RED : Strings of Destiny

📖 Chapter 2: Between the Lines

Author's POV

In stories, destiny is loud. It crashes into lives. But in real life, it slips in quietly - through glances, coincidences, and quiet refusals.

For now, Avira was still navigating the labyrinth of proposals and passive expectations. Aarav was drifting through achievements that no longer satisfied him. They hadn't met yet, but the universe was folding in slowly, precisely.

Avira's POV

The morning exploded with sound. Wedding prep was in full swing for my cousin Reetika's December shaadi, and our living room had turned into a planning warzone. Laughter, arguments, Excel sheets, ladoos, and phone calls - all happening at once.

I wore a faded T-shirt and leggings, tied my hair up, and walked through the chaos like a ghost. "Avira, wear something nicer! Guests are coming," Bua called out.

"It's just Ritesh Mama, not the Prime Minister," I muttered.

But I changed anyway - into jeans and a pastel kurta. Not because I cared what they thought, but because I didn't want the fight.

Maa handed me haldi doodh. "You're always tired these days."

"I'm just busy, that's all."

In my room, I opened my laptop. My fashion line concept - focused on sustainable streetwear - was all I thought about lately. I had poured weeks into it. I wasn't a designer yet, but I was designing my way out of here.

Aditya walked in without knocking. "That foreign thing you applied to - when do you hear back?"

"In two weeks."

He gave me a look. "You'll get in. They'd be stupid not to pick you."

"Thanks," I said softly. My brother was annoying, but he was also the only person who actually believed in me.

Later, Bua showed up with a rishta profile. "He studied in the US and now works in Pune. His mother is very grounded."

I nodded like I was listening, but I wasn't.

Because in my heart, I wasn't waiting to be picked. I was waiting to pick - life, love, future. On my own terms.

Aarav's POV

The view from my office was sharp, cold. My desk overlooked the Thames, but today, even the water felt like glass - distant, unreachable.

Dad's text arrived: "We're not getting younger, beta. Come home. Just for a little while."

I typed, deleted, and typed again: "Fine. A short trip."

A short trip. That's how fate enters. In return flights and missed calls.

As I closed my laptop, my mother's words echoed again - "Pyaar tumhara yakeen nahi maangta, Aarav. Sirf sahi waqt."

Maybe the right time had finally begun ticking.

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Author's POV

Sometimes, fate doesn't need fireworks. Sometimes, it begins with a flight ticket. A locked door. A whispered wish under an open sky.

Avira and Aarav still didn't know each other.

But the story had begun.

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Author's Note:

Chapter Two was about choices - the ones we pretend to make, and the ones we quietly wait for.

Avira is building silent courage. Aarav is learning that ambition doesn't always equal fulfillment.
They don't know each other yet...
But fate is already working behind the scenes.

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- with love,
Noor 🕊️