ONE YEAR LATER
Akanksha:
"Anna! Anni! Breakfast ready! Seekram vaanga keela." I called out.
(Brother! Sister-in-law! Breakfast is ready. Come down quickly!)
"Akshu I'm getting late. Can you pack my breakfast?" Anna asked as he rushed down with a bag in his arm and tying his watch on his wrist.
"You should start getting up early. You should have breakfast on time, not as your lunch." I complained.
"Sorry Akshu, but I had to stay up all night to finish my work." He said with his apologetic face.
"Seri Seri. Edho. Go now." I said as I handed him his packed breakfast.
(Okay, okay. Whatever. Go now.)
"By the way, where's anni?" I asked as I looked around searching for her.
"Ah she's still asleep." He replied with a smile.
"Okay bye." He said waving at me and left.
I really had to rush. I couldn't wait till Anni came down. I put her upma in a casserole and left for work.
Ananya smiled at me when she saw me. She was doing someone's haircut. I signaled her to focus at her work and left to attend my client.
At lunch break, I saw Ananya giggling at her phone.
"What's the matter? You dating someone?" I asked. She giggled only if it were about a guy. I knew that much.
"Nah. I was checking out a few guys for you." She replied with a smile.
"Seriously? I think you're well aware that I'm not intere--"
"Then how do you have a type?" She asked cutting in.
"When did I tell you that I had a type?" I asked cluelessly. I never told her that.
"Don't you remember? You told that you were into older guys but not older than your brother to Dhruv Kapoor last year." She told.
I suddenly remembered the conversation we had. I completely forgot about it. I did think of Dhruv from time to time. I was awestruck when he asked for my number.
DHRUV KAPOOR asked for MY number! Like how cool was that? I didn't expect him to be so impressed by my work.
Even though I gave him my number, he hadn't called me throughout the year. He probably didn't think of me. I went back to Ananya's conversation.
"Okay, yeah. I do have a type. So? Did I ever tell that I'm interested in dating?" I asked with a slight irritation and frown on my face.
"You should date. Look at this guy. He's three years older." She said as she showed a picture of a guy from her phone.
"He's short." I said. She wasn't gonna let me go easily.
"So you like taller guys? How about this guy?" She said showing another picture.
"He has a beard." I answered with no interest. I was fed up.
I kept coming up with lame excuses to all the pictures of the guys she showed.
On the background, I wondered what Dhruv would be doing now.
Dhruv:
Even after a year, I still thought of Akanksha. I couldn't get her out of my mind. Though I had her number, I was hesitant to call without reason. I tried to look for a few opportunities for her but I didn't really get any.
I started wondering when fate would help us meet again. I could've gone to Coimbatore for no reason but I had a tight schedule. Moreover, I wanted to know if we were ever destined to meet again.
It is said that no matter what happens, if you love someone from your soul, the entire universe works to pave path for you to meet. Even if I got a slight hint or opportunity, I'll not let the chance slide.
Soon, the opportunity did knock my door.
I was with Aayush when I got a call from Director Neelam. I left the room and went to the balcony.
"Dhruv sir, will you accept my offer?" He asked politely.
"Of course sir. I would be honored to work with you on my first Tamil film." I answered happily.
"Oh thank you sir!" The director replied.
"Can you give me the details of when and where the shoot is gonna occur?" I asked.
"Sure sir. The shoot will begin in 2 weeks. Our shoot location is Coimbatore." He said.
Coimbatore. I wasn't expecting him to give that as the location. I couldn't hold in my excitement. If this was the opportunity, I would gladly take the chance.
"That's great sir! Please send me the location and I'll be there in two weeks." I answered and with greetings, I cut the call.
It took me a few minutes to digest the fact. I felt that the universe was paving path for me. If I met Akanksha by chance, that would be the biggest sign I would get.
I went to Aayush who was stunned to look at my expression. I told him about the project.
"I wouldn't put it that way. It's still rare to meet someone by coincidence in a big city like Coimbatore." He argued.
"Well, let's see what happens." I shrugged as I replied. We both had a silent bet.
Aayush looked away like he was so done with me. He thought I was being very delusional. Unlike me, Aayush was a practical person. I was more spiritual.
I believed in what my soul said, whereas Aayush believed in logic.
"Anyways, I gotta go and inform my mom and brother." I said as Aayush waved me back like he wanted me to leave with my delusional concept.
I went up to my mom first. I knocked her room's door but as I tried to check while opening the door slowly, I saw her sleeping.
I didn't want to wake her up. As I closed the door slowly, "What are you doing here?" A voice said behind me.
I flinched. It was just Anirudh Bhaiya (Elder brother).
"Can you stop sneaking up on me?" I asked with a frown on my face.
"Shusshh!" He kept his finger on his lips and dragged me to his room.
"Why'd you want to see mom?" He asked.
"Yeah well I wanted to inform her that I accepted the project and I'll have to leave for Coimbatore in 2 weeks." I said. I couldn't conceal my smile thinking about Akanksha.
"Good luck on meeting her." He said with a smile.
I stared at him flabbergasted. How did he know? I never mentioned anything about Akanksha to him.
"Aayush filled me in. I had my suspicions earlier." He replied seeing my flustered face.
"Does ma know?" I asked nervously. I didn't want to tell her yet.
"No. I couldn't break it to her unless you're ready." He said.
Thank God. I didn't mind Bhaiya knowing. He's practically my second father. I just didn't want to tell him until I grasped her heart. Even if Bhaiya knew now, it wasn't a big deal. Soon mom woke up and I explained her. She was extremely happy.
"Dhruv beta (son), kya mein aur Anirudh bhi tumhare saath chalen?" She asked.
(Dhruv, shall Anirudh and I come along with you?)
Before I could say anything, Anni Bhaiya interuppted our conversation.
"Par ma, do hafthe mein mere semester exams shuru ho rahe hain. Mein akela nahin reh pahunga." he argued.
(But mom, my semester exams start in two weeks. I can't stay alone.)
He was doing a course. It was a very important examination for him.
"Arre han! Mein tho bool hi gayi. Accha theekai. Kam se kam Aayush ko tho apne saath le jao. Mujhe fikr nahi hogi." Ma replied.
(Oh yeah! I completely forgot. Okay fine. Atleast take Aayush with you. I won't worry then.)
"Okay ma. I'll take Aayush with me." I said even though I felt bad that I couldn't take her along despite her expression of desire. But Bhaiya was right too. He couldn't stay alone.
I convinced Aayush to come along with me. He was like my personal assistant at this point. He HAD to come along.
2 weeks later:
Dhruv left for Coimbatore with Aayush.
"Will fate really help me?" He thought.
To be continued....
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Hope you guys liked this chapter. I'm gonna make the upcoming chapters very interesting so stay tuned! Thank you for reading!