Falguni's POV:
Falguni:
"Okay, Why even message me? Out of everyone?"
Aarush:
"Because you looked like someone who needed to hear that her smile mattered."
Falguni:
...
"That's... strangely nice."
Aarush:
"Don't get used to it. I tease more than I compliment."
Falguni:
"Oh really? Let's hear it."
Aarush:
"That champagne silk dress yesterday? Honestly, you almost outshined the decorations-almost. Don't let it get to your head."
Falguni:
"Almost? You're really bad at compliments, you know that?"
Aarush:
"(Laugh emoji). You looked... like you. And that's what stood out."
Falguni:
"You're confusing. First smooth, then annoying, then... sweet."
Aarush:
"And yet, you're still replying."
Falguni:
"...Touché."
Falguni:
"You're too intense for a stranger."
Aarush:
"Then stop talking to me."
Falguni:
"...And miss out on free therapy? Not a chance."
Aarush:
"Haha. Fine. But only if you promise not to fall for me before the wedding cards are printed."
Falguni:
"😂 Who said anything about falling?"
Aarush:
"You'd be surprised how strings pull quietly-unspoken."
I don't know what to say...
Aarush:
"Okay, serious talk over. Let's start simple. Favorite food?"
Falguni:
"(chuckles) That's the first thing you ask? Fine. I love street food-pani puri, pav bhaji, all of it. What about you, Mr. Agriculture Student?"
Aarush:
"(laughs) Figures. Honestly? I could live on parathas forever. Especially aloo ones."
Falguni:
"So desi of you."
Aarush:
"Guilty as charged. Okay, next- movies or books?"
Falguni:
"Books. They let you escape quietly."
Aarush:
"I knew it. You've got that... "lost in her own world" vibe."
Falguni:
"And you?"
Aarush:
"Movies. Because I like seeing stories play out in front of me."
Falguni:
"Figures. You're the observer type."
Aarush:
"Touché. Okay, last one for today, where do you feel most at peace?"
Falguni:
"On the terrace at night. Quiet sky, no one around, just me."
Aarush:
"That's... nice. For me, it's the fields. The smell of soil after rain, crops swaying, it reminds me why I chose agriculture."
Falguni:
"(smiling at my screen) You're different, Aarush."
Aarush:
"Different good or different bad?"
Falguni:
"Different... intriguing."
Aarush:
"I'll take that."
Aarush:
"You know, it's past midnight. Most people sleep."
Falguni:
"Most people aren't me. Or you."
Aarush:
"Touché again. So tell me, what scares you the most?"
Falguni:
"You said that was the last one. This is cheating."
Aarush:
"(Sheepish smile) This is the last one, I swear."
Falguni:
"Hmm. Being misunderstood. Everyone sees the surface, no one sees the storm inside."
Aarush:
"That's... deep. But true."
Falguni:
"Your turn."
Aarush:
"For me? Losing purpose. Like, I chose agriculture because I wanted to do something real. But what if one day I realize it wasn't enough?"
Falguni:
"That's not a fear, Aarush. That's ambition disguised as fear."
Aarush:
"(smiles at screen) You make it sound better than it feels."
Falguni:
"Maybe I'm good at reframing things."
Aarush:
"Maybe. Or maybe you're just... different."
Falguni:
"There you go again, with your "different" words."
Aarush:
"Well, prove me wrong then. What makes you happiest?"
Falguni:
"The small things. Random laughter with my friends, smelling my favourite fragrances, finding an old song I'd forgotten. Or just sitting on the terrace, like I told you. Happiness feels quiet to me."
Aarush:
"Quiet happiness... I like that."
Falguni:
"And you?"
Aarush:
"When I see something grow. Not just crops, anything. A friendship. A dream. Even a simple idea. Watching it turn into something real. That's happiness."
Falguni:
"You sound like someone who values roots."
Aarush:
"And you sound like someone who values wings."
Falguni:
"(smiles softly) Maybe that's why this feels... balanced."
Aarush:
"Balanced?"
Falguni:
"Yeah. You, with your roots. Me, with my wings."
Aarush:
"Careful, Falguni. Words like that make it harder to stay strangers."
Falguni:
"Maybe we're not strangers anymore."
(a long pause, both just staring at their screens before typing again)
Aarush:
"So... do you ever wonder if destiny is just timing disguised as coincidence?"
Falguni:
"All the time. And right now, I'm wondering if you're part of that timing."
Aarush:
"(heart racing) Then maybe destiny isn't such a bad thing."
Night continues...
Aarush:
"Do you always stay up this late?"
Falguni:
"Not always. But tonight feels... different."
Aarush:
"Because of me?"
Falguni:
"Maybe. Or maybe because the night is quieter than usual."
Aarush:
"You're avoiding the question."
Falguni:
"(smiling at her phone) Fine. Yes, because of you."
Aarush:
"That's dangerous honesty, Falguni."
Falguni:
"And yet... you like it."
Aarush:
"(silence before typing) More than I should."
Both pause, the weight of that last line hanging in the air...
Falguni:
"It's late. You should sleep."
Aarush:
"Only if you promise to wake me up with a message tomorrow."
Falguni:
"We'll see. Goodnight, stranger."
Aarush:
"Goodnight, almost-not-a-stranger."
I stared at the screen long after the little "Goodnight, almost-not-a-stranger" faded. My thumb hovered over the phone, wanting to type something back, but I didn't. Not because I didn't want to, because I didn't know what to say. What could I even say?
What just happened?
I'm supposed to be the girl who's getting engaged in two days. The girl who agreed-yes, agreed to all of this with her family. The girl who should be busy thinking about outfits, ceremonies, and smiling at relatives. Not the girl who stays up past midnight talking to a stranger who somehow feels... less like a stranger with every sentence.
Why did it feel so easy with him? His words weren't just words, they dug under the surface, where no one usually looks. He asked things no one bothers to ask. "What makes you happiest?" "What scares you the most?" My friends never asked me that. Even Devansh never asked me that. Well he hasn't talked to me this much that he would have asked these questions. He met me for barely ten minutes. Sometimes I think how can he decide his future with someone by meeting for just minutes. Yeah, I have done the same but I am dependant on my family, maybe he is also depending on his family. God knows!
And then there's the way he notices. Roots and wings. Quiet happiness. Strings that pull without sound. Who even talks like that? He's teasing one second, serious the next, and then unexpectedly kind. Confusing. Infuriating. And yet, strangely comforting.
I should feel guilty, right? I should shut this down, stop replying, stop letting my curiosity wander where it doesn't belong. But instead, I find myself clutching Coco, replaying his lines in my head, as if they mean more than just late-night banter.
He feels real. Not like a fantasy or a cliché, but like someone I could actually sit with, on a terrace or in a field, and talk until time forgot to move.
And that scares me more than anything.
Because in two days, my life is supposed to change forever. And here I am, lying in the dark, wondering if maybe, just maybe, destiny decided to play a cruel little trick on me.
With a sigh, I closed my eyes. My mind buzzing, my heart restless. Maybe tomorrow, things will feel clearer. Or maybe tomorrow, I'll wake up and want to message him first.
I hugged Coco tighter. "What are you doing to me, Aarush?" I whispered into the silence, before sleep finally took over.
____________________