invisible string ✓

twenty three

We laughed together at his “plight” as the lack of oxygen in my brain forced me to yawn. The timing was wrong indeed, but the timing wasn't wrong. I looked at the digital clock: fifteen minutes past midnight. No wonder I yawned.

“Fine, Ishaan. It's Monday tomorrow. Which means…” I paused and shrugged, letting him continue the sentence with his version of, “I need to go to my Uni.”

He nodded humbly and replied, “Sure. Good night.”

As I got up, I remembered something that I almost forgot to say.

“Ishaan.” He replied to my call with a hum. “I think you need to go to your universe.” As he frowned as though to assess my IQ level, I raised my hand as though to stop him and said, “You have a job there. Something you get paid for,” in a tone Aarvi used to call “no-nonsense”.

“Like… Do you want me to go now?” He asked, his tone begging me to say no.

“No. Aarvi needs to be informed of it. So, stay till tomorrow morning.”

Though I did not want him to leave and stay back with me while working, just like every other man in this universe, I need to be pragmatic. This is real life.

“Do you want me to stay only for Aarvi?” He raised his eyebrows, demanding a proper answer that would sound more like myself.

“Good night, Ishaan,” I replied and went to my bedroom, aware of the fact that I was leaving him outside alone. I looked at the bed and saw Aarvi sleeping in a seemingly uncomfortable position, with Corporate Law notes below her head. I lifted her head delicately, took out the notes, packed the bag, placed them aside, and made her sleep straight before getting myself to sleep. And anyhow, I don't think I would be able to do that tonight.

I didn't know if I sound too dramatic, but I think I would be missing him so much. Like, I knew that we're technically a 3-minute-long song away from each other. But, was it just normal to feel this way? To miss your boyfriend despite him being too near to you?

Okay, fine. I was just being too dramatic. Let me just shut up and sleep.

***

THE NEXT DAY…

Aarvi and I stepped out of our room together with our bags and saw Ishaan sitting on the couch, with his face covered with his hands and You Belong With Me on the teapoy.

“Hey, Ishaan! Good morning,” Aarvi greeted in her usual chirpy tone, unaware of the existing friction between myself and Ishaan. “Did you sleep well last night?”

He took his hands out of his face, giving a clear peak of his distraught face and teary eyes.

Oh, shit! I made him cry for real.

“Hey! Are you okay?” Aarvi questioned, turning back at me, who refused to look anywhere but him. “What happened?”

He took out the book and opened one of the last pages and turned the book upside down. Looking at me, he pointed his chin at the book, suggesting we should give it a look at that.

Unlike Aarvi, who was rooted to the ground, I walked up to him and accepted the book from him. Flipping it upside down, I saw a black-and-white picture of Aadya Chatterjee smiling her heart out with two lines written about her.