Author's POV:

Finishing their college both of them were busy with their own lives...

No messages...
No calls...

Roohi thought that was the end...

But that was the actual beginning...

One fine day her phone screen lit up with the cute nickname and without her knowledge, she had a smile on her face...

But her mind was alert...

"How are you??"

"Fine... you??"

"Hmm"

"Hmm"

"Still angry??"

"Yours is an unforgivable mistake"

"I know Rooh...not only one I have uncountable mistakes"

"Happy realisation"

"I realised too many things"

"Like??"

He listed all his mistakes one by one...

Right from saying Bye to everyone except her to his ignorance to his stupidity on the sendoff night...

Roohi went on adding when he forgot one of his mistakes like 'you didn't give chocolate that day'

He asked her to scold him to her heart content as he deserves all her curses...

She asked him whether he was sure and he gave a green signal

Roohi spits out all her anger...all her curses on the 2 hours call while Meet silently took all her words...

He didn't answer back and kept saying sorry for his every single mistake and kept reminding her to sip water at regular intervals as her throat was getting dry due to her anger...

At the end when Roohi was huffing she felt so light...she had spoken every single word that she wanted to throw on him...

"I wasn't mature enough to know what I was doing Rooh...but now I have got some brains and I realised how precious you are to me...you are the one with whom I be the exact me...you are rare...you are that jewel that I had thrown out even when you were precious...I was stupid not to realise your worth"

"But why all of sudden this huge change??"

"We say right at one point there is an enlightenment in our lives...that's what happened to me"

"Hmm"

"So you forgive me??"

"It's not that easy Meet...It will take time"

"Take your own time Rooh...I'll wait and  I'll try not to repeat my mistake...and especially the last one...I'll be there for you in everything you need...I promise"

"Khar??" (True??)

"Kharach" (yes that's true)

"Hmm"

"So we are still friends right??"

"I don't talk to strangers"

*******

It took time for Roohi to forgive him and Meet too tried his best not to do any mistake and gain her trust and forgiveness both...

Refreshing their friendship they walked on a new path

And since then the so-called stranger had become her best friend...

Their bond grew stronger and stronger

They shared the darkest of secrets and smallest of their lives...

They understood each other so well...

And as promised they stood for each other in all needs...

Their discussions on their ambitions...seeking important suggestions and much more and eventually they had become besties who knew every minor information about each other...

They began sharing their dreams and ambitions...

He wanted to make short films...

He wanted to learn scriptwriting...

His dream was to make a short film called Behaviour in which when 3 people with different mindsets different ideologies come together to take a project what will be affect on their personal as well as professional lives...

He had many such ideas...

She would listen to his every story and would encourage him to work on it...

The same goes for him when she tried writing for the first time he was the first one to know about it and throughout her writing journey, she had him as her backbone...

Every time she shared a piece of news about her writing he would appreciate her and motivate her to write more and at one point knowing her temper he had asked her to promise that no matter what she won't give up writing...

At college unknowingly he made her realise her strength in academics now he made her realise the hidden talent in her...

As they were classmates from diploma college they had common friends and whenever those friends appreciate and praise them...the same night they would have a discussion about it...

Hey you know he was praising you and I felt so damn good...I am so proud of you Dumbo...

Hey, it's 100k...I am so happy...proud of you...

And she didn't realise that though her mind kept warning the every time her heart betrayed her and has fallen for him again...

But this time it wasn't hormones...

She had fallen for him who was so gentle...so considerate...so kind...so loving...

She loved him with every ounce of her being...

She was into a deep loop that had no end...

But as she knew destiny had some cruel plans it was not going to happen at any cost...

Both of them knew what they had between us and what was the destination but were never vocal...

She always felt she had a lot to say but at the same time she felt she can't say anything...so she didn't say anything

She had a habit of writing a diary,

And the first line she wrote was..

Whatever we have between us...
Be it friendship or be it love...
I don't want it to ever end Dumbo...

It feels home with you...
I don't want this feeling to ever end...
I want us to stay connected this way...
Promise me Dumbo...
Promise me that you'll never break your promise...

********

As Roohi was trying not to get so involved into this a news from shattered her...

"Shivani proposed to me"

The news left made her sweat badly and with trembling wet hands she held the phone tight as she spoke "Then what did you say??"

"Obviously No"

And that's when her heart was at peace and began pounding at a normal rate...

This is what she faced every time there was a mention of Shivani in the friend's video conference...

They would ship him with Shivani while Roohi's heart would pick up pace unknowingly that she would hide behind her forced smile...

"What did she say then??"

"She said she would wait for me"

"Hmm"

"I am very clear yaar Rooh...I don't want this commitment thing because I don't wa-

"You don't want emotional attachment with anyone...emotions are something that tears you apart...they bind you with people...then you develop a connection that eventually ends because every relationship every emotion is temporary"

She completed him as she was the one who knew him better

"Ha and I want to be free...free from this commitment thing...I have my dreams to live...you know right"

She heard every word of his so keenly and was in a dilemma...

She did not know how to react...

He was right in his own way...

He had seen the cruel world at small age when he used to work for his educational expenses...he didn't get the chance to work on his dreams...all the time he had been studying to get a good scholarship and now when he had got the source to fulfil his dream he didn't want any obstacle

"I know Dumbo"

"But Rooh...there is one thing"

"What"

"I think we both are developing a strong connection"

"I know"

"That's not good...we need to stop this...before this emotion eats us we must stop ourselves...we must be each other's strength not weakness"

Roohi was all silent unable to admit that the emotion had strongly spread its roots deep in her heart

"Rooh are you listening??"

"Yes I am...and you are right...we must stop this overwhelming emotion"

"Look Rooh...I know what you are feeling right now...but this is important...though we always keep fighting something is keeping us binded and we very well know what is that something

But it can't happen...

We are too different...

You are too emotional
I am too practical

And together we are a disaster...

We can't end up together...

But that doesn't mean that we need to end our friendship...

Though we are not into a namesake relation we'll be there for each other...

Trust me Rooh...

I would never want to hurt you...

But I have my own beliefs

I have my-

"Dumbo....calm down first" she interrupted him...

"I knew this way before...

So relax"

"You are OK na Rooh??"

"Yes I am" she said as tears silently rolled down her cheeks

That day she wrote something in her diary...

I am not Ok Dumbo...
I am scared...
Scared of this 'something'  we have between us

I don't know where my heart is going
I don't know whether I can stop it
I don't know whether I can stop it from developing feelings for you...

I am trying my best to stop it but I am scared...

I am scared that my heart will create a big mess and I would stuck hard in it..
I am scared that if I'll be the only one developing feelings in this 'something'  it would be hard for me

Hard for my poor heart that is going on building new hopes