"I wished I was a little girl again because skinned knees are easier to fix than broken hearts." 

- JULIA ROBERTS

^^^

Kiara stumbled a little, trying to maintain her posture due to Harshad's sudden hug. Maya was suspiciously staring at them while Kiara was hesitating whether to hug Harshad back or not. With Maya's curious gaze on them, Kiara was getting uncomfortable. She slowly rested a hand on Harshad's back. "Are you fine?"

"Harshad," she waited a minute, but still she wasn't provided with any response. He simply nuzzled his face further in the crook of her neck. Kiara was trying to control the shivers she was feeling due to the proximity. "Did something happen? Harshad, you're stressing me up. Is everything fine? Did anything happen to you? What's the deal, Harshad?"

"Shh! I am in a need of a friend please be beside me without a question asked." Harshad pleaded and Kiara allowed him the silence he was demanding. Maya slowly disappeared allowing them space as she seemed unwanted in that frame.

Harshad slowly pulled himself from her. Kiara stared at him with concern. The full-of-life spirit had turned pale, his face was stern while his orbs filled with pain though his lips were masking a smile at her.

"Stop masking those emotions," Kiara pointed out getting annoyed. "I don't want another Dhruv in my life."

"Dhruv? I won't ever be like him." Harshad was pissed displaying his revulsion towards Dhruv.

Kiara stared at him curiously, "what is it, Harshad? Did he say something?" Harshad glanced at her and Kiara understood her guess was correct. "Harshad please don't mind his words, he often doesn't understand what he utters in anger." Kiara was attempting to defend Dhruv's action. "He never means those cruel words, it's just that so much he keeps bottling up that when he bursts..."

"Stop defending him, Kiara. Stop! Justifying his actions. Stop conveying to the world that he is selfless, he is great because he isn't. He is fucking coward, he fucking can't even fight for his happiness."

"Shut up!" Kiara yelled at Harshad. "You hardly knew him so you better don't even attempt to judge him. You have no right to accuse him, define him..."

"Okay," Harshad raised his hands in a mocking manner. "I have no right to blame him, accuse him, define him. I hardly knew him. Fine, I am not his friend but he also is given no right to hurt people close to me." He grabbed Kiara's shoulder tightly, "he has no right shattering them into pieces. Do you get me?" Kiara was staring at him with concern.

"Whom had he hurt?" She was growing anxious.

"Someone very precious to me and I am not ever going to forgive him for that." With those words, he left her shoulder and walked out of the house.

Kiara was staring in his retreated direction with a puzzled expression, she could interpret that Harshad was wounded from within but she couldn't make herself believe that Dhruv would hurt someone intentionally. Maya walked into the living area with a tray of glass and searched for a sign of Harshad.

"Where is he?"

"He went..."

"Went?" Maya sounded shocked, "he traveled such a long distance to come over here and within a second, left?" Maya shook her head, "did he travel such a long distance, cross the border of the state just to meet you?" Kiara couldn't register a word mentioned by Maya. She was just hoping that Harshad was going to take care of himself.

___

"Kiara, you haven't touched the food," Maya mentioned glancing at the plate left untouched.

"Not in a mood..." Kiara grumbled staring at the rice.

"Is it about that guy? Had his visit affected you so much?" Maya inquired not able to hold her tongue back she was getting concerned about her cousin.

"His words, his actions had affected me. He was in agony and rather than consoling him, I infuriated him. I felt a need to justify Dhruv's action. He was misunderstanding Dhruv."

"You need to let go of Dhruv, it's high time," Maya muttered having a spoon full of rice.

"Haven't you said that I am allowed to hold on to my past until I am sure that I want to let it go? I am not fully convinced to let go of my past. Dhruv had been a huge part of my life. I can't simply forget about him. And I am sure Dhruv won't ever hurt a fly intentionally."

"It isn't true, Kiara." Maya felt a need to oppose and Kiara stared at her in bewilderment.

"What do you mean?"

"You, say that he understands you the most. He had guessed about your moods with your mere actions and yet you believe during these years, he wasn't able to notice that you were developing feelings for her. The minute you discovered that feelings were emerging from him, you walked out of his life. The way you could read him in the same manner, he could?" Those words by Maya put Kiara in her thoughts.

"It isn't the case! He wasn't aware of his feelings..."

"But here we aren't talking about his feeling. He got aware of it when he found himself reacting weirdly towards your disappearance from his life. The minute he came to confess to you, things were far more complicated by then. But I am talking about your feeling. You had mentioned to me on various events that Dhruv was aware of others' moods. He was aware of what could brighten Avni's mood when her parents troubled her. What would work on Aditi, to make her agree with a discussion? He was an amazing friend and that amazing friend could read it."

"If I could read between the lines if your parents could do it. Then why won't he be able to do it?" Kiara stared at Maya in horror.

"Then why didn't he ever mention it?"

Maya shrugged his shoulder, "according to the way you describe him. He was indecisive, he couldn't decide whether to comfort with you or let it slide. It didn't affect him maybe as long as you were his friend."

