Destiny or Coincidence?

Athira Patel

"Hai Abhi, Hai Athira" she wished looking at us with an expression of sadness and a forced smile on her face. 

I was so shocked to see her sad face that it tugged at my heart repeatedly making me feel guilty for an unknown reason. But somehow i think i know the reason behind her sadness and it was partly because of me. If Abhi didn't like me in the first place, then maybe he would have accepted her feelings. 

Before, I never felt guilty for her, but today after seeing her emotionally drained face like this, it's making me rethink my thoughts and opinion about her. 

"What are you doing here?" Abhi asked looking at her with a stone expression while i was feeling sympathy towards her. Maybe i was the one who came in the middle of them? I know that i am having seconds thoughts here, but I can't help it. 

"Oh look, The great Abhilash graced me with his presence altast. What a pleasant surprise Abhi. You still remember me?" Asked Omisha with a fake surprise and shock by keeping her hands on her heart gasping, while we all can see her hurt face behind her hard facade. 

"Omisha… I asked you a question" he repeated the words with force like he was controlling himself from lashing out at her. 

"Don't overthink yourself Abhilash. I just came to meet my childhood friend. That's it. It was a coincidence to meet the both of you here" she spat looking at him with an angry expression on her face. But i think that anger is reflected due to the hurt feelings she is hiding smartly behind her hard exterior. She is good at hiding her feelings though. Even I would have thought the same if not for her betraying eyes a little earlier for a fraction of seconds when she saw us together. I don't know if Abhi saw the sadness in her eyes earlier or not but it's clear to me as daylight now. 

"Fine. Let's go Athira" he said giving a curt nod towards her by cutting her off without giving a second glance at her direction and turned towards me by taking my hand in his to resume our walking towards the entrance. But all the while I was watching her expression to see her wall crumbling little by little due to his harshness and ignorance towards her. 

I realised at that moment that maybe she was a bitch to me but she truly loved him from the bottom of her heart and the friendship between the both of them was much stronger than I thought up to now. It made me realise one more thing that he too was hiding his hurt behind his anger. I can now clearly see that he was missing his best friend and was not able to do anything in return. And it was his frustration that is coming out at this moment because of his helplessness. 

"Wait Athira. I want to say something" she said stopping the both of us and I turned towards her with an expression of confusion because up to now she was totally talking to him by ignoring me completely and now all of a sudden she called my name. So it definitely made me confused but I was willing to listen to whatever she has to say. I think I need a closure between us to clear out negative feelings towards each other. 

"What is it?" He asked rather harshly making her flinch back with surprise but recovered herself quickly and stood rooted on her spot with determined eyes. It made me even more curious to know about what she has to say. 

"I envy you Athira. But at the same time, I pity you too" she said making me look at her in shock while Abhi fisted his hands on his side without uttering a word. "Because you are so oblivious to everything around you" she continued making me even more confused that I furrowed my eyebrows not getting about what she is trying to say.

"I know that. And that is what I am trying to say. You are so oblivious to the people around you and about their feelings. You didn't even know that your best friend was having feelings for you from childhood in the first place, then how can I expect you to know about the feelings of the person who is standing beside you at present" she said scoffing at me by giving me an accusing look which made me take a step back in return by listening to her words. 

It was like someone splashed water on my face to wake me up from my dreamland only to see the real world. I was stunned to react to her statement. I was looking at her with big shocking eyes without blinking by taking in the words she just said. 

"Stop it Omisha. It's enough" Abhi said giving her a death glare and keeping a hand on my back to assure me that everything is going to be alright. But is it really??

"Why Abhi? She has the right to know about everything. Don't you think that it has been long due to tell her everything?" Omisha said raising her voice by giving him an equal glare while i was watching and listening to everything they are saying. 

What is it that he is hiding from me?

"It's none of your business Omisha. I am capable of telling her everything when the right time comes" he said with finality and demanding in his voice that for a second I too was scared due to his dominant side. But was surprised to see that Omisha was looking at him with equal dominating eyes. 

They both are truly best friends and know each other very well. 

