OS: It's Always Been You - AR

She was on the wide white balcony staring at the silver wisps of the moon. The house shone like it had just been polished. She looked very out of place in her bright red shorts and tiny pink tank top. Her dark mass of hair tumbled down her back to her waist.

She had loved him for seven years. She didn’t have a clue how she fell for him, she just did. He was fun, caring, and he was her brother’s friend. That was all he saw; his friend’s sister. It was what it was.

The only problem was that he was back. She could never let him know how much she felt for him. She had seen him with another girl seven years ago. They weren’t dating and she knew he could go to anyone he wanted; and he did.

A soft sigh escaped her lips. She wished he would leave. She wished he would stay. She wanted him to hate her, but most of all; she wanted him to love her.

Ridhima felt the air go hot and knew instantly that Armaan was there. Would she never escape him?

‘What are you doing up so late, or shall I say so early, Armaan?’

‘Couldn’t sleep so I came out for a breather. How did you know it was me?’

She shrugged and turned to look at him. There he stood with his sweatpants on and his vest clinging to his chest in perfection, ‘I don’t know, I just knew. I hope you had fun during Mom and Dad’s anniversary celebration.’

‘Yeah, it was great. You girls gave an amazing performance. You, Niki, and Muskaan; amazing as always.’

Her heart fluttered; he had noticed. She ruthlessly ignored it. He always raised her hopes and dashed them without a thought. ‘You enjoying India after seven years?’

‘Yeah, it’s great. I hadn’t realized how much I missed being here.’

And of course you didn’t miss me, she thought. She sighed, how pathetic was she? ‘Where’s Atul?’

‘Most likely dreaming about Anjali,’ he grinned.

Ridhima couldn’t help but grin back. Her brother was really lovesick. Thank God they were getting married soon. ‘It’s really sweet how he still is crazy about her. How long have they been dating for? Eight years?’

‘Yeah, it’s nice to see she’s crazy about him as well.’ The way he looked at her made Ridhima confused.

‘I better go to sleep. Work tomorrow,’ she explained when he lifted his left brow.

She went past him but he grabbed her wrist. She looked at his hand and lifted her eyes to meet his gaze. ‘Dance?’

She laughed, the sound breaking the serenity of the night. ‘Trust you to be so unexpected. Sure, why not?’ And she would treasure this moment for the rest of her life.

He slowly pulled her to him, his eyes boring into hers. She lifted her arms and put them around his neck. He encircled his around her waist. What a perfect fit.

They swayed in tandem not saying a word. The breeze celebrated the magic. The stars twinkled beautifully and the moon shone steadily. Their eyes burned into each other.

She felt sensations shoot into her body and trembled slightly. He smiled at her. Taking her right hand, he placed it just above his heart. It was galloping. ‘This is what you do to me.’

Her breath hitched. She felt confused. This is what she had always wanted. ‘But what about the girl I saw you with seven years ago?’

Now it was his turn to be confused, ‘What girl?’

‘The night before you left for the US, you were hugging a girl. I didn’t see her face but she was clinging to you,’ Ridhima held her breath for his answer.

‘Who was I hugging? Oh,’ he said as he suddenly remembered, ‘I was hugging Anjali. She was really sad to see me go. You know how I was always the referee between her and Atul during their fights.’

He saw her eyes widening. He lifted her face higher to meet his, ‘What did you think Ridhima?’

Her heart started pounding and she felt herself weakening, ‘I thought you were with another girl,’ she whispered.

He lifted her hand again and placed it on his heart, ‘It’s you. It’s always been you.’ With that, he closed the distance between them.