Fighting!

Chapter 12

Chapter 12:

Ananya's point of view:

The next few days, we indulged ourselves in books studying for the upcoming final exam. All we did was study and rest. I really needed to score a perfect CGPA this semester. My score is already good and I have already attended many top company interviews, of which I know I’ll get into at least one. But I have a competitive urge in myself that I can’t control. I need to score really well this time. That stupid Cassie beat me last time and it won’t happen again.

Tomorrow we have a send off. It’s like an American prom but not that fancy. There will be some dance and singing performances. After that, we can all dance to some DJ songs. They have arranged dinner it seems, so it sounds fun.

All three of us are here in the mall to select a dress for tomorrow. We all forgot to get one. Yesterday, I realised that we don’t have anything to wear for tomorrow. We had our noses wedged in our books that we forgot to arrange for tomorrow. So now, we rushed here to choose a dress and accessories that suit it.

“I’m wearing red” I said, pointing at a red dress that was on a mannequin.

“That is soo you” Maya said, rolling her eyes.

“Hey!! I wanna pop it and lock it” I said, winking at her, bumping my hips into hers.

“Oww, b***h! Move away”, she said, pushing me aside and went inside the changing room to try out her blue dress.

“Does green look good on me?” Arshi asked, holding a sea-green dress in front of her, looking in the mirror.

“That cooler suits you, try it on. If not, go for light colours. They accentuate your beauty” I said, blowing a kiss. She giggled and rushed to a trial room not before blowing a kiss back.

I asked the salesperson there to get me that red dress in my size, which is XS. I like my dress sticking to my skin like a rubber glove. I held it in front of me, it was not too bright or too dull. If I wear it to a send off where there will be a ton of light and it would look glamorous on me.

“Anu!!” I heard Maya as she came out of the trial room. I turned to see her looking so beautiful in that dress.

“You’re looking bomb!!!” I said, making a super sign with my fingers.

“Do I? I think it’s too bright. Maybe I should try that black one or that grey one”, she said, looking at the dresses she had selected. I frowned, knowing she would never take my suggestion and would do what she felt like anyway.

“Then why do you even ask me”, she stuck her tongue out and went to try on other dresses.

Stupid girl. Rolling my eyes, I turned towards my dress.

Before I entered the trial room, my phone started ringing. I took out my phone from my pocket to see it was Akshay. Sighing, I sat down on one of the sofas before picking up his call. I have not called him since I came back here and nor has he. And I know what he wants to talk about.

“Hey” I said, settling in, keeping that dress aside.

“Hey Anu, how are you?” He asked and I could hear his concern in his tone.

“I’m amazing as always. What about you? How’s Meera? How’s aunt and uncle?” I fired my questions hoping it would make him forget why he called in the first place and also I like to know how they all are.

“Urgh! Mom and Dad are in their honeymoon phase. They just got back yesterday and they can’t keep their hands to themselves. It’s disgusting”. I could picture his face all crunched up.

“Now you know how we felt when you and Meera came back from your honeymoon”. I teased him and I know he’s flushed remembering his honeymoon.

“Still, we are in our primes. Imagine my old parents going at each other-“ We both shuddered at the imagination.

“Okay, change of topic. Meera is fine. Her work and I are keeping her busy”, he said, taking a deep breath.

“That’s great and please don’t get her pregnant now itself. It’s not even been a year yet since you guys got married”, I said, knowing he had this idea floating around in his mind.

“Like she would allow that, she would kill me if I tried”, he said, sounding scared. Arshi came out of her travel room looking like a mermaid. Her dress suits her the best. I showed two thumbs up for that dress and she beamed. I know she loves that dress already.

“That’s true. It’s her body, she should be ready for it” I said, taking her side. We girls are the ones who go through the major change and we have major votes in this.

“Okay, enough about this. Now, why I called was to ask you what you decided?” He asked, changing the subject which I dreaded.

“Nothing” I said simply.

“Nothing? So as in no?” He asked, unsure.

“Nothing. As in nothing,” I said firmly.

“Did you talk to him?” I asked him in weakness. I miss him and for the life of me I couldn’t figure out why. Nowadays, whenever something happens, the first person who comes to my mind is him. I think about him at the oddest time and would wonder what his response would be when I told him something that’s been going on in my life.

