Chapter 34: 32

Chapter Thirty Two

"You like him, don't you?"

× ANANYA ×

"Oye, where are you lost?" Kirti asked me via video call.

"No where. You were saying something?"

Suddenly the scene of yesterday with Sahil started playing in my head and  I smiled-fuck smile,  I showed the unevenly aligned teeth of mine, so damn, widely.

My teeth might be unevenly aligned but my stars are definitely aligning.

Damn, I'm getting poetic.

"What did I miss, Anu?" I bit my lower lip to hide my smile at Kirti's question with a teasing look.

"Why are you so blushing today?"

Stop getting red, my damn cheeks.

Yesterday, the way I squealed like a teenage girl and did my mini awkward dance after he left or after I kicked him out of the room, is unexplainable. Each time I thought of it I cannot control myself.

"Settling for bare minimum, girl, just bare minimum"

"Shut the fuck up, oh I'm not supposed to curse I'm angel, sorry, but kindly reconsider your thoughts, you devil, it was not just bare minimum."

"That guy showed his da-"

I'm not letting it complete. I'm not letting it complete.

What the fuck am I thinking? Someone clean my mind-

And he literally said please, you can't say that he showed his that side- Shut up, Ananya.

"Damn, I need details! Tell me you guys fucked" Kirti said and I stopped blushing at her comment and glared at her.

"You have such dirty thoughts-"

Says the one who literally asked someone to clean her mind.

Nevermind.

"What is dirty in having sex? I mean apart from everything? And the way you're blushing since yesterday tells me something happened so I made a minor guess" she shrugged while eating a cupcake.

"Where did you buy that from?" I asked her because it looked tasty.

"I didn't buy it, I got it along with a note from Vi-" she stopped suddenly in mid tracks and gulped.

"Vi, who?" I asked.

"Vi-mal, yes, Vimal" I heard this name first time in my life.

"Oh, whose that? Are you lying?" I asked her and she shook her head continuously.

"Why would I?"

"So who is Vimal now?"

"I said Vimal? I meant Vimala. Yes. Vimala Aunty, she works in our office, she made it and send me these." That sounds made up.

"I feel like you're lying"

"I am not. And you idiot, why are you focusing on cupcakes rather than your love life. You like him, don't you?" I raised my brows trying to act confused.

"Who?" Act fool, act fool, act fool.

"Abhinav. He's getting married and you like him, right?" She said sarcastically.

"What nonsense?" How did I caught a habit of saying this now?

"Aye aye, puri pighal chuki hai tu toh yaar"  Kirti said in an aw tone.

[You have melted already in love]

"Shut up. Kuch pighli vigli nahi hu. "

[I've not melted.]

Bus kal thoda sa pighal gayi thi woh 'abhi toh kuch kiya bhi nahi hai' wali baat par. Thodu sa.

[Yesterday I got melted a bit on that  'I've done nothing yet' topic. Only a little]

"Han Han sakt laundi hai na tu toh. Sigma female" Kirti showed her bicep and acted as if she was flexing it.

[Yes yes, you're a Sigma woman]

"I'll cut the call" I threatened her.

"Cut it. You called me, I didn't."

"Kya matlabi dost hai re tu!"

[How much of a selfish friend you are!]

"Just like you, now tell me, what happened yesterday? Why are you so happy?" I explained her the whole thing, because I can't keep a secret from her. Ofcourse she's my best friend and I love her.

"Damn damn damn. Sachi, usne aaisa kiya? Mujhe lagta nahi tha usme etna dum hai-"  I narrowed my eyes hearing her.

[He really did that? I never thought he has that much guts-]

"Aye, tujhe na lagne se kya hoga? Hai usme dam, tujhe kyu bataye?"

[What will happen by your thinking? He has guts, Why would he tell you?]

"Arey offend hoke defend bhi mat kar usko etna"

[Don't get offended and defend him this much]

"I'm not. Just telling you. Main kyu offend hougi bhala?"  She showed me a thumbs up and I nodded.

[Why would I get offended?]

"You like him, don't you?" She asked me and I made a face.

No no no no no no no no no-YES

"What? Like? No!" I exclaimed.

"Yes right, you love him. Not like. My bad"

"Shut up, Kirti."

"Tu mujhe shut up karvati reh jayegi aur koi aur usko ke jayegi dekh lena" The reader inside me decided to visualise the scene of some other girl with him and threw up on the street.

[You'll keep shutting me up and some other girl is going to take him, just wait and watch]

I pictured you with other girls in love, and threw up on the street.

"That won't happen. I'm his fake girlfriend." In my defence, I said this.

"Fake. You said it all by yourself, honey. You guys are already slow, now just imagine if some childhood sweetheart of his shows up there? No one can win against childhood sweetheart!" She's putting things in my head now.

"First accept that you like him. Because I get to know everytime you start to like a guy" Well she wasn't wrong there, everytime I liked a guy, she knew it before me. Or practically speaking, she later gaslighted me into thinking I like him.

Oh my my, How come I never thought of that? Maybe I never liked any guy it was just her convincing me into thinking I did.

Evil witch, she is.

