Riya stayed with dad all day without interrupted by arav
Even arav stayed with him all day
"I don"t know your this side"
I am just like this ,i am just heloing my employee like we usually do .he replied
He'll never confess his soft side.
"Actually,thanks ..this really matter for me i wouldn't do this alone..i lost my mother at an building collapse."
'I know" he added
"You were crying for your mom last night and cursing yourself being alone and on your condition"
Oh mee. ....Seriously
I loved my mom ,i really misses her ,well what about yours i didn't see her
And never will
Why
She is not with us anymore
Ohh..i am sorry
She left us for someone else since then i handle everything and ananya by myself ,didn't get supported by dad
She ruined everything
Since then hate the concept of mom.
Ohh....riya don't know what to reply in return so they both just stay still...
And moved from there when doctor said the condition is getting fine slowly but still he gave leave to riya for someday.
Arav had learned to keep his face calm—
even when his heart felt like it was being squeezed by a fist he could never see.
Tonight was one of those nights.
His father stood in the center of the living room, surrounded by businessmen, wine glasses, cameras, and fake smiles. The place felt less like a home and more like a stage… and Arav hated stages.
"Arav, stand here. No, not there—here. Smile properly," his father snapped.
Cameras flashed.
Someone whispered, "His son looks just like him… lucky man."
Lucky.
Arav almost laughed.
He felt like a puppet with strings tied to every limb.
His dad loved showing him off—every event, every party, every stupid handshake he didn't care about.
And lately… his father had been getting close to a woman. Too close.
A woman he had been dating.
Arav saw them that evening—her hand on his father's arm, her laugh way too loud, her perfume filling the hallway like a warning sign.
For a moment, Arav's chest tightened.
He remembered his mom.
Her warmth.
Her smile.
Her lies.
Her betrayal.
He blinked hard, pushing the heaviness away.
This wasn't the night to fall apart.
---
A Refreshing Storm Named Riya
The next morning, he saw her—
Riya Singh, the girl who somehow turned his suffocated mind into fresh air.
She was sitting on the school stairs, arguing with a junior who dared call debate "boring."
"It's not boring," she shot back, tossing her hair. "It's like sharpening your brain. Something you… clearly don't do."
The boy blinked, offended.
Arav smirked.
She always had fire in her veins.
"Winner of last year's debate championship still terrorizing students?" he teased, walking over.
"If they speak nonsense, yes," she replied without missing a beat.
He felt his chest lighten.
That was the effect she had on him—
like someone opening a window in a room where he had been suffocating for years.
---
Concern That Softened Hearts
Before classes began, Riya checked her phone—messages from the doctor.
Her father's health was improving.
She almost cried.
Arav saw the smile that broke through her usually guarded face.
"Your dad?" he asked quietly.
She nodded. "Recovering… finally."
Something in him melted.
Her happiness felt important… maybe too important.
"Good," he said gently. "Tell him I said he better get well fully. I can't deal with you crying every day."
She rolled her eyes, but a smile escaped.
Their eyes met for a moment too long.
---
The Jacket That Started a War
When they walked out of the school gate, a cold wind blew.
Riya shivered—too stubborn to admit she was freezing.
Arav sighed.
"Take my jacket."
"No, I—"
"Riya. Take it."
He placed it around her shoulders before she could argue.
And of course…
people saw.
Whispers started.
"Are they dating?"
"Fake relationship?"
"Arav's jacket? Seriously?"
"Such attention-seeking."
Riya's eyes narrowed.
She turned around and shouted loud enough for the whole campus to hear:
"YES, I TOOK HIS JACKET. BECAUSE IT'S COLD.
NOT BECAUSE YOUR BRAINS ARE HOT WITH GOSSIP.
NOW MOVE!"
Silence.
Then everyone started scattering like scared pigeons.
Arav laughed under his breath.
"Problem-solver?"
"Always," she smirked.
---
A Hug That Changed Everything
Later, when he came to pick her up, she didn't wait—
she just ran into his arms.
A warm, tight hug.
Her face pressed into his chest.
His heartbeat jumped.
She whispered, "Let's own this fake relationship properly."
He froze.
Because for a moment… it didn't feel fake at all.
---
Pretending or Something More?
They started going out—
coffee shops, parks, random walks.
He was annoyed when she talked too much, argued too much, teased too much.
But the truth was—
he loved being annoyed by her.
She made him feel alive in ways he wasn't ready for.
Sometimes their hands brushed.
Sometimes their laughs overlapped.
Sometimes their eyes met and stayed.
But neither said anything.
---it was seems all fine until then when one day
The Bomb Ananya Dropped
One afternoon, Ananya stepped in front of Arav at the parking lot.
"You don't need to pretend anymore," she said coolly.
"Vihan and I are getting engaged."
His eyes widened.
"Engaged? So fast?,yo are just 20"
She swallowed, her fake confidence cracking.
"Yes. I'm scared to lose him. And engagement brings attention, fame… stability.and afterall i love him."
"You should think twice "arav added
"I dont need to think in this matter ,i made the decision,its for good ..believe me" she adddd
Arav nodded slowly.
He understood.
Too well, actually
Is she that mad in love like no one can stop her.
He was scared too.
Scared of falling in love with the girl who wore his jacket.
The girl who argued him into sanity.
The girl whose hug lingered in his mind longer than it should.
So he gave the safest answer—
the worst answer.
"Fine," he said quietly.
"If you're getting engaged… then maybe it's better I stop pretending too."
But inside, a voice whispered:
Pretending ended the moment she hugged you.
And you know it.
---