Hello everyone! Here's chapter twenty-two, do let me know how you guys like it :)
Remember to participate in trends for IPZN S2, mail/call/spam- Stream the videos Sony uploads of IPZN almost everyday. Help maintain the hype!! After all these efforts maybe we'll get a season 2 💛
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The next morning brought a sense of heaviness and sadness for some and happiness and joy for others. Ishqi and Ahaan could both barely sleep an inch the entire night, now, slowly the feelings they had developed for each other were taking over them.
Ishqi, had a little more control on her feelings than Ahaan did...It had taken a lot of will power from within him to not knock on her door 3am last night. They needed to talk, especially after that sudden realization in the hall, for him at least.
Ahaan got dressed and made his way towards the breakfast hall downstairs, he entered and saw Ishqi already sitting there with Kartik & Tara and a cup of coffee in her hands. He went to the counter and saw the exact same server from the previous night at the restaurant. "Good Morning Sir" the waiter greeted him. "good morning" Ahaan smiled, "Can I get a Ca-"
The waiter cut him off, "Let me guess, Cappuccino with a dash of oat milk..right?"-
Ahaan was taken a little a back, "Yes, but how do you know?!"-
The server chuckled, "Mam ne bhi bilkul yahi order kiya" he said while pointing towards Ishqi- "And after last night I just guessed"
Ahaan smiled, the waiter continued talking while making his coffee, "Waise sir, you and mam are the cutest jodi I've ever seen and saath mein bhi kitne acche laagte ho!"
"Thanks but h-hum couple nahi hai" Ahaan replied with a sad smile-
Waiter: Huh? Really? But aisa lagta toh nahi hai...you guys seem soo in love, especially by the way you look at each other...If you aren't together then you should be...make a move bro-
Ahaan: A-Aap galat samaj rahe hai, aisa kuch nahi hai aur waise bhi it's too late....
Waiter: It's never to late to confess your feelings...take a chance....kya pata baat bann jai...
Ahaan: Agar meine aab chance mara toh saab kuch bohot complicate hojaiga aur mein Ishqi ke liye problems badana nahi chahata...
Waiter: Lekin agar aap ke ek confession se saab kuch theek hogaya toh?
Ahaan: Meri aur uski engagement hai aaj raat ko..par kissi aur se- panch(5) families' ki reputation aur khushiyon ka sawal hai aur woh aur mein, dono nahi chahate ke kissi ko bhi dukh pounche- In this case it's better if some things go unsaid...
Waiter: Oh wow, I'm sorry about that...Mam bhi bilkul aap jaisi baatein kar rahi thi, connected toh aap dono ho...but anyways- Your coffee is ready sir-
"Thanks..for the coffee & the talk" Ahaan smiled while he grabbed his coffee and went towards where the trio was seated. He took a seat besides Ishqi who hardly met his gaze, "good morning bhai/bhaiyya" Tara and Kartik greeted him at the same time, "morning" he replied but his attention was on the one and only Ishqi.
Kartik & Tara noticed this, "Mein kya bol raha houn Tara, hum dono na jaa ke engagement ki prep dekh kar aate hai...chalo"
Tara: Hmm, chalo- saying this both got up and left from there-
Ahaan and Ishqi sat in silence for a few minutes, sipping on their coffee and stealing glances at each other every few seconds. "prep hogayi?" Ishqi asked him, breaking the silence but still not meeting his gaze.
Ahaan: Hmm...tumhari hogayi?
Ishqi: Hmm hogayi...Anyways, meine aaj subah hote hi aapko designs aur blueprints mail kardiye the. Mr. Singh ke saath next month meeting hai na toh uss ke liye prep k-
Ahaan cut her off, "Ishqi, look at me" he said. Ahaan knew she was purposely trying to change the topic.
Ishqi: Dekh toh rahi houn, a-
Ahaan softly held her chin and lifted her face to look up at him in the eyes, they shared an eye-lock, their eyes conveyed emotions they couldn't. They understood each other's unsaid words, they'd shared several eye-locks before but this one was different.
It was a silent confession, they didn't need words to communicate the things they felt for each other. By looking into Ahaan's eyes Ishqi just knew that he had feelings for her as well and it was the same for Ahaan too. They mentally cursed their fate, they were now finally aware of their feelings but couldn't verbally confess because of the circumstances they were in.
Everything had happened so suddenly that it hadn't given them the time to choose or decide. Before Ahaan could say anything Ishqi got up and left from there. Ahaan sighed- "if only"
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Nighttime arrived sooner than some people anticipated, Ishqi was all dolled up for the engagement party. She stood in front of the mirror when she saw the reflection of Ahaan behind her. "Engagement wali raat bhi mujhe Rahul ki jagah Mr. 3 in 1 dekhai de rahe hai..." she muttered under her breath as she shook her head in disbelief.
"Ishqi.." she heard from behind her-
"Mein itni bhi bewakoof nahi houn, mujhe pata hai ke aap waqai mein yahan nahi hai buss mujhe dikh rahe hai...yeh pehli baar thodi na ho raha hai...pichle kai dinon se aap mujhe har jagah dikhai de rahe hai aab toh-" she kept blabbering when Ahaan said, "mein waqai mein houn"
Ishqi: yeah right, she said not believing him and still thinking she's just imagining him-
Ahaan took a few steps towards her, he put his hand on her shoulders and gently turned her around, "Hi" he said- "AVM" she uttered, Ishqi mentally facepalmed herself for blabbering so much info in front of him.
