Kanika's POV
'I always wanted to meet him at least once when we were in a relationship, but meeting like this was not something I was expecting.'
"Kanu?" he called out again at my lack of response.
"Y-you got the wrong person." I tried to sound clear, but my scared stuttering sold me away.
I tried to walk away without turning back, but he held my hand and pulled me back, making me collide into him. He hugged me tightly.
"I got the right person, I know," his tone held relief and excitement.
I could feel his heart pumping. It was excited and jumpy like mine, but soon calmed down; mine could not. Mine still felt like it would jump out of my chest. After a few seconds of shared warmth, he pulled back and cupped my face and pecked my forehead.
"I missed you. It's been so damn long." He hugged me again.
"A-anant."
I was still processing everything. I didn't know what to do or say about how sudden he was with everything for our first meeting. I tried to pull away, but his hold was just too tight, like he was trying his best so that I wouldn't slip away.
"Anant here you a…" A deep voice came from behind us. I immediately pushed Anant aside from me in embarrassment, without turning, I fixed my hair, and turned to look at the person and stood frozen again.
"Aarav?" I questioned, dumbfounded.
"Kanika?" He was trying his best to process what he just saw.
"Eh?" Anant was confused at what was unfolding in front of him.
"Eh?" Everything can wait, but how do they know each other!?
"Eh?" Aarav raised his eyebrows, unaware of where to start.
'Tonight, my luck isn't even trying to fight back.' I facepalmed myself mentally. Right now, I just want to disappear. I want Mother Earth to swallow me whole.
"So who is going to start explaining first?" Aarav inquired as he pinched the bridge of his nose, his tone serious, but my stomach found the worst timing for growling.
I sat waiting for them to bring me food. After my growling, they had a good laugh at me, but then sent me to find a table a little away from the crowd and went to get food for me. They said it was too crowded for me and I would definitely bump into someone and would end up ruining either their or my clothes.
'Even though that sounds a little offensive, they aren't wrong.'
Soon Aarav came to me with a plate with naan, kadai paneer, dal makhani, and masale bhaat, and Anant followed behind him with a plate of desserts, shrikhand and gulab jamun. Both settled the plates in front of me and then sat a little distance on either side of me. Aarav on my right and Anant on my left.
"What about you guys?" I asked as they sat near me without any food for themselves.
"We already ate. A few moments before we met. " Aarav responded.
I got shy again, thinking about how he found us.
"So, where were we?" Anant spoke up, his voice laced with impatience.
"First off, let's start with you two," I suggested as I took a mouthful of gulab jamun and continued, "You two seem more involved with each other for much longer than I."
"He was my junior in college," came Aarav's nonchalant reply.
"Senior from drama club?" I asked to confirm as I jogged my mind back to the memory lane to find anything similar to the mention of this.
"7 Crore!!!" Anant chimed at my realisation.
"I work as an assistant editor under him." I pointed at Aarav, I pushed away my empty plates, and both of them extended water bottles in my direction.
'Ok, even if it's just water, this is awkward.' The pressure is real with how they are looking at me with their expectation-filled eyes.
"Thanks." I took both the bottles and kept them at the table with an awkward smile.
"And weeeeellllll… About Anant… He…" I stared at my feet as I couldn't find the right words to describe what we had, even if I were to say that he is my ex or my boyfriend, who I met on Instagram, felt too awkward, a sentence filled with so much story and feelings.
"Your ex. I know that." I looked up at Aarav as he completed my sentence.
"He used to talk about you quite a lot back in college." He gave a soft smile to assure me that everything was fine.
"I still remember he was very heartbroken after you guys broke up." He tapped his chin with his index finger and closed his eyes to remember the forgotten.
My heart stopped at the mention of our breakup. I wonder how much he knows about it or about us.
"Come to think of it, why did you guys break up in the first place if everything was so fine?" he inquired, unaware of anything.
'Was everything really fine?' I asked myself, 'If everything was fine, we wouldn't have broken up in the first place,' and gave an answer myself.
"Even Anant refused to talk about the reason behind it, he would always end it by saying that it happened because of his mistakes."
'Mistakes? Were they really just mistakes?' I wanted to ask this out loud, but Anant spoke up.
"Senior, why bring up the past right now. It's all in the past…" he held my hand and kissed the back of it, "right now it's a new us."
At that moment, I felt a tight tug in my stomach, and I pulled away with a jerk. 'New us?' I mocked the mere thought of it to myself.
"I am leaving," I announced as I stood up from my seat and took my purse and phone. I didn't want to stay there for even a second longer.
"Why so suddenly?" Anant asked me, trying to grab my hand, but I backed away.
"I have some personal appointments for tomorrow, I just remembered."
"Let us drive you to your place. It's late." Aarav suggested, genuinely worried about me.
"No need, I will get a taxi." I glanced at Anant. I didn't want him to know where I live.
"Kanika, if I am the problem, I will stay here. Aarav can drop you off at home by himself." Anant was surprisingly aware of how his presence was affecting me. And I didn't even bother to console him. Why should I?
But I needed to be alone to calm down the storm inside me, and still refused the offer and started walking towards the exit when suddenly Aarav caught up to me.
"Kanika, I am not letting you go alone at this time. Either I come with you in a taxi to make sure you reach home safe, or you let me do it myself." His voice was firm, and this time it wasn't a request or an offer; this time, he meant what he said, and he would do it.
"Alright, get your car. I am waiting by the exit." I let out a sigh of defeat, and his face lit up.
The ride back home was quiet, and we reached my place. Just as I was about to open the door. A click sound resonated through the car, and the door refused to open no matter how much I pulled on the handle. My heartbeat quickened. I looked at Aarav in confusion just to find his hand resting on the central lock button.
My chest tightened at the confusion of what was happening.
Aarav rested his head on the steering wheel, took a long breath, and pulled out the keys from the ignition, making the car fall silent.
It was too silent for our own good. It was rare to see him like this. I wonder what could have got him like this.