Love's Redemption♡

VIHAAN'S POV- 2

"My thoughts cannot move an inch without bumping into some piece of you"
-- unknown
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5 years ago:

I'm standing in Aryaan's living room, surrounded by the sounds of laughter and music. His party's in full swing, and I'm trying to have a good time.

"Tonight's gonna be epic!" Aryaan exclaims high-fiving Veer.

I grin and as we sip our drinks and dance to the music, I feel a sense of freedom. For one night atleast I can forget my worries and just have fun.

As the night wears on, I start to feel a twinge of guilt. Vahni's been trying to contact with me for weeks and I have been ignoring her. I push the thought aside and focus on the music and laughter of my friends.

That's when Aryaan appears beside me, his expression serious. "Vihaan, I just heard from Shruti that Vahni had an appendectomy."

My heart skips a beat. Vahni? In the hospital? I feel a pang of worry, but I push it aside, pretending like I don't care.

"Oh, okay. That's too bad," I say, trying to sound nonchalant.

Aryaan watches me, expecting a reaction, but I just shrug and turn back to the girl I'm flirting with. "Hey, where were we?"

The girl giggles and playfully hits my arm. "You were about to get me another drink."

I grin and signal the bartender. "Coming right up."

As I wait for the drinks, I catch Aryaan's eye. He's still watching me, a mixture of concern and disappointment on his face. I look away, feeling a pang of guilt.

But I'm not going to let it ruin my night. I'm going to keep pretending like everything's fine, like Vahni's appendectomy doesn't matter.

I take the drinks from the bartender and hand one to the girl. "Here you go."

She smiles and takes a sip. "Thanks."

I smile back, trying to focus on the moment. But my mind keeps wandering back to Vahni, wondering how she's doing, wondering if she's okay.

I push the thoughts aside, telling myself I'll deal with them later. For now, I just want to have fun, to forget about my worries and enjoy the night.

But as the night wears on, I start to feel a growing sense of unease. I try to shake it off, but it's hard to ignore the feeling that something's off, that I'm just pretending to be okay when really, I'm not.

As the night wears on, I find myself glancing at my phone, wondering if Vahni's okay. I quickly look away, pretending like I wasn't thinking about her. But the truth is, I am thinking about her. I'm worried about her.

Aryaan appears beside me again, his eyes serious. "Vihaan, I think you should go see Vahni. She's probably feeling pretty down right now."

I shake my head, trying to appear nonchalant. "I don't think that's a good idea, Aryaan. We're not exactly...close right now."

Aryaan raises an eyebrow. "You're not close? Vihaan, you two were inseparable for years. What happened?"

I shrug, trying to brush it off. "Nothing, Aryaan. Just...stuff. Look, can we just drop it, okay?"

Aryaan looks at me skeptically, but he doesn't push the issue. Instead, he nods and says, "Fine, but just remember, Vahni's still a person, Vihaan. She deserves some compassion."

I nod, feeling a pang of guilt. Aryaan's right, of course. Vahni does deserve compassion. But I'm just so...confused. I don't know how to feel about her right now.

As I stand there, sipping my drink and trying to shake off the feeling of unease, I  pull my phone out, and my heart skips a beat as I see Vahni's message on the screen.

I hesitate for a moment, wondering if I should answer it. But something about the message makes me feel like I need to respond.

I take a deep breath and open the message. My heart twists as I read her words. "Hey, how are you? Just casually asking"

She's sick, and she's still thinking about me? I feel a pang of guilt and regret. Why did I ignore her? Why did I push her away?

I try to shake off the feelings, telling myself I need to respond.

I type out a casual message, trying to sound nonchalant. "I am doing well, how are you?" I know exactly how she is, but I don't want her to feel like I'm feeling attracted to her and keeping tabs on her.

A few minutes later, my phone buzzes again. I open the message, and my heart sinks as I read her words. "Nothing much, but I was sick and had an appendectomy, I'm in the hospital right now."

I feel a wave of concern wash over me, but I try to push it aside. I don't want her to think I care too much. I type out a response, trying to sound casual. "Oh I didn't know about this, you should take care of yourself, how are you now?"

I know I'm lying, but I don't want her to think I've been missing her though I am. I send the message and wait, feeling a sense of anticipation.

A few minutes later, my phone buzzes again. I open the message, and my heart skips a beat as I read her words. "I am good now, better."

I feel a pang of relief, but I try to push it aside. I don't want to feel too much. I type out a response, trying to sound casual. "Okay."

I feel a wave of concern wash over me. She's been through surgery, and she's still thinking about me? I feel like the biggest jerk in the world.

I send the message and sit back, feeling like I've been punched in the gut. I take a swig of my drink, trying to drown out the emotions swirling inside me.

As I sit there, nursing my drink and lost in thought, I feel like I'm torn in two. Part of me wants to go to Vahni, to hold her hand and tell her everything will be okay. But another part of me is scared, scared of getting her hopes high.

I sit there for what feels like hours, lost in my thoughts and unsure of what to do next. The music and laughter around me fade into the background as I'm consumed by thoughts of Vahni.