I wake up the very next morning, and I dreadfully get up with a groggy feeling running through my entire body. A fresh glass of water sits beside me on my nightstand as I grudgingly grab it and a pain killer pill. I used to get massive hangovers, but since I am now used to getting drunk, the hangovers have kind of eased up for me.
Pressing the glass to my lips once I place the pill on my tongue, I gulp down a handful of water and immediately start to feel my mind stop wavering around hazily. A refreshing feeling settles in my body as I smile to myself. Damn, I'm already starting to feel better.
I pull out my phone next to me and look at the time, which it is 9 am currently. Ayushi told us last night before we arrived at the villa that we can sleep in today because we are not going to do any activities in the morning, so we can relax. But then, at nighttime we are going to go on a helicopter tour, which shows the beautiful sceneries and overview of Costa Rica, and I am honestly stoked for it.
My feet land on the hardwood floor as I yawn exhaustedly. I don't want to sleep in too much because I still want to get acquainted with Ayushi's villa and the people that live here as well. So, after I quickly brush my teeth and shower, wearing loose grey shorts and a black tank top, and as I reach the stairway that leads downstairs, I see Ayushi and Manav in the kitchen from my point of view. I think at first that they are just having a normal conversation, but it seems to me, more that I hear them talking, that this is anything but a normal conversation.
Manav has his back to me and I see him talking in a low tone to her, and Ayushi has her arms crossed in front of her chest as she seems to be glaring at him. Are they arguing?
I lean against the wall so I can eavesdrop. The stairway that is right next to my feet has secluded walls surrounding it, so this is basically perfect for me to eavesdrop because not only does it not blow my cover, but I can also hear pretty clearly as well.
As I hear harsh words coming out of Ayushi and Manav, I think to myself that I always thought that Ayushi and Manav were the golden couple that could never argue but turns out that even the most perfect couples out there have disagreements.
"—I told you many times, babe, I swear I don't mean to do it on purpose," Manav speaks in a hushed tone to Ayushi. "You are overthinking right now."
"You have no right to tell me that I'm overthinking!" Ayushi hisses at him. "We are only two days into vacation, and you are already getting on my nerves."
"What exactly am I doing that's making me get on your nerves?" Manav questions. "Please enlighten me."
"How many fucking times do I have to tell you?" she groans. "First of all, you always interrupt me whenever we speak with the others! It's like you don't want me talking in the first place. And second of all... you've barely been opening up to me or talking to me in general. And the only time you've interacted with me was when we had sex last night, and we were drunk!"
"Gosh, Ayushi," Manav slaps his forehead in frustration. "Do you know what bullshit you're speaking right now? I don't mean to interrupt you! I just speak whenever I want to, like, it's America... freedom of speech!"
"That's not my point," she glares at him. "My point is that I am trying to fix our issues right now before everything goes to shit. Hell, I'm not even married to you yet and we're already having issues."
"These issues that you're speaking of are nonexistent," he retorts. "It's all make believe because you want to start shit with me for no goddamn reason!"
"Shut the hell up!" she yells in frustration.
I raise my eyebrows in shock. This argument is really out of nowhere, and I never ever thought Ayushi and Manav were one to argue like this. When I first met them, they seemed to be so in love with each other, kissing each other so passionately when I arrived at the doorstop of Ayushi's villa and being fond of each other's company in general. But as I hear them arguing back and forth, spitting insults at each other... well, let's just say that my viewpoint of them has changed.
As I get lost in my thoughts, I feel a light hand on my shoulder. I gasp to myself and turn around to see a curious Akash looking at me. "What are you doing?" he grumbles. It seems like he just got out of bed because his hair is completely messy, strands effortlessly falling into his face, and he's wearing black basketball shorts with a green t-shirt. I stammer to myself. "Uhm, n-nothing."
"Nothing?" He raises his eyebrows at me, as if he's not persuaded at all by my lie. "So, you're telling me that you're pressing your face into this wall for... nothing?"
