Aadrita quickly returned with blankets borrowed. Aadrita and Arjun didn't chat much after that, but the atmosphere between them was peaceful.
Soon the night went through. Neither Aadrita nor Arjun woke up in between. They both had a good night's sleep.
Aadrita woke up as usual around 6 a.m., while Arjun woke up around 7 a.m. Both of them just greeted each other and did their things.
Today they will reach Trivandrum at noon.
After freshening up, having breakfast, and arranging all the luggage, both became free around 10 a.m.
Since it was only two hours from the destination, Aadrita called her friend Aryan to pick her up.
"Hey, Aryan. Good Morning. My Train is on time and will reach by noon!"
"Good Morning, Ritu. I am near the railway station only. I will pick you up. "
"OK, then I just wanted to remind you. If you are there, then no problem. Bye, see you soon! "
As Arjun heard the conversation, he suddenly got curious and asked, "Is that the one who riled you up yesterday?"
Aadrita shook her head" He is my best friend, though one of the reasons for my mood swing was him...I had some other things on my mind, together with his words, it messed up my brain!"
"So he is your best friend."
"Since we are not going to meet anywhere, I will tell you a secret.
I am from a single-parent family. My dad...passed away when I was nine years old. I didn't have any contact with men after that.
When I went to college, there I met Aryan, he also came from the same place as me, so coming and going back all together we clicked through and became best friends.
He was the first male person I had some feelings for, so I thought I had a crush on him. But he had someone he liked. I rethought overall and realized it was not BF crush that I had on him, but it was bro-crush...I thought of him as my brother.
But still, when that idiot prioritizes his GF more than me, I feel sad. "
"Oh, possessiveness."
"True not only to him, I feel possessive towards all my close family and friends. What about you? Do you want to tell me some secrets?"
"Hey, what is this... truth or dare game?"
"No, it's just I feel we can tell strangers our secrets rather than known people... because they won't judge us. Even if they do, where does it matter?"
"You are crazy... but back to the topic of secrets. I wanted a love marriage and a thrilling one at that. Like something more interesting... but pity that till now I hadn't felt a crush on any girl. "
"No offense, but are you gay?"
"I didn't say that I feel for men, idiot. I just didn't feel anything special for anyone. Maybe because I was focused on studies or work for more than 90% of the time. Fully occupied. "
"You should have looked around you also. Who knows, your soulmate may have grazed through, and you didn't even notice? "
"Now that my fate is sealed, how does it matter whether I look around or not? "
"That's also true, though not married yet, you are a taken man. Commitment is also something. "
"Moreover, I have already done a poor job of not reaching out to my bride."
"Just make it up to her. By the way, how many days did you guys have between your engagement and marriage? "
"After we went to her home, everything was fixed, and we got engaged the very next week. One month after the engagement, the marriage was fixed."
"Then you guys didn't get much time to familiarise yourselves with each other. What was the rush? From your side aa. OMG, are you gay? "
"Stop being dramatic. And no, it was not from our side alone. The bride's side also showed urgency. Some astrologers gave an ultimatum that she should get married before her 25th birthday. "
"Astrologer also has no job. I do believe that predictions can be made, but I don't believe in predictors. "
"That's also true. Who knows whether they are stating the truth or lies? By the way, are you going home? "
"No, if I go home I won't be able to attend the party. I will just go to my friend's house today and attend the wedding directly tomorrow."
As they were talking, they reached Trivandrum. Parting time had arrived. Though the 2-day journey had 48 hours... Bickering, apologizing, fidgeting, and finally talking, they both didn't know how time went by. They felt as if they had reached their destination very quickly. The 48-hour journey did create a new experience for both of them. Meeting a friendly stranger was refreshing.
Arjun took the initiative to say goodbye. " It was nice meeting you. I hope you find someone who will keep you as his priority soon. Since your sister's marriage is at the same time as mine, I am not inviting you. Just enjoy your sister's wedding. "
"Same here... sorry for waking you up in the middle of the night... and thanks for not inviting me and putting me in Delima. And finally, advanced happy married life. "
With that, both of them shook hands and parted ways...
Aadrita took all her luggage and went to sit on the platform, waiting for Aryan. She didn't even need to wait long; Aryan came and took her in a bear hug.
Arjun went in the direction of the exit... he turned around for the last look at Aadrita. He found her in a warm bear hug..." So that's her best friend... It was really refreshing to meet her. "
"Every new beginning comes from some other beginning's end."
Is this the beginning or the end of their relationship? Only time will tell...but the bond they've formed is priceless.
They didn't exchange contact. Though Arjun found it pitiful, he was aware that having frequent contact with other women is not a virtue of a married man.
As for Aadrita, speaking to someone in front of her is easy, but maintaining the same contact is difficult for her..the first few days will be okay, but then these contacts become dead..better not take any...