Tags: Childhood friends to lovers/College/tooth-rotting fluff/ Cliché

Word Count: 6k words

"Come on, Aisha, he's not worth it. Let's go." Tara says to her friend, gaze fixed on the two men standing in front of her, but the glare only directed at one of the two. Not on the man standing before her, never on him.

But Aisha, like the stubborn girl she is, just stands there, spewing out insults and names to the man standing in her line of sight, not sparing the other one a glance.

"No, Tara. He needs to learn. He ruined everything. It was all his fault, if we're standing here like this, then it's all his fault. If we're breaking up this group today, the friendship of us four, then it's all his fault." Aisha wails and Tara's hand freezes on her friend's arm, eyes widening.

Her gaze shifts from a slightly guilty-looking Ritik, to his friend, Dhruv, who she notices is looking back at her with the same nervousness in his eyes, gaze flitting between her and his friend.

"Wh-what are you saying, Aisha? Breaking up the group? I thought - I thought only you two had broken up, like a couple." Tara winces as her friend glares at her listening to her words, a flash of betrayal passing through her eyes.

She frowns. "Of course we broke up as a couple but do you think we'll be able to enjoy each other's company again? Do you think I'll be able to see his face anymore knowing that he's the one who broke my heart? It doesn't matter that we've all been together since childhood. What matters is that we dated and this - this jerk broke my heart. I can't hang out with him anymore, neither his friend."

This time it's Ritik who answers, interrupting Tara who once again was going to argue with her friend in defence of Dhruv.

"Stop playing the victim card, ok? You also know that high school relationships don't work. Why are you creating such a drama? We're starting University this year. We had decided that once the school will end, we'll reassess our relationship and I don't see the spark in us anymore." Ritik rebukes and the answer only contributes to triggering Aisha, making her spew more cusses, while Tara is left sighing with a disheartened frown on her lips, a sheen pooling on the surface of her eyes. She looks up at Dhruv who's still gazing back at her.

He gestures from his eyes to come aside, and Tara nods immediately, albeit discreetly.

"Listen, man, I know this is important but my mom's calling. I'll just talk to her and come back, 'kay?" Ritik merely nods, too busy giving Aisha a piece of his mind.

"Ah," she exclaims, covering up her tear-streaked eye with her hand, immediately breaking the ex-lovers' quarrel.

"What? What happened?" Aisha asks, turning to her and so does Ritik.

"I - I think it's just some dust particle. I'll go and wash my eyes. " She says but none of the two let her go.

"Okay, I'll come with you," Aisha then says while Ritik exhales an audible sigh of relief making the girl pause in her step. She turns towards him and narrows her eyes. "Did you just heave a sigh because I was going? You, who was confessing his undying love for me a week ago?" Aisha taunts and Tara rolls her eyes, shaking her head to herself.

"People make mistakes. I did too." Ritik retorts and just like that another argument breaks out, leaving Tara to herself, who quietly manoeuvres her way in the cafe from where she was standing outside on the street, formerly, Ritik and Aisha being requested to take their arguments outside which was disturbing the others as a result of which Dhruv and she had to come out as well.

She quickly spots Dhruv sitting at the corner table at the back of the place and walks over to it.

Dhruv, too, is fast to spot her, halting the foot that was continuously tapping the ground.

"Dhruv," she calls out just as she reaches him, sitting down in front of him with a pout on her face. He mimics her expression and lets out a small, "Tara".

"Nothing's going right." She then observes but this time instead of answering her with words, Dhruv takes her hand in his, stroking the skin with his thumb. The action has Tara gulping thickly.

"Even if our group will not work out, even if we four can't stay together, I'm not leaving you. We both have been friends since way before they came into our lives, before they became our friends before they started dating each other and before all of this happened. I know that you'll want to stay with her and make her feel better by not talking to us but I'm not letting you do that. You're not allowed to stop talking to me."

His words seem fond, making Tara feel light-hearted, the seriousness in his words not going unnoticed because she knows all of this is true because she doesn't want to let go of him.

She nods, the mistiness finally leaving her eyes for good and a smile crawling to her lips. "Good, I don't want to stop talking to you. Even though she's my friend and I know that she doesn't have someone else to lean onto, I'm not ready to let go of my first friend. Even if our group isn't together anymore, you and I are. We'll always be."

