Aanya slowly walked toward Aryan, her heartbeat racing.
"Mr. Aryan…" she whispered.
He turned, his brows lifting slightly. "Yes?"
"I… I need to tell you something," she said, her voice shaky.
Aryan looked at her doubtfully. "What is it?"
"Not here," she said quickly. "Once… come with me."
Confused, Aryan followed as she led him to a quiet corner. She stopped, fidgeting with her fingers, her face tense.
"Well?" Aryan asked, tilting his head. "What do you want to tell me?"
Aanya opened her mouth, closed it, then opened it again. "Well… ha… Mr. Aryan, I need to tell you something."
Aryan's eyes narrowed in curiosity. "I know. You already said that earlier. But what is it?"
A nervous laugh escaped her lips. "Yeah… ha… I know I said that earlier… right… yeah…"
Aryan frowned, watching her strangely.
She stopped laughing abruptly. "Hmm… well… Mr. Aryan—"
"Are you alright?" he cut in, his voice calm but firm.
"Yes! I mean… yeah, I'm alright."
Aryan studied her face doubtfully, then sighed. "If you don't have anything to say, then—"
"I have!" she blurted, almost shouting.
He blinked at her. "…Well, what is it then?"
"I… I…"
"You…?" Aryan repeated, waiting.
"I…"
"Aanya," he said, folding his arms, "if you have nothing to say, then—"
"I have lost my ankle chain! Would you help me find it?" she blurted out in a rush.
Aryan froze, confused and shocked. Aanya's eyes widened as her brain caught up with her mouth. Wait… what did I just say?
"You… lost your ankle chain?" Aryan repeated slowly, his brows raised.
"Yes!" she replied nervously, forcing a smile.
"And you want me to find it?"
"Yeah… I mean… help me," she mumbled, biting her lip.
He stared at her, disbelief written all over his face. "So… for that… you called me into a corner to talk?"
Aanya's smile faltered. She frowned slightly, searching for words but finding none.
Here, Tara was waiting, her fingers fidgeting as she hoped Aanya had already confessed her feelings.
Just then, Meera and Nisha appeared, noticing Tara's unusual restlessness.
"What happened? Why are you looking so tense?" Meera asked curiously.
"And by the way," Nisha added, "where's Aanya? We haven't seen her for a while."
Tara smirked knowingly. "How can you see Aanya… while she's with Aryan?"
"With Aryan?" Meera blinked in surprise. "How do you even know she's with Aryan?"
Instead of answering, Tara chuckled, shaking her head as if she knew some big secret.
Nisha frowned, raising a brow. "What's wrong with you? We just asked how you know she's with Aryan, and you start laughing like that?"
Tara only smiled wider, her eyes twinkling with mischief, clearly enjoying holding back the truth.
With a sly smile, Tara whispered dramatically, "Because I'm the one who sent her… to propose to Aryan."
"What?!" Meera and Nisha gasped in unison.
"Aanya is… proposing to Aryan?" Meera's jaw dropped.
"Right now?!" Nisha squeaked.
"Yes," Tara grinned widely. "Right now only. Let's just wait and see."
---
Back at the corner, Aanya stammered nervously, "Mr. Aryan, I mean… that's my favorite ankle chain. It's… quite expensive. So… I want you to help me find it."
Aryan narrowed his eyes, still unconvinced. "You could have said that out there. What was the need to drag me into a corner?"
Aanya froze. She had no answer. "…Ha, Mr. Aryan, well… I mean… just…"
Her mind scrambled, so she blurted the first distraction she could think of: "By the way, Mr. Aryan… have you seen Rahul?"
Aryan's brows knitted together. "Rahul?" he repeated, his tone sharp.
Aanya nodded quickly. "Yes, Rahul. I think he knows."
Aryan's expression stiffened. "How would he know?" he asked seriously.
"Well, Mr. Aryan," Aanya replied innocently, "Rahul was with me all the time."
At that, Aryan's jaw tightened, and a faint spark of jealousy flickered in his eyes.
Aanya, pretending not to notice, went on, "My ankle chain has fallen, right? So maybe he found it." She glanced at Aryan, whose face had already darkened.
"He didn't find it," Aryan said flatly.
Aanya blinked, puzzled. "Mr. Aryan, how do you know that Rahul didn't find it?"
For a moment, Aryan froze, realizing he'd slipped. He quickly looked away, silent.
Aanya's lips curved into a mischievous smile. "Wait… did you find it?" she teased softly.
"No, I didn't," Aryan replied a little too quickly, trying to cover himself.
