𝐒𝐓𝐑𝐈𝐍𝐆𝐒 𝐎𝐅 𝐋𝐎𝐕𝐄

𝐀𝐫𝐭 𝐆𝐚𝐥𝐥𝐞𝐫𝐲

DHRUVI

As I stepped out of the office, when I almost collided with a familiar figure. My heart skipped a beat as I recognized Ashwin.

He stood before me, looking just as stunned. "What are you doing here?" I blurted out, confusion and a hint of shock lacing my voice.

"I messaged you yesterday," Ashwin replied, his voice steady but his eyes searching mine for any sign of acknowledgment.

I shook my head, trying to ignore . "I didn't see any message. I've been so busy; I must have missed it . Look, I need to go. We can talk some other time."

But Ashwin wasn't ready to let me go. He stepped closer, his expression a mix of frustration and desperation. "Please, Dhruvi. Just hear me out. I still can't believe you married Atharva. Is this really what you wanted?"

I froze. ll "Ashwin, I don't want to discuss my personal life. Not now, not here." I tried to move past him, but he reached out, as if to stop me.

Just then, a firm hand grabbed Ashwin's wrist. Atharva. He appeared out of nowhere, his eyes blazing with anger. "I told you to stay away from my wife," he said, his voice low and dangerous. "And you dare to grab her hand in front of my office? Do you have a death wish?"

Shit . I am crazy , why I am liking the way he said this .

Ashwin looked taken aback, but he didn't back down. The tension between the two men was palpable, and I felt trapped between them. "Ashwin please leave " I pleaded .Without another word, he turned and walked away. I watched him leave, a heavy silence settling over us.
Atharva turned to face me. "Are you okay?" he asked, his voice gentler now.

I noddedl. "I'm fine. Let's just go home."

Throughout the ride, Atharva looked irritated. I didn't know why, but I chose not to speak. Eventually, he did. "Why do you always favor Ashwin over me?" he asked, his voice sounding hurt.

"When did I favor him?" I retorted, genuinely confused.

"Just now," he said, his jaw clenched. "You asked him to leave like I was going to hurt him. Which, of course, I would have if he hadn't backed off. But you could have told me to stop. I would have. But you said 'please' to him? Seriously?"

"It doesn't matter to me if I said 'please' or not," I shot back, my frustration rising. "What matters is that I didn't want chaos there. Otherwise, you guys might have killed each other or had some sort of macho standoff. But please, don't include me in it. I may be surrounded by dramatic people, but I hate drama. And stop caring for me! I hate it now. I hate it when everyone gives me attention. Just leave me like this."

I could feel the tension thick in the air. "I mean, when I craved attention, no one was there. And now that I don't want it, everyone shows up saying they care too much for me. And even if they do, it should be simple and limited, not controlling."

Silence enveloped the car. Atharva's grip on the steering wheel tightened, his knuckles white. I turned my gaze out the window, trying to calm the storm of emotions inside me. Atharva stopped the car at a place, and I asked him, "Where is this?"
He just replied, "Just follow me."
I insisted, "What if I don't want to?" Then he said, "You should listen to me sometimes." So, I agreed and followed him. When I saw that it was an art gallery, I got excited and went inside right away. Atharva laughed at my reaction and followed me inside.

Admiring everything, I said to Atharva, "Wow, this is amazing!" Then I asked, "How did you find this place?" Atharva replied, "I got a sponsorship here, and I knew you liked places like this, so I got us special passes. And if you come with me to one more corner, there's a surprise for you."

I smiled broadly and asked, "What surprise? I can't control my curiosity." Atharva just said, "Later," making me even more curious. I then started exploring the gallery, taking out my phone to click pictures. I said to Atharva, "You remembered that I love this kind of stuff."

Atharva frowned and asked why I thought he would ever forget anything about me. I just shrugged and said, "Well, it's been so many years, so I guess..."

Atharva then replied, "In all these years, I have never forgotten you." Ok but his words touched me !

"I still know how much you love taking pictures, and all the ones you've taken so far will probably just end up staying in your gallery. Only a couple will make it to your friends," Atharva added.

I laughed at his words because it was true. My gallery is always full of pictures that I never get around to sharing. I can't manage social updates like others do, a symptom of my social awkwardness. I then said, "Right, and while I forget a lot of things, I haven't forgotten how much you loved singing. Do you still?"

Atharva replied, "Some passions never change. Especially singing-I improved just trying to impress you, so it's still close to my heart."

I blushed at his comment, literally blushed. He smiled at me with a mischievous glint in his eyes and said, "I've never seen you blush before, but you look like a tomato when you do. Your fair cheeks turn red."

I said, "I'm not blushing, it's just hot," trying to change the topic to avoid the awkwardness.

"How many more days will the art show be here?" I asked him.

"Maybe two days. Why?" Atharva looked at me.

"I want to bring Aisha here. We both love this, and it will be more fun with her around," I replied. It really will be; she brings out a side of me that I don't think I can share with anyone else.

"You don't have fun with me? I guess I'll have to be jealous of Aisha. And I've heard that coming with a partner is more romantic and fun," Atharva said, pretending to be hurt.

"No, it's just that we've both been single for so long that everything couple-related has become our thing. We planned to live with each other only until now . But it feels so unreal I actually came here with my partner," I said. Oops, did I just unintentionally call Atharva my partner?

His smile widened. "I'll take you to even more beautiful places. Now, let's go to the surprise spot."

______

What will be the surprise ???