25-06-2025, 02:15 AM
Finally, Varnika spoke
Her voice low, but clear. “I’ve booked a cab for this evening. I’m going to stay with Chinni aunty and family for a few days.”
That was it.
No explanation. No apology. No anger.
But Meghana heard it all in the tone.
She nodded slowly. “Okay… is this because of yesterday morning?”
Varnika’s laugh was short, not cruel, just dry. “What do you think?”
Meghana’s chest tightened. “I didn’t mean for you to walk in like that. We didn’t plan it. I should’ve...”
“It’s not about what you planned,” Varnika interrupted.
Her tone sharpened, though her volume stayed low. “It’s about what you already knew was happening. And you didn’t think I deserved to know.”
Meghana inhaled. “You asked me when you arrived if there was anything between us. I said no, because… at that time, there wasn’t. I didn’t lie to you.”
Varnika turned to face her now, eyes steady, jaw tight. “Maybe not then. But things changed. And you didn’t tell me.”
There it was.
The hurt beneath the control.
A quiet wound, not screaming, just aching.
Meghana stepped closer. “I didn’t know how. Or when. I didn’t want to make it weird.”
“It was already weird,” Varnika said, her voice dropping to a whisper. “It was already something. I could feel it.”
Silence stretched.
Meghana’s voice softened. “So you did mind?”
A long pause.
Varnika blinked slowly, as if deciding whether to lie.
Finally, she said, “I didn’t think I did. But I guess… watching it happen right in front of me, like I wasn’t even in the room, yeah. I minded.”
She looked away. “I didn’t like that I minded. I didn’t expect it. And I didn’t want to.”
The air between them trembled.
“I just need space,” Varnika said, almost gently now. “To clear my head. To… remind myself I’m not some silly girl getting caught in things she doesn’t understand.”
“You’re not silly,” Meghana said quickly. “You’re not.”
Varnika met her gaze again. “Then let me go. Without trying to fix this today.”
Meghana’s lips parted, then closed. She nodded.
“You’ll tell Abhi?” she asked quietly.
Varnika shrugged. “I’ll stop by. Not for long.”
She turned toward her room, but then paused.
“And for what it’s worth,” she said, glancing back, “you didn’t do anything wrong. But that doesn’t mean I didn’t get hurt.”
Then she walked back inside and shut the door behind her.
---
Her voice low, but clear. “I’ve booked a cab for this evening. I’m going to stay with Chinni aunty and family for a few days.”
That was it.
No explanation. No apology. No anger.
But Meghana heard it all in the tone.
She nodded slowly. “Okay… is this because of yesterday morning?”
Varnika’s laugh was short, not cruel, just dry. “What do you think?”
Meghana’s chest tightened. “I didn’t mean for you to walk in like that. We didn’t plan it. I should’ve...”
“It’s not about what you planned,” Varnika interrupted.
Her tone sharpened, though her volume stayed low. “It’s about what you already knew was happening. And you didn’t think I deserved to know.”
Meghana inhaled. “You asked me when you arrived if there was anything between us. I said no, because… at that time, there wasn’t. I didn’t lie to you.”
Varnika turned to face her now, eyes steady, jaw tight. “Maybe not then. But things changed. And you didn’t tell me.”
There it was.
The hurt beneath the control.
A quiet wound, not screaming, just aching.
Meghana stepped closer. “I didn’t know how. Or when. I didn’t want to make it weird.”
“It was already weird,” Varnika said, her voice dropping to a whisper. “It was already something. I could feel it.”
Silence stretched.
Meghana’s voice softened. “So you did mind?”
A long pause.
Varnika blinked slowly, as if deciding whether to lie.
Finally, she said, “I didn’t think I did. But I guess… watching it happen right in front of me, like I wasn’t even in the room, yeah. I minded.”
She looked away. “I didn’t like that I minded. I didn’t expect it. And I didn’t want to.”
The air between them trembled.
“I just need space,” Varnika said, almost gently now. “To clear my head. To… remind myself I’m not some silly girl getting caught in things she doesn’t understand.”
“You’re not silly,” Meghana said quickly. “You’re not.”
Varnika met her gaze again. “Then let me go. Without trying to fix this today.”
Meghana’s lips parted, then closed. She nodded.
“You’ll tell Abhi?” she asked quietly.
Varnika shrugged. “I’ll stop by. Not for long.”
She turned toward her room, but then paused.
“And for what it’s worth,” she said, glancing back, “you didn’t do anything wrong. But that doesn’t mean I didn’t get hurt.”
Then she walked back inside and shut the door behind her.
---
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