Or maybe this time, it's not the latter option.

"Do you like him, Anu?" She asked me with a serious face this time.

"Thodaaaa sa" She smirked after giving the 'I-know-it-all' look.

[Only a little]

"Oh please. It's either yes or no"

yes, Yes, YES, I like him not thoda sa but zyada! Etna zyada ki I can't stop thinking about him and whatever he does. I can't stop noticing the small things about him or smile at the mere mention of him. I love it when he teases me. My heart melts when he smiles. And my heart dances when he cares even one percent. And I'm starting to love it when he calls me chamatkar, because of yesterday.

What if I'm just gaslighting myself into thinking I like him this time?

Sadma, Gehra sadma.

[Trauma, Big Trauma]

"Stop with your inner discussion. Why am I here if you want to talk to yourself?" The irritation in her voice was clear.

"How do you manage to understand me so much? I love you, Nevermind, I don't. But aw, you're my true friend, Kirti" I expressed my gratitude in an emotional tone to which she rolled her eyes.

"Stop the drama. You like him or you don't?" She asked clear cut.

"Yes, yes, I like him so much, Kirti. I like him so much. And not because of yesterday. I was debating from the past week about this, from that day we went to college. I likeee him!!" I squealed again in excitement and then my face fell within a few seconds. I said in a sad tone with a pout "What if he doesn't?"

Again, Sadma. Gehra Sadma.

[Trauma, Big Trauma]

"Shut up. I'm sure he does, he won't flirt without any reason" she said. I nodded in agreement but then said with a sad voice again.

"What if he did that just for some fun?"

"He won't do that. And if he did, I'm breaking his teeth. Then you'll stop liking him and he'll get his lesson too!"

"You can't do that. And I'm sure I'll like him without one teeth or two. I like him for his personality and for the person he is." I said honestly and she passed me a side eye.  "Maybe his good looking face too."

I've never been this confused in my life.

"Glad that you agreed."

"Do you agree that he's handsome?" I asked her because everytime I told her that she told me that he's average.

"No, he's just average for me." She shrugged.

"Shut up. Acha dikhta hai woh"

[He looks good]

"Maybe. He's not my type"

"Deepika Padukone said the same for Ranveer Singh and now see they are married!"

Why would I compare her with Deepika when I should do that for myself?

I don't want Kirti to marry Sahil.

Why would I think that too?

Apni hi non existent love story ki villian ban rahi hu main!

[I'm becoming the villian of my non existent love story]

"Tu mera connection kyu jod rahi hai uske sath? Tera hi hai woh, behen."

[Why are you connecting me with him? He's all yours!]

"Right. Why do I want you to tell that he's good looking? It is a fact. He is! Huh"

When did Mafia Queen Ananya started getting reassurance? She holds up to her decision!

She like it, she wants it, she gets it.

But he's not it.

Though he is IT boy. But not in a way I told before.

Stop. Making. Me. Mess. With. My. Mind. Sahil. What-Nonsense. Khurana.

🦋

"Do you have a childhood sweetheart?" I asked Sahil who kept the plates in everyone's place. We were arranging the table for dinner. I and Sahil were assigned this job while the rest of them were given something or other. Except the groom and his son, who were currently watching cartoon sitting in exactly same position.

"Why would you ask that?" He asked back.

"You don't question a question. You answer it." I went inside and brought the casserole of Rotis.

"What if I say yes? Would you be jealous?" He asked me and raised one of his eyebrow.

I showed him a irritated face while looking at his face. How does he manage to look good in plain grey tshirt. Give me that talent.

"Should I be?" I asked him gathering the courage.

"As if you already aren't" I rolled my eyes and smirked.

"Why would I be? I have my ex who is waiting for me"

All the colours left his face and be stopped for a second and looked at me. "Vivian wasn't lying?"

"What if I say no? Would you be jealous?" I used his words against him.

"Should I be?" He used back mine.

"As if you already aren't" I shrugged and held my smile back.

"Why would I be? I have a childhood sweetheart" A smile was hovering all over his face while he kept the bowls in everyone's plates.

"Do you really have a childhood sweetheart?"  I asked him again directly with hands folded below my chest and looking at him. He looked at me from the corner of his eyes and grinned looking back at the plates.

"Nope"

"Was that hard to tell before?"

"Yep" After he was done with arranging everything, he leaned at the chair with hands folded, copying me and asked. "Do you really have an Ex?"

"Nope"

"Was that hard to tell before?"

"Yep" We both had big teasing grins present on our faces as we kept looking at each other in the exact same posture,position and expression.  No one of us moved our eyes but kept looking into each other's.

"Mummy, aapne edhar enhe kaam karne bheja tha na, yeh log romance kar rahe hai" Our eye lock broke because of Vivian's loud voice.

[Mom, you sent them here to work and they are romancing with each other]

"Kisne kiya bey romance?" Sahil asked him glaring and Vivian kept the bowl of Salad on the table.

[Who was romancing?]

"Aapne aur apke chamatkar ne." I am kind of used to this now.

[You and your chamatkar]

"Anything?"

