Evening settled quietly, and Momo returned home—this time carrying food from outside. As soon as she arrived, she went straight to freshen up. Afterward, she reheated the food, noticing that Aarshi still hadn't come out of her room, while Ayaan sat silently in the hall.
Momo glanced at him and asked gently, "Did you two have a fight?"
Ayaan shook his head lightly. "No, she must've fallen asleep again. We were just playing badminton."
Concerned, Momo walked to Aarshi's room. Finding the door closed, she knocked softly on the washroom door from inside and called out, "Dinner's ready, Aarshi. Come eat soon."
After quite a while, the door finally opened.
Aarshi stepped out.
Her eyes were red—painfully red—and swollen. It was evident she had cried a lot. Without saying much, she walked to the hall and sat down at the dining table. Momo served her food, but her motherly instincts had already caught what words had not.
"Aarshi… what happened? Is everything alright?" she asked softly.
Aarshi lowered her gaze and lied, "I'm having muscle cramps."
But her eyes betrayed her completely.
She barely ate a few bites before quietly returning to her room. Watching her leave, Momo's heart grew heavier. She, too, lost her appetite and soon followed Aarshi.
Meanwhile, Ayaan sat at the table, observing everything in silence. He wasn't hungry—he had already eaten noodles in the evening. Finishing just a little, he gathered the leftover food and dishes and placed them neatly in the kitchen.
Inside the room, Momo sat beside Aarshi, her voice filled with warmth and care. "Aarshi, is something wrong? If anything is making you uncomfortable, you can tell me. I will solve it. Even if it's about Ayaan, I'll stand by you."
Aarshi didn't want to tell her the truth—that she had been terrified after seeing Aditya. So she lied again, "My eyes have been hurting since morning."
Momo didn't believe her—not even a little—but she chose kindness over confrontation. Gently consoling her, she said, "We'll go to the doctor tomorrow morning."
Aarshi nodded silently and lay down. Momo stroked her hair softly before leaving the room to arrange a doctor's appointment.
A little while later, Ayaan came to her door. He knocked softly.
"Can I come in?"
Aarshi, recognizing his voice, sat up and replied, "Yes, come in."
He entered and looked at her calmly. "I know you lied to Momo. And if you don't want to share your problems with her, that's your choice. But if you don't even want to face or solve your own problems… then you're being unfair to yourself."
Aarshi remained silent.
Ayaan continued, his tone steady, "I don't know what happened between you and your friend because of Aditya. But one thing is clear—you're not at fault. If your friend's boyfriend left her because of you, then the fault isn't yours. It's hers—for not trusting you. And honestly… she's foolish for choosing someone like him in the first place."
Aarshi finally spoke, her voice low. "Shanaya will be very angry when she finds out that her ex left her because of her friend… and that her crush spends time with that same friend."
Ayaan frowned, confused. "Wait… say that again. I didn't understand."
Aarshi looked at him with tired eyes and said, "My friend Shanaya… she likes you."
Ayaan's face instantly twisted into a look of disbelief and discomfort. "What? Did you send her my picture?"
"No," Aarshi replied. "She already liked you before."
"Since when?"
"Since last year… August."
Ayaan was stunned. "When did she even see me?"
And then Aarshi told him everything—how Shanaya had seen him and slowly started liking him.
Ayaan asked quietly, "That means… you must've seen me too back then?"
Aarshi shook her head. "My glasses were broken at that time. I couldn't see you clearly."
Ayaan fell silent, overwhelmed by the unexpected turn of events.
After a moment, he said, "Then there's no need to tell her that you live with me."
Aarshi sighed. "Everyone will find out."
"How?"
"Aaditya."
Ayaan frowned. "But there's nothing between us."
Aarshi's voice carried both frustration and disgust. "He'll manipulate everyone. If things don't go his way, he'll spread lies about us."
"Who would even believe him?" Ayaan asked.
"Everyone," Aarshi replied firmly. "He's always been good at manipulation. He told Shanaya the same thing—that he and I liked each other. That's why she got upset with me. And this time… he'll involve you too."
Ayaan let out a small breath and said calmly, "Let him talk. That's all he can do. If people choose to believe him, that's their choice. It shouldn't matter to you. You know the truth. And you can explain it to your friend—if she's wise enough, she'll trust you."
He paused, then added softly, "As for me… I'll always stand by you. Even if you're wrong."
Aarshi looked at him, her heart finally at ease. His words settled her storm.
She whispered, "I wish you could always stay with me… to protect me."
Ayaan gave a faint, reassuring smile. "I'm always with you. And I always will be."
For the first time that night, Aarshi felt a sense of calm. His words didn't feel wrong—they felt right.
And in that quiet moment, she made a decision.
She would avoid Aditya.
Ayaan said softly, "You should sleep now… you must be really tired after crying so much."
Aarshi shook her head and replied, "I already slept in the afternoon. I'm not sleepy at all now."
Hearing this, Ayaan sighed internally, thinking, Great… now she's going to keep me awake the whole night. Still, without showing it, he said kindly, "If you feel bored, you can talk to me anytime. I'll be there for you."
Aarshi smiled faintly. "Actually, I am getting bored… and you'll stay with me, right?"
