Love in the Time of Corona | drabble series ✅

13

Annika almost woke up in a good mood the next morning. Almost, because she remembered the events of last night a few seconds in and froze mid-stretch.

"Shit," She muttered as she fell back onto her pillow. "Shit shit shit."

It was hard to believe that she had royally fucked up her life in a matter of one night, and Annika was almost hoping that this was a dream, nay, a nightmare. But her lips were still tingling from the sensation of being touched by Shivaay Singh Oberoi's lips, and she knew in that instant that last night, had indeed, happened. Sitting up again, Annika gave herself a pep talk.

"It's okay, Annika," She said, taking a deep breath. "It's not like you kissed him and he didn't respond. That would be much worse." Which was true. The kiss had been entirely consensual on both sides (not to mention sensual as well, along with a lot of other delightful adjectives). The matter of the fact was that Shivaay had wanted to kiss her and Annika had merely responded as a girl entirely smitten by the boy in question should. But what Annika was worried about was the aftermath of the kiss. Last night, they had both avoided talking about it. Shivaay had gotten her tea, Annika had pretended that her headache could only be solved by sleeping, and they had retreated to their rooms after awkward 'goodnight's. Unfortunately, they would need to talk about the kiss sooner or later, and Annika would rather it be sooner. They still had to live together for God knew how long and she didn't want things to be awkward. Besides, if Shivaay was to admit that the kiss had been a reckless decision and he wasn't interested in her at all, Annika wanted to get done and over with the heartbreak as soon as possible.

Freshening up while trying to swallow the anxiety bubbling up inside her stomach, Annika made her way to the hall room. A part of her was hoping she wouldn't come across Shivaay (like, ever) but he was in the kitchen, preparing breakfast as usual. She gave him a small smile which he returned.

"What are you making?" Annika asked in an attempt to make small talk, although she could clearly see and smell that he was making omelettes.

"Omelettes and bread toast. Do you want anything else?" He asked. Although he was trying to sound normal, Annika could sense the slight uneasiness in his voice.

"No, thank you," She said politely. They set out the plates and ate their breakfast in silence, making so much awkward eye contact that at one point Annika decided not to look up from her plate until she was done eating. Once they were done with the dishes, Shivaay was about to retreat into his room for the day's work. Annika held her heart in her palm and called him. They needed to talk shit out.

"Shivaay, I know this is awkward, but," she swallowed as Shivaay looked at her expectantly, "We really need to talk about last night."

Shivaay almost winced. He had definitely been trying hard to avoid that conversation.

"Listen, Annika," he sighed, his expression apologetic. "I'm really sorry about last night. I don't know what I was thinking."

"I kissed back," Annika blurted out in reply.

"Well, yes," Shivaay said uncomfortably, "but I shouldn't have initiated it. It was uncalled for."

Annika stayed silent, her heart deflating like a punctured balloon by the second.

"I mean," Shivaay continued, "it was wrong on so many levels. You're my sister's best friend, you're at least 4 years younger than me, and on top of that, you have put so much trust in me by staying at my place in such a time."

There was an unsettling silence. Annika looked at her feet and played with her fingers.

"I hope this doesn't make things...weird between us," Shivaay finally said, his voice hesitant.

"Oh no," Annika smiled, almost sardonically. "We're good."

Giving her a nod, Shivaay retreated to his room, while Annika went to hers to cry the day away.

--

Annika didn't see Shivaay for the rest of the day. She had almost fallen asleep when there was a knock on the door. Shivaay stood there with a nervous look.

"It took me the entire day to muster up the courage, and..."

"And?"

"Despite what I said earlier, I actually...I don't want things to be like before. Annika, if you have even the slightest bit of romantic feelings for me, I'm willing to overlook everything that would be wrong about this relationship. If only you say yes."

Of course the crazy, stupid girl said yes, but not before stealing another kiss.