their wifi to use.

"Honey! What happened? Why are you so grumpy?" - He asked her finally when he failed to find the reason behind it. But she remained silent and looked at him. He picked up her palms, which were intertwined above the table.

"You can ask me anything. I mean, anything" - He said, looking deep into her eyes. She smiled at him in an instant. It was a millisecond duration chuckle but heard as Christmas chime tone. He smiled at her again and also concluded that meeting his ex-girlfriend at the place made her insecure, and he became keen to prove to her that Ragini is nothing but his past, and she is his present and also wanted to be his future.

"Okay, tell me, why were you so grumpy?" - He again asked her even after she smiled at him and assured him everything is alright with her look. He wanted her to tell on her own. But she didn't; even she didn't mind giving the answer when the food arrived on time, and she started to eat rather than having a conversation with him. But he had to wipe these insecurities from her heart. They had their dinner; Anika attempted to pay the bill, but Shivaay kept his card and smiled at her.

"You really don't have to follow every rule of a date. We could have split the bill." - She asked him.

"But I like to take care of you. Do you have any problem with that?" - He asked her while pinching her nose. She lost the game and smiled at him while nodding no to him.

They got into a taxi; when the taxi driver asked about the destination, Shivaay told him his place. When Anika was about to tell him to drop her at her PG, he stopped her from saying and made her sit inside.

"Shivaay! It's already late, the PG will be closing in half an hour, I have to be there." - Anika resisted, but he didn't say anything; instead, he held her palms tightly with a lopsided smile on his face. He knows what he was thinking; he badly did not want her to think or feel insecure about Ragini anymore in his life.

"No, it's closing in 5 mins. Look at the watch." - He said with a victorious smile, and over then, she realized that the time has already passed. He purposefully made her late in the restaurant.

"It's all because of you. Where will I stay tonight?" - She asked him in a helpless tone.

"Well, your boyfriend lives in an apartment in this city; you don't have to worry about that, my dear!" - He said, throwing his arm on her shoulder, and she turned towards him shockingly and blinked her eyes twice in confusion; she always does that when she was shocked and surprised at the same time.

"That's not the only issue." - She finally said after a long pause.

"Then what?" - He asked her. She tightly closed her eyes and opened them.

"Something wrong?" - He asked him. She saw the driver and moved close to his right ear.

"I am on my period and your home!  I am out of pads, your home won't be comfortable for me during this time, it's so bachelorette-friendly." - She whispered in his ears, and he was slightly shaken to hear that but eventually understood her problem; if it's not him, who will understand her problem.

"You should have told me before; we would have left the restaurant a little bit sooner. You call your warden, right now. And tell her about your problem; she will wait for another 10 minutes for sure." - He said and asked the taxi driver to drop her at her PG instead of dropping her at his house. She did the same, but her warden was out of reach for the continuous 30 minutes.

"She isn't picking up my calls." - Anika said to him; Shivaay felt so impatient. And asked the taxi driver again to drop him at his house.

"Sir, you have to give me extra money for roaming around the city during the nighttime." - The taxi driver asked him, out of patience. Shivaay acknowledged and asked him to drop straight to his house.

"Let's go, Ani. I will arrange something for you! Don't worry!" - He said, caressing her face.

*************

The guilt she had in her heart started to startle her for lying to him when he went to the pharmacy to buy napkins for her. She was nervous when he suddenly asked her to come over. It did not mean she didn't trust him, but the way he told Ragini about her made her think like that. Also, she was very young; she never had boyfriends, and always been a protected child by her parents,, and now, she was all alone to explore something like this in her life. He bought it when she stayed inside the taxi and banged her head for lying to him.

"Hey! I bought it! This is the brand, right? And it's safer too." - He said, giving her the polythene cover that had the napkins in it. She never felt any different; her father always felt free to talk to her about her periods as he's a father of three girls and always takes her in his lap when she feels uncomfortable during her periods.

