My feelings could never be wrong. Somewhere deep inside, I had always known—there was something brewing behind my back. I just hadn't expected the wind to blow in so soon.
It was the 14th of September.
The day began normally. Or maybe that's just what I told myself to feel normal. What unfolded in the next few hours made my chest tighten with something unexplainable.
It started in our trio group chat—me, Priyanka, and Prem. Priyanka sent a reel. A soft, melancholic one about one-sided love and unreciprocated effort. Then another. Then another.
And then… voice messages.
Her tone had changed.
She wasn't being gentle anymore. She was being honest.
"Charu… do you really think what's happening is right? It's not. You're not even present during maths classes. I see you spacing out, lost in your own world. I didn't want to say anything before, but even Tammarah noticed. She was mocking your condition in class, saying you keep smiling to yourself like some hopeless daydreamer."
She paused. Then, like a volcano erupting—she continued.
"You can't keep doing this to yourself. You're making a clown of yourself, Charu. You can't be someone's second choice. You are not an option. You have everything—then why are you acting like you're not enough for someone who clearly can't even choose you openly?"
I froze. And yet, I listened.
Because a part of me knew—she wasn't wrong.
Prem joined in too.
"Charu… we tolerated all your past crushes because we knew they were just phases. But this—this is different. You're attached. And the guy you're attached to—he gives mixed signals. Maybe for him, it's just friendship, but for you, it's becoming something else. That's not safe."
And the truth? They weren't wrong. But it didn't make it hurt any less.
"You're thinking of waiting for him for six years? Are you insane?" Priyanka's voice snapped me back. "What if Samriddhi comes back and wants him again? Or worse—what if he simply chooses her? What happens to you then? Will you still keep waiting? Do you want to end up in an asylum, Charu?"
Her voice was loud, clear, sharp like shattered glass, and it pierced me where it hurt most—my self-respect.
"You aren't even your parents' second daughter, then how can you be someone's second option?"
I swallowed a lump in my throat.
And then came the harshest truth of all.
"Vidya, his own sister, said she's worried for you. She told me how you've been liking and commenting on reels that are clearly about heartbreak and emotional pain. She even sent me screenshots and said, 'I feel bad for her.'"
I closed my eyes.
Priyanka and Vidya—both tried to save me in ways even I couldn't save myself.
"Charu, learn something from Shresth at least! He didn't even post a single story about his breakup. Nobody even knows he was in a relationship! And here you are—dropping hints, liking emotional reels, making people talk. It's affecting your image, your respect."
She was frustrated. Angry. Tired. And still—she was there.
"Even if I have to speak ill about him to save you, I will. Because to me, you are the priority."
That hit me.
Because yes, Shresth may have occupied my thoughts and heart—but Priyanka? She stood tall like a shield when no one else did.
I still remember she had exams in three days. But there she was—dropping everything just to knock some sense into me.
She continued.
"He's not a bad guy, Charu. But right now, he's not doing right by you. If he truly had no intentions, he should've been clear. He shouldn't let you wait. You deserve someone who chooses you without hesitation."
She wasn't saying it to hurt me—she was saying it to protect me from myself.
She reminded me of all the things I had forgotten.
"You remember what Vidya told us once? That his DMs are filled with girls. He had a girlfriend and still got flirty with other people. That's a red flag. Just because he's soft-spoken doesn't mean he's not capable of hurting."
She was right.
And I was… breaking.
But it still felt like something was off. The way Priyanka started the conversation, the exact moment she brought it up, how specific her words were—it felt rehearsed. Like it was meant to trigger a response.
I'd been talking in the group chat for over an hour. And I began slowly accepting what they were saying.
I tried to convince myself too.
"Yes, I'll stop giving him so much attention."
"Yes, I'll just be friends with him."
"Yes, I'll do better."
But I didn't.
Not yet.
That evening, Shresth texted me. It was around 8 p.m. He was done with his work.
"I'm free now. Did you have something to say?"
And I did.
While sitting with my parents in the living room, helping with business accounts, I saw his notification and froze.
I took my phone and slipped into my room.
And I typed.
Everything.
The storm had already begun inside me. I didn't cry—not yet. I just confronted him.
I told him exactly what I had to say.
And I made him promise not to share it with anyone.
But what I didn't know then was—he already had.
Teaser for Chapter 20: Whispers behind my back.
"I told him not to tell anyone. But he did. And what I found out… it wasn't just about betrayal. It was about trust I had misplaced."