"I know you so well to know that you are scared Abhi. And you always see the reasons to hide it from her just to not scare her away. But don't you think that she has the right to know? And what if she doesn't run away as you think?" Omisha said with a determined look to make him realise about something, that he too was rethinking about his decision. I can see it from the way his eyebrows were furrowed like he was thinking about something deeply. 

"Don't you think that she is close enough now to understand you?" Omisha continued explaining to him with a gentle voice knowing that he was listening to her words. But i think that something clicked in him and he became the same as previous. 

"No. You are not going to say anything to her and it's final" he said with anger in his voice that Omisha was glaring at him in return making me get irritated due to their never-ending argument. 

"Stop it both of you," I said with a raised voice making them both look at my direction. I can see the confused eyes of Abhi while Omisha was looking at me with calculating eyes. But i didn't back down this time and went towards the both of them and stood in front of her. 

"I want to know about what you were trying to say earlier," I said looking at her with determined eyes while she just gave a satisfied look. 

"Athira, you don't need to listen to whatever she has to say" Abhi saying trying to convince me, but I can feel the slight fear behind his voice. He was desperate to let me walk away from her. This made me even more determined to know about what he is trying to hide from me. 

"Abhi Please. I want to know about what she has to say" I said with a strong voice that it surprised both of them for a moment. Hell, even I was surprised. I am scared to know it but i need to know it. I hope that everything goes fine after listening to it.

"Tell me Omisha. I want to listen to everything" I said looking at her in the eyes with a serious expression to let her know that I am ready. 

"Ok…. I know that you might be thinking that i am taking revenge on you. But trust me, I am helping you out by saying this to her on behalf of you. Because probably you won't ever say to her in the fear of losing her." she said glancing at Abhi. Then I realised that she was referring to him while explaining the need for saying it to me. I was surprised to see her kind smile and gentle voice. 

"Let's start from the beginning, Athira. I know that you are confused as hell, but just hear me out first without reacting," she said looking at me with somewhat gentle eyes making me confused even more but choose to keep quiet for the time being.

"You think that Abhi knows you from college days?" she asked looking at me to which I nodded my head in yes. "No, that's where you are wrong and was so oblivious to recognize him. He knows you from childhood" she said making me gasp in shock.

"No. You are lying" I said not believing her words.

"Fine then, I can even prove it to you. Can you able to handle it then?" she asked looking at me seriously to which I nodded my head in agreement.

"Prove it then," I said looking at her seriously and folding my hands. Abhi was pulling his hair with his right hand with tensed eyes.

"Tell him to show his wallet" she stated making me furrow my eyebrows but turned towards him to ask but he shook his head in denial backing away.

"No Athi. You don't need to listen to her. Please let's go from here" he asked pleading me with his eyes but I stood rooted to my spot extending my hand for him to give his wallet. 

After a few moments of searching my face for any kind of hope, he reluctantly pulled his wallet out and placed it in my palm hesitatingly. I immediately pulled it towards me once he kept it in my hand not him any chance to take back and opened it to gasp in shock that the wallet slipped from my hands and fell on to the floor. It was a picture of both of us sitting in the park and watching the sunset. I think I was eight or nine years old at that time. 

"Yes, he was your childhood friend and has feelings for you from then on," she said making me look at her with unbelievable expression but didn't utter a word to let her continue. I want to listen to the whole story now. 

"He stayed with his family friends for a year in Hyderabad studying there when he was 10 years old and that's where he met you for the first time and you both became friends. But after that when his dad died, he has to go to Bangalore and was not able to contact you back again." she continued explaining when she realised that she got my full attention on her.

"But he came back when he was 17 years old only to look for you, but got to know that you have shifted from there two years back itself and cursed himself for coming late. He went back to Bangalore to study high school but still was looking for you in every way. After completing his degree, he asked the help of his brother in finding you and within a month they got you." she said making me look at her with a surprised expression. 

