I groaned, pushing myself upright.Only time will tell.‘Speaking of ceasefires, how’s the internet treating you these days?’
Her lips twitched into a grin. ‘You mean since my fifteen minutes of fame?’
‘Fifteen? You’ve stretched it to at least twenty.’ I gestured to her phone. ‘Every time I open Instagram, you’ve gained another 10k followers.’
Nikita looked way too pleased. ‘I actually got a few brand collabs this week. I’m also auditioning for a Netflix movie, but that’s definitely not going to turn into anything. Oh, and my manager says a reality show might be interested.’
‘Reality show?’
‘Yes, this new dating show on a music channel. It’ll probably be super cringe, but who cares?’
‘That’s awesome, Niks!’ I was genuinely thrilled. ‘I can’t wait to see you do dumb chemistry challenges in a swimsuit on national TV.’ She punched my arm playfully, but her smile was comically wide.
I thought about what Neil had let slip when I’d grilled him about potentially ruining my friend’s life. He’d said he’d done his research. Had he really figured out that this controversy would end up opening doors for her acting career? I still didn’t think it gave him the right to play God with other people’s lives, but it was comforting to know that he wasn’t a completely rotten person. Unlike Aditya Jindal.
‘Did he ever reach out to you? The broke millionaire?’
‘Ugh.’ Nikita made a face. ‘He DMed me several times, asking me to defend him to his fiancée.’
‘And?’
‘I blocked him, of course.’
‘That’s my girl.’ I squeezed her shoulder.
Nikita leaned back against the couch, yawning. ‘Anyway, I’m off for my Sunday nap. Fame is exhausting.’
The flat fell silent after her door clicked shut. I reached for my laptop on the coffee table.
There were a few hours left in my weekend and I was about to spend them all doing market research for the new clothing line pitch. Neil and I had come up with a list of ten half-decent ideas over the week, but none of them felt like they wereit.I told myself it was fine—that we still had time—but the ball of anxiety in my stomach was getting bigger and bigger.
My phone buzzed and I clicked on the message notification mindlessly. It better not be another goat meme from Neil telling me ‘we’ve goat this’.
It wasn’t. It was a text from Arjun. My ex, Arjun. Whom I hadn’t spoken to in over a year.
Arjun: Heard you’re coming home soon? It’ll be good to catch up.
Why, God, why did I have to leave my read receipts on?I stared at the screen like it might explode.This was not good.
Me: Hey. Not sure I am, yet. Depends on work. Who told you I’m coming?
I didn’t have to wait for his response to know who I needed to murder.
Arjun: Your brother.
That’s it, I decided.I’m never tying Keshav bhaiya a rakhi again. What’s the point if he keeps throwing me to the wolves instead of protecting me from them?
Arjun: Should he not have…?
Me: No no, I just wasn’t expecting to hear from you.
Arjun: Fair enough. I just thought we should go for coffee if you’re in town. Only if that’s ok with you … no expectations or anything.
That familiar ache from our last year of being together spread slowly inside my gut. It was guilt, I knew now. Of not being able to meet him halfway, no matter how much he tried to close the distance.
Me: Sure. I’ll let you know if I do come.
I wasn’t entirely surprised that he wanted to meet me, even after everything he’d gone through after our breakup. I’d heard from several people that it had hit him harder than he’d let on. But then again, Arjun had always been the sort of personwho left doors open, even when I needed them sealed shut and double bolted.
