It Had To Be You

Chapter 2

Shock was an understatement. She didn't expect his mother's profession to be same as hers. 

It took her a while to digest the information before her mind could completely register his sentence.

'Wait! Was? Does this mean his mother isn't with him anymore?' She thought. 

And that's when she realised, the absence of his mother back at her home wasn't due to some circumstantial reasons. 

She wasn't sure how to ask him about her. The silence continued to grow between them. 

"Where is she?" She finally managed to voice out her thoughts.

"She isn't with us anymore." His voice grew hoarse. He cleared his throat to get rid of the formed knot.

Her eyes glistened with sympathy. Her lips shivered before she could frame her next question. "Would you like to tell me more about her?"

He heaved a deep sigh before replying.

"My mother used to work as a fashion designer in one of the topmost clothing companies in Goa. She was always passionate about her work and would leave no stone unturned in creating the best clothings possible. I was 8, when she fulfilled one of her major dreams of opening her own boutique. I'd seen her invest her efforts and money to make her this dream come true. But amidst the successful venture of the boutique, we got to know that she was having a malignant tumor. It was just a year and half since the boutique had been working efficiently. But as it was her last stage, my father used up all his savings for her treatment and at the end, we were urged to sell her boutique as well. My mother survived for another 4 months before the tumor ate her up."

He ended, his voice coming out restrained. 

His eyes turned glossy and he looked heaven-wards in an attempt to control his tears from brimming his eyes.

Her heart went out to him at his loss. She didn't know how to comfort him so she lightly placed her palm over his shoulder. 

"Are you ok?" She muttered softly. He sniffled and nodded his head. 

"I'm sorry for all the things that happened with you and your family. You're a fighter, Nishant. I'm sure wherever she is, she would be proud of you for growing up so strong." She patted his shoulders lightly while Nishant left a husky chuckle listening to her words. 

"You really think so?" He asked her with hopeful eyes. 

Somewhere, she could feel his eyes holding too much pain within them.

She just smiled at him. 

"No matter what others say, Nishant. You are strong." Her last words coming out with such impact that it almost sent shivers through his body. She indeed made him feel special.

When she felt him calm down that's when she shot her next question. 

"Wait, was this the reason why you chose to meet me at the first place?" She asked with a teasing glint, in an attempt to lighten his mood. 

Nishant bit his lower lip while setting his gaze back onto the concrete ground, as if caught red-handed. Aashika fake gasped and punched his shoulders which ofcourse didn't affect him, taking into account his muscly shoulders which shielded him well.

Just like that, they both broke into fits of giggles as if they weren't getting emotional at all just a while back. 

"So that means you might've seen many fashion designers before me then. Didn't you?" Aashika fake glared at him.

"No no. You're the only one I met as a fashion designer. Seriously! Besides, I just met 2 girls before you." Nishant elaborated eagerly, not wanting to give her any wrong idea about his intention.