Both of them locked eyes, the world around them fading into a blur.
"A…Mr. Aryan…" Aanya whispered, but Aryan seemed completely lost in her gaze.
Tentatively, she reached out and touched his arm, then suddenly realized and pulled back, thinking, When did he come here?
"Mr. Aryan, well… look, we're matching," she said, trying to break the tension.
Aryan's gaze shifted to her, attentive.
"I mean… I suggested this color to you, and it suits you perfectly," she added with a small smile. After a pause, she asked, "What happened?"
"What do you mean, what happened?" Aryan replied, slightly confused.
"I mean… why did you suddenly come here?" she asked, looking at him expectantly.
Aryan hesitated, unsure what to say. After a beat, he said, "Actually… my... Mom called you."
"Aunty called me?" Aanya repeated.
He nodded.
"Oh… okay, then I'll go see her," she said, turning to leave.
"Wait," Aryan called softly, making her stop.
She turned toward him.
"Well… she called you earlier, not now. So… no need to go," he explained.
Aanya tilted her head, confused. What is Mr. Aryan talking about?
Suddenly, a voice called out: "Aryan!"
Both of them turned to see Ankitha approaching. Aanya's eyes widened in surprise as she noticed Ankitha was also wearing purple.
"Hi, Aanya," Ankitha said, smiling. Then she added teasingly, "Looks like the three of us are matching."
Aanya thought to herself: Ankitha didn't even select this color that day…
Ankitha looked at her curiously. "What's wrong? What are you thinking?"
Aryan glanced between them, silent.
Aanya replied carefully, "Well… I'm just thinking, that day you didn't select this color, right? You chose pink."
"Oh… that one?" Ankitha said quickly, trying to cover up. "Actually, I thought of wearing that dress, but my friends suggested this one."
Aanya's expression remained serious as she thought to herself, I know why you wore this color… just to match with Mr. Aryan.
Then Ankitha spoke up cheerfully, "Well, Aanya, I'm really excited for the dance today!"
Aanya glanced at Aryan, then, without saying anything more, walked away silently.
Aryan watched her leave, his eyes following her for a moment.
From a distance, Aanya glanced back and saw Aryan talking with Ankitha. Her jaw tightened, anger flickering in her eyes. She quickly turned away, not wanting to see more.
Just then, a familiar voice called out, "Hey, Aanya!"
She turned and saw none other than Rahul along with a few others from Aryan's office. Her face instantly lit up. "Hey, hi Rahul!"
"Hi!" the others chimed in warmly.
Rahul grinned. "Long time, Aanya. How are you?"
"I'm fine. How about you guys?"
"We're all good," they said in unison.
Rahul tilted his head curiously. "By the way, where's Aryan sir?"
"Oh, he's around here somewhere," Aanya replied casually. But suddenly, the memory of that tense office incident flashed in her mind. Her smile faltered. "By the way, guys… I'm really sorry about that day."
They all exchanged confused looks. "Which day are you talking about?" Rahul asked.
"That day when I joked about Mr. Aryan and he shouted at all of you. He even made you work extra hours… I felt so guilty about it."
The group looked at her strangely. Rahul frowned. "Aanya… you didn't know?"
"Know what?" she asked, puzzled.
Rahul explained, "After that day, Aryan sir actually gave us a day off."
"What?!" Aanya's eyes widened in shock.
Rahul nodded. "Yeah. And ever since then, he hasn't been that strict with us."
Another colleague chimed in, smiling, "In fact, he's been surprisingly friendly. And we all know it's because of you."
Rahul added, "Exactly. That's why we wanted to thank you. But instead, you're apologizing?"
Aanya stood frozen, lost in thought, her heart racing with the unexpected revelation.
Meanwhile, across the hall, Simran—Aryan's secretary—approached him with a polite smile. "Hello, Sir."
Aryan turned slightly. Before he could respond, Ankitha asked, "Aryan, who is she?"
"She's my secretary," Aryan replied plainly.
"Hello, ma'am," Simran greeted Ankitha with a nod.
"Where are the others?" Aryan asked.
"They're somewhere here, Sir," Simran replied.
Aryan turned and spotted his staff standing with Aanya. His expression shifted when he noticed Rahul talking with her. Without another word, he began walking toward them.
"Hello, Sir," everyone greeted respectfully as soon as he arrived.
Aanya looked up suddenly, her eyes meeting his.
Aryan's voice was calm but firm. "So… you all came."
"Yes, sir," they all replied in unison.
His eyes briefly lingered on Aanya, who smiled softly while looking at him. He didn't understand why she was smiling.
They all chatted for a while until Devika's voice called out, "Aryan!" He excused himself and walked away. Aanya's gaze followed him, her smile still lingering as he left.
Meanwhile, at Aahil's house…
His mother entered his room, her face lined with worry. She looked at her son, who sat slouched, his eyes dull and his expression lifeless.
"Aahil," she said, her voice trembling, "why are you doing this to me, beta?"
