From T to A in 16 Days

29-11-2017

It was my second proposal within a month. I was a lot less nervous but the short duration of my previous (and first) relationship was surely decreasing my confidence. 

When I told Aryan about how things turned out two nights before, his voice lacked any emotion as he confronted and consoled me. Before he hung up, he did give the hint confirming the possibility of Anoushka actually crushing on me. At that time, I decided to have another try talking with her, and planned to propose her on the following thursday, with or without the said talk. 

*_*_*_*_*_*_*_* 

It seemed seeking out advice from some friends was a bad, very bad idea. Not only was it a waste of time, they also told at least one person, and by lunch, almost half of the class knew that I was planning to propose Anoushka, fortunately I hadn't told the day to anyone. Some even came up with cheesy pickup lines, stating it worked in their cases, and I should definitely include them. A couple of them were brainstorming ideas and places if I wanted to do it after school, which was not possible at all. A few even stated that there was no point in writing and learning speech, it never worked. Of course, it nearly started a debate, and that was the final straw. 

Irritated and frustrated, I decided I wouldn't be able to take more of those suggestions for two days. I impulsively decided to propose her minutes before the lunch ended. And thus, a still nervous me found Anoushka sitting on a swing in the school ground. 

Long story short, I should have waited and planned it out with a calm mind, not an irritated one. I stuttered, a lot. So much that I was sure she wouldn't be even able to comprehend my words. Listening to my voice, no one would be able to say that I could confidently talk about a topic in front of any audience. 

"Hrithvik, I too reciprocate your feelings. But I will only accept the proposal if you do it in a proper and nice way." was her reply when I was silent long enough to infer that I had said what I wanted. 

Maybe she said that to encourage me, but it had the reverse effects. She did not know that more than half of our batch would have known about it by now, but I did. Her rejection would surely embarrass me more than she would have wanted, but she wouldn't announce that she rejected my proposal as she liked me too, right. With this thought in my mind, I gathered up my nerves, took a deep breath, going on one knee as I moved my hand towards her. 

"Anoushka, I really like you. Would you be my girlfriend?" 
"I would love to. It is a yes."

I was never more relieved. 

Ankur pov. 

I closed the diary, for I knew that Tisha wouldn't be mentioned after that. As far as I knew, her interactions with Hrithvik decreased after their break up. Tisha hadn't told anyone from school about her accepting Hritvik's proposal, and she used the excuse of his nearing periodic examinations to justify why they were conversing less than before. The institute dispersed our batch in december, so I had no one asked if she still chatted with Hrithvik. People were curious only about the friends others used to see in person. The ones on social media did not matter to most. Many of them thought knowing every person that someone chats with was a breach of their privacy. 

I noticed that Anouska preferred the words while the feelings were what mattered to Tisha. But then again, Tisha had suffered from a heartbreak earlier, while I did not know Anouska's dating history, not that I wanted to know about it. It was creepy, and both of them closed chapters in his life now. 

"So, you never talked with her again, like after the institute batch dispersed?" 
"I did try once, sent her a meme that was a little close to what happened to us. She did reply. Then she congratulated me after I posted about completing six months with Anoushka, I thanked her. Nothing much after that. I wasn't an obsessive ex." 

All I could do was nod as I kept the diary back, before we called it a night.