His Dusk, Her Dawn

Chapter 20. Choose

Just like I had promised to myself, I thanked Sandhya for the safe ride to the college and apologized for sleeping without any prior notice. Instead of being annoyed, she thanked me in return for trusting her with my bike.

The situation was pretty awkward to be honest. I was avoiding her gaze as my inner voice kept troubling me to tell her how I felt, while Sandhya was busy staring at me; I was sure she was confused about my behaviour.

"Will you get off my bike now?" I asked.

"Oh, sure." She nodded and gave me my helmet.

She hopped off the bike and took her bags from the side dickeys. Meanwhile, I took off the beanie from my head and acted like checking my bike.

"By the way, Ved, did something go into your eyes?" she asked.

"Huh? No. Why?"

"Why aren't you looking at me then?"

I sighed and glanced at her once. In my peripheral vision, I saw her roam her eyes over me and sling her bags over her shoulders.

"I get it," she said while dragging her words. "You were just being nice because Dean Sir asked you to help me. And now that we are back to college, you can't even look at me without getting angry. Still, thank you for your generous help."

What the hell? She really thinks I did it out of sympathy?!

But she isn't wrong either. We always fight, and if I suddenly act nice with her, she is bound to have suspicions.

"It is not like that, Sandhya." I looked at her. "I helped you because I wanted to. You don't need to think too much about it."

"Really? Would you have helped me if Ayush was here?" she asked skeptically.

"Why are you bringing Ayush in this?"

Sandhya stared at me for a minute and then looked away. She patted the bike and started walking away.

"Your boyfriend must be waiting for you. Why don't you go to him before he catches you cheating on him with me?" she mumbled under her breath.

"I heard that," I announced.

She glimpsed over her shoulder and zoomed towards her bus stop. Instantly, she got a bus and dived inside. I sighed and sat down on my bike as I saw the bus vanish from my sight. Soon, the rest of the college buses also arrived, and I informed Surbhi that Sandhya had already left.

"That dumbo ran away before I came here?" Surbhi grumbled. "I was waiting for her to eat together."

"Do you have only one best friend, Surbhi?" Parth complained. "Let's go together. Since Sandhya bunked the plan, she will have to treat us tomorrow."

Surbhi's eyes lit up on the mention of treat, and she left after discussing the menu with Parth. She joined the girls, while Parth stayed behind with a curious look on his face.

"So... wanna tell what happened?" he asked.

I twiddled my thumbs and shook my head. "She thinks I helped her out of sympathy."

"Oh. That's bad."

"I don't know what to do. Even if I tell her that I like her, she might hate me more. What if she thinks I am pranking her?"

"The chances of that happening are hundred percent. I also can't guarantee what Sandhya's reaction will be. And don't forget about her crush also."

"You are supposed to be reassuring me, man," I complained.

Parth shrugged his shoulders. "I can't change the reality. You gotta do something if you aren't planning on becoming Devdas."

"Seriously?"