The realization hit Khanak so hard that she has to hold her stomach like it’s physically hurting her. Afraid of letting Rishav see the affect his actions on her, she gets up from the chair with fake cheerfulness when inside she is feeling really hurt.
“Should we leave now?” Khanak asks, taking her wallet out from the bag on her shoulder to pay her share. Before she could get the money out, Ankan shakes his head to stop her.
“Yea, we should leave” Ankan affirms and gets up from his chair and then grins at her “for India Gate”.
“No, we shouldn’t” Khanak refuses. She knows that his intention is good but she doesn’t want her friends to hang-out with her because they pity her.
“We totally should!”Ankan announces looking at Khanak and Rishav. Seeing Khanak shake her head in refusal, he starts explaining “Yeah, it hasn’t been long since Rishav and I have been there but it has been very long since all three of us have spent some fun time together. And I am not ready for this day to end just now” Ankan finishes, a pleading and apologetic look on his face, asking of her to understand. But she is in no mood to understand anyone or anything right now. Before Khanak could refuse again, this time firmly enough to not leave any ground for discussion, Rishav speaks up.
“If you, guys, want to go, go! I am not coming. I have to spend some time with my grandparents as they will leave after 3 days” Khanak acknowledge his response without looking at him or responding in any way but notices Ankan glaring at Rishav.
Ignoring Rishav, Khanak replies to Ankan “but you don’t need to”.
“You want to go there so we are going there” Ankan shakes his head stubbornly. This time his gaze fixed completely on her and she knows that the ‘we’ he is talking about doesn’t include Rishav. “And in these past years, there have been so many times that I didn’t want to do something but we still did those things because you wanted to” Ankan explanation only manages to make her more upset. Oh, as if realizing that her friends don’t want to spend time with her anymore isn’t bad enough that he is telling her that they didn’t ever want to spend time with her to begin with but they did it because they had to. As if knowing the direction, her mind in going to, he continues “because you are my best friend so you deserve the special treatment and these small compromises is nothing if it makes you happy, okay?” She couldn’t have refused no even if she wanted to and she doesn’t even want to anymore. “So, say yes?” Ankan demands, looking expectantly at her. And she finds herself giving a genuine smile and nodding her head excitedly in response.
When he sees the blush staining her cheeks, Ankan pinches them making her blush harder. “Okay, then let’s go” Ankan puts his arm around her and turns both of them toward the exit of restaurant, without giving her chance to even nod in acknowledgement at Rishav.
“Shit, we didn’t pay” Khanak reminds Ankan and Ankan turns back taking her with him as his arm is still around her. And Khanak gets to look at Rishav. He is looking exactly how she felt few minutes ago – lost! As if it’s a new world and he doesn’t know where to go… what to do. She would have thought she’d feel good to see him feeling as disoriented as she was feeling few minutes ago but all she is feeling is sadness at the growing distance between them.
“Since you are not coming with us, pay the bill please” Ankan requests and drop his arm from her shoulder to get the money out from his wallet. “This is Khanak’s and mine share” Ankan says, giving Rishav some money.
“No, I will pay mine!” Khanak looks down in her purse to take her wallet out but Ankan stops her by putting his arm back on her shoulder and pulling her closer.
“It’s my treat” When Khanak looks questioningly at Ankan on his offer, he whispers in her ear “Since I made you upset”. It was so soft that even though he was whispering into her, she had to strain her ear to listen to him. So, she was sure that Rishav hasn’t heard him and she was glad for that as she wouldn’t have wanted him to know how much his actions and what he has said have hurt her.
Ankan turns her once again toward the exit and they leave the restaurant without looking back at Rishav.
###
“Whatever you want to do today, it’s my treat!” Ankan offers while driving.
“You don’t need to do that Ankan. I am good, now” Khanak assures him, amused by his attempts at compensating for what he did.
“I know, I don’t need to but I want to. And you aren’t just good… you are the best!” Ankan complements with a mischievous smile making her giggle.
“Flattery will get you everywhere!” She quotes smiling at him. “And since you didn’t listen to my subtle warning, I am going to buy everything – ice-cream, bhel-puri, those ridiculous hats and those floral tiaras” Khanak tells him the list of things she has planned to buy.
“Whatever you want!” Ankan replies, smiling at her excitement. But next moment her sobers up and she knows that he is going to apologize again. “I am sorry for…”
“Don’t apologize” She interrupts him. “Just tell me why you lied” Her voice filled with the hurt she felt. Not to let him show any more emotion, she turns her back to him and looks out from the window.
Both of them didn’t need to lie to her, they are best-friends. And that’s the thing that poking her the most. “I didn’t lie” This got her attention enough to make her turn back to face him. “After I got your message, we discussed and decided that the assignment is important. And I messaged you that. Then some of his hostel-mates came and kept pestering us to come out with them so we agreed. And when I talked to you later that night on the phone you were already so sad that all three of us are unable to spend time with each other, I didn’t have the heart to tell you the truth” She can hear the seriousness in his voice but instead of calming her down his explanation made her more angry.
“So, the assignment was not even important because had it been important, you wouldn’t have gone. No matter how much anyone pestered you. And you told me that you guys needed to do it” Khanak speaks, air quoting ‘needed’ while looking straight into his eyes. And that’s why she saw the panic growing in them.
“It was important but we didn’t need to do it that day, we had 2 more days. And that’s why When Rishav insisted to do the assignment that day only and not go out with you, I was confused!” Khanak gasps loudly at what Ankan has just said.
“Rishav insisted?!” The hoarseness in her voice made Ankan realize what truth he has just unfolded. Khanak hears him cursing himself.
“It isn’t like that, Khanak! Maybe he had other things to do on the remaining days” Ankan tries to handle the matter but it was too late. The genie was out of the lamp.
Khanak turns back to her side of window. Just yesterday she would have easily believed that Rishav really had other things to do on remaining days but the way he has behaved today, her mind is leaning more toward the implication that he didn’t want to spend time with her for whatever reason.
Ankan sighs and curses himself once again for ruining her mood. “Khanak…” Before Ankan could continue, his phone rings surprising both of them. Ankan sees the caller’s name and lets out an irritated groan. Khanak turns to see that who could have gotten this reaction out of him and snorts humourlesly. Talk of the devil and here he comes.
“please pick it up and put it on speaker” Ankan requests, gesturing to his hand and implying that he is driving so he can’t pick up the call.
Khanak huffs out loudly and picks up the call, and puts it on speaker, taking turn to glare at Ankan and phone.
“Hello…” Ankan greets hesitantly.
“Where are you guys? I am also coming” Rishav announces and all Khanak could manage, is a painful and humorless chuckle as reply to his announcement.