It was finally Monday and Angad hadn't seen fit to contact any of us.

There was an added element of surprise to my day; anticipating whether or not Angad would make an appearance in college. I was hoping, no praying he would show up. 

I just wanted all of this to be over as soon as possible. 

I entered the familiar gates of Maurya and called Yug. 

"Hey, are you in college yet?" I asked as soon as he answered. 

"Yes, I am on the stage. Come."

"I have a class right now maybe after that?" 

"I do too. It won't take too long," he said and hung up. 

I made my way to the stage. Maybe he had news about Angad. Maybe Angad was there waiting for me and Yug had explained away all the misunderstanding. The thought cheered me up. 

But of course, he wasn't there. Yug sat on the stairs alone. 

He looked up when I approached him. 

"What is it?" I asked when I saw his grim expression. 

"I won't drag this out but I haven't talked to Angad yet," he said. 

"So no news?" I said trying not to let the floodgates open. 

"There is some news. He left Mumbai. He is at his father's place." Yug said, "In London." 

"Wha- London?" I asked with a bewildered expression. 

"I am sure you remember his father was pestering him to come and have a look at colleges where he could pursue his MBA after we graduate. I guess he took him up on his offer."

"But I thought he wanted to pursue music! And he didn't want to leave his mother alone here. How? I mean why would he..?"

Yug sighed deeply. 

"I can't understand why he would do that. He didn't even tell anyone. I called his cousin Jai and he told me his flight had left this morning. The visa was already arranged by his father. He paid for the tickets too. I don't have Sharad Uncle's number so I couldn't reach him."

I sat down next to Yug staring into space still processing what he had told me. 

So he hadn't come back. He had gone farther away instead.

"I didn't intend to ruin your day but I thought you would want to know," he said.

"No," I said in a shaky voice, "Thank you for telling me."

"Let's get to class," Yug said standing up and giving me his hand. 

I took it and stood up. We walked in the hallway in silence till we had to part ways. I entered my classroom which was noisier than usual. I could hear people talking about their breaks, exchanging information and greeting their friends. 

I took a seat in the corner trying to think of anything other than Angad a thousand miles away at his father's place that I knew for a fact he hated. 

Our teacher was late so I stared out of the window for a bit. 

It was only when Smriti walked in with Nirav that I was reminded of another rift in my life. I didn't know if Smriti was still mad at us for what we had said about Nirav. She paused when she found me looking at her. 

Nirav paused too. Then he followed Smriti's eye line and found me looking at them. He said something to her that I couldn't make out. Smriti gave him a curt answer shaking her head. Nirav seemed unfazed by her refusal because he grabbed her hand and dragged her. 

I realized he was making his way to where I was sitting. 

"This is getting ridiculous," he said.

"Nirav please," Smriti said looking away. 

"Can you two please makeup or whatever? I know you fought because of our relationship but it is obvious how upset it makes you both," Nirav said to me.

I was taken aback by the determined way Nirav was mediating our fight.

"You are going to have to talk during the department meeting anyway," he said. 

"We have a department meeting?" I asked.

"Yes after the break," Nirav informed me and then turned back to Smriti giving her a meaningful look. 

With all that had been going on it must have slipped my mind. 

"I am sorry," I said suddenly and they both turned to me, "I am really sorry about everything I said. I didn't mean to hurt any of you."

Smriti was surprised by my apology and her expression instantly softened. She slid into the seat next to mine. Nirav beamed at me and took the seat next to her. 

"I have been unfair to you both. I just want to thank you for being there for me through the cyberbullying thing and then planning the department event. I mean I have contributed nothing. I don't even know why I have the title of cultural secretary. Smriti you deserve it."

Words were tumbling out of my mouth before I even had the time to process them. Maybe it was because I was emotionally exhausted after the week I had had. All I cared about was moving past the stupid fight. 

Why did I even care who Smriti dated? If Nirav made her happy then I was happy for her. Nirav might have been outspoken and maybe even annoying at times but he meant well. 

And the cultural secretary post. I had been thinking of giving it up for quite a while now. I always had my hands full with practice. I had barely contributed throughout the year. Smriti had been shouldering my share of the work. It was only right she got the title too. 

Once I was done I looked at Smriti expectantly catching my breath.

"Do you want to get some tea from the canteen?" Smriti asked.

I checked my watch.

"But class?" I asked.

"Oh never mind that. We can skip for once."

I nodded gratefully and the three of us were sitting in the canteen with our cups of coffee five minutes later. 

"Are we good then?" I asked once we were settled.

"Oh, Meera. It's okay. I am sure you were very shaken after what happened to you during Melisma. I didn't even congratulate you for winning," she said.

"No please," I said, "Let me get this off my chest. Thank you for everything." 

"Okay if you insist I only tell you this because you deserve to know." she looked at Nirav and he nodded at her. 

She nodded back and continued,

"Nirav is the one you should be thanking. He is the one who saw those YLF guys lock you in the classroom. He ran to get you help and bumped into your friends from Red Wagon. Yug and Angad? If it wasn't for him you wouldn't have performed."

