11:00 PM
Aniket was driving to Aditya’s house, his eyes repeatedly drifting to the bandages wrapped around his hands.
Saaniya had changed them silently—without a single word. She hadn’t asked how he was, nor had she said anything about herself.
Aniket hadn’t said anything either. He simply left.
After parking the car in Aditya’s driveway, he headed inside. He often visited Aditya’s place, so he had a spare key.
As Aniket unlocked the door and stepped inside, he bent down to take off his shoes—only to notice two pairs of sandals lying nearby. Both were clearly women’s sandals, which felt a little odd to him. Still, brushing the thought aside, he walked in.
When he saw no one in the living room, he called out loudly, “Oye, Aditya!”
Within seconds, Aditya came running down the stairs and quickly clamped a hand over Aniket’s mouth. “Can you not shout like a lunatic, you idiot?!”
Aniket gave him a sharp look. “Why? Who exactly is sleeping inside that you need such peace and quiet, huh? Who’s upstairs?”
Aditya let out a long sigh. “I’m pissed, okay? But I swear… everything’s gone upside down.”
Aniket dropped onto the sofa and said, “Then tell me everything, in detail! I haven’t met any ‘magical powers’ yet who can show me someone’s past!”
Aditya sat beside him and smirked. “You know… you’re starting to sound a lot like Saaniya.”
The moment he heard her name, Aniket’s face changed. Turning away, he muttered, “Don’t change the topic. Get to the point.”
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Aditya exhaled and began, “Alright, so here’s what happened… We reached the hotel and sat at our table. I got a client call—they needed urgent updates. So I rushed back to the office, thinking it would take just ten minutes. I figured Ruhi and Anamika could stay together meanwhile. But then… the hotel called me back. I had to rush there again.”
“Why?! What happened?” Aniket asked.
Flashback…
As soon as Aditya reached the hotel, the manager himself escorted him to a room.
What he saw left him speechless.
The room was a mess—but even worse was the condition of the waiter inside, which made Aditya burst out laughing.
Three waiters were trying their best to manage Anamika and Ruhi, but they were a mess themselves. All three had ridiculous makeup plastered on their faces, looking like victims of a prank gone wrong. Their eyes silently begged Aditya to save them from this chaos, but he couldn’t stop laughing.
That’s when Ruhi noticed him. Stumbling toward him, she said, “Sir… you’re here! Come, let me do your makeup too!”
Aditya backed away and said, “No! Their makeup isn’t done yet. Go finish that first!”
The waiters all glared at him murderously.
Aditya turned to the manager, “What the hell is going on?! How drunk are they?!”
The manager nervously replied, “Sir… they finished the whole bottle.”
Aditya’s eyes widened. “But alcohol isn’t even served here! How did it end up on their table?!”
“Sir, sometimes… on special request, we do serve it,” the manager confessed. “We swap the labels so other guests don’t notice. But… our staff made a mistake. Someone else’s order was sent to their table. And… they drank the whole thing.”
Aditya sighed heavily, running his hand through his hair. “How can you guys mess up this badly?!”
The manager was about to apologize when a soft, innocent voice called out, “Be quiet! I’m painting!”
Aditya turned.
There, behind the door, was Anamika, completely absorbed in her painting like a child. With paint all over her face and clothes, she looked like the ten-year-old girl Aditya had once fallen in love with at first sight.
She still wouldn’t look directly at him. Her eyes stayed focused on his shoes.
In a voice full of childlike innocence, she said, “You can’t come here!”
Aditya knelt down and smiled, “Why not? What’ll happen if I do?”
Anamika pointed toward her painting. “The evil witch will kill you!”
Aditya smiled gently. “But she’s not here.”
Anamika replied, “She’s not here… yes. But she’s still watching! Her eyes are everywhere. Go away! Now!”
Flashback ends
Aniket burst out laughing.
“Wow! Alcohol really flipped both of them! Ruhi became a makeup artist, and Anamika… she’s like a Disney princess trapped by an evil witch! But seriously—how did you get them out of there?”
Aditya sighed. “What do I even say? I had to tell her so many stories to convince her… and then…”
He stopped mid-sentence.
Aniket raised an eyebrow. “And then what? You carried her in your arms like a proper prince?”
Aditya made a face. “Yeah… but the problem was, Ruhi jumped on my back too! Said—‘You’re my boss, so you should carry me first!’”
Aniket collapsed on the floor laughing now.
Aditya grabbed him by the collar. “You think this is funny, huh?! Idiot!”
Aniket: “Very funny! This is gold! Your karma is in 4K resolution!”
And just like that, the two friends broke into playful banter, teasing and wrestling like kids.
But now the real question is… what will happen when Saaniya finds out about all of this?
