Back at his house, Siddharth sat on his bed, as he tried to focus on solving math problems.
Siddharth: "Kaduvuleyyy, en enna ipdi sodhikiringa..." He murmured to himself.
His phone buzzed with a new message from Riya, her notifications lighting up his screen, each one tugging at him a little more.
“Hey, did you get home safe?”
“I know you left without dinner! You better eat something.”
“Sid? You there?”
Her messages came through, one after another, some playful, some concerned. Each time his phone buzzed, he felt an urge to reply, to reassure her, to joke back as they always did.
Siddharth: "Sid vena..." He said as his fingers hovering over the screen before he pulled his hand back.
Riya’s name blinked on the screen again with a call. He hesitated, heart racing at the thought of hearing her voice. But he couldn’t bring himself to answer. This connection, this closeness—it was exactly what he’d overheard her aunt questioning, what he now felt compelled to distance himself from.
With a sigh, he pressed the power button, silencing the calls and messages, and set the phone aside.
He forced himself to look back at his notebook, where, without realizing, he’d written his name next to hers.
Siddharth ♡ Riya
His finger traced over it slowly, thoughts drifting back to the conversation between Riya's mom and her aunt, how he’d paused in the hallway, just out of sight, hearing Riya's aunt question her mother.
Flashback:
Aunt: “Yaaru andha paiyan? Edhuku namma vitla irukan? Enna, Kavitha… idhellam correct ah?”
He could hear the unease in her tone, the hint of doubt that made his heart sink. But what truly hit him was Riya's mom response.
Kavitha: "Anni, Siddharth Riya kuda padikura paiyan mattum illa. Avan ennaku paiyan mari. Ipdilam kekadhinga. Solranu thappa nenachikadhanga. En ponna pathi ennaku nalla theriyum, adha vida Siddharth pathi ennaku theriyum."
Aunt: "Adhellam saridhan, Aana avanga vayasu apdi, enna nadakumnu edhume sollamudiyadhu. Chinna pasanga avanga..."
Kavitha’s voice softened, filled with warmth and understanding.
Kavitha: "Riya ku enga epdi irukanumnu nallave theriyum, chinna pasangadhan aana ellame purinja pasanga... Ennaku avanga mela nambikai iruku..."
He’d heard her aunt’s voice shift to a more serious, almost insistent tone.
Aunt: "Ennaku idhu seriya padala, night la oru ponnu paiyanum thaniy---"
Kavitha: "Anni podhum, Idhukumela edhuvum pesadhinga... En pillaingala pathi ennaku theriyum."
Aunt: "Seri seri kovapadadha, enna irundhalum Riya en paiyanukudhan, adhu nyabagam irukula? Kadasila namma ponna yaarum thappa pesira kudadhu, pathuko."
Siddharth felt his stomach clench as he heard those words, knowing she was talking about Raghav. He could almost sense the slight tension in Kavitha’s voice as she responded, masking her irritation.
Kavitha: "Siddharth thangamaana paiyan. Avan Riya ku evlo udhaviya irundhurukanu ennaku theriyum. Idha pathi inime pesadhinga Anni..."
Her aunt wasn’t fully convinced.
Aunt: "Ennaku puridhu... Na Riya mela iruka paasathula dhan solren. Raghav ava mela uyiraye vechirukanu. Riya kum avan - ah romba ishtam... Naduvula endha prechanaiyum varamaa irukanumla. Adhukudhan sonnen."
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Fragile Hearts
Fanfiction~ When two young hearts destined to heal eachother ~ A High School love story