"How do you know it's safe?" - She asked in curiosity.

"Well, I am a medical drop-out. And I am glad it's helping you, baby!" - He said, cupping her face and kissing her cheek. She remained silent, looking at him. Now she couldn't back off from her lie. The taxi dropped them at the entrance of their apartment, and both emerged.

"I know you will feel uncomfortable! But trust me, I will sort out everything. I won't give you a chance to complain either." - He said while walking towards his house and unlocking it. But Anika couldn't reply to anything because of the guilt.

"And you can wear my track pants and T-shirt; it's sorted, right." - He asked her.

"Hmm." - She replied to him and entered his apartment. He straightly went to his wardrobe and gave her his clothes to change. It was a new one which he bought on Amazon; the bill was still stuck with the cloth. And he's sentimental that he should be the first one to use his new clothes, and he never permits anyone to use them. He told her about his weird habits. Now he was giving his new clothes for her to wear.

"Shivaay! I can wear your old clothes; I know you're so particular about your new clothes. Come on." - She managed to say. He stopped walking and looked at her weirdly for her comments.

"Do you think my new clothes are more important than you? How silly?" - He said and went inside his bathroom; she heard a washing sound from outside which made her feel guilty minute by minute.

"I think now it's unisex-friendly! Go and have a bath. While then, I will prepare your bed." - He said, coming out from his washroom. She hit her head for lying to him. But what will she do? That was the first lie that came to her mind during that time.

Holding his clothes, she moved inside her washroom and was shocked to see everything clean; there was no sort of dirt anywhere, and she could smell Dettol. She cupped her mouth in shock. How can someone do this much for her? She could see her father in him. The first thing he checks in every hotel room on their holidays is its washroom. He won't trust anyone when it comes to his daughter's and wife's hygiene, ex-wife.

Anika shrugged off her thoughts and put herself under the shower. She never felt relaxed and secure in three months. But now, lying to him and seeing his efforts on her, she felt so bad. When she emerged, she saw him preparing his bed on the floor while making preparations for her in the bed.

"Shivaay!" - She called him again.

"Honey, come, sleep. You must be tired." - He said.

"But you're sleeping on the floor." - She replied in a sad tone.

"I sleep in my bed daily. And now, during this time, you need comfort. Don't feel guilty, and sleep. Do you have classes tomorrow?" - He asked her.

"No. Only on Monday, Tuesday,, and Wednesday." - She said in a sad tone.

"Perfect, then I won't wake you up. You can wake up late." - He said and lay on the floor with his phone in his hand. He was scrolling through the news feed to avoid more arguments about the bed. Without having any option left, she took the bed and laid on it.

"Comfortable!" - A message popped up on her phone from Shivaay, who was lying just a few feet away from her. She opened his message and decided to reply.

"Yes 😞" - She replied.

"Sweetheart, sleep. Don't think about anything, and please call me if you need anything. I am always available." - His message popped up in a second.

"Actually, I need something." - She replied.

"What?" - He messaged.

"Cuddles?" - She replied to him and heard a chuckle from the floor where he was lying.

"You're so cute 😘" - He replied.

"Why is it taking a lot of time?" - She messaged him when she felt him approaching her.

"Because I think I can't stop myself if I arrive there. Hug the pillow beside you thinking it's me. Sleep, honey." - He messaged her but she moved towards the edge of the bed and saw him lying facing the other side.

"Shivaay!" - She called him.

"What?" - He asked her turning around.

"Give me your hand!" - Anika asked, trying to reach his hand. He gave her his hand; she picked up his hand and intertwined her hand with his hand.

"I love you!" - She said, looking deep into his eyes.

"I love you too." - He replied while kissing her hand.

"I trust you!" - She replied in a low tone.

"Okay, why did you say that?" - He asked her. Anika didn't wait for a moment but got down from the bed while he sat on the floor. She kneeled before him and looked deep into his eyes with a smile on her face.

