Chapter 44

Falling for Mehul had been slow.

Painfully slow.

Ridiculously slow.

So slow that even Arjun and Riya noticed before I did.

But today?

Today, I had finally accepted it.

I was gone.

And now, I had two options.

 Option One: Keep it to myself. Stay calm. Pretend nothing has changed.

 Option Two: Tell Arjun and Riya and suffer the consequences.

Spoiler: I didn't even get a choice.

Because by the time I stepped into the café to meet them—they already knew.

I had barely sat down before Riya grabbed my arm.

"Oh my god. You're in love."

I choked. "I—what? No. I—"

Arjun gasped. "HE DIDN'T DENY IT."

Riya screamed.

I groaned, rubbing my temples. "I literally just got here."

Riya leaned in. "Details. Now."

Arjun grinned. "How did he wreck you this time?"

I scowled. "Why do you assume—"

Riya interrupted. "Vihaan. Honey. We know you."

I sighed, accepting my fate.

"…We went to the zoo."

Silence.

Then—

Riya squealed. "OH MY GOD, YOU HAD A CLICHÉ ZOO DATE?"

Arjun shook his head. "It's worse than we thought."

Riya grabbed my shoulders. "Vihaan. How does it feel?"

I frowned. "How does what feel?"

She smirked.

"Knowing you're completely, hopelessly in love with him."

…Oh.

Oh, shit.

My stomach twisted.

Because hearing it out loud?

That was worse.

I swallowed. "I—I'm not—"

Arjun raised an eyebrow. "Dude."

I exhaled sharply.

And then, finally—I admitted it.

"I'm so screwed."

Riya cheered. "YES, YOU ARE."

I barely survived lunch.

By the time I got home, I was emotionally exhausted.

I flopped onto my bed, staring at the ceiling, trying to process everything.

And then—my phone buzzed.

A message.

From Mehul.

I blinked. Opened it.

Mehul: Did you reach home?

My stomach flipped.

Because—what?

Since when did he ask things like that?

Since when did he check in on me?

Since when did he—

…Since always.

I stared at my screen, completely ruined.

Then, finally, I exhaled.

Vihaan: Yeah. You?

A few seconds later—

Mehul: Hmm.

…Hmm???

I scowled at my phone.

Mehul was infuriating.

Mehul was annoying.

Mehul was the most confusing person I had ever met.

And the worst part?

I still wanted to see him again.