I stared at her and then at Nirav.

"You?" I asked Nirav who smiled at me.

"Not only that but he also got that guy who locked you up suspended from the party."

 "What? How?" I asked. 

"Tell her," Smriti prompted. 

"Gautam was operating on his own. He thought he would score some easy points in the party if he spoiled Melisma. I let Raju Bhaiya know and he was not happy. Gautam left the city and is laying low for now." Nirav told me.

"Oh my god," was all I could say as I leaned back in my chair. 

"I am sorry you couldn't report this to the police but this was the next best thing." 

I got up and gave Nirav a grateful hug. 

"Thank you," I said once he pulled back.

Then I clasped my mouth in horror.

"And to think I blamed you," I murmured, "No wonder you were so angry, Smriti."

"It's okay! You didn't know. We should just move past it," she said dismissively. 

It took a few more apologies for me to move past it though. I was mortified. The way I had behaved was appalling. Instead of thanking Nirav, I had blamed him. It was a good thing they were nice, forgiving people because I don't know what I would have done without them. 

"So how was Goa?" she said once I had finally stopped apologizing and Nirav had left to catch up with another set of his friends. 

My face must have contorted into an ugly expression because Smriti's eyes widened. 

"What happened?" 

"Worst week of my life. And yes, this is including the one when I was publically dumped and the one when I was slut-shamed on Instagram."

Then I gave her a rundown of the events that had derailed our Goa vacation. 

By the end, Smriti was on the verge of tears with me. 

"So Siddharth isn't talking to you, Vahni isn't either and Angad is in London?" she asked. 

"Yes," I said helplessly, "And I don't know what to do."

"Come here," she said and enveloped me in a much-needed hug. 

A comfortable silence settled after that as we shared a plate of noodles from the canteen. 

"Oh," I said, "I almost forgot. I got you something from Goa."

I took out the blue bracelet from my bag that I had carried just in case this happened. I handed it to her and she seemed pleasantly surprised. 

"Here let me put it on you," I said and clasped it on. 

"I love it!" she exclaimed admiring it, "Thank you Meera."

"You're welcome. I knew we wouldn't stay apart for too long and this reminded me of your obsession with blue. It will match most of your outfits. I mean Blue much?"

Which was true. She was wearing another blue shirt today. 

Smriti just laughed good-naturedly. 

***

I spent the rest of the day attending classes followed by the department meeting where I announced my resignation. 

The seniors weren't too bothered. We were replaceable to them and they had seen Smriti work so in a way she was preferable.

They went right back to finalizing the smaller details of the department event and I left the room. 

I had seen Vahni once during the entire day near the auditorium. She was with her fashion society friends and I had no desire to interact with them so I hadn't approached her. I had lingered outside her classrooms for a bit but didn't see her after that. 

It was 3 in the afternoon when I got a call from Yug. 

"I am going to see Kirti aunty after my class. She is worried about Angad and wants to talk to me. I will try to get his father's number from her," he said.

I bit my lip as anxious thoughts started spiralling in my mind. 

"Can I come along?" I asked. 

"If you want to," he said after a beat. 

I am sure he was puzzled by my request. Yug had known Angad's mother for years and I was a virtual stranger. I couldn't even come up with a reason for my own self. I didn't know why I wanted to see her but it was the strangest urge. 

"I do," I answered.

"Alright. Meet me in half an hour at my car outside," he said and hung up.

***

We drove in relative silence till Yug pulled up to a modest apartment building and parked. 

I was very surprised by the place. It was a nice society by all standards but I had always pictured Angad living in a palatial house. He drove an Audi, had the latest phone, expensive clothes so it was obvious his family was rich.

Yug must have noticed my expression because he said,

"You were expecting a castle," he chuckled.

"No," I lied. 

"That's okay. It used to be nothing less than a castle when his parents were married. After the divorce, Kirti aunty got this place and Sharad uncle stayed at their house with his now-wife till he moved to London." 

I absorbed this new backstory as we walked to the building entrance and got in the lift. 

"So Angad lives here? With his mother?" I asked.

"Yes, he chose to. His father has tried everything to lure him back to his side. Cars, gadgets, money, you name it. Angad chose to stay here though."

We got off at the sixth floor and he rang the doorbell. 

The door swung open and a petite woman stood before us. She smiled at Yug and pulled him in for a hug. Every movement she made was elegant and graceful. She was beautiful now but I could tell she must have been gorgeous back in her day. Her skin was smooth and luminescent, her hair lush and wavy. She was dressed in a kaftan dress of sorts that made her look very polished.

Her eyes fell on me and Yug hastened to introduce me. 

"Oh, Kirti aunty this is Meera. Friend of ours. I hope you don't mind that I brought her along."

She gave me a gracious smile and shook her head. 

"Of course not. Come on in Meera. It's nice to finally meet you." 

'Finally meet me'? So she had heard about me? It must have been from Angad. 

The thought that he talked to his mother about me made me a teensy bit happy but then a more important thought struck me. What had she heard about me? Would she think I am to blame for Angad's sudden trip to London?