I grumble in defeat. "Okay, fine." I gulp to myself and lean into Akash. "So, I was simply on my way to eat breakfast, right? And right when I reached the stairs, or right here rather, I heard..." I pause to myself, recollecting my thoughts. "I heard Ayushi and Manav arguing in the kitchen."
Akash looks at me concerningly and blows an exasperated sigh out of his mouth. Then, he frustratingly runs his fingers through his hair and curses, "Shit."
I furrow my brows. "Why just shit? You don't seem surprised."
"That's because I'm not." He places his hands on his hips and nervously bites his lip.
I glare at him in question. "So, are you going to tell me why you're not surprised?"
He pauses for a few moments and looks at me with a serious expression plastered on his face. "This is not the first time this has happened," Akash whispers to me.
"Seriously?" I murmur. He nods his head in response. "What do you mean?" I question.
"What I mean is," he pauses to think to himself, "This is not the first time Ayushi and Manav have argued like... this," he gestures to the kitchen downstairs where they continue to argue. "I've been best friends with Manav for as long as you and Ayushi have been friends, except Manav and I have never lost touch with each other."
I look at him in question. "How do you know that—"
"—Ayushi and you lost touch?" he finishes my sentence for me. "Manav told me." I raise my eyebrows and look down at the ground. "Yeah, that's how close we are," he continues speaking. "And we're so close to the point where we tell each other every single thing that occurs in our life. Such as his relationship problems," he winces.
"Damn," I murmur.
"Yeah," he nods his head solemnly. "They've been dating for at least four years, ever since they graduated from college, but they've always argued, like, always," he emphasizes. "Manav always complained to me how stubborn and hot-headed Ayushi was, because she honestly is," he slightly chuckles. "So, they'd always have mini arguments where Manav complains to me afterwards, and then the next day they would be completely fine, creating this on again and off again situation. It was so annoying," he grumbles. "I know that they love each other, but they need some couple therapy, I swear to God. And Manav himself is stubborn, so two stubborn people in a relationship don't exactly go well together."
"Yikes," I wince. "So, what do we do about this?" I gesture towards a still arguing Ayushi and Manav.
Akash draws in a deep breath. "Honestly, time is our best friend here. I usually would wait for them to calm down, giving them at least a day to regain themselves, but if they're still arguing or ignoring each other then I would step in."
"Okay," I nod my head. "I was just so shocked because I never thought they would be the arguing type of couple."
"Yeah, me neither," he solemnly responds. "Hopefully they get rid of their arguing tactics before they get married because if they keep on doing this then it is going to lead to divorce."
I raise my eyebrows once I hear Akash's blunt answer. I mean, he's right though. If they keep nagging each other like this, then their marriage won't even happen in the first place.
"You're right," I reply. "Hopefully this won't lead into anything bad because we're on vacation," I emphasize. "We're here in the first place so we can celebrate their engagement."
"Exactly," Akash responds. "Let's just hope this stops."
I agree to Akash's statement and decide to eavesdrop through the rest of Ayushi and Manav's argument, which leads to them going off in different direction. Ayushi plops onto the couch in the living room, huddled in a ball, while Manav storms off into the gaming room. I blow a defeated sigh out of my mouth as I look at Ayushi at despair. I've never seen her look sad before.
I take a deep breath and look at Akash. "I should probably go comfort her," I point towards Ayushi.
"Yeah, and I should probably go take care of Manav as well," Akash answers. Then, he starts to go downstairs, but I suddenly call out to him. "Wait!"
He turns around and looks at me in question. "What's up?"
I take a deep breath and fidget nervously. Last time I asked him something about himself, he immediately changed the topic and got distant towards me, but this time I just have to know.
"If you and Manav have never lost touch, then how were you in NYU, being on opposite sides of the world from each other?" The words tumble straight out of my mouth. "I know this is a random question, but you said that I got extremely confused because the same situation was for me and Ayushi, except we actually lost touch. So how were you and Manav able to?"
