It was 4:07 PM.
The fan spun lazily above Aanya's head, ticking slightly with every rotation, like it was trying to count down something she couldn't quite name.
She lay on her bed, one leg hanging off the side, staring at the ceiling with eyes that didn't really focus on anything. Her bag was still half-zipped on the floor, a pen peeking out. She hadn't changed out of her kurti yet. Her hair was still braided loosely from the day.
And yet, everything inside her felt... undone.
The memory of the beach was still fresh—like the salt in her hair hadn't quite washed away. His presence, his closeness, the way he looked at her when the sun dipped below the horizon. It wasn't dramatic. He didn't say something poetic or lean in like the world was ending.
But there was something in his eyes that made her feel like she was the world.
And now, back in her room, with her phone screen dim beside her, she didn't know what to do with that feeling.
Along the same time, someone else was also on cloud 9.
He was sprawled across his bed, one hand under his head, staring at his phone screen which had dimmed thrice in the last five minutes. No texts. He wasn't expecting any, but still.
The silence of his room was unnerving. Usually, he would play a game or scroll mindlessly, but today, he just… didn't want noise.
He had dropped her off a little while ago. Helped her carry her bag even though it wasn't heavy. Didn't touch her—just… hovered. Respectfully. She had smiled before leaving. He had said, "Get some rest," but what he meant was "Don't disappear from my thoughts."
Too late for that, though.
He had never seen anyone fall asleep with so much trust in someone else's passenger seat. It made something clench in his chest, something that hadn't unclenched since.
He picked up his phone, opened their chat window, stared at it, typed "Hey"... and deleted it. Twice.
Her phone buzzed... finally.
Unknown number. New message.
No, wait. It was his. She hadn't saved it yet.
Him: "You got home okay, right?"
She stared at the message for a second longer than she should have, then typed.
Aanya: "Yeah, i got back safe. But, I just want to convey my thanks... Thank you for everything, you have done a lot for me lately that means a lot to me."
She added a period and deleted it. Then a smiley. Then deleted that too.
Finally, she sent it plain.
He replied in under ten seconds.
Him: "We should do this again sometime. Not the beach, maybe something quieter."
Aanya smiled. The fan ticked.
Aanya: "Quieter than that?"
Him: "Quieter than the waves between us."