"He didn't want to spoil the friendship for something he was unsure of... he wasn't sure about his matter of heart and maybe so he chose to overlook it. But then his father came to play and he couldn't let his decision slide away. His biggest goal in life as you mentioned was to earn his dad's approval and he was provided with an opportunity."

"So, agreed with the marriage," Maya gave a nod at Kiara's statement. "Trying to make it work. During that phase not for once, he thought about me. How could he? I would have been glad if he had never known the truth. At least it made me believe he would have left his love for my happiness. It would make me feel at least he cared but he didn't..." Kiara wiped the tears, "I need the confirmation... I can't live my life with this uncertainty."

"Are you going to call Dhruv?"

"Yes!" Kiara paused for a moment, standing from her chair. "It's better if matters of the heart are cleared."

____

Kiara was strolling around the garden as she was waiting for Dhruv to answer the call.

"Hello! Why on the earth are you troubling us at this hour, Kiara?" Aditi was sounding infuriated. "Can't you see if someone isn't receiving a call that person might be busy?"

"Sorry for acting inappropriately but I needed some answers to my question. I won't ever disturb your would-be-husband again."

"Kiara, don't mind her words..." Dhruv grumbled and there was some shuffling. "Behave yourself, Aditi." He growled.

"You had promised to choose me over her, Dhruv. You can't back out from your words." She was voicing out her insecurities.

"I am not backing out from my words..." Dhruv gritted his teeth.

Kiara hung the call not in the mood to listen to their same series of arguments. They really behaved like a husband and wife and kept arguing over small matters. She shook her head, her mind was engulfed with lots of questions. How could Dhruv possibly never mind knowing he was hurting her? It would have been far better if Dhruv had rejected her, directly. Kiara couldn't make herself believe that Dhruv knew about her feelings if he knew, he wouldn't have ever wounded her more by acting like a couple in front of her. Maya was wrong!

Her cell rang it was Dhruv calling her back. She hesitated whether to pick it up or not. What if her question, angers him? Won't it mean she was doubting his loyalty as a friend?

"Hello..." she whispered softly.

"Kiara, I am sorry on behalf of Aditi. She behaved impulsively..." Dhruv grumbled, "why you called at such an hour? Everything, alright?"

"Yes, just wanted to check on you." Kiara couldn't speak the truth. "How are you doing?"

"I am all fine..." He paused for a second. "What about you?"

"All good..." There was an awkward silence for a few minutes. Kiara felt uneasy, she had never felt so uncomfortable while talking to him.

"I wanted to tell you something. Great, you called me." Dhruv informed. Kiara felt fortunate that Dhruv broke the deadly silence between them. "I wanted to tell you we can't continue with the friendship."

Kiara's orbs enlarged so did her mouth, a drop of tear slowly descended down her cheek. She wasn't able to believe her faith. She had called him to question him. To blabber and maybe show some anger but after a moment forgive him. That was how it always work. She became angry, and he consoled her. But he hadn't given her the opportunity to complain. She felt he was already tolerating Aditi's tantrum. She didn't want to add on so she kept quiet. 

"I hope you will understand, Kiara. Aditi is behaving possessively and doesn't understand..." Dhruv was going to justify but Kiara interrupted him.

"I do... I do get you, Dhruv." She held back her sob. "And do assure Aditi that Dhruv isn't ever going to choose Kiara over Aditi, it was always and will always be Aditi." Tears kept flowing down her cheek.

"Kiara I am..."

"I need to go, Dhruv. Have a beautiful life and take care..." and without waiting for the response, she hung up the call. She no longer held her tears back allowing the pain to unbottle.

"Damn! Damn! Why does this hurt so much?" She kneeled down, her phone landing beside her. She was weeping silently, "haven't I anticipated the future?" She brushed off the tears. "I knew this would be our outcome. I was going to lose him forever." She sat down in exhaustion, she wasn't in a state to walk inside.

"How casually he mentioned those words?" Kiara dried a laugh, "I thought maybe he won't ever dare to voice it out." She shook her head, "don't I mean anything to him? I do! I know, I do! His orbs never lied to me but then this? I feel like a fool. I feel like crap..." Kiara yelled in pain, "why it's getting difficult? I... Couldn't he just fake it for my sake? How am I ever going to leave without him as my friend? I can no longer anticipate that he will walk back into my life. Pull me back into his..." Kiara was sobbing miserably grabbing her head. "He gave up on me... the only person that had never given up on me had to leave me..."

"I hate this attachment... I hate... it makes a person so weak... it makes you act like a toy. Damn! Kiara, where is your self-respect? You had pride over it. Stop crying over a person that didn't even want to have a friendship with you. It's their loss... Kiara... THEIRS...." She paused for a minute, "then why does my heart ache to this level? Why is it crying so loudly?"

"Kiara..." She heard a familiar voice and her head raised to see a familiar set of black orbs staring at her with concern.