The evening dragged on endlessly.
Ananya had locked herself in her room, her books lying untouched on the desk. The ticking of the clock seemed louder than usual, mocking her with every passing second. Her stomach growled faintly, but she ignored it. Food felt meaningless without hearing Arav's voice. She hadn't eaten a single bite since morning, nor sipped even a drop of water.
Every time the phone lit up with a notification, her heart leapt, only to crash again when it wasn't him. She reread her own desperate texts, her fingers hovering over the keypad, tempted to call him one more time. But she had already dialed dozens of times, only to hear the same cold silence.
By the time the sky outside her window had turned into an inky black, fear had clawed so deeply into her chest that she could barely breathe. She curled up against her pillow, her phone clutched tightly in her hand.
And then—
The shrill ring of her phone broke the silence at exactly 7:30 p.m.
Her heart leapt wildly. "Arav!" she whispered, fumbling to answer.
But it wasn't his name on the screen. It was one of his college friends. Her excitement wavered, replaced by confusion. Why would he be calling her at this hour?
She answered quickly, her voice trembling. "Hello? Did Arav send you? Where is he?"
The boy on the other end hesitated. "Ananya… did you hear something?"
Her chest tightened. "What do you mean? Hear what? Please, tell me!"
There was silence for a moment, as though he was searching for the right words. The pause stretched unbearably long until Ananya nearly shouted, her throat dry. "Say it! What happened to Arav?"
Finally, he spoke. "Don't you know… he got imprisoned?"
The word hit her like a thunderbolt. She froze, unable to comprehend. "W–what? Prisoned? No… that's not possible. You must be mistaken. You must've heard wrong!"
But the boy's tone grew heavier. "It's true, Ananya. He was with those friends of his… the ones you never liked. They got into a fight yesterday, with some guys from outside college. It turned ugly. Someone got badly injured, and Arav was caught with them."
Ananya's heart stopped. Her mind refused to believe. "No. No, you're lying. Arav would never… he's not like that! You don't understand—he promised me, he promised he'd stay away from them!"
On the other end, the boy sighed. "I wish it wasn't true. But they've taken him in. The police came this morning. He's arrested, Ananya. That's why he's not answering your calls."
Her hand trembled so violently that the phone nearly slipped from her grip. The world around her blurred as hot tears welled in her eyes. She pressed the phone closer to her ear, desperate for the words to change, for this nightmare to vanish.
"No… no, this can't be real," she whispered brokenly. "There has to be some mistake. Arav isn't like them. He's not violent, he's not…" Her voice cracked before she could finish.
But no matter how much she denied it, the silence from the other end told her everything she didn't want to hear.
After ending the call, Ananya collapsed onto her bed, her sobs muffled into her pillow. Images of Arav's smile, his gentle words, his promises—everything replayed in her mind, now clouded by the horrifying thought of him sitting behind bars.
How could the boy she loved so blindly… the boy who made her mornings brighter, who whispered sweet nothings into her ear… how could he be caught in something like this?
Her mind screamed for answers. Why hadn't he told her? Why hadn't he listened to her warnings about his friends? Why did he keep secrets when she trusted him with her whole heart?
Hours passed, but she couldn't stop crying. Her throat burned from the tears, her chest ached, but the pain inside her wouldn't leave.
For the first time since she had fallen for him, a crack appeared in her blind faith.
That night, Ananya sat by her window, staring at the moon, her phone lying silent in her lap. She wanted to call again, to hear his voice, to demand the truth from him. But deep down, she knew there would be no answer—not tonight.
Her love for Arav hadn't vanished, but it was shaken. She felt betrayed, not because he had been arrested, but because he hadn't trusted her enough to share his struggles, his darkness.
The boy she thought she knew so well suddenly felt like a stranger.
As tears slid down her cheeks, Ananya whispered into the night, "Arav… why didn't you tell me? Why didn't you trust me?"
The silence outside gave her no reply—just like the silence from his phone all day.
And in that silence, Ananya realized her love story was about to change forever.