"A collision of rough souls"

CHAPTER 20

*NEXT DAY AT NIGHT*

(At the dining table, Hrihaan tried to discreetly get hiya's attention by tapping her foot under the table. She was sitting directly in front of him but didn’t look up. Determined, he tried again, but by mistake, he tapped his uncle's foot instead)

Uncle : hrihaan, are you trying to tell hiya something?
( his uncle teased, looking between the two of them with a knowing grin)

(Everyone at the table caught on and started to laugh, especially ruhi and rudra who joined in the teasing)

Rudra (laughing ) : Bhai,come on, use your words!

Ruhi : Yeah, Bhai, don't be shy..

(The entire family joined in the laughter, and even hiya couldn't help but laugh a little. After dinner, they went to their room. Hrihaan continued his attempts to get higa to talk to him. Whenever she moved around, hrihaan followed her like a lost puppy, grabbing her dupatta, but she still didn’t look at him or talk to him)

(Later, hrihaan went to take a bath. Hiya worked on her laptop, noticing that hrihaan had been in the bathroom for over 30 minutes, much longer than usual. She found it strange because he usually took 15 to 20 minutes)

(Worried, she knocked on the bathroom door)
Hiya : Hrihaan? Are you okay?

(There was no response. She knocked harder and called his name again, but still no answer. Panic set in as she opened the door and found Hrihaan in the bathtub, submerged under water. She rushed to him, pulling him up and making him sit properly)

Hiya : Hrihaan! Hrihaan, wake up!
(she cried, tapping his cheeks and calling his name repeatedly)

(When he didn’t respond immediately, hiya started crying, hugging him tightly)
Hiya : Please, hrihaan, don’t leave me. I’m sorry. I'll not ignore you. Please wake up.

(After a minute, hrihaan opened his eyes, looking at her with a mischievous glint. Hiya was shocked and then furious)

Hiya (yelled) : Are you out of your mind? What kind of prank is this?

(Hitting him on the arm in anger before storming out of the bathroom)

(Hrihaan quickly changed his clothes and followed her, trying to explain and apologize)

Hrihaan (grab her hand) : hiya, wait! I’m sorry. It was just a prank..

(She pulled away, clearly still upset)

Hiya : That wasn’t funny, hrihaan. I was really scared.

Hrihaan(softly) : I’m really sorry, hiya. I just wanted to see if you still cared..

(Hiya sighed, sitting down on the bed, still visibly shaken. Hrihaan sat next to her, reaching out to hold her hand)

Hrihaan : I’m really sorry, hiya. I promise I won’t do anything like that again. Just... please don’t ignore me anymore.

(Hiya looked at him, seeing the sincerity in his eyes. She didn't say anything, but she didn’t pull her hand away either)

*NEXT MORNING*

(Hiya went to office early in the morning without saying anything to hrihaan and also don't talk to him all day because she was very busy)

*AT NIGHT*

(hrihaan paced back and forth in the living room, checking the clock for the hundredth time. It was already late, and hiya still hadn’t returned home. He tried calling her again, but her phone was off. Anxiety gnawed at him)

(Unable to wait any longer, he decided to check her office. The building was dark, and the security guard informed him that hiya had left at her usual time. Panic rising, hrihaan drove to hiya's old apartment, hoping she might have gone there, but it was empty. He even called anvi, who was equally worried and unaware of hiya's whereabouts)