AWAKENING

                                    

                                          

Kavya's POV
My mind was full of thoughts. The mere idea of being married to someone I hated filled me with anger. How could I have been so stupid not to recognize him?
"If you have 0.01% faith in what we have, you will have to give me a second chance." His words constantly roamed around in my mind. I felt disgusted that I had lived with him for so many days, especially after reading the dirt he had written in that letter. But he claimed he didn't write it. It was hard to believe he had, because he was a totally different person on and off the stage.
I needed to think this through. The only other person involved in all this was Viraj. I gulped down a good amount of water while staring at my computer screen; it was about lunchtime.
My phone buzzed, and I realized I had messaged Viraj to meet me at the same place. Initially, I just wanted to tell him to stay away from me, but now I was curious to know if he had anything to do with the whole scene since he was the one who handed me that paper. If he wanted, he could have changed it.
I went to the café nearby, the same café where Aaryan and I had lunch the other day. I entered and adjusted my purse, looking around, but I couldn't find Viraj. Disappointment washed over me.
Then I heard a voice from behind. "Kavya!" When I turned around, I was enveloped in a hug. My eyes widened in surprise, and I almost pushed him away, distancing myself.
"What is wrong?" he laughed.
"Nothing. Can we sit?" I looked around and settled at one of the tables.
"So, what did you want to talk about?" he asked. "I knew you would miss me and set up another meet. What we had was very special," he said.
"I am married." I showed him my ring and gave a sarcastic smile.
"I wonder what you saw in him, because he is totally not your type," he continued, testing me. I was boiling inside, just wanting to get rid of him already.
"Let's not talk about him." I stopped him from asking more questions, trying to keep my composure.
I softened my tone a bit. "Do you know what I hate? Lies, right?"
"I know that very well. I know you inside out. We were best friends, remember?" He laughed.
"You know I was just tense. I had a fight with my husband and wanted to spend some time with an old friend," I said, placing my hand on my forehead as tension spread across my face.
His interest doubled in the conversation. "What did he do? You can tell me; I'm all ears."
"Yeah, I know. We don't need to talk about him; let's just talk about us." I said, and he leaned forward a bit, a big smile spreading across his face.
"We used to always eat ice cream on the weekends; do you remember?" I laughed.
"Oh yeah, you liked vanilla the most, which is like the boring flavor of all time!" He was totally immersed in the past memory. We were responding quickly, back and forth, and it was the right time to pull the lever.
I continued laughing. "And do you remember the day that guy gave me the letter? To be my friend? I mean, what was he thinking? Ha ha!"
He laughed back. "You should have seen his face; he should have known his place. Ha ha! I thought you were serious about this issue, but now that you're laughing about it, let me tell you something: it was my mischief. The poor guy wrote something else in the letter, and I changed it."
A wave of nausea hit me. My heart raced, pounding in my chest as anger bubbled beneath the surface. I could feel heat rising to my cheeks, and my hands clenched into fists under the table. How could he laugh about this? How could he so casually destroy someone's life?
I pushed my legs further into the floor, gathering all the strength I could muster. The pain and betrayal surged through me, and I felt like I was about to explode. With a surge of adrenaline, I stood up, my breath coming in quick bursts.
Without thinking, I raised my hand and smacked the sh*t out of his right cheek. The sharp sound echoed in the café, and silence fell over the patrons as they turned to stare.
"Do not show me your face again!" I screamed at him, my voice trembling with fury.
Everyone in the café stared at him as I turned my back and exited. I found myself in a nearby park, where it was mostly empty in the afternoon. I sat on a bench, unable to hold back my tears, crying out loud as I looked at the sky.
It still felt like a betrayal. He had been like a best friend to me at one time. The thought of him being capable of doing something so damaging, something that could ruin someone's entire life, left me feeling hollow. It felt like an empty garden, no one was beside me.
I gathered myself and went back to the office after freshening up. I also felt bad for Aaryan, the way I had behaved. I had hated the wrong person all along; he was the one I was supposed to love. I couldn't wait for the evening to come and make things right.
◈✦✷✦◈ End of Chapter ◈✦✷✦◈
Thank you for reading, I know the flow is bit intense in last few chapters, but there are more fun and masti going forward so stay tuned and don't forget to add star.