Aahil lifted his eyes slowly. "What did I do, Ammi?"
"You're not eating properly, not talking to anyone…" she sighed, her voice breaking. "I'm getting so worried about you."
Aahil gave a faint, sad smile. "I'm fine, Ammi." But his tone betrayed the pain he carried.
His mother stepped closer. "Aahil, forget that girl. Please, move on."
His face twisted with grief. "She already forgot me, Ammi. Today is her Sangeet… she must be so happy." His eyes welled up as his voice cracked. "But me? I… I can't forget her. I really love her, Ammi." Tears rolled down his cheeks.
His mother's own eyes filled as she placed a gentle hand on his shoulder. "Don't worry, beta. Allah will definitely do something. He never leaves His children empty-handed."
At the Sangeet, Aanya kept glancing around, thinking, Where are my friends? Why haven't they come yet?
Just then, she spotted them entering and felt relieved.
"Hi, Aanya!" they all greeted.
"Why did you guys come so late? I mean, why?" Aanya asked, slightly annoyed.
Nisha sighed. "Oh, Aanya, we were about to come earlier, but this Meera made everyone late. She didn't get ready on time."
Aanya looked at Meera seriously, while Meera gave a weird, guilty smile.
Then Suraj stepped forward. "Aanya, you know what? I remembered each and every step. We'll rock today!"
Aanya gave a fake smile, nodding.
Tara pulled Aanya aside and whispered, "Where's your Mr. Aryan?"
"He must be somewhere here only," Aanya replied. "He's so busy."
"So what?" Tara teased. "Even if he's busy, you can't stop doing…"
"Can't stop what?" Aanya asked, confused.
Tara smirked. "Can't stop making him jealous."
Aanya paused, her lips parting in surprise.
Nisha looked around. "By the way, where's Ankitha?"
Aanya answered without interest, "She must also be somewhere here. By the way—wherever Mr. Aryan is, she'll be there too."
Her friends started scanning the crowd. "Hey, look! There's Aryan."
Aanya's eyes followed, and Meera gasped, "Even Ankitha is beside him!"
"Didn't I tell you?" Aanya muttered bitterly.
Tara frowned. "Wait… she's also wearing purple?"
Nisha and Meera chimed in, "Yeah! But Aanya—"
"Yeah, I know," Aanya cut them off, jealousy in her tone. "I thought only Mr. Aryan and I would be twinning. But she spoiled my plan."
Tara tilted her head. "Didn't you know earlier? You guys all went shopping together."
Aanya shook her head. "That day she didn't even choose this color. She chose pink. But when I asked her today, she said, my friends suggested this. Liar! She wore it just to twin with Mr. Aryan."
Her voice turned sad. Aryan, from a distance, looked at her, catching her expression.
After the ring exchange ceremony, Prerna pretended to be happy, though her eyes clearly showed otherwise.
Later, Rohit came near Aanya. "Hey, Aanya. These are…?"
"Oh, these are my friends," Aanya introduced.
Rohit smiled. "Oh, hi."
Then Aanya turned to her friends. "Guys, he's Rohit. He works in Mr. Aryan's office."
They all exchanged greetings.
Just then, a server came around with juices. Rohit noticed and said, "Aanya, take some juice."
"Oh no, it's okay," she replied.
"Come on," Rohit insisted gently.
From a distance, Aryan watched the scene. His expression tightened—he felt jealous. Tara noticed immediately, her eyes glinting mischievously.
She teased, "Come on, Aanya. Take the juice. Rohit is insisting, right?"
Aanya didn't understand the hidden meaning. She reluctantly took a glass.
Then someone called Rohit away. "Aanya, wait a minute," he said before leaving.
As soon as he walked away, Aanya turned angrily to Tara. "Why are you doing too much?"
Tara grinned. "Well, Aanya, looks like there's no need for Suraj."
Aanya frowned. "What do you mean?"
"I mean," Tara smirked, "Aryan was already jealous just because you were talking with Rohit."
Aanya glanced at Aryan, who was speaking to some guests but kept stealing glances at her.
"Even if he's jealous," she muttered sadly, "what's the use? Tonight he'll be dancing with Ankitha, not me."
"Aanya, don't feel sad," Tara tried to console her.
"How can I not be sad?" Aanya's voice broke. "I thought Aryan and I would match, but Ankitha wore the same color. I thought I'd dance with Aryan, but again Ankitha came in between. How can I not be sad?"
Then Tara thought for a second, her eyes suddenly lighting up with a mischievous idea. Without explaining anything, she quickly said, "Aanya, give me that juice."
Confused, Aanya handed it to her. "But… why?"
Tara only smirked, hiding her real plan. Before Aanya could ask again, Tara walked straight toward Ankitha, who was laughing beside Aryan.
And then—dash! Tara intentionally bumped into her. The glass tilted, and the juice splashed all over Ankitha's dress.
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End Of Chapter 40.