At Anamika’s House…
Anamika was quietly sitting at the dining table. In the kitchen, Saaniya was humming to herself while making breakfast for her. Meanwhile, in the living room, three pairs of eyes—Aditya’s, Aniket’s, and Rudra’s—had been glued to her for the past thirty minutes. Tired. Curious. Dramatic.
Finally, Aniket broke the silence. “Bro!! Don’t you have an office to go to?”
Aditya, staring blankly, replied, “I do. But she’s not coming out.”
Rudra leaned forward, already done with the suspense, “Then just go alone, man!”
Aditya turned to him with narrowed eyes. “Aniket… care to explain who this guy is? He’s been sitting here forever, and hasn’t even introduced himself to me.”
Aniket smirked, trying hard not to laugh. “Dude..! He’s not a Netflix show that starts with a dramatic intro!”
Aditya groaned. “Ugh! If you still have any more dad jokes left, just get it over with!”
Aniket pouted dramatically. “What do I do?!I’m bored! I was expecting some explosive drama the moment Saaniya went from the hospital for home, but nope! It’s just sweet family scenes happening here! Anyway, are you going to tell me what Anamika said to Saaniya that made her react like that?”
Aditya sighed and leaned back, remembering that very moment.
Flashback…
Aditya and Anamika were just leaving for the office when Saaniya’s name flashed on her phone screen. She picked up the call.
And within seconds, she crumbled like a kid.
“Now you ask?! You were so mad at me yesterday! Do you even know how lonely I felt?! I felt so alone that Aditya and Ruhi had to take me to a hotel, and even then, I couldn’t calm down! And the drink—ugh, that was a mistake! The waiter delivered the wrong order to our table… But whatever! You just go do your job. You’ve already left me all alone! You’re mean!”
She blurted everything in one breath, and Aditya just stood there blinking in surprise. But as soon as she heard Saaniya’s soft voice from the other side, she went quiet.
Then she turned to Aditya with a sniffly pout and said, “Aditya… I’m taking half a day off today.”
Stolen story; please report.
Aditya just stared at her, totally lost.
Flashback ends…
He let out a deep breath. “Now I get what she meant by half-day off…”
Then both Aniket and Rudra, in perfect sync, sighed, “Girls and their drama…”
But Aditya, eyes filled with fondness, looked at Anamika and said, “I don’t care what happened or why… All I know is, when she smiles, I smile. That’s it. Oh, and yes—I’ve taken a half-day too!”
Aniket’s jaw dropped. He muttered under his breath, “Love has turned Romeo into butter…”
Rudra sparkled like a true romantic, “That was straight out of a K-drama!”
Aniket gave him the most judgmental stare possible. “This guy… is really a hospital director?!”
Aditya just smiled, “It’s nothing dramatic. I’m simply happy for my Anamika.”
Hearing that, Rudra got lost in thoughts of Saaniya and whispered, “They really do love and care for each other.”
Aniket too, unknowingly, found Saaniya’s expressionless face flashing in his mind.
It was blank… and yet… it meant something. “Maybe this friendship… means more to her than she lets on,” he thought to himself.
All three boys drifted into their daydreams—until a voice snapped them out.
“You guys coming to eat, or should I eat everything by myself?”
Anamika’s playful tone pulled them right up from the couch.
Aditya claimed the seat next to her like it was reserved. Aniket flopped beside him, and Rudra followed, still confused but vibing.
Saaniya walked over, setting breakfast on the table. Narrowing her eyes at Rudra, she asked with mock authority, “By the way, why did you come with Aniket, Mr. Malhotra?”
Rudra sulked, “Can you please call me Rudra for once?! We’re not even in the hospital today!”
But Saaniya stayed perfectly poker-faced. “Answer the question.”
Rudra looked around helplessly before flashing a guilty smile, “Aniket… Aniket invited me.”
Saaniya slowly turned to Aniket.
He shrugged, “I mean, we’re friends now. Thought I’d introduce him to Aditya and Anamika too.”
Rudra blinked. “Wait… we are?”
He was reaching for the water glass when Saaniya added, “So you just make random friends and bring them to people’s houses uninvited now? Genius.”
Rudra choked. Coughing hard, he managed to say, “I’m not some stray cat, okay?!”
Anamika giggled. “She’s just teasing! Don’t take it seriously!”
Aniket glanced at Saaniya. Her face was as blank as ever, and he couldn’t help but sigh. “She’ll never change…”
As Saaniya sat down beside Anamika, she turned to Aditya with her trademark deadpan expression, “So, Mr. Business Tycoon… planning to sell your company or something?”
Aditya blinked. “Wait—what?! Why would I do that?”
She raised her brow, “Then why are you still here? Keep chasing Anu around like this and someday, you will need to sell your business.”
Aditya just kept looking at her… then turned to Anamika.
She simply smiled at him, and that was all the answer he needed.
But Aniket noticed something else—a tiny flicker of restlessness in Saaniya’s eyes.
“Is she trying to avoid us…? Does she want to talk to Anamika alone…?
If yes… then it’s my duty to mess with her now!”
The mischievous sparkle had returned to Aniket’s eyes.
Everyone finished their breakfast in a hurry. Saaniya began clearing the table. Anamika stood to help her, but Aniket quickly stopped her.
“Whoa, whoa—sit down! Let this nobody do some work for a change.”
Anamika giggled, “No!! How can I let you do chores?!”
Aniket said dramatically, “We’re friends, right? Say it…”
She nodded.
He grinned, guided her to the couch, and said, “Then be a good friend and rest! I’ll clean up. I mean, friends do have some rights, don’t they?”
He walked toward the table like a hero on a mission.
Saaniya, silently listening the whole time, picked up a napkin and casually tossed it at him. “Clean the whole table. And there are a few dishes in the sink—handle those too.”
Aniket blinked. “Excuse me?! Do I look like your house help?!”
Saaniya paused mid-step, turned back with the faintest mischievous smile, “Why not? You just said friends have rights at each other’s homes… that includes cleaning too! So… enjoy.”
And she walked away.
Aniket just stood there—speechless.
Because of one thing.
Her smile.
For the first time ever, he had seen Saaniya smile.
And his heart… skipped a beat.
“Has her smile… always been this beautiful?” he wondered.
So what exactly is happening to Aniket?
Is this what falling in love feels like?
Or did he…
Just get surprised by her smile?
And more importantly…
Does Saaniya really want to talk to Anamika about something…?
