Just Us ✔️ | #WattpadIndia

Chapter Seventeen ➳ Falling For Her

Shaurya

Oh, God. I'm here.

The hospital looks at me hauntingly, reviving the memories from last night. How Anika's father taunted me pretentiously and with no shame. How I felt my insides squeezing with fear. How I got scared and ran away, being the same old person I am— running away from all my stupid problems.

My feet wobble as I get out of my Mercedes, feeling my heart race under my chest. Why am I so nervous to meet her? It's not like I like her or anything.

Shaurya, stop lying to yourself.

I shake my head, hoping that all my toxic thoughts would just fade away. Now is not the time to be thinking about possible romantic feelings for Anika!

Walking to the front door, I push it open and feel a cold rush of air. I shiver under my breath and wrap my arms around me. Damn me for not wearing a sweatshirt.

I go up to the reception desk and feel slightly relieved that Pauline, the receptionist who has serious relationship problems, isn't there. Instead, it's a young man with fiery red hair and boxy glasses, typing furiously into the computer.

Once I introduce myself to him and ask him for the patient that I'm supposed to pick up, he nods his head and dials in a number. He talks to the nurse on the line and ends the call shortly afterwards. "The nurse said Miss—" he looks on a piece of paper— "Desai will be down in two to three minutes."

I nod my head, grinning, feeling my heart rate gradually fasten. "Thank you."

He nods his head back and I go to sit down by the waiting room. Once I settle down, I grab a few magazines on the table beside me and delve into political and celebrity rumors of the daily.

Couple minutes later, I hear someone clear their throat. I look up from my magazine and see—

Oh.

"Hi," Anika breathes out. I feel my lips trembling with shock as I acknowledge Anika's body and attire. Before she looked so alive and full of life— but now she just looks so exhausted, with burns, cuts, and scars appealingly vividly on her face. There's a cut specifically on her lips, a bruise on her forehead, a tiny scar appearing across her neck, and another bruise on her cheekbone. I also notice that she's wearing a navy green sweatshirt and baggy grey sweatpants, as she attempts to cover up her other scars, and her hair is pulled into a loose, low ponytail.

"Hey," I clear my throat, standing up. "Wh-what happened?"

She thinks to herself, but eventually shrugs. "Nothing. Just fell down the stairs."

Just fell down the stairs...

She doesn't know that I know the true reason of her hospitalization.

I take a deep breath. "Oh. Well, I'm sorry to hear that. Hope you feel better."

"Thanks," she weakly smiles. Why is it so awkward between us? It's never been like this between Anika and I.

After a couple moments of awkward silence, she clears her throat and fidgets. "So uh s-should we get going?"

"Yeah!" I straighten myself. "Definitely." I start to walk forward as she follows along.

The sun is perched directly on top of us, beating on top of our foreheads. Weather in California can be really weird sometimes: one week it'd be sunny, beautiful weather, and jolly outside but the week after it'd be melancholy, gloomy, rainy, and cloudy weather that basically makes me want to crawl into a hole and die.

We reach the car and I open the door for her. She mumbles "thanks" and I close the door, rushing to my side of the car.

Once we get inside, she takes a deep breath and leans back, looking at her surroundings. "Nice car."