Her Memories Calling Him...

12 | Umbrɑge

Zoya felt her body freeze. Her hands were turning ice cold as realization struck a chord. No matter how warm the blood running through her veins were she couldn't ignore feeling cold and idiotic at the same time. Cold since going along the lines of Aditya's little white lie made her appear fake as it sounded and dumb since she let him crush her heart again unfortunately with her knowledge this time.

As Zoya gulped the truth, she turned around to face the man himself. Aditya was leaning against the dining table with his arms across his chest and his sharp shooting eyes held a skeptical glare as he raised a brow and slowly blinked, stared at her waiting for her to open up.

Aditya smirked slowly noticing how pale Zoya had turned, nervousness visible on her face to the extent that it was quite the task for her to look at him directly without hesitation. She was tugging at a corner of her housecoat uncomfortably while remaining silent.

Zoya had allegations against me before and she even refused to let me inside the house but now the cat has got her tongue when I tried to interfere? She won't say anything in her defense? Why is she so confined?

Aditya knew it won't be a piece of cake to make Zoya understand that he's not here to break her heart but mend it.

"Zoya, I won't ask why did you agree with my lie but what confuses me right now is that you think that our friendship wasn't built upon a strong foundation! I want to take away the pain using which you have made a f****** barrier around yourself! You've been the best friend I've ever had and you should be knowing that I've always respected your feelings. They mattered to me back then as much as they matter to me today. Remember how I used to tease you and you had the habit of getting angry and calling me names? At the end I came up to you and apologized for a million times. I'm seeking for your apology even today, just the way I used to do when we were kids. Only if you listen to me.."

Zoya was at a loss for words as she comprehended the meaning of Aditya's words. She gave him a sarcastic look and waved her hands with disregard.

"We are not kids anymore, do you realize it? My best friend Aditya left me eight years ago without saying anything in his defense and he never tried to keep in touch, in fact he never wanted to check up on his best friend, whose feelings matters a lot to him as you say, to see whether I'm dead or alive because I was as good as dead for you! Isn't that the truth?"

As Zoya screamed in frustration, her eyes red with vexation and Aditya was in front of her within seconds with his right hand closing her mouth. His face showed pure grief. Zoya blinked in astonishment about Aditya's unpredictable behaviour.

"Zoya, if anything had happened to you when I wasn't here, I would've never forgiven myself. I admit that I made you feel as if I betrayed you because I didn't even call you later but if you knew me so well since the beginning and trusted me as a best friend to never leave your side when you're in need of me, why can't you believe that your Aditya can never cheat on you? Never betray you? Is this how real your friendship towards me is? Is this how you categorize me? As a freaking loser with no guts to face you?"

Aditya reasoned in a voice laced with immense agony which made Zoya's heart feel numb. Why does Aditya's words make me feel as if I'm finally home after a long time? After all these years of trying to cope up with his absence, why does his arrival make me feel that I'm still the same teenager at heart, who wants Aditya back in my life?

Zoya tried to fight with her inner demons as she slowly started grasping that Aditya made sense. She suddenly shut close her eyes as tears continued their familiar path along her cheeks. She felt Aditya taking away his hand from her mouth and brushing away the tears with his thumbs softly but this time she didn't react.