*

Tara had thought that right. Two years later and she was completing the second year of college, her friend of eight years sitting in front of her with her new phone and an equally new boyfriend, both having been changed only a week ago.

She couldn't wait for this day to end.

"Tara, babe, I think I'll have to go. He wants to take me somewhere." Aisha prompts and Tara nods, forcing a smile on her face and waving them goodbye.

Once the table is empty, she just leans back in her chair, looking at the classroom ceiling, heaving a drawled out, "finally".

Who says that only romantic relationships lose sparks, friendships do too, hers and Aisha's did, even after breaking away from the group and staying with each other. Even after she supported her and gave her a shoulder to cry on, their friendship lost its spark.

The only relationship that hasn't lost its spark in her life is with her family and with the person who's currently waving her from outside the class, beckoning her to come out. Her lips immediately welcome a smile, Tara quickly makes her way outside the class ready to yell out his name when he suddenly covers her mouth.

"Shh, my professor is still teaching. If he'll hear I'll have to go back to the class." He panics and Tara giggles below his hand, making him look at her, his brows instantly losing their frown and lips gaining a fond smile.

"C'mon," he whispers and removes his hand from her mouth, quietly passing his class, both of them running out of the college building.

It was a miracle how the four of them had decided to attend the same college considering that both Aisha and Ritik now use each other's name as cuss words and want to throttle each other's throats even after two years.

Tara wonders what would have she done if Dhruv wouldn't have been in the same college as hers. She doesn't remember spending two hours without Dhruv after she had met him at the innocent age of four, let alone spending two years without him.

Bless the man in question, but he doesn't let her wander on that thought too much, just holding on to her hand even tighter, stopping up a rickshaw and quickly sitting them up in there. Once in the three-wheeled vehicle, he exhales a sigh, his hands still holding hers, skin getting clammy with slight sweat but none of them mind.

"Uff! Until when we will have to meet like this? It feels like I'm meeting a terrorist in a prison every time I come to pick you up from your class." Dhruv says and earns himself a slap at his arm by the girl sitting beside him.

"Does my face scream terrorist to you?" Tara asks, with no real heat behind her words, making him laugh.

"I mean I haven't ever seen such a pretty-faced terrorist but it's a start I guess." The remark has her cheeks flushing, not knowing if it's from the compliment or the unnecessary jab.

"Whatever." She pokes her tongue to him, who pokes it back.

"So, how's your friend? Got herself a new boyfriend I heard?" Dhruv asks, adjusting in his seat and encircling his arm around her shoulder which she tries to shrug off but is unable to d so.

"Firstly, don't call her 'my' friend, she's your friend too. Secondly, why do you care if she's got a boyfriend? You don't want to date her, now do you?" Her eyes narrow and words take a serious turn at the end which doesn't go unnoticed by her friend.

He scoffs, slightly hitting the back of her head with his hand. "You're still a cute, little fool, aren't you?" Dhruv says pulling one side of her cheek and leaves it only when she hits his hand.

"I don't know, I'm just saying that friends dating each other don't always end well. I mean we've seen what happened to Aisha and Ritik, so even if you'd want to. . . ." Tara trails off, shrugging her shoulders with nonchalance that doesn't quite match with her true feelings.

Dhruv, though, simply turns her head to himself using the hand resting on her shoulder, making her look him in the eyes.

"Listen here, love. I know how to make relationships work, be it between strangers or two friends. And I bet you, the day I'll date someone, I'll make sure that it would be the best relationship of my life, the first and the only relationship of my life."

His voice is deep and so is his gaze and as are his words, that make Tara unable to look away from him because even if he's talking about dating someone else, his words feel too personal, too close to her heart, as if he's talking about -

"Now stop hurting that little brain of yours. It's gonna blast considering you don't use it daily, sweetheart." Dhruv snickers, effortlessly changing the topic and she feigns a scowl just to go with it.

"Can you please stop with those pet names?"

"What do you mean, pumpkin?" Dhruv says, holding back a snicker while Tara is left rolling her eyes and murmuring a small "hate you".
*

It's a month later and Aisha is whining yet again. Now Tara knows that it was her who had called her friend, asking how she was doing but honestly, this isn't what she had signed up for.

