Knotted

Chapter 4. Knotted

Uttkarsh was acting weird around me. He would avoid my stares and whenever I would ask him what was wrong, he would wave me off and run away. His friends would also not tell me what was going on with him.

He had come for a meeting with Rajesh sir yesterday, but he didn't pay me any attention. He wouldn't even reply to my messages frequently like he did earlier.

What was wrong with him? Was he distancing himself from me? Why?

I caught him when he was leaving our office and told him to tell me why he was avoiding me. He shook his head and ran a hand through his hair. He fumbled with his hands and looked at me. I narrowed my eyes, and he opened his mouth to say something but closed it again.

"Did I do something wrong?" I asked.

"No... you didn't do anything. It is just me," he replied and looked away.

"You can tell me if something is troubling you or if you are just not comfortable around me. I won't mind."

I would greatly mind it.

"It is not like that, Sadhna. I... I just don't know... I just don't know how to... " he trailed off.

I sighed and gave him some space. I would not force him to tell me something he didn't want to. We were just friends. Just friends, nothing more. I didn't like that thought though.

Should I tell him that I still liked him? Well, I got to know about his secret too but what if he had changed his mind?

"It's okay, Uttkarsh. You don't have to tell me but remember if anything is troubling you, you can always count on me." I smiled at him.

He let out a breath of relief and we stared at each other for sometime; none of us saying anything. Again.

"I am holding a housewarming party this Saturday. Will you come?" he asked, his mood brightening up.

"Of course I will come. Do you need help in decorating the place?" I asked.

"Umm... No. It won't be necessary since all the arrangements are already done. But can you stay back later to help me?" he asked with caution.

"Yup. I can. Don't worry." I gave him an 'Okay' sign, and his face lit up like sun.

"I should get going then. My assistant must be waiting for me. See you later, Sadhna."

"Sure. Bye, Uttkarsh," I replied and waved him goodbye.

He smiled back, and I noticed the lightness in his steps. He seemed to be in a good mood which made me really happy. I wanted to make him happy whenever he was with me.

I took a deep breath and clenched my fists. I would do it. I didn't care about the consequences as I had to do it in order to not ruin someone's future. I called up my parents and told them about my decision for the marriage.

It took me a good one hour to explain everything, and fortunately, my parents always considered my happiness as their priority.

I felt at peace after the call. It was like a big load was taken off my chest. I could breath freely now. I didn't care what future held and decided to go with the flow.

I completed my work and took my leave from the office. My mood had lightened up by a hundred times, so I decided to call all of my friends which I hadn't been able to contact for months.

I spent the whole night catching up with them and learned a lot of new facts. Like, my best friend from middle school was expecting her second child, one of my male friends was getting married next year, and the famous couple of our college had finally broken up after seven years of being together.