The Dating Charade ✔️

Chapter-3

Shivaay tried calling Annika multiple times that night, and growled in frustration when she didn't pick up. She drove him crazy, that woman. He got that she was upset with him, angry even, but she should atleast have given him a chance to explain himself. But no, of course she would just assume the worst and avoid him like the plague. Sighing deeply and on the verge of murdering another one of his phones, Shivaay grabbed his car keys. This time, Shivaay Singh Oberoi would actually apologize.

Driving towards her house dressed in his night-suit, Shivaay kept on rehearsing what he would say to her.

I'm sorry, Annika. I didn't mean it?

Of course he hadn't meant it that way. The only reason he had gone ahead and labelled herself as a 'low class girl' was to imply what he knew for sure the media would point out. In all honesty, he had no problem with her naam, khoon and khandaan anymore. In a matter of a few months, this khidkitod girl had gone ahead and challenged all the ideologies he had ever believed in, and had succeeded in changing his views. He now understood that a person's class was defined with their personality, traits and hard-work, and not by how lucky one had been to be born into a rich family. And he was going to make her believe that he had changed.

Then there was the whole paying thing, of course. He had blurted that out in his desperation to stop her from working anywhere else. Somehow, the idea that she would be going out and mingling with other men didn't sit well with him. What if they tried to flirt with her? Shaking his head, Shivaay mentally chided himself for showing so much possessiveness over his fake girlfriend. Breathing in and out deeply, he tried to calm down his erratic heartbeat that kept on accelerating the closer he got to her chawl.

Finally reaching, he parked in front of her house. It was quite chilly outside and he was dressed in his customary nightwear- kurta pyjamas. Rubbing his hands to warm up, Shivaay finally gathered the courage to knock on her door. He waited for a minute, but there was no response. He knocked again, but again, she didn't open the door. Frowning, he took out his phone to check the time.

1.28 am

Shivaay cursed himself under his breath multiple times, for not checking the time before leaving. What was he thinking, showing up at her house in the dead of night? No wonder she wasn't opening the door. With one last, long look at her door, he was about to turn back and leave, when the door opened. 

There stood a sleepy Annika, mouth forming a pout, rubbing her eyes with fisted hands like a child. She was wearing a black Hello Kitty tank top with pink shorts, with her loose curls reaching till her waist.

Shivaay tried not to ogle at her, but it was very difficult for his eyes to stop reverting to her long, creamy legs.

When Annika finally stopped rubbing her eyes and managed to return to the real world a bit, she was shocked to see Shivaay standing at her doorstep.

"Aap?!" She almost but screamed, and Shivaay quickly pushed her to enter her house and close the door, lest she wake up the entire moholla. Turning towards her, he feebly replied-

"Yeah. Main."

Annika was silent for a while, trying to figure out what was happening. It was 1.30 in the morning, and the last person she would have expected to show up at her house at this hour, was now standing in front of her, looking as uncomfortable as possible. Crossing her arms, she asked with haughtily with a raised eyebrow-

" Aur aap yaha kya kar rahe hai? Chaukidari?" 

Shivaay wished for the ground to swallow him up. All his earlier rehearsals had gone down the drain, and he had no clue what to say to her. Until he took in her appearance again, and his face turned into a scowl.

"Well, no, but I SHOULD be doing chaukidari. What's the idea of opening the door without first asking who it is, so late at night, and that too wearing such clothes?" He practically scolded her. That is when Annika realized her state of clothing, and turned red in embarrassment.

"Well," she shot back after regaining her composure, "what's the idea of showing up at the house of a single girl in the middle of the night, huh?" 

Shivaay rolled his eyes. 

"Oh please, I'm not here to kidnap you or anything. I just came here to..." he trailed off there, swallowing hard, not knowing how to continue.

"To what?" Annika asked, narrowing her eyes.

Taking a deep breath, Shivaay decided to just let go.

"To apologize." He said softly.

Annika couldn't help but gasp at that. Billuji, and apologize?!

Mouth wide open, Annika stared at him for a moment.

"You're sure you're Billuji, right?" 

Shivaay wanted to tell her off for calling him that infuriating name, but decided against it. 

"Yep," He replied simply, looking here and there to avoid her scrutinizing gaze. There was a moment of silence, before Annika spoke up again.

"Well then, go ahead. Do it."

"Do what?" Shivaay asked, confused.

"Apologize."

Wanted to make this chapter longer and finish the whole scene, but my laptop's running out of charge and  I really don't wanna keep anyone who's reading waiting any longer, so updating half of the scene. Will continue this soon!