Where Love Fell Apart

Anaya lay curled up on her hostel bed, eyes swollen from crying, her chest heavy with pain. 

That video… the laughter… the dare.

It kept replaying. Over and over.

She had decided not to go. What was the point? Her heart was already broken.

But Mira's voice wouldn't leave her mind:

> "Ask him. Look in his eyes. You'll know if it's real."

With trembling hands, Anaya sat up. Her room felt cold, suffocating. Her gaze shifted to the cupboard… to the blue dress still hanging where she left it.

It looked almost ghostly now. A cruel reminder of what she thought would be a magical night.

She stood, hesitated for a moment, then reached for it.

No makeup. No smile. Just the dress… and the necklace Aarav had once gifted her. Her fingers brushed over the delicate chain before clasping it around her neck.

She didn't know what she was walking into. But she had to know the truth—from him.

She owed herself that much.

Aarav's Side – Rooftop of Pearl Garden

Aarav stood at the rooftop entrance of Pearl Garden, his heart racing. The sky was painted with hues of twilight, fairy lights flickering like distant stars above the decorated table.

Everything was perfect.

Just like he imagined.

Roses. Paper cranes. Her favorite snacks. Her favorite songs playing in the background. He had planned every detail hoping it would make her feel special—feel loved.

He checked his phone. No reply.

"Maybe she's stuck in traffic," he told himself, trying to hold onto hope.

Then—he heard footsteps.

He turned… and there she was.

Anaya.

In the blue dress. Necklace glinting faintly under the lights. No makeup. Her face pale. Her eyes swollen, red.

It was obvious—she had cried for hours.

His heart sank.

"Anaya… are you okay? You look… tired," he asked gently, voice unsure.

She didn't speak. Just sat down in the chair across from him, as if any word might break her open again.

Minutes passed in silence.

Her eyes wandered to the table—the roses, the careful setup, her favorite chocolates tucked beside the candle. Every tiny detail screamed he knows you.

But the weight in her chest only grew heavier.

Finally, she spoke.

Her voice trembled like glass about to shatter.

> "Aarav… I want to say something."

He looked up, heart pounding.

> "From the time we were little… you were the one person I trusted the most. After my parents, you became my safe place. The one person I believed would never hurt me."

She swallowed hard, eyes glistening.

> "But today… I feel like I'm losing that trust. And it hurts more than I can explain."

Tears spilled from her lashes, her voice breaking.

> "I saw the video, Aarav. The dare. The one where you had to get close to a girl. And you… you chose me."

Aarav's stomach dropped. His breath caught.

She held back a sob.

> "Tell me the truth. All of it. Don't lie. Did you use that dare to come to me?"

Aarav lowered his gaze for a moment, then met hers.

> "Yes… the dare was real."

Her heart cracked.

> "But my feelings aren't. I didn't fall for you because of the dare. I fell for you before it. At the tech fest… I already knew. I was trying to find a way to talk to you. To confess. The dare… it just gave me the push I was too scared to take before."

She stared at him, her face twisted in disbelief, her hands clenched in her lap.

> "So I was just a coincidence? Convenient for your little game? You waited for a dare to come to me, Aarav? I was never part of the plan… just the result of it."

> "No!" Aarav's voice cracked with panic. "You were always the plan. I swear, Anaya. The dare didn't make me love you—it just made me act on it."

She shook her head, eyes flooding again.

> "How can I believe that now? How do I know any of this is real? You broke something in me, Aarav. Something that took years to build."

She stood, voice rising through her heartbreak.

> "You made me believe again… and then you shattered me all over again. Do you even understand what that does to someone?"

Aarav stood up, eyes wide, voice trembling.

> "Anaya… please… just one more chance. Let me prove it. Let me fix this—"

She turned sharply, tears blurring her vision.

> "Don't."

He reached out to stop her—to hold her back, to keep her from walking away.

But she stepped away.

> "Aarav… don't make me hate you more than I already do."

His hand dropped helplessly to his side.

And then—she reached for her neck.

The necklace. The one he had given her not long time ago. The one she had worn tonight like a fragile thread of hope.

Her fingers tore it off.

With trembling fury, she threw it at the table. The tiny chain flew through the air, landing with a soft metallic thud against the glass, the pendant skittering to a stop between the candles and roses.

> "This," she said coldly, "was never mine. I just wore it thinking it meant something."

Her voice broke, her words trembling, angry, raw:

> "You don't get to call this love, Aarav. Not when you needed a game to realize it. Not when I was just another part of your dare."

She looked at him one last time. Not with love. Not with longing.

With heartbreak. With finality.

And she walked away.

Each step she took echoed in Aarav's head like gunshots. He wanted to run after her. To scream. To fall at her feet.

But he couldn't move.

His hand dropped slowly to his side as the silence swallowed him whole.

She didn't turn back.

She was gone.

She was already gone.

Aftermath – The Rooftop

Aarav stood frozen, heart thundering in his chest, breath shaky.

He blinked once.

Then again.

The rooftop was quiet now, only the soft hum of fairy lights and music playing in the background. The chair where she sat still held the shape of her departure. Her perfume still lingered faintly in the air.

His knees buckled.

He sank into the chair, hands trembling, the white rose falling to the ground.

Tears streamed freely now—silent, raw, unrelenting.

All he could see was her walking away.

All he could feel was the emptiness she left behind.

And under the soft glow of all the things he thought would make her smile…

Aarav sat alone.

Completely, utterly broken.