3 Days later,

KARTIK

Hustle of footsteps on the wood flooring made me stir in my bed.

" Naira please"

" No "

" Yes"

" Noo"

" Yess"

" Ishaan!! "

With my face pressed on the comfy mattress, I grabbed a pillow and used it to shut my ears.

" Dove, pleasee!! Just look at the weather, it's perfect for surfing. " I heard a distinct plea.

" You remember The wedding is in 2 days!! There's a lot of work to do. " She replied.

" Work is all we have been doing ever since! From dress to makeup, decorations to photographers everything is sorted.

Just an hour of break won't hurt. Please please! It will be fun. "

There was a pause for about a minute.

" Okay fine! " What followed her reply was a squeal of laughter and the footsteps faded gradually.

" Arghh Damn it! " I sat on the bed, groaning in displeasure to find my bestfriend giggling at my state.

" Someone woke up on the wrong side of bed. " Arjun commented as he jumped onto the bed.

" Man, I hate him. " I grunted.

The past 3 days have been pure torture. God knows how I managed to keep my hands to myself and not beat the hell out of him.

Naira wouldn't talk to me expect for those bare minimum words we exchanged and He wouldn't stop hanging around her like some lost puppy.

I am supposed to be the lost puppy here!

" He looks harmless. " I rolled my eyes.

" He is literally everywhere she goes!! All chirpy and kittenish. Is he that jobless!?" Arjun let out a laugh.

" And what is it with the name , Dove!! Like what in f****ng hell ! "

I got out of the bed and fetched my toothbrush.

Arjun lay back on the bed relaxed, " she looks happy though. Maybe she likes his company. "

My foot!

" Did you talk to her? " He asked.

" Yeah, she is dying to hear me out. " Sarcasm coated in my words.

" Kartik "

" She has all the time to laugh at that jackass's lame jokes but when it comes to me, she walks away like her feet is on fire. " I complained.

" How on earth am I supposed to make her listen to me, when she acts like I am Invisible. "

" well can'blame her, you created the mess. "

" Thanks, that was helpful! " I faked a smile.

Arjun shook his head, " you realise, you have got only 3 days in hand. Once the wedding ends... "

" I know. I am trying. " I sighed.

" then, you got to try harder. " He patted my shoulder.

As Arjun left the room, I refreshed and did a bit of streching before heading to my morning jog.

.....

After about an hour of jogging I returned back. It was half past 8.

I climbed up to my room and found the shower to be engaged by Arjun.

" I just got in! Mine's occupied by my lady, The other one is occupied by Dhruv. " He yelled from inside.

" Fine!! "

And so I made my way downstairs to find Aunt Ruby Baking.

" Hey, dear." She gave me a smile.

" Hey, Aunt Ruby. "

" Seems like you returned from jogging. "

I replied, " yeah. I wanna shower but Arjun has occupied my room so ... " I trialed off.

" Son, you can use the one downstairs in the left corner room. That's empty." She said.

" That would be great. Thanks. " I walked towards the room.

I was soaked in sweat and My body was begging to hit the shower.

After a refreshing shower I exited the bathroom with a towel tied around my waist and another one thrown around the back of my neck, falling on either sides of my bare chest.

Humming a song, I ruffled my wet hair and changed into track pants. Before I could grab my t shirt, I heard a click of the door knob.

" Aditi your dress is in the car, check it out and don't say it needs alteration again!!! " Naira's spoke loudly, looks like her friend is in the outdoor.

I stared at the petite figure entering the room carrying two boxes of carton placed one above the other.

Just as she was close to the bed, her leg tripped on the carpet. With a quick long stride, I caught her by waist in time and we landed on the bed, along with the boxes.

Her entire weight rested on me which made her body to press against my bare chest, her hair sprawled over my face. Legs entangled, her hands over my shoulder.

After a good few seconds she pressed her hands on the sides and lifted her face, in the process her cheek brushed with mine.

Her dark orbs met my eyes and I saw her face go blank. My hands were wrapped around her waist, not wanting to lose this closeness.
For a minute she kept staring at my facial features, just like me.

I could feel her hot breath on my skin. My body ached to feel her velvet skin, cuddle into her and rest my head on her chest.

As if snapped out of thought, her eyes widened and she screamed.

On reflex my hand sealed her mouth.
" Ssshh, Why are you shouting? "

She mumbled something and I removed my hand, " what are you doing in my room! " She whispery- yelled.

" Arjun has occupied the shower in my room, your aunt told me to use this one. " I explained.

She hurriedly moved and got off me. I sat on the bed.

" Ahhhh !! " She half screamed and turned around.

" What now? " I raised my brows.

" You are half naked! Put on something. "

Smirking I stood up and fetched my t shirt, slipping only my arms in. Bunching up the rest of the fabric at my elbow level, I walked to her side and stood in front of her.