“I did. We met yesterday for drinks. Poor guy, he’s completely indulged himself in his work. When he got s**t drink, he confessed that he thinks about you a lot and he misses you”, He said feeling bad for his friend.

My heart rocketed listening to him. I’m glad that I’m not the only one going through that alone, even he misses me.

“And don’t tell him that I told you, he’ll kill me” I chuckled at his words.

“I won’t. Look, I need time. My exams are coming up, I need to concentrate on them. Every day I think about him, I get a bit of a clear mind. This is a huge decision for me. Whatever decision I make will affect three people's lives. I can’t make a hasty decision. Sometimes, when I think about all this, I feel like a fool just to even consider it, but then I feel like what a life without a little risk. I don’t know. I’m all confused. I’ll contact him once my exams are over. I just want to figure out if this is mere infatuation or this might lead to something” I said, whatever I was feeling these days. Some days I miss him and feel like talking to him and some days I imagine my life with him and the baby and it looks so good, but then some days I feel so stupid to even consider this. I doubt if I could handle all the responsibilities. I know if I say no to Aayush, then one year to two tops before my parents marry me off and the thought of marrying someone else doesn’t fit well with me.

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“Urghhh, my neck hurts” I slurred out, soothing down my cramped muscles in my nape.

“You have had your nose stuck in your books since yesterday, what do you expect?” Maya said, shaking her head. We have just finished our final exams. Today was our last exam.

Since send off, we had study holidays and we utilised the whole time to study our best like this will be the last time we take an exam and gave our 100 percent. Mostly, I wanted to keep my mind occupied from thinking about you-know-who.

“Hey! I aced the exam, that’s what counts” I said, smirking at her.

“You sure you can beat Cassie this time?” Arshi asked, packing her bag.

“ Of course I’m sure. After what I did to her on send off day, you really think she’ll think about repeating the same thing” I said, shrugging at that evil b***h’s actions.

“Yeah I know, poor girl, she got humiliated in front of the whole college” I could hear from her tone that Arshi felt genuinely bad for her.

“Posh-posh, she had it coming. The way she talked to Anu in front of the professors was so demeaning”, Maya said, sneering.

“I mean, it was not demeaning-“

“Babe, I know how hurt you were” Maya tried to smother me, putting her hand around my neck.

“Leave me before you strangle me” I said, struggling to get out of her hold.

“And the look on her face was worth every struggle we went through that night” Maya laughed out loud.

I knew I had promised my dad that I would stay out of trouble and I maintained that promise for this long, but that day Cassie crossed the line. She implied that I flirted with other professors to get my grades, which she does, and she questioned my character in front of everyone and played it off as a joke. That b***h. Earlier, Maya and I had a plan to recreate the scene from Carrie movie and dump a whole bucket of pig's blood on her on stage, but Arshi screeched and stopped us, saying that’s too wrong and it shouldn’t happen to any human. Also, if they figured out we did it, then we would get into trouble and I wanted to finish college without getting suspended. So, Maya and I dropped our plan. But at noon on the send off day, that b***h tried to undermine me in front of the lectures and started making fun of me and spewing some bullshit that was not even true. My blood pressure increased and Arshi also got enraged after listening to her. She also joined in on the impromptu plan to teach her a lesson but when I came up with a plan to mess with her saree, wearing which she was about to perform to a classic song, Arshi got scared. We knew once we came up with our devious plan, Arshi would feel bad for her, so we excluded her. Maya and I went backstage and did the most irritating thing possible, that was being nice to Cassie. We acted like her posies, we complimented her, which was the hardest. And we even hugged her. The circus we did to mess with her saree was a Herculean task. We even thought it wouldn’t work, but when she came on the stage and started dancing, her saree pulled out of her shorts and it was visible to the whole college. She was so involved in the dance that she needed a few seconds to actually even realise her saree mishap. I laughed out loud and all the backbenchers joined me.

As soon as she realised it, she collected her saree and ran from there. Maya caught the whole thing on camera. How can we miss that opportunity?