"It's ok, Aisha. You'll find someone better, don't worry." Tara says without any conviction in her words, just like she does almost every two months. It isn't like she doesn't wish good for her friend, she does and she knows sometimes love doesn't come fast to people, that they have to wait a long time before they find a companion for themselves but -

This is her fifth break-up this year and in all honesty, it's getting tiring now. Tara's not the one who dates non stop and breaks up on the first fight; she's not the one who gets a crush on every single guy passing their way and finds a way out to get his number before the day ends; and so it shouldn't be here wasting her night like this, a night where she could've called Dhruv or gone out for a movie with him and done all the things you'd do in a friends night out.

"Huh?" Aisha asks, straightening up from where her head was lying on Tara's shoulder previously.

"What?"

"Did you say Dhruv?" Aisha asks and Tara's eyes widen a little.

Had she thought out loud?

She shakes her head nonetheless, wiping the tears from her friend's eyes because whatever is the case, she still doesn't like to see her friend in tears.

*
The morning after brings a humongous change in her friend's attitude.

She is happy, too happy. The kind of happy that a person wouldn't normally be after a breakup. And Tara is scared.

She sees as Aisha gets ready for college, putting a neat layer of makeup under her puffy eyes, cleaning herself up and dressing up in that expensive top and bottoms she had been reserving for her birthday. She looks very pretty. Well, Tara is happy for her. At least the girl isn't crying anymore.

After a few more minutes and getting ready herself, both the girls make their way to the college in their usual bus; well, Tara's usual bus so to say because Aisha normally comes in her car but today she's clinging to her, just like she used to do in their middle school while sitting in the school library. Tara smiles at the memory and pats her head adoringly.

A message pings her phone, bringing her out of her reverie, seeing which her eyes widen slightly.

You're late. Where are you?

The text says - and it's from Dhruv.

Scared that Aisha might've seen the message, she quickly looks at her to check but finds her busy on her phone. She exhales a sigh of relief. Thankfully, the bus ride doesn't take more than five minutes to come to a stop at their college gate. Aisha is the first one to get down.

Hmm, definitely very happy and excited.

"So, you have a class right now?" Aisha asks Tara when she gets down from the bus, both of them only sharing a single class.

Tara shakes her head in a no. "My first class is after an hour."

"Oh, so why did you come so soon?"

"To meet Dh-" Tara somehow stops herself from saying Dhruv's name but is sure that Aisha must have comprehend it till now.

"I - I mean just to stroll around." She stumbles through her words and hates as she lies to her friend who's only staring at her and not saying anything.

No, this isn't how it should be. Maybe, she should just tell her friend and get over with it.

"Listen -" Tara begins but Aisha doesn't give her a chance.

"You still meet him, don't you?" Aisha asks, enunciating her words slowly and Tara knows that there is no way out now, neither does she want one anymore. She just wants to tell her and be done with it. But she's interrupted once again by her friend, a grin crawling to her lips.

"I mean I'm so happy that you two are still friends. My and Ritik's break-up shouldn't have affected your friendship. I'm glad that you still talk to him."

It's safe to say that Tara is left flabbergasted after listening to the comment. This was the last thing she was expecting from her friend after she was to learn the truth. Something doesn't just fit right but Tara still smiles, happy to have the truth out in open, no need to hide anything from her friend anymore.

"So, are you two friends or . . ." Aisha then questions and Tara's instinctive answer is to say, "yes, we're just friends" even if she isn't sure about the fact anymore. She hasn't been sure about it for years.

"Good." Aisha then exclaims, a smile once again turning up on her lips, this one more akin to a smirk and suddenly Tara has an idea about where this is going.

"I mean, I don't know if he's dating someone else or is interested in dating at all. He's a reserved and conservative type of a guy." Tara points out, trying to convince her friend to drop the idea brewing in her head.

"Don't worry, babe. I know how to deal with that. Come to think of it, it would have been so much better if I would've dated Dhruv instead of Ritik. Ugh, why was I so blind?"

Tara's heart sinks to her stomach as she listens to her fri - Aisha's words, a sudden urge to throw up growing in her stomach.

Biting her lower lip nervously, Tara halts in her steps and holds her friend's arm, stopping her as well.

"You're - you're not serious about this, are you?" Tara asks even when she knows the answer clearly, the dread only growing in her stomach. But Aisha just gives her a blinding smile.

