Maya passed me a glass of water, and I thanked her. Gulping it down, I looked around her room from where I sat on her bed. It had been so many days since I came here. At one point of time, I used to spend all of my days and nights here.

"So," Maya drawled the word out, sitting across from me on her bed, cross legged. She raised her eyebrows and asked, "what's up?"

I gently placed the glass on the bedside table and noticed the tiny Buddha figurine that rested on top of it. I had an exact same statue in my room too. We had won it together at a school fair. I smiled as I picked up, inspecting it.

"You still have it," I noted.

"I couldn't lose it, could I?" She smiled back at me. I kept back the figure on the table and let out a heavy sigh. Looking at her, I decided I needed to tell her.

"Things are not very good with my dad," I said. "I mean, things are actually. . .pretty bad with my dad."

She crossed the bed and sat right beside me, placing a hand around my shoulder in a comforting manner.

"We cannot talk without fighting," I continued. "We cannot sit in the same room without one of us passing snide comments to the other. I mean, I was never that close with my dad, but it has just gotten worse now."

She rubbed my back gently as I continued.

"It's not easy being a singer, you know? You have to maintain a public picture, and media is going to continuously judge and make assumptions about you. They manipulate what you say, they manipulate what you think, and you can't even complain. The pressure is. . ."

I trailed off. This was the most I had opened up to anyone in the past few months. I couldn't tell Andrew, because he was always around me, he lived with me. So if I told him, then he would be a constant reminder of the dark side of being a celebrity. But if I told Maya, I didn't know when I would be meeting her again, so all my feelings would just be left behind here, in India, miles away from my home in America. This knowledge was a tiny bit reassuring.

"Exhausting," I sighed out. Maya silently sat beside me, hugging me from the side and rubbing my back. Unlike Andrew, Maya wasn't the kind of person who had to give you encouraging speeches to make you feel better. Her mere presence was enough.

"Okay," I turned towards her. "Enough of that sentimental shit. I have something else to tell you."

"Are you sure?" She asked me. "We can talk more about your dad if you want to."

"Yeah. Let's not ruin the mood even further," I laughed.

"Well," she shrugged. "If that's what you want."

She created a little distance between us and sat across me.

"Actually," Maya said. "I, too, have something to tell you. And it's kinda big."

"Oh," I creased my forehead. "You wanna go first?"

"Nah, it's fine. You go on."

"Okay, then."

I knitted my fingers together in my lap. "Okay, um so. . .something's been happening in my life lately."

"Uh huh," Maya nodded, intrigued.

I made an uncomfortable face. "Andrew and I. . .we slept with each other."

"I knew it!"

I looked at her in shock. "You- w-what?" I spluttered.

"I knew it from the second I saw you and Andrew sharing those not-so-subtle glances and stares!"

"I–" I fell apart in laughter. "Oh my goodness."

"Bruh." She rolled her eye in an exaggerated manner. "The sexual tension can be felt from a mile away."

"Wha–"

"Yeah, no shit. I'm not joking," Maya laughed. "Andrew, though?" I nodded. "Our Andrew? That. . .that fucking goofball over there?"

"Yeah, who else!" I widened my eyes at her. She slapped my upper arm with the back of her hand.

"Damn, sis," she whistled. "So that is what you were doing all this long in America, eh?"

"Huh?" I doubled up with laughter from her statement. "What the fuck do you mean by that?"

"Here we were, thinking and worrying about how you and Andrew were coping in a completely foreign land, all by yourselves, while you guys were simply banging there." Maya shook her head in mock sadness.

I scrunched up my nose in disgust. "Don't use that term 'banging', it sounds so crass."

She gave me a mischievous grin. "So. . .Andrew. Hmm," she scratched her chin. "How is he in bed?"

"Oh my God," I groaned in embarrassment. "You're really going there?"

"Uh huh!" Maya nodded, waving a finger at me.  "Tell me."

I made an irritated face at her, then sighed. "Okay, fine. He's. . .he's good."

She raised an eyebrow. "Just good?"

"I didn't have sex with thousand different people, Maya! I barely have anyone to compare it with," I huffed in annoyance.

"Okay, fine. Chill," she chuckled. "I still have one question though."

