25-05-2026, 02:10 PM
Chapter 28— The Apology He Couldn’t Finish
Monday morning arrived without mercy.
Traffic screamed outside.
Office elevators opened and closed endlessly.
Coffee machines hissed.
People discussed deadlines as if the world had not quietly shifted over the weekend.
But for Karthik, everything felt wrong from the moment he entered the building.
---
He barely slept.
Every time he closed his eyes, fragments of the previous night returned: Divya laughing, Lokesh sitting calmly with that unreadable face, Shruthi pulling away, the silence afterward.
And worst of all—
his own behavior.
Not an accident.
Not fully.
That truth was what disturbed him most.
Alcohol had lowered restraint, yes.
But it hadn’t invented desire from nowhere.
That realization sat inside him like poison.
---
He entered the office earlier than usual hoping empty corridors would somehow reduce his anxiety.
Instead, the emptiness made it worse.
Because now he had nothing distracting him from his own thoughts.
---
He opened his laptop.
Closed it again.
Checked mails without reading them.
Tried drinking coffee.
Even that felt bitter.
---
More than fear of Lokesh, another fear kept eating at him.
Divya.
His sister.
If she ever understood fully what happened…
the disappointment in her eyes would destroy him faster than anger.
Ganesh too.
That man had welcomed everyone so warmly, trusted him blindly, treated him like family even in front of guests.
And he had repaid that night by turning the atmosphere ugly.
---
Karthik rubbed his face tiredly.
He wanted to explain.
Wanted to say: he wasn’t a predator, he wasn’t planning anything, he lost judgment, he got carried away emotionally.
But every explanation sounded pathetic inside his own head.
Because no explanation changed one fact:
Shruthi trusted him.
And he broke that trust.
---
Around nine-thirty, the office slowly became crowded.
Conversations returned.
Keyboard sounds filled the floor.
And then—
Shruthi walked in.
---
Karthik looked up instinctively.
She wore a pale blue cotton saree, hair tied neatly, expression calm.
Too calm.
For one terrible second he hoped maybe things could still be repaired quietly.
Then she looked at him.
One glance.
Cold.
Professional.
Nothing else.
And suddenly he understood: this wasn’t going to disappear.
---
“Morning,” he said softly as she passed.
Shruthi didn’t even stop walking.
“Hm.”
That single sound felt worse than shouting.
---
The entire morning became unbearable.
Normally, they would exchange: small comments, work jokes, casual questions, coffee breaks.
Today?
Nothing.
Only work.
Only distance.
Only silence sharp enough to cut through routine.
---
Around noon, Karthik finally couldn’t take it anymore.
He waited near the discussion room while Shruthi finished a client call.
When she stepped out holding files, he stood up immediately.
“Shruthi… one minute.”
She stopped.
Not because she wanted to.
Because ignoring him publicly would create attention.
---
“What?” she asked flatly.
Karthik swallowed hard.
“I need to talk to you.”
“I’m busy.”
“Please.”
Something in his voice carried genuine desperation.
Shruthi noticed it.
Still, her face didn’t soften.
---
The corridor nearby remained mostly empty.
Inside nearby cabins, muted office sounds continued normally while both of them stood trapped inside a completely different emotional reality.
Karthik struggled for words.
“I know what I did was wrong.”
Shruthi laughed once softly.
“Oh, now you know?”
The sarcasm hit immediately.
---
“I wasn’t thinking properly,” he continued quickly.
“I was drunk—”
“Don’t.”
Her tone sharpened instantly.
“Don’t insult me by using alcohol as excuse.”
Karthik stopped mid-sentence.
Because honestly?
She was right.
---
He looked down briefly before speaking again.
“I never wanted to disrespect you.”
That finally made Shruthi angry.
Properly angry.
---
“You already did.”
The sentence came fast.
Controlled.
But filled with humiliation she had been suppressing since that night.
---
Karthik looked helpless now.
“I’m trying to apologize.”
“You should’ve tried behaving properly first.”
People passing nearby slowed slightly sensing tension.
Shruthi noticed immediately and lowered her voice.
But her anger only became sharper because of it.
---
“You know what the worst part is?” she asked quietly.
“I trusted you enough to never even imagine something like this.”
Karthik closed his eyes briefly.
Every word hit exactly where guilt already existed.
---
“You stood there watching me like…” she stopped herself again, disgust flashing across her face briefly.
Then:
“And afterward I had to stop my husband from turning everything into a disaster.”
Karthik looked up immediately.
“I never wanted problems between you both.”
Shruthi stared at him in disbelief.
“You think this is about your intentions?”
Silence.
---
“You don’t get to behave however you want and then act wounded because consequences came.”