Akash clenches his jaw and takes a deep breath. My heart hammers against my chest. Man, I sure hope he doesn't change the topic and throw another one of his annoying ass mood swings at me.
But, to my surprise, he answers my question. "I lived in California with Manav until I went to NYU for college," he responds. "Manav wanted to go to the medical field, so he attended a prestigious college in Cali, while I attended NYU for... personal reasons," he trails off.
I decide that I should probably not ask what he means by personal reasons, so I just decide to keep my mouth shut and let Akash talk. "We were on opposite sides of the world, but we remained in touch by Facetiming or texting."
"Oh," I mutter. He looks at me weirdly. "Why'd you ask?"
"Oh, it was for nothing," I gulp. "I was just... curious, that's all."
Akash's absorbent blue eyes look at me so confusingly, sending electricity shooting up my spine. It is as if he's deciphering every word that ramble out of my lips, studying me as well. "Alright," he murmurs. "Well, I should probably go take care of Manav."
"Yeah, and I should go take care of Ayushi," I nervously reply. He nods his head, and turns around his heels, walking down the stairs.
I place my head on the wall, muttering profanities to myself. Well, that sure turned awkward.
I shake my head to myself and brush my thoughts away, walking down the stairs. Ayushi is still huddled to herself on the couch, muttering to herself. Taking a deep breath, I walk over to the couch and place a reassuring hand on Ayushi's shoulder. "Hey, is everything okay?"
"What?" She immediately gets up from her lying position and straightens her PJs out. Her eyes are slightly red, and she sniffles to herself, placing a fake grin on herself. "I'm doing great, Ree Ree. What about you?"
I scoff, rolling my eyes. "Ayu, you clearly don't look like you're doing great."
Ayushi sighs defeatedly and leans back on the couch, frowning. "Okay, fine, you caught me."
I lean over to Ayushi and say, "Talk to me. What's wrong?"
She looks over at me and nervously fidgets to herself. "Okay, so lately Manav and I aren't getting along with each other."
"And why is that?"
"Because he thinks I'm assuming shit about him, which I'm not," she emphasizes. "I swear, he's been acting so different around me, and I don't know why! And then whenever I try to bring something up, especially in front of everyone, he fucking interrupts me and starts talking! Like, what the hell, dude?" she scoffs.
I frown to myself. "I'm sorry, Ayu. This is all just miscommunication, but I'm pretty sure you guys can get past this."
"I appreciate your positivity Ree Ree, but we can't get past through this," she sighs defeatedly. "We've been arguing so much and I seriously don't know why. I'm honestly having doubts about marrying him now," she mumbles to herself.
"No, don't say that!" I interject. "Don't give up so easily on Manav. Look." I grab her hand and place it in mine. "You love Manav, right?"
She nods her head. "And I'm pretty sure he loves you too," I explain.
"I highly doubt that—"
"He loves you, Ayu," I slightly smile. "I've seen the way he looks at you, and he looks at you with intense love and passion as well. He obviously doesn't want to give up on you, so why should you give up on him?"
As my words register into Ayushi's mind, she suddenly sends me a glorious grin my way. "Wow. When you put it like that... I guess you're right." She takes a deep breath and looks at me with acknowledgment. "I guess I'm just scared."
"Scared of what?"
She thinks to herself for a moment and then speaks again. "I guess I am scared of losing him. All my life I had things handed to me, but I had to put things aside to get Manav," she articulates. "So, I found that pretty endearing to me, which concludes to the fact that I don't want to lose him. Shit, that's the last thing I want to happen."
I look at her calmly and take a deep breath. "Honestly, I feel you. I mean, except the part where I get everything handed to me because that's never happened to me." Ayushi and I lightly chuckle, and then I speak again. "Although, I feel you on the part where you fear losing your loved ones. I..." I gulp. "I feared losing Nick when we were dating because I actually loved him. Turns out he didn't because he was secretly screwing my roommate," I murmur.
"Fuck, I'm sorry," Ayushi frowns. I shrug. "Eh, I mean, I'm completely over it."
"Yeah, I know you are," she reprimands. "But are you over him?"