"Ahh, what is it?"

"Do you like him, Keighlah? And I mean, romantically."

I stopped at her question and thought for a while.

I'd been asking myself this exact question for the last few days. And I told Maya what I always told myself.

"I don't know."

She gave me a blank look.

"What?" I asked defensively. "I honestly don't know. I'm confused– y-you tell me what you were going to say."

She looked at me, unsatisfied. "Now you're changing the subject."

I shrugged.

"Okay, but, why are you not letting yourself be with him. I feel like you're in denial here," she pressed on.

"Maya. . ." I pressed my fingers against my forehead. I knew she wouldn't stop unless she squeezed the whole truth from me.

"What if we get into a relationship and then something happens and we break up, what will happen to the band?" I ranted out. "The Urban Mantra is my life, I am nothing without it!"

"Why do you think anything will happen to the band?" She retorted.

"Bands get destroyed exactly this way–!" I picked at my t shirt. "Can we drop this topic? Please?"

"Okay, fine." She sulked. "But I'll tell you one thing, don't run away from your heart like this, Keighlah. Just a word of advice."

"Yeah, whatever. Now you tell me."

She sighed, then looked at me with a serious expression. "You're going to be the first one to know this, and probably the only one to know this, so if you let anything out, even to Andrew, I will personally kill you."

I looked at her, startled. "Woah, okay. What-what happened?"

She looked around the room, her eyes shifting nervously. She blew a raspberry and looked me in the eye.

"I'm-" she stopped, then took a deep breath in, as if collecting herself together.

"I'm gay."

I choked on my saliva.

"Here, drink the water," Maya jumped into action and passed the glass of water to me as I coughed hard. After chugging it down, I turned towards her, completely astounded.

"You're what?!" I almost screamed out.

"Gay," she said, slowly. "You know, as in, I like girls–"

"I know that! I mean, you- wow," I whistled. "I didn't expect that."

She gave out a nervous laugh. "Yeah."

"But you had like twenty boyfriends!"

She chortled. "I did."

I was still taking in the news. "Since when?"

"Since I was fifteen."

"And your parents know?" I asked, cautiously. She shook her head vigorously.

"They'd kick me out of the house," she said.

I tsked. "That bad?" I asked, feeling sympathical.

"You have no idea," she smiled sadly.

"I wish I could do something," I said, frowning deeply. She gave out a fake laugh.

"They're looking for a groom, so no, I don't think anybody can do anything in this case, Keighlah."

I felt so bad for her. "I'm sorry."

"Hey, it's okay, what you saying sorry for," she placed her hand on mine.

"I just feel so horrible for you, you've hidden it from everyone for five years already."

"Hey, it's okay! Honestly! I'm handling it the best I can so don't-don't worry about me," she insisted.

"If you say so," I said, unconvinced. "But. Remember. Rant to me anytime you want to, okay? Please, don't ever let anything build inside you. Promise me, you'll tell me."

She smiled at me softly. "I'll remember that."

"You remember Rekha?" Maya asked suddenly. I searched in my memory for a Rekha until I remembered that girl in class nine, with a pair of big glasses and two braids.

"Yeah, Rekha," I said. "You and her were like two peas in a pod. Wherever you were, there was Rekha. Why though?"

She smirked. "Guess?"

I stared at her for a while before realisation hit me like a rocket. "Wait, wait, wait. You and Rekha. . ."

"Yep," she nodded.

I was beyond shocked now. "What the fuck? Seriously?"

"Yes." She said. "Remember how we suddenly stopped talking with each other?"

"Yeah! I had asked you about it, on multiple occasions, but you never clearly told me." I narrowed my eyes at her. "Wait. Was it because you two broke up?"

"Uh huh."

"Haw!" I gasped. "You never told me!"

"Because if I told you, then you'd know!" She said. "That I'm gay!"

I laughed at her. "Woah! I- I'm really- I never would've imagined. I thought you guys were best friends or something."

"Bitch, you're my best friend!" She slapped my thigh, and we both giggled.

• • •

Author's note: soooo we finally see why the third rule was so important to Keighlah. What are your thoughts on this chapter? Let me know in the comments!

Next chapter - next Saturday at 10pm IST.