The evening after the first meeting was quiet.
Aarya sat on the edge of her bed, her phone resting next to her, untouched. Messages from friends blinked in, asking how it went, but she didn't feel like replying. Her thoughts were still in that drawing room. Still at that moment when Riyansh had looked at her—not in judgment, not with curiosity—but something softer. Like he was trying to understand her without asking too much.
Downstairs, her parents were discussing things with his family over the phone. It was too soon, Aarya thought. Too soon to say yes. Too soon to say no.
There was a knock on her door.
"Aarya?" Her mother stepped in.
She nodded.
"Everything okay?"
Aarya gave a small smile. "Just thinking."
Her mother came and sat beside her. "I know it's overwhelming. But we won't rush anything, okay? Not until you're ready."
Aarya nodded again. But the truth was… she didn't know if she'd ever be "ready."
---
On the other side of town, Riyansh stared at the glass of water in his hand. His father had just asked him what he thought of Aarya.
"She's… different," he had said earlier.
Not a word usually used to describe someone in these meetings.
"What does that mean?" his father had asked, concerned.
"It means she doesn't pretend," Riyansh had replied.
Now, alone in his room, he kept playing the moments in his head. Aarya's calm voice, her steady gaze, her silence that didn't feel cold.
She hadn't tried to impress anyone. She hadn't smiled more than necessary. But she had been real.
And that? That mattered.
---
The next morning, Riyansh's mother called Aarya's mother. The talk was polite, warm.
"We're not in a hurry," Riyansh's mother said. "But if the children want to meet again… maybe just the two of them?"
Aarya overheard the call. Her heart skipped a beat.
When her mother asked her gently, "Would you be okay meeting him for coffee, just once, alone?" she didn't know what to say.
"I think it's better than deciding like this," her mother added. "At least talk freely. No pressure."
And so it was decided.
---
That weekend, they met at a quiet café near a park. No parents. No siblings. Just them.
Aarya arrived first. She sat near the window, ordered water, and kept her hands folded on the table. She told herself not to expect anything. Not to be nervous.
Riyansh walked in five minutes later. He wasn't in formal clothes this time. Simple jeans, a light blue shirt, a small smile on his face.
"Hi," he said, taking the seat opposite hers.
"Hi," she replied.
There was a pause.
Then they both laughed—softly, awkwardly.
"I guess this is supposed to be the part where we get to know each other," Riyansh said.
"Or pretend we're not being watched," Aarya added, glancing at the old couple nearby who were clearly trying not to eavesdrop.
Another chuckle.
"Okay," Riyansh said, settling in. "Let's start with the basics. You first. What makes you happy?"
The question surprised her. It wasn't "What do you do?" or "What are your hobbies?"
She thought for a second.
"Books… quiet mornings… rain. When things feel calm, I guess."
He nodded. "Me too. Except I'd add music. And weirdly, long drives at night. Alone."
Aarya raised an eyebrow. "Not with friends?"
He shook his head. "Sometimes people drain me. Silence recharges me."
They looked at each other—understanding, not judging.
"I thought I'd feel more pressure meeting you like this," Aarya said after a while.
"I thought you'd pretend to like me," Riyansh replied.
She blinked. "You think I don't?"
"I think you don't pretend. That's all."
A faint smile touched her lips. "Good guess."
---
As they left the café an hour later, Aarya was still unsure about the future. But something inside her had softened.
Not because Riyansh was perfect.
But because he hadn't tried to be.
He had just… shown up.
And sometimes, that's where something begins.