Meera didn't give any response. Naina got up from the sofa and went to Meera's blanket, then lay down beside her.
Meera kept her eyes closed, and Naina turned towards her. She whispered slowly, "Are you asleep?"
Meera remained silent, listening to everything.
Naina looked into Meera's eyes and began to smile. Her gaze fell on Meera's lips, and she covered her face with both hands, as if she was extremely embarrassed.
"Can I kiss you?" Naina asked softly.
Still, Meera didn't say anything.
Naina slowly leaned towards Meera's lips, and Meera's heartbeat raced. Meera thought to herself, "Can she hear my heartbeat?"
Meera started clenched her fists. Naina stopped just an inch away from Meera's lips, about to pull back, when Meera suddenly opened her eyes. Naina looked at Meera's eyes as if she had a heart attack. Naina quickly moved back from the bed and ended up falling off it.
"Damn it! Were you pretending to sleep?" Naina said in a frightened tone.
"What were you doing, Naina? Whatever you were doing, it was wrong. You don't understand, our friendship ends today. Never do this to me again, stay away from me. I don't know what you want, but please, just stay in one place, Naina!" Meera said in a very angry tone.
Meera got up and went to sleep on the sofa. Naina, still lying on the floor, crawled back onto the bed. She held her waist and whispered to herself,
"It hurts so much! We're not friends. What have I done? stay in one place? Angry even while moving from the bed to the sofa. I was just joking. It's all my fault. My mischievous mind always entertains useless thoughts. Now Meera must hate me more than anything."
A solitary tear rolled down from Naina's left eye. She covered herself with the blanket and fell asleep.
Naina quickly got up and went home. When Meera woke up, she felt a lot of pain in her lower back due to sleeping on the sofa. She noticed that Naina wasn't on the bed; it was already 6 in the morning.
Meera thought to herself, "Naina must be in the building's garden because she loves the moon."
Meera freshened up and got ready for office, while Naina got ready for college.
Teena was happy to see Naina back at college.
Teena hugged Naina and said, "You look crazy, sis!"
"You're the one who's gone crazy," Naina replied.
Lalita said, "Welcome back."
Naina smiled and said, "Thank you. I need some notes. How's everything in college?"
Aahan saw Naina, Jay was standing with her. Aahan shouted excitedly, "OMG, you're finally here!"
Jay said, "Naina! We missed you so much! Our team is back together. Lunch is on me today! Shall we go out to eat, to a restaurant?"
Naina was thrilled that everyone missed her. "I shouldn't have disappeared like that. I'm so sorry! But from now on, I'll come to college every day. Group hug?" Everyone hugged Naina together.
Naina thought to herself, "We become so crazy with our feelings. I've hurt so many people. From now on, I won't give LOVE so much importance. Anyway, she is not my friend anymore."
3 years later.
Aahan attends classes to become a writer and also works part-time at a novel publishing company. Jay has become a famous singer, with one of his songs becoming a hit on YouTube.
Song: "When will you say, do you love me?"
Aahan loves this song; it's his phone's ringtone. Jay has been very busy for the past 1 year and 2 months, getting jobs in big companies. Aahan has been giving many interviews to work with his favorite writer, Heer Rathod, and finally, he got selected. He called Jay, but Jay is currently getting makeup done, and his phone is with his manager, who is already on a call.
Aahan is very happy and calls Meera. Meera is very busy signing files, with two people waiting to speak to her. She picks up Aahan's call.
"Where are you? Dee, you've won so many business awards, now get married!"
"Don't talk like the neighbor aunty. Let me guess, you're working with Heer, that's why you're so happy," Meera said teasingly.
Aahan chuckled, "You're the best, Dee! So, you've bought a new company today. When are you coming back to India? Buying an Indian company won't do much good; things are better here. How's the company?"
"I've had video calls. I'm coming today. We need to turn the company's losses into profits; things are quite messy. The CA there has messed up a lot, so we've hired a new CA, but let's see," Meera explained.
"Don't meet me! Mom is very worried, so meet her. She'll be a little upset because you're still not married," Aahan suggested.
"You go ahead! You keep talking about marriage. Do you even know about yourself? You're in love with Jay yourself, but you never told anyone!" Meera replied.
"No, Dee, you're misunderstanding! Jay and I are just friends. Listen, Teena and Lalita started a burger stall, but then Teena expanded the shop, and now they're opening a big new restaurant. We'll go there, and Lalita started modeling," Aahan clarified.
"Send Lalita's photos; I might need a model in the new company. It's in the fashion designer area," Meera requested.
"Okay, I'll tell her, and she'll email you the photos," Aahan replied.
Aahan just gave Lalita a direct call and shot her a message. Lalita quickly shot those pics over to Meera, who was all like, "Yes!" Lalita was ecstatic.
She dashed over to Teena.
"Teena!"
Teena was handing out ice cream to a kid.
"Don't be swiping ice cream from kids," Teena teased.
"Chill! Our restaurant's gonna rock," Lalita said.
"I hope so! Why're you so pumped?" Teena asked.
"I finally landed a gig! Modeling work," Lalita exclaimed.
Teena hugged Lalita in excitement, and Lalita started grooving with her. Catching Teena's vibe, Lalita felt on cloud nine. They stopped, and Teena seemed to be mulling over something. Lalita impulsively planted a kiss on Teena's cheek. Instant regret flooded Lalita's mind.
"What's up with that?" Teena exclaimed, taken aback.
"Oops! My bad!" Lalita apologized sheepishly.
"Did you mean it?" Teena asked, hiding her lips.
"I'm really sorry, it was a mistake! I don't know what I was thinking," Lalita said, feeling extremely embarrassed.
Seeing Lalita's distress, Teena kissed her back, but it just a lip touch, it was not a proper kiss.
"Now we've both made the same mistake, so no need to stress about it. Besides, remember three years ago, you made me an offer? Remember?" Teena reminded Lalita.
"But you didn't take advantage of that offer," Lalita replied.
"Yeah, because I don't want a love based on just physical attraction! I don't want superficial love," Teena explained.
Lalita smiled faintly and mumbled, "But I need—"
"What did you say?" Teena asked.
"Nothing," Lalita quickly responded.
"You're crazy," Teena said, patting Lalita's head.
Lalita hugged Teena, and both of them burst into laughter. Naina has become a Chartered Accountant. she has cleared her interview and today is her joining day.
Naina's mom brought curd and sugar.
"Take care and don't be scared," her mom said.
Naina hugged her mom.
"Your dream has come true. How does it feel, mom?"
"You're just hungry for praise. Go to the office quietly, don't eat anything outside. I've' packed your lunch," Naina's mom said, smiling. Naina laughed and left for the office.
As Naina heads to the office, she thinks, "It's quite a big office."
The HR warmly welcomes Naina, saying, "Welcome! Meet our ex-boss." Then, she points to a car that has just stopped. A person wearing sunglasses steps out of the black car, carrying a bag. The sound of high heels resonates in Naina's ears. She turns around as the HR says, "Meet the new boss, Miss Meera."