Later that night, we blackmailed her, that if we ever see her flirting or doing inappropriate things with any professors for grades then this video will go viral on all social media and she will be a laughing stock. She was mortified to learn that we knew about her rendezvous with the professors and nodded yes, looking like she saw a ghost. She begged not to post it anywhere, to which we agreed. If she acts like a good girl, then we won’t, if not the whole world will see her viral video. Who knows she might get famous as that girl whose saree got loose while dancing at a college fest.

“Now she knows her place, let it go, come on. Anil said he would meet us near the parking lot and we could party at our apartment”, Arshi said, getting excited. I smirked, looking at her face.

“Arshi, are you getting excited about the party or that Anil will be partying with us?” I asked, winking at Maya, who smiled.

“Both. I did say that he is coming to our apartment to party with us, right?” She asked, confused. Maya and I shared a look and chuckled.

Arshi is hopeless.

“Lets go, find Anil” Maya said as we went down the stairs. Since our college is near our apartment, we don’t need any kind of transportation. As we entered the parking lot, I started searching for Anil’s car.

“Anu, is that who I think it is?” Maya asked, confused, pointing to our left.

I turned to see who it was and when I did my whole world stopped.

Aayush.

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He smiled when he saw me looking at him. He stood there leaning against his car, which was a BMW. Cue my inner squeal. I have a huge thing for cars. Everyone around, especially girls, is looking at him like he’s some kind of a celebrity. I just stood there rooted to my place, unable to move. He’s here. He’s really here. Oh, how many times I wanted to ask Akshay for his number and call him. I missed his voice. It’s so soothing.

“Anu, what are you thinking about? Look at that Cassie, she's is talking to him” Arshi shook me out of my trance.

What the f**k!!

“Let’s go”, I told my friends before walking towards him. He looked confused about what Cassie was telling him and he looked extremely uncomfortable. That’s what she does, that’s her forte.

I’m 100% sure she’s flirting with him. Knowing her and her looks, I don’t have a single doubt in my mind. The thought of flirting with him and making advances towards him makes my blood rush. How dare she? He’s completely off limits. Sure, he’s hot and you can’t blame a girl for trying, but this green-eyed monster in me wants to claw her eyes out for looking at him like he’s a piece of meat.

He looked behind her face to see me marching towards him and I could see the relief in his face. That b***h needs to simmer down.

“Have you tried modelling? You are just perfect for that job”, I heard Cassie tell him in a flirty, high-pitched voice making me want to vomit real hard.

“Umm, I have not” he said distractedly, and turned towards me as I appeared right beside her.

“Hey”, he said with a grin as soon as he saw me.

I couldn’t help but smile. His smile is infectious.

“Hey you” I said, smiling like a goggly-eyed high schooler. Maya cleared her throat to get my attention. I turned towards her, she glanced her eyes towards Cassie. Right, evil eye.

“Do you know him?” She asked before I could say anything.

“I do, but I thought you learnt your lesson after the college send-off, but it looks like you haven’t” I said, wrapping my arms around my chest and giving her a mean stare.

“Wha- what did I do?” She started stuttering.

“Leave the poor guy alone, it’s clear as day that he’s uncomfortable talking to you. Take a hint” I said, glaring at her.

“You - you” she came forward, gritting her teeth.

“AH-uh-ah” I said, lifting my phone. She paled at that.

Adjusting her attire, she gave me a hard smile.

“Whatever” her last words before she walked away with her tail between her legs.

“That’s more like it” I said, glaring at her back.

“Let her be” Maya said, keeping her hand on my arm.

“What is happening?” Aayush looked very confused.

“Nothing” I said, shaking my head, bringing myself into a good mood.

“What are you doing here?” I asked him with a sweet smile.

“I came to Pune on a project work. I’m going back tomorrow so I thought I could meet you before I go”, He said, sheepishly, scratching his neck. Aww, he’s embarrassed.

“That’s great.” I could barely stop myself from smiling like crazy.

“It is?” He asked to make sure.

“Yes” I said, nodding my head.

“Oh my god” I heard Maya exasperate a sigh.

