Dare Trilogy | Book 3 Editing | ✓

2.2 | In Contradiction + A Faint Imprint

Posted on March 26th, 2017 | Edited on August 17th, 2018

| . . . C H A P T E R - 2.2.1 : I N - C O N T R A D I C T I O N . . . |

Angad, Kripa, and I entered the club to meet up with Arnav at night. He was seated on one of the couches with a drink in his hand. It looked as if it had hardly been touched though. I remembered him to not be a fan of drinking - hence why Kripa would always be careful to not get caught drinking by him. But... given the drink in his hand, had that changed?

I told myself to not over-observing. So what if it had? Two years had went by. What did I care what had and had not changed in his life? No. I should not care. If he wanted to drink, that very well was his choice.

I wanted to move on from it, but Angad pointed out, "It's a bit too early, don't you think?"

Kripa said, "Yeah, but we can so somewhere afterwards when it gets overly crowded."

He chuckled, "I was talking about your cousin drinking already."

Her mouth turned into an O shape in embarrassment and then turned to me, changing the topic, "Dance?"

I shook my head, "Maybe later?"

She didn't force knowing I'd rather stay away from the crowd. She didn't know of the episode this afternoon but I am sure she could tell by how dull my face was.

Angad was quick to answer, "Wait up."

I grabbed the back of his shirt and pulled him back for a quick second to warn, "Careful."

He feigned innocence, "What do you mean?"

I glared at him knowingly, "Khanna, don't mess with her. You see her cousin over there?"

He sighed and placed his hands on my shoulder in assurance. "I know, Smiley. You've warned me about her many times already. And, I know she just broke up with her boyfriend."

"How'd you know?" I had to ask for I certainly didn't tell him.

He continued with his assurance, "We're just friends, okay?"

I rhetorically pointed out, "You and just friends with a girl?"

He didn't know the meaning of it. If he was friends with me, it would be because I am Armaan's sister and despite the carefree guy he was, he respected these unwritten 'bro codes'. As for Riddhima, he might have teased her in our initial days of friendship by calling her his 'girlfriend' to get on Armaan's nerves and make his jealous, but she too fell under that code given Armaan and her equation.

He laughed and placed a chaste kiss on top of my head, a brotherly one, before walking away to find Kripa. There was a reason he always made it a point to never go after girls that were in our group of friends. He knew better than to mess up. But, if Kripa herself told him about Aaron, perhaps this afternoon, then I shouldn't be a prude between the two.

I let my shoulders drop. I'd warned him. There was nothing more I could do. Besides, they were both adults.

If Kripa had a problem, she very well knew how to tell off a guy.

I turned and looked around before my eyes returned to where Arnav sat. He was already looking my way. Armaan's promise ran the back of my mind.

Well... here goes nothing.

I walked up to him and sat at the other end of the couch, leaving more than enough space between us for two more people to sit.

His greeting was through a question, "Where's your brother? And Riddhima?"