8. Facade

Do people need acting classes these days because apparently, we all have mastered the art of displaying an emotion that's far from what we feel? Eyes are the mirror to one's soul. How are you supposed to see through someone whose eyes lie? A beautiful smile spread across the face, eyes turned into crescents, A mastered facade.

If only she hadn't seen his real smile, the act was quite convincing. The Serenity about his smile was gone. In a white dress shirt and slick black jeans, he looked exquisite. From the moment he arrived, he had been avoiding eye contact with her. When she was solving the equations, his mind kept wandering off.

For someone who has never fallen in love, worrying about someone more than herself, was a foreign feeling for Kritika. Those maths problems no longer held her attention as she too wandered off to her thoughts.

Why is he so distracted today?

Is he upset about something?

Did something happen to make him sad?

Have I done something?

She cleared her throat to get his attention. His head whipped towards her as he came to realise that he must have zoned out.

"Oh. Sorry were you asking something?"

"No. I just wanted to ask if you're okay?

You've been very distracted. I know it's not my place to ask but has something happened?" She enquired. As much as she wished to be more than an acquaintance to him, she wasn't. But that didn't mean that she couldn't be. She wasn't willing to give up that easily.

He sighed." It's nothing much. Don't worry."

She crossed her hands and looked at him with a slight glare. Trying to look intimidating. Keyword- trying.

"Lying isn't very nice, you know. If you're not comfortable sharing it with me it's alright." All this while she had always been on the receiving end. This time she was determined to help him even in the slightest way. She wanted to prove that she can be reliable too.

He leaned back in the chair, slouching his shoulders. He shut his eyes, contemplating whether to tell her or not. He hadn't expected her to see through him so easily and now that he caught, he didn't know what to do.

"I.."

"I don't know where to start. So much has happened lately but I don't want to bother you by telling about it. "

" Bold of you to assume that it'll be a bother to me. Just like you're willing to hear me out similarly I'm willing to hear you out too."

" Thank you. "

" The situation is quite complicated actually. My childhood friend Sahil has been avoiding me since the beginning of the first year of college. I have tried countless times to talk to him but all I received were curt replies. And the group of people he has been hanging out with aren't good people. I'm really worried about him. Even though he has been distant lately, I don't want something bad to happen to him."

How can he care so much about the guy whose been straight up ignoring him?

Childhood friends aren't like that!?

" I don't know why he is doing this but there must have been a reason for him to treat You like this. I'm not a friendship expert but one thing I know for sure is that real friends always come back. No matter how long they stay away, real friends always come back. The people he is with will leave him eventually cause that's what toxic people do. You can not stop it from happening but you can be there for him when it does."

She replied with a small smile as if reminiscing a memory. No one ever prepares you for real-life struggles, like insecurity, anxiety. She wasn't prepared when she encountered toxic people too. The people she thought were her friends left her out of the blue leaving her to wonder where She had gone wrong. The only person who told assured her was Karishma. She was a wise girl even though sometimes her weird antics said otherwise. Many came by some left and some stayed but Karishma, she allotted a special spot for herself.

" Thank you once again. What you said is true. I was too caught up in the problem to think of the answer. I feel much better now .What would have happened if you didn't ask me how I was." He chuckled.

There it is my favorite smile. Just his smile alone is enough to warm up my heart within seconds. If you keep making my heart flutter like this, how am I supposed to not fall for you.

If I look at you like I look at the stars would you fall for me and make my wish come true?

She didn't want this moment to end anytime soon. The beautiful smile that adorned his face right now, was because of her. What else could a infatuated girl ask for? ( A kiss? 🤭 okay enough bye 😬) .

Now that his smile was restored Kritika herself couldn't stop smiling all day. Shocked stares and weird glances from her brother and mom didn't affect her either. They both were growing more suspicious every second. They even tried to hear her conversation with Karishma by sticking their ears to her room door. If it was only her brother it was understandable but her mother too. Now you know who he got that mischief from.