"Aankho aankho mei dekhkar muskura rahe the aap dono. Jhoot toh bolna hi mat mujhse. Mummy papa ko bhi bohat pakda hai yeh karte hue maine. Unke toh room mei bhi Bina knock kiye jane mei dar lagta hai ek baar bachpan mei gaya tha, traumatise hoke bahar aaya tha main" He said while Uncle-Aunty were standing just behind him.

[You both were smiling, looking into each other's eyes. Don't lie to me. I've caught Mom Dad doing this too. I'm even scared to go into their room without knocking, I once went when I was a kid and came out traumatized]

"Tum log ko wo sab karna ho toh room mei karna. Zindagi bhar kya sirf free trauma lene thodi aaya hu mai darti par!" He told us and shook his head muttering something.

[You guys do everything in your rooms. I'm not on earth to carry free trauma for my whole life!]

"Teri wali aayegi tab samjhega" Dad and Sahil said at the same time and all of us laughed.

[When your girl comes then you'll understand]

"Just make me feel single." Vivian whined and we all sat for dinner. Sahil's Mom called Abhinav and Avyaan from the dining room. I got to know that this is Sahil's parents house, where they stay along with his father's brother, wife and daughter, Preet. All of them seemed like good people. And the other guests which arrived with us were, those two cousins, Rahul and and their Mom. That one bua who doesn't like me and her daughter, Sana.

That Bua's daughter was same as hers. She liked to throw unnecessary comments on people in the form of jokes. And if someone got mad then she goes like I was just kidding.

I'm keeping quiet just for Sahil and his family. I would have said so many things, I swear.

"I already told you, let me find a girl for your marriage." Their mom, Gaytri Aunty said.

"Apko bada shaadi shaadi karna hai har chiz mei, aap hi karlo dusri baar" I choked on my food at his statement and coughed. Sahil, who was sitting just beside me, patted my back and passed me a glass of water.

[You are very much interested in marriage. You marry second time]

How is this family so cool at this to statement? Mere ghar toh kalesh hona tha yeh bolne par.

[My house would have been on fire if I said this]

I noticed Vinay Uncle glaring at Vivian and he instantly realised whatever he said "Matlab, papa se hi karne keh raha hu dusre baar bhi. Papa dekh toh aaise rahe hai mujhe jaise- rehne do, chalo khate hai, chup chap." He changed his statement mid way when Sahil nudged him.

[I mean, marry dad only the second time. Dad is looking at me as if he- leave it. Let's it silently]

Preet, their cousin passed me a smile and giggled. I chuckled too.

"When did you guys start dating,Sahil Ananya?" Their Chachu asked us.

"Few years ago"

"Few months ago"

We both spoke at the same time. I looked at him, my eyes narrowed. Why did he had to open his mouth?

"Years or months?" Rahul, the elder cousin asked.

"Months"

"Years"

We again switched. Damn what was wrong with this guy.

"Aapas mei decide karke, kisi ek par settle hoke batao" Preet said. Everyone's eyes was now on us.

[Both of you decide, settle on one and then tell us]

"I'll explain them, Sahil?" I asked him intentionally so he could shut up. He nodded.

"Yes yes, but shortly. No extra details, no running off track" He reminded me and I nodded with the sarcastic smile.

"We met like two years ago and dated each other for a short time, then broke up. And a few months ago, we got back together again." I explained and they nodded. Just for the act, Sahil kept his left hand above my right. The amount of things I felt just because of that.

"I never thought Sahil would date again. Not after what happened with the last girl, What was her name? Nikita? No, Natasha. Right."  Sana, the daughter of that Bua said. I could feel his hand stiffen. He jaw clenched and the smile vanished. He queitly ate his food while looking down.

Why would someone say something like that? Is she crazy?

"Whatever happened, happened. Let's not bring that up now" Gaytri Aunty said seeing her son.

"Yes yes, Rather I'm happy to see him happy after so long. Varna toh pure devdas banke reh gaye the, jaise ki zindagi khatam hogayi ho uske Bina." She dared to joke again and laughed. Everyone else had a serious face.

[Or else he was acting so depressed as if his life ended without that girl]

I was about to say something but Sahil held my hand stopping me, and softly shook his head and blinked once. I kept quiet because of him. No one else spoke anything for a while but after that Preet started a conversation again to lit everyone's mood. Sahil however had no involvement in that conversation this time. He queitly ate his dinner and so did I.

I lost my mood too after seeing his dull face.

🦋

A pretty long chapter it was. And an update earlier than expected, hu na main achiii  :D

Ananya accepted her crush, nachoo.💃

But this Sana,  making jokes without considering anyone's feelings. People like her are intolerable. Anyway what do you think about her?

And Sahil and Natasha?

Also, any hashtags for Sahil and Ananya you can think of?

And I was thinking about writing long chapters like this because then I'll be able to cover everything up and we won't be that slow too. Profit ka deal hai.

Do share your views on the chapter, I would love to know about that.

The next chapter is probably going to be late now. My daily life starts from tomorrow again so the updates are going to get slower. Till then keep giving loveeee 💗

Cya🤝🏻