Ayaan raised an eyebrow. "Why only me? What about Momo?"
Aarshi shrugged. "She must be tired after work."
Just then, as if on cue, Momo appeared at the door and said cheerfully, "I'm totally fine! I can play with you guys."
Ayaan felt a wave of helplessness wash over him. Now I'm stuck between two girls, he thought.
Aarshi's mood had already improved. She clapped her hands and said, "Let's play a game!"
Momo agreed happily, and they decided to play cards. But every single time, Momo kept winning, which slowly made the game frustrating and boring.
So Aarshi switched on the TV and played music. Ayaan even turned on the party lights. Soon, Aarshi and Momo were dancing freely, as if they were at a karaoke party.
Ayaan, however, sat quietly to the side, watching them. Being the only guy between two girls, he couldn't quite match their energy, so he stayed still.
Suddenly, Aarshi came over, grabbed his hand, and pulled him up. "Come on, you have to dance too!"
Ayaan refused at first, but Aarshi kept insisting. Eventually, he gave in and joined Momo in dancing.
The music stayed loud all night, and the three of them danced endlessly until, by morning, they were completely exhausted. Since it was Sunday, Momo didn't have to go to work, so they all slept through the morning and only woke up in the afternoon.
Their bodies ached from all the dancing. Still half-asleep, they gathered in the hall, had breakfast, and went to freshen up.
Since it was Sunday, both Aarshi and Momo washed their hair and returned to the hall after getting ready. Meanwhile, Ayaan was already cleaning up the mess from the night before—the party had left everything scattered.
When Aarshi and Momo joined him, they helped out, and the work got done quickly.
After that, Ayaan started heading upstairs. Aarshi suddenly asked, "Hey, where's the puzzle we made that day?"
"It's in my room," Ayaan replied.
"I want to see it."
"Then come upstairs and take a look."
"Okay."
Ayaan went up, and Aarshi followed him. He led her into his room, where the puzzle was neatly arranged on his study table.
Aarshi's face lit up. "It's so cute! Look at the rabbit's teeth… I didn't even notice this that night."
Ayaan stepped out to the balcony to water the plants and take care of them.
Meanwhile, Aarshi kept admiring the puzzle. Suddenly, she got an idea—she would take it downstairs and show it to Momo.
She carefully picked up the flat base holding the puzzle… but the moment she lifted it, the arrangement broke apart. Pieces scattered everywhere—some even slid under the bed.
Her heart dropped.
Ayaan had worked so hard on it, staying up late.
Panicking, she quickly placed the base back on the table and began gathering the pieces. She bent down, picking them up from under the table and floor.
At that moment, Ayaan quietly entered the room and went to his cupboard. Aarshi couldn't see him because she was crouched under the table—and she didn't make a sound, afraid he would notice the mess.
After a moment, Ayaan left again. Aarshi didn't even realize why he had come in.
Once he was gone, she hurriedly collected all the pieces from the floor, under the bed, and around the room. Then she began reassembling the puzzle.
Since she had helped build it before, it was easier—but it still took time.
Finally, she completed almost everything… but one piece was missing.
Her panic returned.
She searched everywhere—under the table, near the cupboard, on the bed. Finally, she spotted it under the bed.
Without hesitation, she lay flat on the floor and stretched her arm underneath, struggling to reach it. After a lot of effort, she finally grabbed the missing piece.
Relieved, she stood up—
And froze.
Right in front of her, near the door, stood Ayaan. He had just come out of the shower and was wearing only trousers. His back was turned, and it was obvious he had just bathed. He was taking out a T-shirt from the cupboard.
Aarshi's mind went completely blank.
As Ayaan turned around with the shirt in his hand, he suddenly saw Aarshi standing there.
For a split second, both of them froze—
Then Aarshi screamed.
Startled, Ayaan screamed too.
Aarshi, completely flustered, ran out of the room.
Outside, her thoughts spiraled. What just happened? What will I say now? Why was I even in his room for so long? He's definitely going to misunderstand me…
She grew more and more anxious.
Inside the room, Ayaan was equally shaken. A girl just saw me like that… He felt deeply embarrassed and immediately blamed himself. Why did I even come out of the bathroom without a shirt? I should've been more careful…
Hearing the noise, Momo rushed upstairs and found Aarshi standing outside the room, trembling, her cheeks flushed red.
"What happened? Why did you scream?" Momo asked.
Terrified, Aarshi told her everything, hoping Momo would defend her.
Momo listened and then calmly said, "It's not that big of a deal. He won't mind."
"But he'll think wrong about me," Aarshi insisted.
Momo shook her head. "Right now, he's probably blaming himself. He won't think badly about you."
And she was right.
Momo took Aarshi downstairs.
Upstairs, Ayaan sat in his room, still overwhelmed with embarrassment. Even though he had just taken a shower, his face turned red again, and he began sweating from nervousness.
He kept thinking, What must Aarshi think of me now? She'll think I'm such a weird guy…
Meanwhile, Aarshi blamed herself too.
But somewhere in her mind, an image had been imprinted—the sight of Ayaan standing there.
And a strange thought crossed her mind.
His body… it looked so good… like a K-drama actor. Whoever his girlfriend is… she'll be so lucky.