"Of course, I am. I seriously feel so grateful to you for still being his friend. Maybe you could help us - "

Tara is unable to listen anymore about the idea of two of them together, immediately rushing from her friend's side with a small 'excuse me' straight into the college building, making a bee-line to the washroom which thankfully is empty so early in the morning. In the mirror, Tara can see her blurry self, not from how dirty the mirror is but because of that thin layer of tears glistening in her eyes.

No, she can't do this. She can't let him go like that. Dhruv, her Dhruv.

But he isn't hers, now is he? He's his person, as he should be. He can decide whom to date. Maybe - maybe he likes Aisha. He had been asking about her a month ago, hadn't he? Maybe it was Tara's misunderstanding; interpreting all his words to her favour. Maybe he hadn't meant anything by that. Or maybe it was Aisha who he had been addressing to.

Either way, Tara has to see him once and clear everything out. Even if she doesn't say anything to him, she at least wants to see him one last time, as her friend, her Dhruv.

As if on cue, her phone pings, the message is again from Dhruv, asking about her whereabouts. She's quick to type out a reply, asking him to meet her in front of the washroom on their floor, meanwhile quickly cleaning the mess that was her face, wiping the mistiness from her eyes, tucking the tresses behind her ears and once again wiping her eyes clean just so Dhruv doesn't catch her whining like a child.

Unfortunately, Tara's plan of hiding her pain doesn't work out for too long, not when in front of her stands her two friends, a smile on both their faces and a distance of a foot between them. Not much if you ask her.

This time when her heart sinks to her stomach and chest burns with an uncalled pain, she can't help but hate herself. For what she's becoming, for what she has become.

Is she going to be jealous of her friend's relationship with each other? Wouldn't she go and congratulate them if they decide to date? Wouldn't she be happy for them?

Her ideal self wants to say 'yes' and deny the accusations, but her real self cannot. Not when she's loved the guy in front of her for years, maybe from since they were kids when they didn't even know the meaning of the word, 'love'.

She has loved him so much for so long. How can she just let him go without telling him even once about her feelings?

She can, though.

She doesn't want them to be what became of Aisha and Ritik, doesn't want them to remember each other as ex-friends or ex-lovers. What she wants is a present and a forever, and if it is only possible by becoming his friend then so be it.

And so with shaky yet determined steps, Tara finds herself walking towards the duo, simultaneously wiping the tears that are now continuously pooling in her eyes.

The duo notices her when she's at a foot's distance from them, a smile on both their faces.

"Hi," she croaks, gaze directed to Dhruv whose face instantly crumples as soon as he takes in her state. He immediately takes a step forward and cups her face in his hands.

"Tara, love, what's happened to you?" The endearment that normally would irritate her only acts as a catalyst here which has her breaking down completely, tears flowing freely resembling an opened dam.

Dhruv is quick to take her in his arms after that, encircling her waist by one hand and petting her head with the other, all the while shushing and cooing at her.

Tara quietly enjoys the embrace, not caring for her tear-stained face or her friend who's standing just a foot away, probably looking at her with betrayal in her eyes and Tara wishes that it wasn't like this, wishes that she wouldn't have to make her friend feel like that but she can't help it; is unable to comprehend her limits right now. And maybe she's being selfish, no, she's definitely being selfish but this warmth from this guy was what she had wanted all her life, and now that she is getting it, she's not going to waste the moment by observing her surroundings

"Dhruv," she tries, her voice muffled by his jacket, listening to which his hold tightens around her. She tries to voice out her feelings, to materialize the pain in her chest into something beautiful.

"Yes, love?" The pet name once again has tears pooling in her eyes, this time a small smile growing on her lips.

"Nothing." She sighs, mushing her face in his chest, forgetting about the conversation, keeping it for a different time, currently focusing on relishing the tingles that embrace her body as she hugs her friend (or whatever he wants them to be), breathing in his calming scent. And as if getting the message, Dhruv drops the conversation as well with a slight brush of his lips to her head.

After what feels like hours when Tara looks around Dhruv's shoulder, it is only to find the spot empty, her friend nowhere in sight. But it's okay, she'll apologize, she'll make it up to her. Later.

