Call It What You Want (to be revamped & restarted soon)

Track 1.11 | wish you would come back

🦋 + 🐍

(Priyankha's Version)

While Priyankha filled a customer's Aladdin themed tumbler with a chocolate shake, her eyes kept going back to the image of the genie printed on the back. Careful to not spill out any contents, she touched the printed lamp and wondered if wishes ever came true and wildest dreams ever became reality. If she would find a genie with three wishes to spare today, she had a list of what she was going to ask.

I wish to leave early today. As much as Priyankha loved her job and the people she worked with, exhaustion had become a perpetual feeling now and she craved a good night's sleep without having to worry about an early morning shift or her creepy landlord randomly breaking in during the middle of the night.

I wish that- She scratched the back of her mind for something to wish for. Turns out, like she didn't have it all figured out. Though there were a lot of things she needed at the moment — making peace with her past, finding a way to put an end to the overflowing bucket of lies, a break from the terrorising nightmares — she knew no genie could fix them for her. So what else could she wish for? What else could she possibly need?

As she kept thinking about all the people and things in her life, a silly idea made its way to her mind. Much like his blue eyes that felt like a deep mysterious ocean, a wave of butterflies washed over her till all she could think of was him. The way he always ordered the same coffee, the subtle fear when he scanned the crowd around him and the reassured crinkles around his eye when Priyankha would smile at him. There was no doubting the fact that Priyankha was the kind who got attached way too quick, cared way too much.

But this is different, right? A meek thought mocked her. You know it is.

Handing the filled container back to the customer with a mechanically polite smile, she gathered the courage to look at the door once. Will someone push it? Will the bells jingle again? Will I get to see his familiar face in this caffeinated crowd? Will he finally come back?

She was randomly reminded of how Grace kept nudging her every time that regular customer walked into their coffee shop. Grace was so sure he had a crush on her but Priyankha knew better. His was not the kind of soft, fond gaze meant for a crush or an infatuation. It was the kind that was inquisitive, a bit confused and filled with questions. And Priyankha was supposed to be satisfied as that meant just one relieving thing. He didn't know her.

So why did she keep wishing for the exact opposite? Priyankha had never found herself yearning to feel known by a stranger but was he one, really? Because out of all the days she had spent in Starlight, the ones with him in it were her brightest ones. It was naïve and possibly even scary how attached she felt to someone she hardly even knew. And what she was about to do next was really stupid but-

A sudden push at the front door made her heart skip a beat. Were all her prayers and wishes about to be answered? Her breath stuck in her throat, she glued her eyes to see his masked face except that there wasn't a mask. And it wasn't him.

Did a mirror somewhere just break into a thousand pieces or was this the reminiscent soundtrack of heartbreak from all the sappy TV serials she had watched in her childhood?

Either way, the person at the door wasn't the one she was looking for but his smile was contagious. Especially when he walked in with a much better, lively version of Grace. "Dio, hi. Thank God you were with Grace, I was so worried-"

"Shh," he hushed her with a finger on his lip gesture and turned off the switches, one by one. Grace stood in a corner, observing the way the lights in the café were suddenly dimming out into complete darkness now.

"Dio, what are you doing?"

"We are leaving early, babe." He declared triumphantly and she turned her head towards Grace. There was no way she was going to let her barista close the coffee shop so early. But there she stood, shrugging and in approval of his actions.

Sensing Priyankha's confusion, she clarified. "We're going out. I need a change. And you guys are my only friends here so you've no option but to come with." Apparently, Dio had picked a fancy bar for them to hang out at and no matter how much Priyankha tried to convince him about feeling tired and not being the kind to drink, he was persistent and Grace's puppy-eyed look was the final push Priyankha needed to break out of her comfort zone and say yes.

A smile made its way to her face when it finally dawned on her. Genies might not be real and fairytales might be silly but maybe, just maybe this wasn't a mere luck. And possibly, her wish had actually come true. Without a second thought, she knew what she wanted to wish for next. Her second wish.

I wish you would come back. It took everything in Priyankha to stop herself from wishing that she'd get to see him again. She knew better than pushing her luck. And truth be told, she was a bit scared of how awkward their next encounter would be. But the heart wants what it wants. And she would do everything right this time, unlike the last. If only they'd ever meet again.

Little did she know some wishes actually come true. And as promised, she didn't mess up this time, jumping at her first and probably last chance for what were the odds of her finding him in a bar at the outskirts of town? Was it fate? Or was there more to their story than what met the eye? Granted, Dio had told her this was one of the very few fancy places in their town but it somehow felt more than a sheer coincidence.

Who knew why these two people running from their past always ended up running into each other?

Because there they were again when nobody had to know, stealing secret moments in a crowded room, wishing they could go back in time to turn around and make it alright. And all Priyankha knew was that she didn't need a third wish. Not when everything she needed was right here by her side.

Random Question: Though this is Track 1.11, let's pretend it's 11:11 & your genie is waiting. Make three wishes *_*

I guess it's safe to say that this chapter wasn't supposed to happen. Which is also why I'm updating a bit late. It wasn't in my plot / plan but sometimes, you have to let your characters take the lead. So here's a little insight into Priyankha's head with a magical synchronicity of 1.11 and wishes xD

(Btw mini spoiler, if you're reading the thriller version, you're going to absolutely adoreee this chapter later *wink wink*)

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