"A-Aap yahan kya kar rahe hai" Ishqi questioned him-
Ahaan: Mujhe tumse kuch baat karni hai...
Ishqi: Ah um- engagement ke baad kar lijiye ga, abhi humein neeche jaana chahiye...she said as she took a few steps towards the door but he pulled her back. "Ishqi..mujhe abhi baat karni hai" he said in a determined tone-
Ishqi sighed and signalled him to continue, Ahaan took a deep breath and gently cupped her face while she looked at him in the eyes. "A- AVM yeh aap-" she tried to object but was cut off by Ahaan pressing his finger against her lips. "Please Ishqi, mujhe kuch bolna hai..."
Ahaan: Mein jaanta houn mera yeh kehne se bohot kuch badal jaiga but phir bhi...mein iss regret ke saath nahi reh sakta ke meine tab kuch nahi confess kiya jab karna chahiye tha...
He pulled her a little closer and continued speaking, "Mein jaanta houn ke tum meri nahi ho aur mujhe yeh nahi kehna chahiye, especially not now, jaab hum dono ki engagements horahi hai.. lekin pata nahi mujhe kya hogaya hai...Mein pyaar mein believe nahi karta, mere liye meri family ki khushi saab se zyada important hai but aaj jaab woh saab khush hai toh mein nahi houn...Mera dil nahi mann raha ke mein neeche jaa ke Rhea se engagement karloun, aisa lag raha hai ke agar meine yeh karliya toh kuch bohot important chut jaiga"
Ishqi was now in her feels as well, she could relate to every word he was saying, "kya chut jaiga?"
Ahaan: Tum. Humarey beech jo hai woh...Aur mein yeh nahi chahata, tum abhi abhi meri life mein ayi houn, itni jaldi tum nahi jaa sakti...lekin mere control mein kuch nahi hai...Jo horaha hai ussko rokna chahata houn but...
"Pata nahi kab aur kaise but tum mere liye bohot important bann gayi Ishqi...mein tumhe khona nahi chahata..."
Ishqi felt her heart breaking, "A-AVM, aap itni tension mat lijiye...sirf engagements hi toh horahi hai..mein country chod ke thodi na jaa rahi houn..aur waise bhi hum dost toh reh-"
Ahaan cut her off, "Nahi..hum dost nahi hai Ishqi...friendships have certain boundaries aur hum dono ke beech"
Ishqi: Jo hai woh khatam hojaiga!
Ahaan: Nahi!
Ishqi: Kyun?
Ahaan: Kyunke feelings itni jaldi khatam nahi hoti!
"Feelings?"
Had he just verbally confessed, in clear words that he had feelings for her?!
Ishqi: Lekin aap toh inn saab cheezon mein believe nahi karte na...Aur kya pata yeh feelings temporary ho...chali jai
Ahaan: Nahi jaigi, he said as he slowly closed the distance in between them, Ishqi closed her eyes as permission for him to proceed. As his lips softly pressed against hers it was like the world had ceased to exist for a moment.
The gush of love & fulfilment they felt in their hearts left them amazed, this was it. It was the love that Ishqi had always dreamed of and that Ahaan had never expected.
Ahaan's hands wrapped around her waist and he pulled her closer while one of her hands' cupped his face and the other rested around his nape, deepening the kiss.
Their lip-lock lasted for a minute or two when there was a knock on the door, breaking their moment and bringing them back into reality. Ishqi pulled away- although both of them knew they shouldn't have kissed, neither regretted it. Even though it brought awkwardness between them, it was the best moment of their lives. It was clear that they liked each other, their feelings were now somewhat confessed to each other.....the timing was just a tad bit off.
"Ishqi!" they heard from outside the door- "Darwaza kholo, neeche saab sagai ke liye wait kar rahe hai"
Ishqi glanced at Ahaan and then yelled back, "M-Maa aap neeche jao, mein buss panch(5) minutes mein aarahi houn"
Sania: Theek hai, but der mat karna, saying this she left while Ishqi said, "A-AVM, chaliye.." she opened the door a little and peaked outside, there was no one in the hall. She grasped Ahaan's hand and pulled him out of her room and closed the door behind her.
Ishqi: Pehle aap jaiye phir dou(2) minutes baad mein aati houn-
Ahaan: Haath
Ishqi: Gi?
Ahaan: Tumne haath pakra hua hai toh mein k-
Ishqi jerked her hand away before he could complete his sentence, he smirked and walked away. Both of them were now a little more at peace knowing their feelings were reciprocated, now they just needed to fix this mess and that was not possible now....they would need to go through with the engagements. They had too...✨
//To Be Continued//
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That's all for today guys, hope ya'll enjoyed it! { Word Count: 1800 } Next part'll be updated soon! 💛
Suggestions are always welcome ⚡️
Pls ignore any mistakes 😚
Lots of love and stay safeee ❤️
~ Vera 🌸