*

Tara's unable to make it up to her. Even after a week, her friend isn't talking to her, sulking quietly at the corner of their shared dorm.

Tara feels guilty. She hadn't intended to make her friend sad. She never wants anyone to be sad because of her.

"Won't you talk to me, Aisha?" she coaxes in a soft voice, not knowing how to start the conversation, what to say.

As far as she remembers, none of the three had talked about whatever had transpired a week ago. Aisha had simply ignored her while Dhruv had walked her to her class and left it at that. There was no exchange of words whatsoever.

"Why didn't you tell me?" This time it's her friend who speaks, an underlying anger and slight whine in her voice.

"I didn't think you'd like to know that Dhruv and I were still friends even after our group broke up. I didn't want to hurt you but I also couldn't just end my friendship with him."

Aisha shakes her head at that, a frowning crawling between her brows and a huff leaving her lips.

"No, no, I'm not talking about that. I don't care if you were friends with him or not. I'm talking about why didn't you tell me about how he feels for you or how you feel about him. You'll seriously be stupid if you'll call this thing between you guys as friendship. Just. . .why didn't you tell me earlier?"

A fury of emotions pass through her mind and body as Tara takes in her friend's words, heart thudding loudly in her chest for several reasons.

She gulps, avoiding eye contact. "I d-don't know what you're talking about. We're - we're just friends." Tara says but when Aisha opens her mouth to argue, she continues. "- and even if I - if I feel something for him, something more than friendship, there's no way he feels the same."

She pauses and once again interrupts Aisha while she's about to argue. "And - even if, by any heavenly chance, he feels the same way about me, I don't think I want to date him. I don't think I want any intimacy more than we already have. It destroys everything, like . . ." Tara doesn't meet Aisha's eyes, too scared to say the next few words.

"Like me and Ritik, right?" Aisha completes for her and Tara nods. She hears her friend heaving a scoff and sigh simultaneously, sound evidence of exasperation.

"Oh, Tara. What am I going to do with you." This time she chuckles exasperatedly, her shoulders shaking and all. "C'mon then, look at me."

Aisha urges making Tara look her in the eyes. She smiles. "It's not contagious, this tendency to break up or to fight or whatever it is that I do. It's not necessary that what happened with us would also happen to you." Aisha explains, her hand reaching out to her face and wiping down a teardrop. "You and I are very different, Tara. You're patient, while I'm not. You know how to preserve the spark, I do not. Maybe it's not our fault that we're like this. My divorced parents weren't the greatest example of love for me, you know. Their break up, after marriage, had instilled this fear in me that none of my relationships would work out and this fear was the reason and will always be the reason of what happens with me."

"What happened with Ritik and I, was just a lesson I guess. None of us were serious regarding that relationship. Both of us, at the back of our minds, knew that this wasn't going to work out, not when soon enough we'll be meeting new people. But it's better like this. I don't regret it anymore. However, I know that your and Dhruv's relationship isn't anything like that. I realised this only a week ago." Aisha laughs, humorlessly, self-deprecation evident in her words.

"I didn't want to hurt you, or Dhruv for that matter. When I had confided in you about thinking of dating him, it was a genuine thought but - but my feelings, maybe not so much, nothing compared to how you feel for him and how he feels for you. I'd always thought that once you'll find someone, you'll tell me about him, we'll share and laugh but you never told me about Dhruv and so I felt that you both were merely friends."

Aisha mumbles the last few words in her mouth, her cheeks flushing in embarrassment. Tara cannot think of doing anything but hug her, rubbing her back with her palm, calming her down.

"I never meant to hide it from you, I didn't know it until a week ago myself, it was because of you that I realised how I felt for him. And even though I'm still not sure of his perception of our relationship, I'd like us to be sure of our friendship, yours and mine. In this long period that we've been friends for, I realised that almost every relationship loses its spark one day but now that we've talked our differences out, I think that bringing back that spark is only a matter of few words. Some communication and some love, and the spark would rekindle. Thank you for teaching me that."

She pulls back from the hug when she feels Aisha sniffling a little, albeit with a smile on her face. She mumbles something incoherently.

"Huh?"

"I said you ruined my make-up." The answer has Tara laughing, shaking her head to herself.

"Stop laughing and start preparing." Aisha reprimands jokingly and Tara pouts.

