Solace

|57|love

Raas na aaya......
Rehna door kya keeje......

NIDHI

"My next flight is in the evening; the rest of the time, I'll be spending with Priya," I added, fingers moving swiftly.

"I have already informed Aadarsh to pick me up,"

"Happy belated birthday, Dear Husband," I ended the message with a playful note, tucked my phone into my handbag, and exhaled softly.

As my gaze wandered across the terminal, it landed on a familiar face. A beaming smile lit up her features, and before I could stop myself, my own smile mirrored hers.

Leaving my suitcase behind for a moment, I rushed toward her, arms outstretched. We collided in an enthusiastic hug, holding onto each other as if we hadn't met in years.

"You're glowing, Nidhi!" Priya exclaimed, pulling back slightly to take a good look at me. Her eyes scanned me with mock scrutiny, her hands squeezing my shoulders. "See all beautiful, beautiful! What has he done to you?"

I laughed, warmth flooding my cheeks. "Nothing much, just... Vaibhav," I replied coyly, unable to hide the happiness in my voice.

Priya grinned mischievously. "Hmm, just Vaibhav, huh? Well, he's clearly doing something right!"

We both burst into laughter, drawing amused glances from passersby, but we didn't care. It felt good-this reunion, this unfiltered joy. Priya was my anchor, my sister from another mother, and now, for a few hours, we had the city and each other.

***

We were sitting in a cozy café, enjoying breakfast. Though I had already eaten earlier, I found myself hungry again, so I didn't mind indulging a bit more.

"You know Sneha? She's getting engaged," Priya said, stuffing a piece of aloo paratha into her mouth.

"Sneha? Who Sneha?" I asked, tilting my head as I tried to place the name.

"Aree, the one who got punished for bunking school in twelfth," Priya reminded me, waving her hand as if that should jog my memory instantly.

"Oh, yeah! I remember her," I said, the image of a girl with purple-streaked hair flashing in my mind.

"With her boyfriend?" I asked casually, biting into my cheese corn sandwich.

"Nah, who marries their boyfriend?" Priya scoffed, rolling her eyes dramatically.

I chuckled. "Fair point."

"Some Khurana guy," she continued. "He's into business-textiles, I think."

"You must be invited," I mumbled, my attention momentarily on the rich, creamy cheese oozing out of my sandwich.

"Papa got an invitation," Priya said, shrugging nonchalantly.

"But I'm not going."

"Why not?" I asked, looking up at her, curious.

She leaned back in her chair, a playful smirk on her face. "Because weddings are for drama, not for peace. And trust me, that girl's engagement will have plenty of the former."

I laughed, shaking my head at her theatrics. "Still, don't you want to see how life turned out for purple-haired Sneha?"

"Nidhi," Priya said, giving me a deadpan look, "I've seen enough before and after transformations on Instagram to know what I'll be walking into."

"Ek minute," I said, spotting my husband's name flashing on my phone. Quickly, I put my wireless earphone in one ear, ready to take the call.

Before I could even settle in, Priya grabbed the other earbud and stuffed it into her ear with a mischievous grin.