The words landed hard.
Because they were true.
And Karthik knew it.
---
He tried again softly.
“I genuinely care about you.”
Wrong sentence.
The moment it left his mouth, Shruthi’s expression changed completely.
Not hurt.
Not emotional.
Offended.
---
“Don’t say things like that to me now.”
Karthik froze.
“You lost the right.”
The humiliation in her voice finally cut through his guilt and touched something else inside him.
Pride.
Anger.
Defensiveness.
---
“I said I’m sorry,” he muttered.
“And I heard you.”
“Then what else do you want me to do?”
That line changed the atmosphere immediately.
Shruthi looked at him slowly.
Because there it was.
The hidden frustration underneath guilt.
The part of him that still wanted understanding.
---
“What do I want?” she repeated quietly.
“I want the friendship I thought was real.”
Silence.
“And now every memory feels fake.”
That hit harder than any insult.
---
Karthik’s jaw tightened now.
“That’s unfair.”
Shruthi almost laughed.
“Unfair?”
“I made one mistake—”
“One?”
Her eyes sharpened immediately.
“You think this started only that night?”
Karthik went silent.
Because deep down, both of them knew it hadn’t.
There had been: lingering looks, emotional dependence, small boundaries quietly bending over time.
Neither acknowledged it earlier.
Now it stood exposed between them.
---
For a moment neither spoke.
Then Shruthi stepped back slightly.
“You know what humiliates me most?”
Karthik looked at her.
“I defended the situation more than I defended myself.”
Her voice broke slightly there—not emotionally weak, but deeply disappointed in herself.
“I stood there trying to save dignity for everyone… while you made me look like a fool.”
---
That finally shattered whatever remained of Karthik’s composure.
Because hearing anger was one thing.
Seeing disappointment in her was worse.
---
But instead of collapsing into guilt again, something harder rose inside him now.
A wounded anger.
Not at Shruthi entirely.
At himself. At the humiliation. At being reduced from trusted friend to disgusting mistake overnight.
---
“You’re acting like I’m some cheap creep now,” he said quietly.
Shruthi stared at him coldly.
“At that moment? You behaved like one.”
The sentence landed brutally.
Clean.
Final.
---
Karthik looked away immediately, jaw clenched tightly.
Because no apology he gave now would erase the fact that somewhere inside her—
respect had already cracked.
Monday morning arrived without mercy.
Traffic screamed outside.
Office elevators opened and closed endlessly.
Coffee machines hissed.
People discussed deadlines as if the world had not quietly shifted over the weekend.
But for Karthik, everything felt wrong from the moment he entered the building.
---
He barely slept.
Every time he closed his eyes, fragments of the previous night returned: Divya laughing, Lokesh sitting calmly with that unreadable face, Shruthi pulling away, the silence afterward.
And worst of all—
his own behavior.
Not an accident.
Not fully.
That truth was what disturbed him most.
Alcohol had lowered restraint, yes.
But it hadn’t invented desire from nowhere.
That realization sat inside him like poison.
---
He entered the office earlier than usual hoping empty corridors would somehow reduce his anxiety.
Instead, the emptiness made it worse.
Because now he had nothing distracting him from his own thoughts.
---
He opened his laptop.
Closed it again.
Checked mails without reading them.
Tried drinking coffee.
Even that felt bitter.
---
More than fear of Lokesh, another fear kept eating at him.
Divya.
His sister.
If she ever understood fully what happened…
the disappointment in her eyes would destroy him faster than anger.
Ganesh too.
That man had welcomed everyone so warmly, trusted him blindly, treated him like family even in front of guests.
And he had repaid that night by turning the atmosphere ugly.
---
Karthik rubbed his face tiredly.
He wanted to explain.
Wanted to say: he wasn’t a predator, he wasn’t planning anything, he lost judgment, he got carried away emotionally.
But every explanation sounded pathetic inside his own head.
Because no explanation changed one fact:
Shruthi trusted him.
And he broke that trust.
---
Around nine-thirty, the office slowly became crowded.
Conversations returned.
Keyboard sounds filled the floor.
And then—
Shruthi walked in.
---
Karthik looked up instinctively.
She wore a pale blue cotton saree, hair tied neatly, expression calm.
Too calm.
For one terrible second he hoped maybe things could still be repaired quietly.
Then she looked at him.
One glance.
Cold.
Professional.
Nothing else.
And suddenly he understood: this wasn’t going to disappear.
---
“Morning,” he said softly as she passed.
Shruthi didn’t even stop walking.
“Hm.”
That single sound felt worse than shouting.
---
The entire morning became unbearable.