"Preparing for what?"

"For saying those three magical words to Dhruv."

"What the hell?"

"By three magical words, I didn't mean that but ok."

That night when Dhruv texts her - like he has been doing since the past week - asking how she feels, she can't help but type out, "I'll tell you tomorrow!" She sleeps with butterflies in her tummy.

*

Morning comes sooner than she expects. considering how she couldn't even sleep a wink at night. Both the girls quickly get ready, all with Aisha putting a light layer of gloss on Tara's lips, reprimanding her when she reaches out to remove it.

"Don't. Just let it be there, at least for today."

"But I don't like it, my hair keeps sticking to it. A lip balm is so much better." Even her argument doesn't provide her with a desirable result, having had to go to college with the same extravagant makeup.

Once on the college grounds, Aisha excitedly takes Tara by hand to the corner of the building, away from the prying eyes in an almost empty campus, making her sit on the bench, once again checking her face. "Don't rub it off, ok? And don't chicken out. Just tell him how you feel, he'll be ecstatic."

Tara still doesn't believe in those words completely and even after the enthusiastic instructions, rubs the gloss off her lips with the back of her hand (not having any tissue in hand) as soon as Aisha leaves.

Thankfully the thing wasn't too much and only left a light streak of glitter on the back of her hand and what she imagines on her mouth. However, she doesn't get time to ponder on the fact for too long because the next she knows, Dhruv is briskly walking, almost running, to where she sits, an uninvited urgency visible on his face.

"Are you ok?" Is the first thing he asks her, before even sitting down, before saying a greeting. But Tara doesn't mind, not at all. Instead, she cherishes under the care, giving him a nod as well as a big smile. The answer has his face relaxing completely, eyes losing the worry and gaining their usual fondness.

She wonders what will happen if that fondness was to go away after her confession? What if she'll ruin their beautiful relationship by voicing out her unnecessary feelings?

"I was scared after your text yesterday; didn't want a repeat of last week," Dhruv grumbles, sitting down beside her, taking her hand in his, eyes looking at her face intently.

Busy in thoughts, she forgets to tell him about the smudged gloss on her hand and her face, not surprised when he shuffles closer to take a good look at her face.

"What's that thing around your mouth?" he asks and a mischievous smile breaks out on her lips.

She giggles. "The same thing that is now on your hand."

Listening to her words, Dhruv takes away his hand from hers, looking at his palm and taking in the glittery sight.

He narrows his eyes at her but when she doesn't give any explanation, he just takes out his handkerchief from his pocket, rubbing the glitter off his hands, eventually taking hold of her chin and removing the smudged gloss from her face as well.

"You're just a messy baby, aren't you?" Dhruv chuckles, wiping the corner of her mouth, his voice soft and fond.

"I can do it by myself," Tara answers just for the sake of it and smiles satisfactorily when instead of the handkerchief, she's given a disapproving look.

"What? It's you who doesn't want to take care of a 'messy baby'." She mocks him, words making him halt his actions.

"When did I say that? I always love taking care of you, baby."

And just like that, his words start sounding more serious to her ears, voice deeper and warmer than before, making her heart skip a beat.

"You've been doing that for quite a few years. Aren't you tired?"

"Of what?"

"Of me."

Dhruv completely stops his action when Tara asks him the question. She doesn't know why she did.

Maybe she just wanted a confirmation, a few words to coax her into believing that her existence matters in Dhruv's life, a few words that would make her aware of his friend's feelings towards her, be it heartwarming or wrenching.

Therefore, she's left baffled when instead of sweet, syrupy words or a harsh comeback, she's regarded with a light smack at the side of her head, the action flippant and lighthearted.

"Since when have you begun talking like that. I swear, it's as if you've replaced my Tara with someone else."

The words, even though mocking, makes her throat dry and eyes glistening in no time. This is what she's always been afraid of, hasn't she? Of changing the dynamics of their relationship, of stepping into a territory that is so unknown to them, of destroying the gentleness that exists between them. Her fear has always been right. She is right. She shouldn't do anything stupid, shouldn't ruin the only relationship that is going on so steadily since her childhood, well apart from her loving relationship with her parents.

She shakes her head. "Yeah, sorry. I don't know why I said that." She mumbles, everything feeling dry inside and outside her mouth, lips deprived of moisture and throat deprived of words.