" Looking away wasn't necessary. It's not like you haven't seen me naked before. "

Muttering in a husky tone I wore my t shirt, sliding the bunched up portion above my head, pulling it down to my hips.

Her face flushed in crimson red as she bit her dried lower lip.

" Shut up. " She said in a meek tone, rushing out of the room.

Ruffling my hair, I looked at my reflection on the mirror. I couldn't help that grin on my face.

------------

The evening welcomed a cluster of close friends and family for a get together party.

" Music please!! " Naira dragged Aditi and some of their friends to the center to shake a leg. Arjun was pulled in by the bride. It was soon followed by few of our friends, but I declined. Wasn't really in a mood for dance.

" She looks beautiful, right ! " Ishaan said looking at a dancing Naira.

" She indeed is. " I smiled fixing my gaze at Naira, who wore a simple yet elegant floral printed knee length frock.

I saw how intently he watched her, his eyes adoring her. His eyes glimmered, A small smile playing on his lips. It wasn't dirty, it looked like a affectionate one.

Bile rised through my gut, I swallowed the lump on my throat.

I had to know.

" D-do you love her? " I blurted out and my insides ached awfully.

He looked taken aback for a couple of seconds but soon his muscles relaxed.

Naira waved at him to join them on the dance floor as she swayed and moved to the beats along with the others.

Ishaan tilted his neck to face me before he joined Naira, his mouth twitches in an enigmatic smile which conveyed an thought I couldn't apprehend.

The music changed and they shared some joyous moves.

" Naira looks so happy. It's been months since I saw her like this. " I heard a pregnant Siya saying to Dhurv.

Dhruv nodded with a smile, wrapping his arms around his wife.

" Shots please! "

Gulping down a couple of shots back to back hurried, I walked out of the house to find some lone space.

-----

The darkness of the night enveloped a sense of peace as I stood on the damp sand, little waves of cold water swept my bare feet in patterned interval.

The place being quite far away from the city made possible to witness the beauty of a clear sky embedded with shimmering stars and a crescent moon.

Naira's words came flooding into my mind.

~
" So Did you expect me to be Okay with your dirty lies!! " Naira scoffed .

" No. I expected you would hear me, give me a freaking chance to explain!!"

" There's nothing left to explain and if at all there is, I am not sure If I wanna hear any of it. "

Am I pushing too hard? She seems to be doing just fine without me in her life.

~
" You came in here as a guest and It will be better if you would leave as a guest. "

~
" I have moved on, Mr. Oberoi and you should too. This is my life now and I guess I am much happier this way! "

Does Ishaan really keep her happy?

More than me?

~

Am I being selfish, wanting her back in my life?

~
" we are just two strangers with memories. "

What was I even thinking?

.

" Is everything okay ? " I turned towards the voice and found Naira standing a few feets away from me.

" I mean You weren't inside with others. " My brows narrowed.
" Arjun was looking for you. " She completed.

" Oh! Yeah all good. I just... Needed some air. Thanks" I replied and looked back at the sea.

" Yea, Okay. " She muttered before I heard a few retreating steps.

" Let's make a promise, no matter what goes wrong, We will talk it out. No running, no hiding. We will communicate. "

She halted on her track.

" your exact words, aren't they. " I said with my hands shoved into my pockets.

I walked to her side, we were now facing each other.

" Mr. Oberoi I ... " I interrupted her.

" I promised you and that's why I came here, hoping we could talk it out.
But it's fine if you don't want to talk to me or listen to me. I can understand."

" You promised me a lot of things. " She was gentle, suprisingly.

My eyes roamed across her face. " I know. And I am sorry I couldn't keep them all. "

" I tried every since we met, to give you an explanation but everytime it ended on a bad note. Only 2 more days are left, and our best friends are getting married. We don't wanna fight, I guess we agree on this. " She nodded.

" Just one last thing Naira. " She crossed her arms around her chest, her eyes averted away from me.

" I f***ed up and I want you to know that I am really sorry for hurting you but it was never my intention. " I sucked in a breath.

" I could have screwed up many promises I made to you But the promise of love, I didn't break that. I would never."

Tresses of her hair danced in the gentle breeze. With the moonlight falling on her, she looked like an art, perfectly sculpted.

" Even if you hate me, even if we never end up together, my heart would never stop loving you. "

Even though it was only for a few seconds, my eyes locked with her eyes that were becoming slightly glossy.

" So I am not gonna force you to listen to me anymore, Naira. I won't give you any explanation unless you ask for it, unless you want me to.

I will wait till you are ready to talk about Us. "

A brief pause of Silence prevailed between us. The sound of waves crashing the shore was calming.

" Good night. " Saying I turned away from her, back to the house.

I had hardly taken ten steps when I was brought to halt when I was suddenly embraced by a feminine figure.

" Kartik " a familiar voice hit my ear drums.

My eyes widened when I recognised the person before me, " Ridhi? "

********

I feel bad for him
💔

Naira's pov in next chapter

Yayy people so the story is off the break!

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