| ANGAD |

Every moment inside my room with The Beatles's songs playing on my mobile made me feel less guilty about not exploring Agra. I would have surely revolved by a series of taunts shipping me and Meeta if I went with them. I was halfway through Here Comes The Sun when a series of notifications were blasting my mobile. There were five messages from Naina.

Naina: Hi!

Naina: Where are you?

Naina: At the hotel or somewhere else?

Naina: We need to talk.

Naina: Text me soon.

Me: Hi! I'm at the hotel, yes. We need to talk about what?

Naina: I'll tell you when we meet.

Naina: Meet me at Fatehpur Sikri. 4 in the evening.

Me: Fine!

By the curtness in her texts, I surely knew that something was on the way for me.

***

I was welcomed by the elegant Fatehpur Sikri and the most elegant Naina, seating herself at one of the stairs in Buland Darwaza, with Charlotte to her left and Violet to her right.

Shit!

I tapped Naina's shoulder to make her aware of my entry. And the girls stood up without greeting me with a hi, hello, or anything else.

"Hi, ladies," I greeted with a genuine smile, my eyes fixed on Naina. "Hi, Naina."

"Hi," she greeted back without attempting to smile, no, fake a smile.

"Grey suits you," I complimented, pointing at her grey lehenga with golden embroidery designs.

"But I don't think you suit me," she replied with her hands crossed. The sweat beads on her forehead told me that she barely took rest that day. "Angad, I'm not here to listen to you complimenting me in every possible way. I'm here to tell you something more important than that."

I nodded a yes, waving a green flag for her to start the conversation.

"Angad. Thanks for wasting my time. I'm so blessed to have my time wasted by you. But, I no longer could do this." She let out a brief exhale and dropped the last thing I wanted to hear. "It's over. Let's break up."

I wanted to cry. I wanted to ask many questions at the same time. I wanted to drown in the Yamuna as long as I reached Heaven (or maybe, Hell). I couldn't speak like I did a few minutes ago. But all I managed to do was to shake my head.

"Why?" I managed to whisper the one-word question that demanded a plethora of truths.

It was her turn not to utter a word while she pressed the corners of her eyes, trying to fix her mascara-smudged tears. She let out a solitary sob which was later suppressed by a huff on the back of her hand. But soon, she won the battle against them and spoke up.

"I don't think this will work out, Angad. Especially with you. I tried to stay with you despite how desperately you try to please people. But, the truth is that you ended up pleasing everyone except me." She let out yet another breath in front of her breathless boyfriend, no, ex-boyfriend. "So... I fear that you will break my already broken heart. Hence, I stepped forward before you could break my heart. And... I think that Meeta deserves your this--" She removed the ring I gifted her at her father's funeral and landed them on my hands. "--and love much more than I do. And... You deserve Meeta's love more than anyone else. Hence, I am stepping out of this fucked-up game. Bye!"

With that, I saw her turning back, walking towards the opposite side without attempting to spare a glance at her past.

In the past, she chose to break it on her own.

***

THAT NIGHT...

The thought of me meeting those stars in Heaven (or, maybe Hell) when I was lying on the hotel terrace's floor, looking at the naked starry sky. It looked so beautiful that it tempted the depressed me to meet them above.

With that, there I was, standing on the parapet, waiting for the right time to jump while trying not to look down. I wanted to escape the world mentally first, which was why I shut my eyes as tight as I could.

"One," I counted, not loud enough for people to gain attention. "Two." I opened only my right eye to have a last glance at the world I lived in. It looked happy. The nightlife at Agra is as pretty as Heaven. I closed my right eye for the last time and let out a deep breath through my mouth, not after continuing to count. "Three--"

"Angad." A soft yet demanding tone closer to me while tapping on my right calf. I opened my eyes, promising that it would be my last, and turned back to see Violet crossing her arms with her face as purple as possible. "Angad, what are you doing?"

"How do I look like? Dancing pole dance? I gotta die, Vee!" I yelled out of disbelief. Disbelief since she asked despite she knew it.

"Okay. Get down first. Let's talk." She pulled my right hand while a part of me was on the same page as she was. Hence, I got down from the parapet with a loud huff. I stood opposite to her less purple face and said, "Go on."

My premolar teeth threatened to get out of my mouth as her palm met my cheek in the most violent way possible. Just as I rubbed my cheek with my hand and was on the verge of bursting into tears, she wished, "Have a safe journey. Bye!"

"Violet, are you crazy or what?" I pulled her hand and brought her close to me. Anyone who saw us would conclude we are lovers who are micro-seconds away from kissing each other.

"Who am I to interfere when you are ready to give up?" She scoffed and turned away from me, preparing to leave.

"Violet, wait!" I didn't know why, but I wanted her at that moment. I prayed to every God existing that she wasn't mad at me for what happened that morning.

And, she did wait. She looked deep into my eyes, sent shivers down my conscience, and for a while, we had tears stocked in our eyes for no reason.

"I'm sorry," she whispered loud enough for me to hear. "I should not have spoken to you like that."

"No, I deserve that. I should have spoken for you." I pulled her so close that her head bumped my chest and my shirt was dampened by her tears. In return, I made her hair damp with my tears and mucus. "I'm so sorry."

"Me too." Though she found it hard to speak between sobs, she somehow did it. "I know how hard it is for you. But, please. Listen to me once." I broke our hug, letting her speak freely. "I know how heartbroken you are with your split with Naina. But, try to understand things from her point of view as well. She wants you to love her without you giving a fuck about others. Hence, all I can say is, that you have two options right now. One: Confess everything to everyone and patch up with her. Two: Try to forget her-- I know it's hard for you, but still-- move on. It's not even compulsory for you to marry Meeta. But, I suggest you understand Meeta and decide something. The rest is up to you."

With that, she walked away, not before snatching away my suicidal thoughts and throwing them up in the air.

***

THE NEXT DAY...

"Angad, are you sure?" Charlie, donning the red Sharara she borrowed from Naina, nudged my elbow while approaching Mrs Grover along with me.

"I gotta do this." I had my gaze fixed on Mrs Grover, who did nothing but enjoy the scenic gala people were having at her daughter's wedding. "Don't stop me." I stopped talking as we stood in front of Mrs Grover, blocking her view. She looked up at us while I recited the thing I had been rehearsing for a day.

"Ma'am, I wanted to talk to you about this thing. Well, it's about the wedding." I let out a deep sigh before preparing myself to tell that big thing. "I'm afraid that I can't marry your daughter. And if I do, I don't think I am capable of keeping her happy."

***

BAM! Here we go, peeps! Angad revealed the truth.

But... (suppressing my grin) Let's keep waiting for the end, peeps!

And... We have 5 more chapters to the end. Woohoo!

This means, more and more and more drama *evil smirk*

See you soon, peeps!

Song Courtesy: august by Taylor Swift.