"Hey, Tara, look at me." She hears Dhruv saying, a second later, all laugh and smiles gone from his face, something she hates herself for.

"What happened? Is there something wrong? Did I - did I say something to hurt you?" His soft voice only works to trigger her emotions, a wave of tears pooling in her eyes. Oh, what a cry baby she is.

She blinks rapidly to get rid of that unnecessary water in her eyes.

"Come on, love. Tell me what's wrong. You can share anything with me, you know that right?"

Tara nods.

"Is it something in your family?"

She shakes her head in a no.

"Something because of the college?"

She mimics her previous action.

"It's - it's because of me, isn't it?" His voice suddenly becomes too quiet, too hesitant. And Tara wants to reassure him, say something but he beats her to it.

"Ritik told you, didn't he? I told him to keep it a secret. I wanted to tell you myself. I wanted to tell you that it won't matter, it wouldn't hinder the relationship that we already have. Nothing would come between us, not even my feelings but that fool ruined everything."

Tara's left more confused than ever, taking in her friend's state, eyes frantic and mouth pulled into a frown.

"What did you want to tell me?" Despite herself, she asks, a new wave of hope rising in her heart. Dhruv's gaze flits up to her at that, brows furrowing.

"You don't know? He didn't tell you?" Tara shakes her head in a no and sees as her friend breathes a sigh of relief, his hands immediately reaching out to cup her face, thumb stroking her cheek.

He smiles. "I'm so relieved to hear that. You don't know what just passed through my mind right now; flashes of a future without you, it was horrible." He says and brings her closer to him, making her breath hitch in her throat.

But he pulls back immediately. "Wait, if it isn't Ritik then why are you - why do you look so . . . sad?"

The question once again has fear bubbling in her heart but instead of backing away she just decides to go for it, the small conversation making her hope for a better result.

She gulps. "I - I wanted to tell you something." She enunciates slowly, grasping all his attention. He nods, his fingers still grazing her cheeks, giving her an unintentional grounding.

"Dhruv, I - I love you. I've loved you for so long and not just as a friend."

There, she's said it, voiced out the secret that has been simmering in her heart for years.

Tara tries not to feel too heartbroken when his thumb stops stroking her cheeks, his hand stilling. But she doesn't back out. "I've always been afraid of telling you this, afraid of ruining our friendship. I didn't want the same thing to happen to us that happened to our friends. I - I don't think I'd be able to live peacefully knowing that you aren't a part of my life. I don't think I'll want that kind of life. You've been a part of it for so long, I don't want a present or future without you. I don't want us to ever break up. And if - if changing the dynamics of our friendship would result in that, then I don't want to change anything. I just want you in my life. Forever."

The deed is done, she's said all her feelings, all her insecurities, she has poured it all out and surprisingly, she isn't afraid. She isn't afraid of the consequence or his answer. Because one thing, if the look in his eyes is anything to go by, she can be sure of is of their friendship. Regardless of whether they get involved romantically with each other or not, she knows that she's not going to lose that aspect of their relationship, the spark in their friendship.

Although, to her surprise, this time it is Dhruv gazing at her with tear-filled eyes, a wobbly smile on her lips and a sniff tucked at the back of his throat. The stilled hand on her cheek isn't frozen anymore, fingers gently getting the hold of her tresses and tucking it behind her ear. His breath getting closer to her face, and forehead resting upon hers.

"Tara. . ." He calls out, voice shaky but ever so soft.

"Hmm?" She hums, a smile growing on her face.

"I told you, didn't I? I told you that I know how to make a relationship work. . . and that, it would be the best relationship of my life, the first and only relationship of my life. I did, right?"

Tara nods, her heart threatening to jump out of her chest, his words only aiding to the exciting phenomenon.

"You did, what about it?" she asks, a smile slipping in between her words and hand moving to hold his between them.

"Well, I love you." He says and suddenly she can't remember how to breathe, her hold tightening on Dhruv's hand.

"The only friend I've loved, the only lover I want as my friend. I love you so much." He seals his words with a kiss on her temple, his feelings tickling her heart and fingers getting a hold of her thudding emotions.

"I've loved you for so long."

"Not longer than me, though."

"Definitely longer than you."

"Dhruv!"

"Tara!"