“Hi Aayush, I’m Maya and this is Arshi. We are Anu’s best friends, who I’m sure she has not mentioned”. Maya introduced herself as I smiled with a tight lip. It was awkward. I even forgot they were here for a second.

“Oh so sorry. Hey” he said, leaning his arm forward to shake her hand, which she took happily. He did the same to Arshi, who blushed a little when he said her headband was cute.

Cute, my butt.

He didn’t compliment my hair.

“Can we go have a cup of coffee? You guys should join us please”. He politely invited them too. That’s sweet, but that’s not gonna happen.

“No, it’s fine. You guys want to spend some time together. What will we both do over there?” Arshi said no to him in just as polite way.

“Do you have dinner plans?” I asked him, stopping their chatter.

“Ummm, no” He shook his head.

“Great. Since I don’t drink coffee. Why not we go to our apartment so that I can change and then go for dinner?” I said cutely, hoping he would agree.

He’s lips turned into a full blown smile.

“That sounds like a good plan” he agreed. Yay.

“Then what are we waiting for, let’s go” I said, moving towards his passenger seat.

“Yeah, yeah” he said, getting out of his initial shock state and opened the back seat door for Arshi and Maya. I’m sure they are swooning over him now. Even I am, I like a guy who respects me but love a guy who respects my friends along with me. These small, small things matter.

Oh my god. The interior of this car is amazing. I always loved BMW cars more than Audi. Akshay has an Audi and I give him a hard time every time I get into his car. I couldn’t stop touching the dashboard and when Aayush saw me staring at his car in aww, he chuckled.

“You like the car?” He asked, starting the car.

“Like? Dude, I love this car” I said, messing with his music system.

“You mind?” I asked just for formalities, pointing towards his music system.

“Nope, go on”, he said, giving me a small smile.

Maya and Arshi sat at the back of the car in silence and didn’t speak much.

There were a few songs, but I chose Locked away by R City and Adam Levine. I just love that song.

Humming to the song, I gave him directions to our apartment. Since it was near, we arrived before the song ended. I told him to park inside itself as I’m gonna take my sweet time getting ready. It’s the last exam of my life. I mean an academic exam and I need to pamper myself.

“These apartments are really nice” he said as we made towards the lift.

“Yes, the maintenance of these apartments is really good. Our super is obsessed with Apartments” Arshi answered as we got inside the lift.

“My super is also the same. She cares about our apartment like it’s her kid. She hates when someone litters inside the premises” He said, smiling at Arshi and I swear I saw her cheeks go pink at his attention. This guy should be banned from talking to other girls.

We reached our floor and went to our apartment. Maya opened the door and Tommy came rushing from his apartment.

“Hiiii baby” I said, bending down to pet him.

He barked, looking at Aayush and went to sniff him. Once he sniffed him thoroughly, he started rubbing himself on Aayush’s leg.

“Hey boy”, Aayush bent down to pat him. Tommy licked his hand and tried to jump. Aayush laughed out loud when Tommy licked his cheek.

My heart just couldn’t take it. Seeing him with a baby is one thing, but seeing him with a dog is something my heart can’t take. I love dogs. I’m obsessed with them.

When he lost interest, Tommy ran back to his apartment.

Aayush looked confused. I’m sure he was enjoying the love he gave.

“Don’t feel bad. That’s Tommy, he gets bored super fast”, I said, patting his shoulder in sympathy.

We entered our apartment.

“Nice place” he said, looking around.

“Yeah, we decorated it” I love what we have done to this place and it’s sad that we will be moving from here.

“Aayush, you can watch something till we freshen up, there’s water or beer in the fridge. Help yourself” Maya said, pointing at the remote at first.

“Thank you, where is Arshi?” He asked, confused.

“Oh, she ran to her room. She’s scared of Tommy”, Maya answered with a smile and went to her room.

Aayush nodded and turned towards me.

“Soo” he started.

“Don’t feel awkward. My friends are cool. I need to freshen up. It might take a while, but my friends will be back in a few minutes. Make yourself at home” I said, pointing towards the couch.

“Thanks” he said, rushing towards the fridge to get a bottle of water. I moved towards my room with a vibrant smile on my face.

Tonight is the night I’m going to tell him.

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