3 Friends and Family

"Get up. You're coming with me." Nikith told Nitya when he saw her sitting by the window in her room.

"Where are we going?" She asked.

"To your college. Get ready." He ordered and turned around but was stopped by her voice.

"No, I'm not. I'm not actually feeling well." She pretended to be sick by keeping a hand on her forehead.

"My little Mouse, I'm ordering you to do this. I don't think you want Chachi knowing that you've spent the night crying about something which I'm yet to find out." He arched an eyebrow and pointed at her swollen face.

"What are you even talking about? I was tired and didn't get much sleep last night." Nitya made an innocent face to convince him but couldn't meet his eyes.

"Listen to me, Ms. Nitya Sanghvi. I know you don't want to talk about it right now. I'm cool with that. But don't lie to me, okay because you're the worst lier. Now, come on, be a good girl and get ready. I'm coming with you to college." Nikith patted on her cheek twice and walked away without giving her any chance to make another excuse.

She sighed. She knew he was serious when he called her by her full name That was always the case when he was in his overprotective brother mode. As much as she didn't want to, she got up to get ready. After all, how long could she stay cooped up in her room? And why should she?

She observed herself in the mirror. What a mess she was! She scrunched up her face looking at herself and decided to dress up. Moving towards her closet, she picket out a dress she'd bought a long time ago but had never got the chance to wear it. Well what's an occasion better than a broken heart to doll yourself up?

Rolling her eyes, she cleaned herself up and dressed up in the quarter-sleeved cold-shoulder navy blue maxi dress with matching flats and long silver earrings. Applying kajal and a dash of lip colour, she gathered her long black hair into a ponytail. When she looked in the mirror now, she knew she looked good. Immediately, she felt a little bit of confidence and energy boost up in herself.

You feel good when you know you look good. At least a little bit!

Picking her bag up, she moved downstairs to find Nikith whom she found lounging in the living room, watching one of his nature documentaries. Now, she loved nature and could even spend an hour or so watching a show about it but documentaries always bored the hell out of her.

"Aren't you getting late now?" She asked as she crossed her arms on her chest.

"Uh-huh, wait a few more minutes. Let me finish watching this." He said dismissively.

"No can do, Mister. C'mon get up and get going." She pulled his arm as she dragged him along outside.

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At the hospital, Avyan had just come back from his house after taking a bath and changing himself, when he found his friends, Tarun, Prashvi and Shanaya, sitting around Vivaan. Prashvi was drawing silly figures on Vivaan's fracture cast while Tarun was silently sitting on the couch and Shanaya was busy in her phone.

Before being bandmates, these four were childhood friends of Avyan. Isolated from their families in one way or the other, the five people had found a family in each other when they met during their early years of middle school. Finding music as a common passion just solidified their bond which led to the foundation of their music band, Elements. Unfortunately, it also left a bitter feeling in someone's heart who was none other than Rushabh, Avyan's enemy and also his stepbrother.

Therefore, since early childhood, he had assumed the role of a guardian angel towards these four providing them love and care and protecting them from any danger, even if it meant going against his own family.

"Here, comes the leader of this pack of monkeys, Mr. Avyan Oberoi!" Vivaan announced as soon as he saw Avyan opening the door to his hospital room. All cracked a smile at this except Avyan who just rolled his eyes at his antics. He took his place by the hospital bed on the opposite side of Prashvi.

"Where is my food, my dear Avyan?" Vivaan questioned Avyan.

"Do I look like a delivery guy to you? And where is the nurse? Didn't she bring you your breakfast?"Avyan asked.

"I'm talking about real food, Avyan. The breakfast she gave me was too plain and less. That too, it was hours ago. I'm hungry, now" Vivaan pouted, running a hand on his stomach.

"This is not a hotel, you pig. You have to eat what they give you only. You're not here on a vacation. Get better first and then go feast on whatever you want." True to his temper, Avyaan was growing annoyed.

"Calm down, Hulk. Who pissed in your breakfast, today?" Vivaan joked, patting Avyan's back.

"It looks like you're getting better, huh? Want me to put you in the hospital bed, again?" Avyan asked, as he palmed Vivaan's neck from the back.

"Hey, security! This guy is trying to k-" Avyan kept a hand on Vivaan's mouth to stop him from yelling.

"You're crazy, dude!" He shook his head.

"Only for you, babe!" Vivaan exclaimed, winking his eye towards Avyan.

"Hey, I'm not gay!" As soon as he said those words, he knew he'd done a mistake addressing the elephant in the room. He could already feel the awkwardness slipping inside as his friends all stared at Vivaan.

"Vivaan, I-" Avyan started to say, trying to cover up.

"It's okay, bro. Frankly, I'm glad that you did." Vivaan replied.

"I'm gay!" Though his friends had all seen the drama that had gone down in the party last night, Vivaan confessing himself made it all real.

"We don't care, Vivaan. We love you just the way you are." Prashvi and Vivaan had always shared a special bond. They knew how to joke around with each other and to make a joke out of others, together. In a weird way, they were twins. Evil twins!

"Yeah, Vivaan. It doesn't matter to us." Tarun spoke up from his seat on the couch.

"Your sexuality doesn't make a difference to who you are, Vivaan. And honestly, I'm happy for you. And myself. I get to talk about boys with you." Shanaya joked. Everyone looked at her weirdly for her comment.

"What? Now, that I'm single and I'm ready to look at whoever I want." She explained. Though she was joking about it, in her heart, she knew she still liked Avyan. With that remark, she was trying to make him jealous but seeing an indifferent expression on her face, she got a little hurt and a bit angry.

Avyan and Shanaya had been in a relationship for the past 6 years and they had only broken up a few days ago when Avyan felt that Shanaya didn't trust him enough. After Nitya had taken admission in their college and landed herself in the major bullies of the college, Elements, she had seen a change in Avyan towards Nitya. This led to her taking some rash decisions towards Nitya that resulted in their breakup. Avyan and Shanaya hid their breakup from their friends which they had just revealed the previous night.

Frankly, for Avyan, Shanaya was always just a friend. When she'd proposed to him on the last day of middle school, he'd just agreed to it because he didn't want to break her heart and embarrass her. That was the reason he'd never taken their relationship further than friendly cheek pecks and hand- holdings. Shanaya too enjoyed the status of being the lead singer's girlfriend. She wasn't too bad at heart but she had always possessed the traits of entitlement and selfishness owing to her dusky brown beauty which had everyone drooling at her feet. Maybe she loved Avyan or not, but what their breakup had costed her pride and ego much more than anything.

No one responded at that comment. Everyone was still reeling from the confessions that had been made the previous night.