Growing love

chapter 8

Ruhi's POV:

"Ruhi di, please wake up now. Look who's here!" Krisha exclaimed, and someone else squealed excitedly in response.

I reluctantly opened my eyes to find Siya standing there with her ever-present, cheerful smile. Despite my best efforts, I couldn't muster a smile of my own. Mornings always leave me grumpy, and I tend to stay quiet when people try to engage with me. It's not that I mean to be rude; it's just who I am. I prefer minimal interaction until I'm fully awake.

"Hey, Ruhi! How are you? Come on, it's time to seize the day!" Siya chirped, full of enthusiasm. I simply nodded, took a sip of water, and slowly got out of bed.

"I'm fine. I'll join you all in a bit," I mumbled as I headed to the bathroom.

I could hear their laughter from the other side of the door and couldn't help but wonder what the joke was. After quickly freshening up, I made my way downstairs, where everyone was gathered, including Rohan uncle, Auntie, and Yash uncle.

I greeted them politely and swiftly finished my breakfast. The hall was mostly filled with the elders now.

"Beta, the others have gone to our house. They're waiting for you. You should go," Mahi aunty said. I nodded, but before leaving, I handed Dadu his medicine. His eyes widened in surprise, thinking I'd forgotten about it.

"I'm okay, there's no need for this now," he muttered, glancing at everyone. But I remained firm, and after some hesitation, he finally took the medicine. I sighed with relief. If he hadn’t, I would have had to involve Krisha.

I headed to uncle's house, where everyone was gathered.

"Here comes our sleepyhead!" Siya teased as she approached me. The younger ones were all there, and Ritika di and Bhabhi were entertained by Krisha's latest antics.

"Hello, Siya. Sorry we didn’t get a proper chance to meet earlier," I said as I settled on the sofa. Rahil bhai and Jiju were deep in conversation on one side, while Shubh and Arjun sat beside me, glued to their phones.I was about to sit with Krisha, but Siya dragged me over to her, leaving me sandwiched between Arjun and Siya.

"We came early in the morning to meet you, but you were still asleep," Shubh remarked. Arjun glanced up briefly from his phone, his eyes lingering on me for a moment before looking away.

"Yeah, I was out like a light ,By the way, Siya, weren’t you supposed to come in the afternoon?" I asked, trying to redirect the conversation. Shubh just shrugged.

"Siya, did you see how annoyed Ruhi di was this morning? Thank goodness you were with me! I would’ve never dared wake her up alone. She gets grumpy so quickly in the morning," Krisha tattled, causing everyone to laugh. I shot her a warning look.

"She’s grumpy all the time," Arjun muttered under his breath, but loud enough for everyone to hear.

"And you’re a complete jerk," I snapped back, glaring at him. He smirked at me, and I had to resist the urge to wipe that smug expression off his face. Maybe even punch him.

As we continued chatting about random topics, time flew by. Eventually, Dadi called us for lunch, and my cousin and I headed back home.

After dinner, Shubh called us downstairs again for a movie night, and Krisha was all for it. We gathered in their home theater room, and Shubh and Bhai were busy setting up the projector.

"Come on, Bhai! It's the weekend, you need to relax," Siya encouraged, and I realized she was addressing Arjun, who was conspicuously absent. When they finally arrived, Siya entered the room, her usual bright smile lighting up the space. Arjun, on the other hand, wore a sullen expression, clearly annoyed by something.