Let's meet again for the first time.
Her mother shook her head, tears streaming down her face. "Who will marry you now, when people get to know you were left by Vikram?" Before I could even process what I was doing, the words left my mouth.
"I wil...
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ANIKA'S POV
"Did you know the amount of shock I got when Maa told me Aarav was married!" Aditi exclaims, "and that too, to you. I wanted to run and come here as soon as possible." She looks between me and Aarav, "to beat you both for not even telling me anything but maa told me the circumstances so I am letting you go." She pokes Aarav's arm, "and I was so excited to see you Anika! I missed you so much." She throws her arms around me. I smile and hug her back, "well I missed you too Aditi." I whisper. "I knew you two would end up together somehow. It was perfect romance novel trope." She laughs pulling away from me. I look at Aarav only to find him looking at me, I look away immediately, everything has been so awkward, I don't know what to do, I am married to him, our misunderstandings have been solved, so we aren't angry with each other, so what am I supposed to do now, am I his wife or his friend? Well the reality is that I am his wife now, but as he has stated before, this marriage is for six months, but that was when he was upset with me, "Anika!" Aditi shakes my arm, "Back to earth." She smiles. "I am so happy to see you back." She says again, "Me too Aditi." I respond, a feeling of warmth spreading through my chest. Me and Aarav had finalised a 24/7 nurse for Mumma, it was Anita, I know her since college, we weren't friends or anything, it's just I at least know her, and how ambitious and sweet she was, at least in college, so I thought I can trust her and so we hired her.
"Oh" Aditi yells making me jump in my place, she gives me an apologetic smile, "I bought some gifts for you two, wait here, I will go get it." She says running out of our room and I almost shout for her to take her with me, but I am sure that would make everything more weird. We stand there in silence, I look around, avoiding eye contact with Aarav, and when I finally do turn to look at him, I find that he's watching me intently. The intensity of his gaze makes my stomach do a little flip, and I quickly look away, feeling flustered.
"Stop it." He whispers in my ear, my eyes widen at our proximity, I didn't even realize when he moved and got so close to me. His breath is warm on my ear, sending a shiver down my spine, and I can feel my heart hammering in my chest. I try to take a step back, to put some space between us, but he follows me, his body so close to mine that I can feel the warmth radiating from him. He reaches out and grabs my chin, tilting my head up to look at him. I can't look away, his dark eyes holding me captive. "Stop avoiding me Anika." He steps even closer, closing the distance between us, until our bodies are almost touching. "I am.. I am not avoiding you." I stutter but still keep my head high so that he doesn't see through me. He laughs softly, his grip on my chin tightening slightly, "Liar." He whispers, "You can lie to yourself all you want," he murmurs, his voice low, "but I can see through you. I always have." I step away from him, taking a deep breath to steady myself, trying to ignore the way my heart has picked up its pace ever since he stepped closer to me. When he accuses me of avoiding him, I want to protest, but the lie gets caught in my throat when he calls me a liar. I push him away, needing some space between us to regain my composure. His smirk makes me want to knock it off his face, but I hold back.
"I'm not avoiding you," I insist, my voice tinged with a hint of irritation. "And you don't know everything about me." His brows furrow, seems like he has to think hard to come up with a reply for that, it's my turn to smirk.
"Maybe, you're right." He says. His hand wraps around my waist and he pulls me in, I let out a squeak of surprise, trying to regain my composure but failing miserably. "But I do want to know everything about you." He adds, his voice low and gruff.
"And what makes you think I'll let you know everything about me?" I ask, my voice wavering slightly. His hand tightens around my waist, his touch sending a shiver down my spine. He pulls me closer, his body heat enveloping me. I want to fight, push him away, but it's as if I am enchanted by him, He smiles, a slow, lazy smile that sets my heart racing even more. "You don't have to, your face comes with subtitles, I can read you very easily meri jungli billi."
His voice is dripping with confidence, and I have to resist the urge to punch him. Or kiss him. Wait, no. Why am I thinking about kissing him when I'm mad at him? I push the thought away, focusing instead on his arrogant smirk. "So, you're going to let me know everything about you, whether you want to or not." He leans in, his face just inches away from mine.
"Uhm, am I interrupting something?" Aditi's voice cuts through the tension like a knife, and I jump back, startled while Aarav seems so unbothered. She stands in the doorway, holding a stack of brightly wrapped gifts, her eyebrows raised and a teasing grin on her face. "Yes, actually," Aarav says, his voice dripping with irritation.He turns to look at Aditi, his expression stern.
"You couldn't have picked a worse time to interrupt." Aditi grins, "What can I say, I have impeccable timing brother." She says patting his arms and I stifle a laugh. Aarav narrows his eyes at me and I look at Aditi, "Alright, Aditi, what did you bring us?" I ask, trying to steer the conversation away from our embarrassing moment, at least for me it was embarrassing, not that I will ever admit that I liked being in his hold ever. Even if that's all I want, I may not be upset with him, but I still have to protect my heart, because what after six months, I don't want to be heartbroken.
