Episode 11: One Drink, One Moment, One Shift
918 Words
(Aarohi POV)
The music was loud.
Too loud.
Or maybe it was just my heartbeat trying to compete with it.
I sat there, fingers wrapped around the edge of the table, watching everyone laugh, talk, and slowly let go of the week we had just survived. Nisha was already glowing with excitement, Pooja looked relaxed in a quiet way, and Kritika—calm as always—was observing everything with her usual composed expression.
And then there was me.
Still thinking.
Still holding back.
---
“You’re really not having anything?” his voice came again.
I looked up.
Kayish Sinha.
Sitting across the table, his gaze steady—not forcing, not casual either.
Just… there.
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I shook my head slightly. “No.”
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“Why?” he asked again, this time quieter.
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I hesitated, then gave the only honest answer I had.
“Because I don’t know what I’ll be like after.”
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There was a pause.
Not awkward.
Just… still.
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Nisha leaned in dramatically. “Come on, Aarohi! One drink won’t kill you.”
Pooja smiled softly. “We’re all here.”
Kritika added, “You’ll be fine.”
---
Abhay rested his arm on the chair, looking at me with a faint smile. “You trust us, right?”
---
I looked at them.
All of them.
---
And then, without meaning to—
my eyes went back to him.
---
Still watching.
Still quiet.
---
Not convincing me.
Not stopping me either.
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Just… waiting.
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Something shifted.
A small, almost invisible push inside me.
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“Fine,” I said softly.
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The table erupted.
“FINALLY!” Nisha nearly shouted.
---
Abhay chuckled. “Progress.”
---
Kayish didn’t react immediately.
He simply signaled the waiter.
“One light cocktail,” he said.
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A few minutes later, the glass was placed in front of me.
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I stared at it.
As if it might reveal my future.
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“Relax,” Abhay said lightly.
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“Stop overthinking,” Nisha added.
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I took a breath.
Picked up the glass.
---
And took my first sip.
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It burned slightly.
Strange.
Different.
---
I made a face.
---
Everyone laughed.
---
“That was your brave moment?” Nisha teased.
---
“Shut up,” I muttered, but I was smiling.
---
Slowly—
sip by sip—
I drank.
---
And slowly—
something began to loosen.
---
The noise didn’t feel overwhelming anymore.
The lights didn’t feel harsh.
---
I laughed more.
Spoke more.
---
At some point, Nisha dragged Pooja to the dance floor.
Kritika followed, shaking her head but smiling.
Abhay went along with them.
---
And suddenly—
the table felt quieter.
---
Just me.
And him.
---
I didn’t realize when he shifted to the chair beside me.
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“Feeling different?” he asked.
---
I turned slightly.
“Maybe.”
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“Regretting it?”
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I thought for a moment.
Then shook my head.
“No.”
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He nodded.
---
Silence again.
But not empty.
---
“Why don’t you drink?” I asked suddenly.
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He leaned back slightly.
“I do. Just not always.”
---
“Control?” I asked.
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“Choice,” he corrected.
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I smiled faintly.
---
The music pulsed around us, but somehow—
this small space felt separate.
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“Do you always think this much?” he asked.
---
I blinked.
“What?”
---
“Every answer,” he said. “Every reaction. You measure it.”
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I looked at him.
---
“Maybe,” I admitted.
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“Why?”
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I looked away.
At the crowd.
At the lights.
---
“Because I don’t want to lose control,” I said softly.
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A pause.
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“And if losing control shows you something real?” he asked.
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I frowned slightly.
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“I don’t know if I’m ready for that.”
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His gaze didn’t leave mine.
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“Most people aren’t,” he said.
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Something about his tone—
felt different.
Deeper.
---
I looked down at my empty glass.
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“See?” I said lightly. “One drink and I’m already talking too much.”
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A faint smile appeared on his face.
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“Not too much,” he said.
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“Just honest.”
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That word—
hit somewhere unexpected.
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For a moment—
everything slowed.
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The music.
The lights.
The noise.
---
And it was just—
this conversation.
---
This moment.
---
Then suddenly—
Nisha appeared out of nowhere.
“AAROHI! COME DANCE!”
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I laughed.
“I don’t dance.”
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“YOU DO TODAY!”
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Before I could argue—
she pulled me.
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I stumbled slightly—
and instinctively—
my hand brushed against his.
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Just for a second.
---
But it stayed.
---
A pause.
A spark.
Something unspoken.
---
I pulled away quickly.
---
And let Nisha drag me to the dance floor.
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The music took over.
The laughter.
The chaos.
---
But even in the middle of everything—
I felt it.
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That shift.
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That something—
I couldn’t explain.
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And when I looked back—
just once—
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He was still there.
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Watching.
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Not smiling.
Not reacting.
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Just…
seeing.
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And for the first time—
I didn’t look away.
- Writer