"I lied to you!" - She said, and before he could respond, she placed her lips above his lips and initiated the kiss while moving close to him. He didn't resist her but held her waist, but broke the kiss when he understood what she had lied to him. He didn't ask anything but looked at her for answers.

"I am sorry! I got nervous. You're my first love. Whatever I am feeling with you is happening for the first time in my life." - She said without looking into his eyes, but she stayed close to him, and his hands still on her waist. Rather than replying, he laid back on the floor while facing the other side.

"Hey," - She called him but he least responded. She laid back next to him and tried to touch his shoulder, but he shrugged off his shoulder she took her palm.

"I am sorry!" - She said and tried to throw her arms around him. This time, she didn't take her hands away from them but pulled them towards her. He turned around with the same cold face. Her hands were around him.

"I thought it would be difficult for you to resist my cute face. But you're resisting me." - She said in a low tone, and he couldn't keep himself in the same reaction. He smiled and cupped her face at the same time and kissed her; she kissed him back with a smile, and she started to experience her wild side when he started undressing her, and she continued kissing him madly with passion. She took off his shirt and threw it aside without breaking his kiss while his hands explored touching her sensitive part. Both came back to their senses when her head hit the floor suddenly he tried to place her on the floor.

"Oh shit! Is it paining?" - He asked her while touching her head and making her stand. But she couldn't reply to anything staying in her inner garments before him. She couldn't even able to face him. But he held her in his arms and made her lay in her bed. Grazing his fingertips on her stomach, he slowly went upwards and touched her breasts lying next to her; she heaved out a deep breath, but he continued kissing her neck and earlobe followed by taking hold of her breast. He squeezed it too hard. She experienced so differently and high at the same time.

"Trust me as you said!" - He said, kissing her forehead and moving his fingertips inside her panties. She couldn't able to speak anything nor able to look at him. She was continuously heaving deep breaths. Tears crossed her eyes when she felt his strong fingers inside her.

"Look at me!" - He called her before he could continue going inside her. In a moment, she felt her bleeding, but she panicked as she didn't hear about it anywhere. In a moment, her virginity is gone to the person who she loves beyond anything in the world. And she never felt so happy as today because of him. She felt like he made her a woman from a girl and also introduced her to her new self.

"I love you!" - He heaved out his breath uniting their noses and foreheads together.

"Love you too." - She replied with a wide smile on her face.

***********

Around 2 in the morning, Anika's phone started to ring, She picked up her phone and was shocked to see there was a phone call from her mom, She panicked as her warder told her mom about her absence tonight, Getting on to his t-shirt, She emerged out and picked her calls.

"Yeah, Mumma" - Anika replied. 

"Baby, You're fine, Right?" - Her mom asked her. Anika could feel the tension in her tone. 

"Yeah, mom. In the middle of the night, You called, Remember!" - Anika tried to chuckle off her tension. 

"Yeah, I know, I am sorry! Don't know why! Some instinct, Sorry baby!" - She said, Anika felt so guilty, Her mom still thinks of her as a child and here she was going way beyond her imagination. 

"Riya and Siya dreamt about you, With them, In the Disney land! It would be fun, right, If you're here. I promise I will find good animation classes for you, Here. Please come back to mumma, baby." - Her mom requested her, Tears crossed her eyes. 

"Mom. I am in love..." - She wept. 

"What?" - Her mom asked her in shock. 

"I mean I am in love with this city and people. I am sorry Mom. I need some time." - She changed the sentence while crossing her finger tightly, She never lied this much bad to her mom. But if she knew what she had done, Her mom never let her stay here for a while. 

"Okay! Take care, My love. Call me if you need anything, okay?  Your mom will be there for you, Always." - Amirtha, Her mom said and hung up the call, But she stayed in the drawing room thinking about her life which completely changed after coming to this city. And she loves this person, That's what she knew.

***********