Normally, they would exchange: small comments, work jokes, casual questions, coffee breaks.
Today?
Nothing.
Only work.
Only distance.
Only silence sharp enough to cut through routine.
---
Around noon, Karthik finally couldn’t take it anymore.
He waited near the discussion room while Shruthi finished a client call.
When she stepped out holding files, he stood up immediately.
“Shruthi… one minute.”
She stopped.
Not because she wanted to.
Because ignoring him publicly would create attention.
---
“What?” she asked flatly.
Karthik swallowed hard.
“I need to talk to you.”
“I’m busy.”
“Please.”
Something in his voice carried genuine desperation.
Shruthi noticed it.
Still, her face didn’t soften.
---
The corridor nearby remained mostly empty.
Inside nearby cabins, muted office sounds continued normally while both of them stood trapped inside a completely different emotional reality.
Karthik struggled for words.
“I know what I did was wrong.”
Shruthi laughed once softly.
“Oh, now you know?”
The sarcasm hit immediately.
---
“I wasn’t thinking properly,” he continued quickly.
“I was drunk—”
“Don’t.”
Her tone sharpened instantly.
“Don’t insult me by using alcohol as excuse.”
Karthik stopped mid-sentence.
Because honestly?
She was right.
---
He looked down briefly before speaking again.
“I never wanted to disrespect you.”
That finally made Shruthi angry.
Properly angry.
---
“You already did.”
The sentence came fast.
Controlled.
But filled with humiliation she had been suppressing since that night.
---
Karthik looked helpless now.
“I’m trying to apologize.”
“You should’ve tried behaving properly first.”
People passing nearby slowed slightly sensing tension.
Shruthi noticed immediately and lowered her voice.
But her anger only became sharper because of it.
---
“You know what the worst part is?” she asked quietly.
“I trusted you enough to never even imagine something like this.”
Karthik closed his eyes briefly.
Every word hit exactly where guilt already existed.
---
“You stood there watching me like…” she stopped herself again, disgust flashing across her face briefly.
Then:
“And afterward I had to stop my husband from turning everything into a disaster.”
Karthik looked up immediately.
“I never wanted problems between you both.”
Shruthi stared at him in disbelief.
“You think this is about your intentions?”
Silence.
---
“You don’t get to behave however you want and then act wounded because consequences came.”
The words landed hard.
Because they were true.
And Karthik knew it.
---
He tried again softly.
“I genuinely care about you.”
Wrong sentence.
The moment it left his mouth, Shruthi’s expression changed completely.
Not hurt.
Not emotional.
Offended.
---
“Don’t say things like that to me now.”
Karthik froze.
“You lost the right.”
The humiliation in her voice finally cut through his guilt and touched something else inside him.
Pride.
Anger.
Defensiveness.
---
“I said I’m sorry,” he muttered.
“And I heard you.”
“Then what else do you want me to do?”
That line changed the atmosphere immediately.
Shruthi looked at him slowly.
Because there it was.
The hidden frustration underneath guilt.
The part of him that still wanted understanding.
---
“What do I want?” she repeated quietly.
“I want the friendship I thought was real.”
Silence.
“And now every memory feels fake.”
That hit harder than any insult.
---
Karthik’s jaw tightened now.
“That’s unfair.”
Shruthi almost laughed.
“Unfair?”
“I made one mistake—”
“One?”
Her eyes sharpened immediately.
“You think this started only that night?”
Karthik went silent.
Because deep down, both of them knew it hadn’t.
There had been: lingering looks, emotional dependence, small boundaries quietly bending over time.
Neither acknowledged it earlier.
Now it stood exposed between them.
---
For a moment neither spoke.
Then Shruthi stepped back slightly.
“You know what humiliates me most?”
Karthik looked at her.
“I defended the situation more than I defended myself.”
Her voice broke slightly there—not emotionally weak, but deeply disappointed in herself.
“I stood there trying to save dignity for everyone… while you made me look like a fool.”
---
That finally shattered whatever remained of Karthik’s composure.
Because hearing anger was one thing.
Seeing disappointment in her was worse.
---
But instead of collapsing into guilt again, something harder rose inside him now.
A wounded anger.
Not at Shruthi entirely.
At himself. At the humiliation. At being reduced from trusted friend to disgusting mistake overnight.
---
“You’re acting like I’m some cheap creep now,” he said quietly.
Shruthi stared at him coldly.
“At that moment? You behaved like one.”
The sentence landed brutally.
Clean.
Final.
---
Karthik looked away immediately, jaw clenched tightly.
Because no apology he gave now would erase the fact that somewhere inside her—
respect had already cracked.
-Pickup, drop, escape.
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