"You should have seen his face then. He was flying on the cloud that he got you at last and immediately he packed everything and went to Hyderabad just to join in your college for you. But then again, fate was not on his side. He got to know that you already have a boyfriend and was in love with him. This made his heart crumble into pieces but still was determined to join there itself because he wanted to see you happy. He wanted to look at you from far and enjoy your happiness. We all tried to stop him, but he didn't listen and joined there at last." she said looking at me with somewhat hate expression again. Maybe it was because he chose to come for me instead of listening to her. I looked at him to see that he was looking down with a defeated sigh and was scratching his neck with his fisted hands.

"I don't know if it was your fate or luck but you broke up with your boyfriend and was suffering with heartbreak making the chances even less for Abhi to meet you. He was devastated and hurt to see you like that but cannot do anything in return. He used to watch you from far. He thought that he doesn't want to disturb you and make you even more hurt, so he came back to Bangalore once he completed his study." she said sighing and making me realise that i was indeed so selfish.

"I was thankful to god for it to say frankly. Because I love him Athira. I do. That too a lot. You even don't know much about him and I was the one who was there for him from childhood. He used to share everything with me. I agree that you came into his life before me and I came after you. But you were there for just one year, and I was there for him from the past 15 years. So yes, I was jealous of you because goddammit, he always talks about you, thinks about you, smiles about you, cries about you. It was always about you. And he always loved you." she said breaking at the end. Tears were flowing down from her eyes making it clear as day that how much she loves him.

"I became selfish, I acted like a bitch towards you, but it was because I was jealous of you. I thought that your chapter was over when he returned to Bangalore after completing his PG. But no, fate played its role and he came to Hyderabad for his friend's marriage where for the first time you have seen him in person and got attracted to him. After all those years he thought that he got the chance to talk with you or be as a friend with you. But no. You being yourself, rejected him again and went away after breaking him successfully again." she said glaring at me again this time making me flinch back with hurt. I didn't even realise that i was crying all this time.

"He was lost, hurt, broken that it was like hell trying to console him. I cursed a lot of words on you for hurting him like that. I would have never forgiven you if he hurt himself like that. After two days of being alone, he became somewhat normal and went to the office as usual. But anyone who knows him can see that he was hurting from inside." she continued but i was crying listening to her words. My heart was crying for making him hurt unknowingly. 

"What made me even angrier was the fact that you again came into his life. I don't know if i should punch you or shout at my fate. It was like all the stars in the universe were hell-bent on getting to meet you both again. Yes, fate played again its role and you came back in his life as a trainee and it was even more surprising that he was your project manager." she scoffed looking at the both of us while I was unable to meet his eyes with shame. 

"Yes, I recognised you the moment he called your name saw you with those lost eyes of his. I knew it that it was you for whom he became like that. So, obviously my insecurities became high and was nervous to lose him. So I behaved like a bitch to make to get away from his life. Yes. I was selfish, but I love him and wanted to be with him. But it was not mine from first. I realised it now. But it cost our friendship in return." she said with sad eyes glancing at him and he too was looking at her with the same sad expression.

"I am sorry Athira that I behaved like that with you. I know that it was no reason. But i was selfish to make him mine. But i cannot turn the fates when its already decided. He was never mine in the first place." she said smiling sadly and taking my hands in hers. I was just watching her with tear face.

"He was always yours and I can see that now. He is a lot happier when he is with you. I have never seen him this happy and i know that the reason behind it is because of you. I hope that you realise your feelings for him." she said wiping my face and hugging me in return. I was shocked at first but was my heart as content with relief. I realised that we both got the closure for our negative feelings and I smiled by hugging her in return.

After a few moments, she released herself from the hug and smiled kindly that it was the first time I was seeing her smile genuinely like this. I smiled back sincerely.

"See you. Bye Abhi. Sorry for revealing it to her like that, but it was time to know. You will thank me later for it." she said giving her forced smile and went towards the exit leaving the both of us with our own thoughts in mind. 

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Hello everyone,

Here is your awaiting chapter and a double update. I hope that you like it.

Let me know your thoughts and opinions on this chapter. please don't forget to vote, comment and share it if you like.

Love...

Sprinkle....