"Then how can you be so sure Rahul doesn't have it?" she asked, tilting her head, her eyes dancing with suppressed laughter.
Aryan paused, searching for words. "Well… today you were with me too. And… you also danced with me. So—"
"So?" Aanya leaned closer, raising her brows playfully.
"So… maybe it would have fallen there." His tone softened, almost like an excuse.
"Oh…" Aanya nodded slowly. "Yes, Mr. Aryan. You're right. Maybe it would have fallen there."
He gave a small nod, then added quickly, "So… you don't need to ask Rahul about it."
Noticing how possessive he sounded, Aanya bit back her laughter, her smile hidden behind her hand. "Okay, Mr. Aryan. I won't ask him."
Meanwhile, Tara was still waiting, pacing with excitement. Nisha and Meera stood beside her, equally impatient.
Suddenly, they spotted Aanya and Aryan walking back together.
"Look! Both of them are coming," Meera whispered.
Nisha's eyes widened. "See? Aanya is smiling!"
Meera clasped her hands. "That means Aryan said yes!"
"Yes!" Tara squealed, hugging them both. "Oh my God, my friend is finally in a relationship!"
Nisha jumped happily. "I'm so, so happy!"
"Thank you, God, thank you!" Meera said dramatically, almost like a prayer.
Tara clapped her hands and pointed. "Look, she's coming here!"
The three were super excited, practically glowing with joy. When Aanya noticed their faces, she smiled faintly and walked toward them.
Her friends stood silently, all smiling in unison, as if hiding a delicious secret.
"What happened?" Aanya asked curiously. "Why are you all looking so happy? Did something happen?"
Meera crossed her arms, pretending to act mysterious. "Hmm… not us. You are the one looking happy."
Aanya blinked, then chuckled lightly. "Yeah, well… I am happy."
Meera suddenly squealed, throwing her arms around Aanya. "Oh my God, oh my God, Aanya! I'm so happy for you!"
Aanya stiffened in shock. "O-okay, okay! But… why are you so happy?"
Tara beamed proudly. "Of course we're happy. We're your friends!"
Still confused, Aanya gave them a questioning look. "What are you all talking about?"
Nisha leaned forward eagerly. "Well, Aanya… how was it? I mean… what did he say? Did he directly say yes?"
Meera clasped her hands. "Yeah! I never thought you'd be so brave—you asked him directly! I'm so proud of you, girl!"
By hearing Aanya's eyebrows shot up.
Nisha's eyes sparkled. "Finally… your dream came true!"
Aanya's eyes darted between their excited faces, her confusion deepening. "W-what dream?"
Before she could think, Tara interrupted, tossing her hair dramatically. "Excuse me? Don't forget—because of me this all happened! If it wasn't for my guidance, would things have moved so quickly?"
Aanya stared at them, utterly lost. "What are you all talking about?"
Tara folded her arms, smirking knowingly. "Oh, Aanya… you don't have to hide it from us anymore. Just tell us everything."
"Yes!" Nisha chimed in. "Don't act like earlier, when you didn't admit you liked Aryan. Now it's official, right?"
Aanya waved her hands frantically. "Wait, wait! But we just talked, okay? There's nothing exciting to tell."
Tara raised a brow. "Talked? Aanya, it's not just talking—it was a proposal! Come on, tell us… what happened there?"
Aanya froze, stunned. "Proposal? But who… who proposed?"
Tara looked at her like she'd lost her mind. "Of course you did! Who else?"
Suddenly, everything replayed in Aanya's head—the nervous corner talk, her blurting about the ankle chain, Aryan's jealous looks. She swallowed hard, guilt flashing across her face.
"Actually…" she said nervously, turning to Tara. "I need to tell you something."
Tara narrowed her eyes, sensing something was wrong. "What?"
Aanya bit her lip. "I… I didn't propose to Mr. Aryan."
The three gasped in unison, their voices rising together.
"WHAT?!"
Tara's eyes widened as if she had just heard the biggest crime of the century.
"You didn't propose to him?!" she blurted, clutching her chest.
Aanya, suddenly nervous, stammered, "N-no…"
Tara froze, staring at her in utter disbelief.
"Wait, wait… what are you saying?" she asked, her tone a mix of shock and disappointment.
Nisha leaned in, curiosity burning in her eyes.
"Then what did you talk about with Mr. Aryan?"
Meera crossed her arms dramatically.
"Exactly! And why did you come back with that big smile on your face if nothing happened?"
---
End Of Chapter 42.