Chapter 6 – A Shared Path
572 Words
Kavya wasn’t superstitious. She didn’t believe in fate, destiny, or cosmic signs. Yet over the past week, she found herself reconsidering.
It started with the café. Then the rain. And now, Aryan seemed to appear wherever she went. Not in a deliberate, uncomfortable way—but in a series of coincidences too frequent to ignore.
That morning, she had been running late, hurrying through the metro station with her scarf flying behind her. She almost tripped on the last step before the platform, only to find someone steady her by the elbow.
Her heart jumped. Aryan.
“Careful,” he said simply, his voice even, his grip firm but brief.
She managed a sheepish smile. “Thank you. I guess I’m a little… distracted.”
His brow arched ever so slightly. “Or clumsy.”
She laughed softly, surprised at his tease. “Maybe both.”
His brow arched ever so slightly. “Or clumsy.”
She laughed softly, surprised at his tease. “Maybe both.”
When the train arrived, they ended up standing side by side, holding onto the same rail. The crowd pressed around them, strangers brushing too close, but somehow their little space remained untouched—just the two of them, suspended in a bubble of quiet.
Neither spoke much during the ride. Yet the silence wasn’t awkward anymore. It was almost… companionable. Kavya caught his reflection in the window, his posture straight, his eyes distant, as though he were lost in thought. But then, for the briefest moment, his gaze flicked to hers in the glass, meeting her eyes.
It was a glance that lingered too long to be accidental.
Later that afternoon, she spotted him again. This time at the bookstore she often escaped to between lectures. He was standing near the philosophy section, flipping through a paperback, his coat draped over his arm.
She hesitated. Approaching him felt strange—what if he thought she was following him? But when his eyes lifted, catching her in the act of pretending to browse, something eased between them.
“You read here often?” he asked.
Her lips curved. “Sometimes. It’s quieter than the library.”
He nodded, closing the book in his hand. “I like it too.”
And just like that, they found themselves walking out together, their steps matching, the city unfolding around them in rhythm. The world seemed to conspire, aligning their paths again and again, as though refusing to let them drift apart.
At a crossing, Kavya finally voiced what had been circling in her mind. “This keeps happening.”
Aryan’s gaze shifted to her, his expression unreadable but thoughtful. “What does?”
She gave a small shrug, trying to sound casual though her pulse quickened. “Us. Meeting. Everywhere.”
For a moment, she feared he’d dismiss it, make it seem like coincidence and nothing more. But instead, he said quietly, “Maybe it’s not just coincidence.”
Her breath caught. She turned her head to him, studying his face, but he didn’t elaborate. His words hung in the air between them, as delicate and weighty as a promise.
As they continued walking, their shoulders brushed—not by accident this time. Neither moved away.
And though no one said it aloud, both Aryan and Kavya felt the truth pressing gently into their hearts:
Some paths are meant to cross. And sometimes, they refuse to part again.
- Writer
