Broken promises

Ch-07

So, Prithvi, congratulations on your friendship, your hatred, or whatever it is. You hurt me once, and I tolerated it, but now you've hurt my self-respect, and I won't compromise on that," Kirti said. For her, everything could be set aside except her dreams, her career, her family, her friends, and most importantly, her self-respect.

"I hate you, Prithvi. You made me believe we were best friends, but you betrayed me so badly. If you didn't want to sort things out, that would have been fine, but bullying? How could you bully a girl you once called your best friend? I hate you, Prithvi. I really do."

Kirti's words echoed in Prithvi's mind. It was Economics class, and Kirti was sitting at the front, focused on the teacher, while Prithvi sat near the back with his girlfriend, Prash.

"What’s wrong, Prithvi? You seem distracted," Prash asked.

"N... nothing," he muttered, lost in thought. Was he really that bad? Had he truly hurt Kirti this much?

Throughout the class, he kept glancing at Kirti, who never looked away from the board except to take notes. His mind was in turmoil.

After class, as Kirti packed up to return to her class, Devika noticed something off. "Did something happen in Economics class?" she asked.

"No... not really. I just wonder if I said too much earlier," Kirti replied, worried.

"Don't worry. He needed to hear it. He has to understand the damage he's caused," Devika reassured her.

Meanwhile, Prithvi spoke to Vanshika, recounting what had happened with Kirti earlier. Vanshika sighed and said, "Prithvi, I won't lie. This is all because of you. Remember when she was crying at the camp, and you said, 'Let her cry'?"

Flashback

At the 2022 night camp, friendship songs were playing, and all the 12th graders were emotional. Kirti was crying too, remembering her moments with Prithvi. Vanshika noticed and decided to bring Prithvi over.

"Prithvi, please come. Kirti is crying for you. Please sort things out," Vanshika pleaded.

"If she's crying, let her cry. I'm not here to handle every random person crying," Prithvi replied coldly.

Flashback Ends

"That's what you said," Vanshika reminded him.

"I never realized I hurt her so much," Prithvi admitted.

"Kirti never saw you as her crush," Vanshika continued. "It was just a dare to tell Aratrika she had a crush on you, and she decided to joke around with you. She trusted you so much, thinking you would clarify things with her. But when you ignored her, she was really hurt.

"But what truly broke her was when she found out you accused her of defaming you and suggesting you had bad intentions toward Anveeksha. She never thought you'd stoop so low, especially without confronting her about it first."

Vanshika's words hit Prithvi hard.

"Prithvi, I know you have a girlfriend, but I must say, in search of gold, you lost a diamond—a ruby, a true gem," Vanshika added before walking back to her seat, leaving Prithvi to reflect on his actions.