As Ayushi's words register in my mind, all I can do is stare at her in silence. Am I over him? The entire time all I've done is shit on him and Chelsea, but I never really thought about whether I still love him. I mean, my love for him was real so I can't get over him that fast, obviously, but I know for sure I wouldn't get back together with him because I am not going to deal with his bullshit ever again.
I take a deep breath and tug a few strands of hair behind my ear. "I don't know," I murmur. "I truly loved him, Ayu, so obviously I'm not completely over him, but I'm getting there."
"That's completely okay," she reassures me. "I was just wondering because I can't even imagine how brutal that must've been for you."
"Yes, it was very brutal," I huff. "But enough about me. We're talking about you and Manav right now."
Ayushi laughs. "Right."
I clear my throat. "Look, just think about what I said, alright? Don't give up on a man that I know has great things in store for you."
"I know," her lips curl into a casual smile. "But we've gotten into so many arguments, especially in the past."
"Don't worry about the past," I interject. "What we're worried about right now is the present and the future, which contains Manav."
"You're right," she responds after a few seconds. "Maybe I am overthinking everything. Hopefully by tonight Manav and I will talk things through, and things will be normal again."
"It will," I cajole. "Trust me."
Ayushi just simply nods her head, and then leans in for a hug. My arms slowly wrap around her back as I place my chin on her shoulder. Memories start to flood in my mind about Ayushi and I, when we were younger. Us hanging by the playground, getting drenched in mud and then getting yelled at by our parents for getting the carpet all dirty. Or us sneaking into an R rated movie and then getting in trouble for that, which wasn't pleasant at all. But, beneath all those sacred memories, leads to friendship. And overall, I am glad that I shared those memories with Ayushi, and I thank the universe for bringing Ayushi and I together.
A few moments later, Ayushi and I release from each other. Then, Ayushi gets up with a huge rush of energy. "Whew, I really needed that talk," she giggles. "Have you eaten breakfast yet?"
"Nope," I grin. "I'll go grab some in a little bit."
"Okay," she nods her head. "Well, I am going to take a shower now, but let me know if you need anything, alright?"
I nod my head and she walks off into the distance. I take a rugged breath in and out. Man, what a very interesting morning it has been so far.
Getting up from the soft gray couch, I tread over to the majestic kitchen and grab a box of Cinnamon Toast Crunch cereal from the cabinet. Then, I grab a jug of milk and bowl and pour my contents into the bowl.
After I get my bowl of cereal ready, I walk over to the outside patio where my eyes feast on the beautiful view outside. A bright grin spreads on my face as I step outside, enjoying the warmth of the beating sun. The infinity pool glistens against the sun rays as I sit on one of the tanning chairs, adoring the wondrous view that gazes upon me, which is a beach in the distance.
Part of me can't believe that I was in New York just a few days ago, stressing the actual life out of myself. I know that I am going to have to go back one day and deal with reality again, reality being known as finding a fucking job and dealing with Chelsea and Nick. I mentally groan to myself as I think about how the actual hell I am going to find a job in New York. Finding a job in any other city would've been easier, but this is goddamn New York! Finding a job there in a short amount of time is almost considered as impossible.
I nervously bite my lip as I try to find initiatives to this situation. For sure I am not going to accept any help from my parents, my brother, or any other friends of mine. The whole point of me migrating to NYC in the first place was to be independent and not rely on anyone financially. Secondly, I am sure as hell not going to originate anything with either Chelsea or Nick because I do not want to be dealing with any of that toxic shit.
As I get lost in my thoughts, I hear the patio door sliding open. I turn around to see Suhana and Neha, who wave me over once they see me. A bright grin spreads on my face as I set my cereal aside. I did not come on vacation to stress about my life in New York. I came here to enjoy my life to the fullest, be my best self, and not let anything or anyone get to me.
And nothing ever will.
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A/N:
Thank you for reading chapter 14! Hope you liked it :)
Stay tuned for the next chapter!!!
-Ru <3