They walked together in silence and a gentle breeze accompanied them.

Her mind could not fathom the fact that she just met the one person she never wanted to, for the rest of her life. All of her senses were refusing to move on from that face that lingered on in her mind.

She clenched her jaws tight and he could see that she was raging with anger.

Although he wished to comfort her, he sensed that she wasn't in the mood for it and he did not want to push his luck at that point. All he wanted was to drive her safe to wherever she lived and hoped that by the end of their drive she would feel better.

He took a deep breath in and continued to walk in silence.

Being an ambivert himself, he understood the need for space. While he enjoyed having fun at parties, he also knew to get away from all of it when he needed the silence just like tonight.

The silence continued until they had both gotten into the car and buckled themselves up for the ride.

He watched as she quickly punched in her address on the touch screen and it wasn't hard to recognize. It was indeed one of the most famous apartments in Besant Nagar.

The ETA on the screen showed 46 minutes.

His eyes moved to check on her.

She was pulling her hair up into a messy bun and then removed her long earnings before closing her eyes shut.

He let her have the space that she needed and without any delay started to drive towards the location and almost instantly his playlist started with Netru Illadha Maatram Ennadu.

He was quick to pause to make sure she did not feel obligated to listen to his playlist.

"En stop panreenga?! Nalla paatu", her eyes turned towards him and the accusatory tone made him let out a giggle.

"Finally, something broke her silence", he thought to himself.

"You looked preoccupied. En music taste rombha old school. I did not want you to feel stuck with it", his eyes moved to meet hers for a brief glance.

It looked like she was a bit calmer than before and there was even a small smile that showed up under her straight face.

"Sirikalam thappilla", he added with his eyes on the road.

"It's my favorite song. Adhan konjam tension aiten. You do have good taste in music", she pressed the play button and started to hum along with the lines.

All of a sudden he felt like he was in a live concert. She sounded heavenly and it was evident that music made her happy. He could feel her calm down with every line and get into her own world.

"Sathama padna nanum kepen. Enaku paatu kekardhu rombha pudikum", he requested and looked adorable doing so.

While she did not respond, her hum became louder and he slowed down consciously to enjoy the moment better.

To his surprise, she continued to sing with every song on his playlist, and all of a sudden they heard, "You have arrived at your location".

"Adhukulla vantoma?", she was surprised.

"Yes mam", he said with his charming smile.

"Hmm not bad", she paused making him curious to which he responded with his eyebrows raised and she responded back with her eyebrows raised, giving him a taste of his own medicine with a sarcastic smile.

He played dumb although he knew exactly why she did that.

"Not bad what?", he asked.

"Not a bad company", she finished leaving him stunned.

"So you thought that I was a bad company?", he could not help but wonder why she would think that. They had not really talked much during the party and it was startling to know that she thought that way about him.

"Yup. I rarely connect with new people. It's nothing personal", and walked out of the car giving him no time to respond.

If she thought he was going to let her go before they were done with the conversation, she was gravely mistaken.

He got out of the car and followed her.

"Purila Meghna", he almost whispered into her ears making her insides flip for a moment.

"Maybe we can be friends?", she made a thoughtful expression and walked into the gated complex without looking back.

He stood there until her image faded away into the darkness of the night with a wide grin on his face which was enough evidence for anyone who might have seen him to know that their ride was far from over.

***

"Nijama drop panten da. Nambu", Athreya iterated for the hundredth time to Ranjith who was beyond annoying at this point.

"Aama un pera sathyama solala. Krithi pera kooda solala. Ava kekavum illa", he added because he knew what was coming next and hung up before his best friend could drill him with anymore details.

He looked at the passenger seat next to him that was empty right now and yet radiated her presence.

While he thought it might be good to just text her good night is when he remembered that he did not have her number.

After mentally slapping himself for being stupid, he tried to come up with possible excuses to get her number from his friend but all of it felt too silly.

He wasn't the kind of guy who asked for a girl's number. Ever.

"Oru ponnu number vanga theriyaadhavan lam vaazhave asinga padanum", his friend's statement echoed in his mind.

"Avala number kudukara varaikum wait panravan dan true gentleman", he consoled himself and started driving towards his home.

***

"Safe ah reach pantiya?", Krithi asked in a mellow tone.

"Vanten. Sorry na un mela kova patruka koodadhu", Meghna apologized knowing too well how sensitive her best friend was.

They both knew that nothing and no one could break the bond they shared but that did not mean that they would never have disagreements.

Ranjith was one of those topics on which they agreed to disagree.

"Illa en thappu dan. Avan varen nu solra apo ennala varaadha nu sola mudila.. so..", before she could finish her voice started to crack.

"Krithi nee thoongu. Nanum thoongren. We both need rest. Nalaiku enaku andha fashion designer oda meeting vera iruku", she let out a yawn which was perfect indication of how tired and sleepy she was.

"Ok ma. Morning call pannu. You will rock the meeting", her best friend cheered up to make her feel better and they hung up for the night.

***

"Na kelambren. You have to rest up. Meghna va pathi kavala padaadha. She will come around", Ranjith gently caressed Krithi's hair knowing her state of mind.

What had started off as an enmity between the two had gradually turned into a beautiful friendship over the last couple of years and now they both knew they were more than friends.

Although neither wished to acknowledge their feelings for each other, it was there and they could not deny the fact that they had fallen hard for each other.

"Paathu drive pannu", she hugged him tight before he waved her good bye for the night.

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Author's Note:

I have a plot in mind but it seems to be taking so many different shapes every day. Just going with the flow. But stories have a way of taking shape in a way that is meant to be and I believe in that. So let's wait and watch.

Why Meghna hates Ranjith? Will Ranjith and Krithi express their love for each other? Will Athreya meet Meghna again?