It had been months.
Months since Satiya had last appeared in Aanya's inbox - the last time ending with that ridiculous, out-of-the-blue question about her relationship status, followed by radio silence. Classic Satiya.Since then, life had shifted.Classes, endless exams, weekend bus rides, and the quiet steadiness of Pradeep had taken up space where old echoes used to live.
When Aanya posted her first Facebook story, it was almost on a dare - from herself.A blurry sunset photo.Nothing deep, just... breathing space.
Within minutes, notifications began trickling in.A few likes from friends.A teasing emoji from her sister, Meera: "Wow, influencer alert."A heart tap from Pradeep - simple, no fuss, exactly like him.
Then -Ping!The notification sound sliced through the lazy afternoon air.Aanya glanced at her phone, half-distracted, expecting another like.
Six hearts.From Satiya.
"Six?!" she blurted out, waving her phone at Meera, who was lounging on the bed with chips.
Meera snorted. "Dude's still breathing, huh?"
"Apparently thriving," Aanya muttered.
They both giggled, but when Meera went back to scrolling her own feed, Aanya's mind wandered.Six hearts from Satiya - what did that even mean? Was he just being dramatic? Was he about to pop back into her life like nothing happened?
She shook her head. "Don't overthink it, Aanya."
But deep down, she knew the universe wasn't done with him yet.
As if on cue -
Ping!
Aanya's heart did a stupid little flip. She grabbed her phone faster than she'd admit.
Satiya: "Hey stranger. Long time no see. How's life?"
She stared at the screen for a second, thumb hovering. A hundred possible replies flitted through her head.
She finally settled for casual.
Aanya: "Busy pretending to have it all figured out. You?"
There was a pause. She imagined him reading it, that slow grin she hadn't seen in years.
Satiya: "Same old. Adulting's a scam."
A small, involuntary laugh escaped her.
Before she could type something clever back -
Satiya: "You still single, by the way?"
Aanya blinked.
"What?" she said aloud. Meera looked up.
"Who's shooting their shot now?" her sister teased, craning her neck.
Aanya smirked, typing quickly.
Aanya: "Why so curious? Wanna go on a double date or something?"
She tossed her phone onto the bed like it was on fire.
Meera burst out laughing. "Oh my God, savage!"
Aanya covered her face with a pillow. "Why am I like this?"
Ping!
She peeked.
Satiya: "Sure."
The pillow slid off her face. She stared at the screen.
"Wait, he said yes?" she said.
Meera cackled. "Plot twist! Now what? You don't even have a plus one, genius."
Aanya groaned. "I'll find someone... somehow."
Her mind immediately flashed to one person.The only one steady enough, calm enough, real enough.Someone who wouldn't turn this into a circus.
Pradeep.
Without hesitating, she opened the chat window.
Aanya: "Hey... random favor. You busy?"
---
To be continued....