The Path to Love

Chapter 12

Two hours and fifty minutes later...

Mounika came up to Akanksha. "Hey, let's go, we're late to the park!"

"Sorry Mouni, I have to get home quickly, apparently there's a party at home. Ugh my parents can be so annoying at times."

"NO, WHY DO YOU ALWAYS DO THIS AT THE LAST MINUTE?" Mounika looked super angry.

"Sorry, I don't have another option buddy." And Mounika left, stomping towards the gate.

Meanwhile, Uday went up to Anand and said, "Anand, Anand, I don't know what to do."

"About?"

"Today's the last day. If I don't tell Mounika today, I won't be able to tell her forever."

Anand thought to himself - Thanks Uday, this makes my life much, much, much easier.

"I have an idea, but you better trust me on this."

"And that is?"

"Go towards the gate Mounika goes through, tell her there."

Uday thought for a second. "What about Akanksha?"

"I'll annoy her, like I do."

His questioning face turned into a confused, nervous face. "You sure buddy?"

"GO!"

Ten minutes later (a.k.a. present)

"Um, I wanted to tell you something."

Mounika turned nervous and scared. "And that is?"

"Um, um, um."

Anand, on the other hand, was cussing like crazy. "Just say it godd*****!"

"Watch your profanity Anand," whisper-shouted Akanksha. Anand stuck out his tongue and said, "Sorry."

Uday didn't know what to say, and Mounika was looking at her watch. "I-I just wanted to say that, that..." Uday, muster up your courage man!

"I've noticed you were a bit dull for a while. I didn't know if it was because of me or if it was because of something else."

Anand was thinking to himself - What did I tell him to say, and what the hell is he telling Mounika?

Mounika looked south, then south east, and then south again. "If I made you feel anything bad, like embarrassed or sad or anything like that, I'm sorry. I absolutely didn't mean to do that. I just wanted to say that if you are ever feeling low, please don't hesitate to ping me." Uday took out a piece of paper. "Here's my number. If you want to throw it out you can, but just giving it for by mind to be in peace," he said, chuckling.

He slowly walked backwards, and then turned around. Her soft voice called, "Uday?"

He stopped, and turned around. She said, smiling, "Thank you." She smiled even more. He smiled, turned around, walked, and eventually jogged towards the gate.

By the time the scene was happening, Anand was crying like crazy. Akanksha whispered his name, but he didn't reply. She whisper-screamed, "ANAND!"

"Huh? I'm alive."

"I can see that, and he can also see that Uday's coming towards the gate, so I'm going to leave. See you," she said, winking. Anand rolled his eyes and smiled.

Uday met Anand at the gate. "Dude Anand, I didn't know what to tell her. My hands were shivering and my head was spinning. How was it?"

"Dude, you rocked man! Good job, you didn't go fast like I told you to!"

"Well, thanks man." And they walked together all the way back home.

Later in the day, Sandhya came home with Ashwin. "SANDY!" Mounika screamed in happiness.

"MOUNI!"

"What are you doing here sis?"

"Came over to meet you once."

Meanwhile, Ashwin and Sandhya were talking to Asha and Kumar. Mounika was in her room, writing in her diary. Sandhya went to her room. "So what are you doing?"

"Just writing."

"About?"

Mounika took the book closer to her, as if she was protecting and hiding it from others sight. "Something personal."

Sandhya raised her eyebrows. "Something that should be hidden from me? That personal?"

"Umm, ya."

"Fine, at least tell me what it is about."

"My ideal date."

"With?"

Mounika semi-closed her eyelids. "Someone I don't know, or neither do you, or neither does anyone except for the one watching us from up top."

"A dream guy."

"Yup." Ashwin called Sandhya, and she sat with her parents. 

After Mounika finished her diary entry about the "dream boy and the pink sky", she did not have anything to do. She had a dry conversation with Ashwin for a while, and then she got bored.

"I just wanted to say that if you are ever feeling low, please don't hesitate to ping me."

She thought to herself - Well I'm not feeling low, but I'm feeling bored. Let's do something.

She got out a dry rose and started peeling off each petal. I should, I shouldn't, I should, I shouldn't, I should, I shouldn't...

I should.