After that day—
something changed.
"Hey, how is your exam preparation going?"
Aira texted.
"Very good," Aarohi replied.
"Hmm… and maths?"
"I've improved around 80%."
"Well done."
Aira wanted to talk to her on a video call.
But she didn't have the courage to say it.
She didn't know how it would feel—
to see her like that.
To look into her eyes.
So she stayed quiet.
Hiding her wish behind silence.
Aarohi just liked the message.
Aira stared at the screen.
Something felt… off.
It was a small feeling.
But noticeable.
As if Aarohi didn't want to talk much.
Aira felt uneasy.
Why was she suddenly talking less?
Maybe she was stressed because of exams.
Aira tried to convince herself.
But slowly—
their conversations started getting shorter.
Colder.
They didn't talk like before.
Something had definitely changed.
Now—
Aira was always the one who texted first.
She had become very attached.
Too attached.
She had even started imagining a future with her.
In small things.
Festivals.
Moments.
Life.
Days passed like this.
One evening—
they got on a call.
"Hey… how are you?" Aira asked.
"Good. What about you?"
"Good."
She wasn't.
But she tried to sound normal.
There was a pause.
Then suddenly—
Aarohi said,
"I think we should talk less."
Aira's heart dropped.
"Why?"
Aarohi took a moment.
Then said,
"You're just an infatuation for me."
"Everything is sorted now."
"You're not more than that."
"We have no future together."
"I love my boyfriend."
"When no one was there for me, he was."
"He loves me more than anything."
Aira felt something break inside her.
She couldn't speak.
But deep down—
she knew.
Aarohi's feelings were never just infatuation.
She was just trying to ignore them.
Aira finally replied,
"I'll still talk to you."
Aarohi sounded frustrated.
"Why are you doing all this for me?"
"Why?"
"Say something, Aira… why do you do things I like?"
There was a long pause.
Then Aira said,
"Because I love you."
"Aarohi… did you hear me?"
"I love you. Only you."
Silence.
Then Aarohi replied softly,
"I love you… as a friend."
"You're just my good friend."
Aira's chest felt heavy.
"But I love you more than that," she said.
"You have to stop this, Aira."
Aira closed her eyes.
"I'll stay as your friend… forever," she said.
"At least I can talk to you like that."
"Like 'Ae Dil Hai Mushkil'."
Aarohi replied,
"You're inspired by that movie…"
"You know it's my favourite."
"Love like this… only ends up hurting."
Aira gave a small, broken smile.
"Then I'll accept that pain… just to stay with you."
"Why don't you understand?"
"I just want to talk to you…"
Aarohi sighed.
"Do whatever you want."
"But you're just my friend."
She didn't say it harshly.
But it still hurt.
"Hmm…"
That was all Aira replied.
But inside—
she was shattered.
She didn't know what to do anymore.
Still—
she chose to stay.
Even if it meant getting hurt.
She didn't force her.
Didn't expect anything.
She just wanted to love her—
even if it was one-sided.
But somewhere deep inside—
she knew.
Something about this…
was not right.
Aira kept staring at the chat.
The screen was still.
No new message.
She opened their old chats.
Scrolling slowly.
Reading everything again—
like it would change something.
Their first conversation.
Her texts.
Her laugh.
Her words.
Everything felt so close.
Yet so far.
Her eyes stopped on one message—
"I love you."
Aira smiled faintly.
But her eyes slowly filled with tears.
"So this is what it feels like…"
She locked her phone.
But her thoughts didn't stop.
She looked outside the window.
The sky was calm.
Peaceful.
But inside her—
there was chaos.
She wanted to cry.
But she didn't.
Instead—
she chose silence.
Because loving her quietly…
felt easier than losing her completely.