𝘉𝘭𝘰𝘰𝘮𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘏𝘦𝘢𝘳𝘵𝘴

• 28 •

AAHHH, I am so nervous...

Anyway, ignore me and have a happy reading :)

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Smriti was plainly avoiding her. Where they both used to converse whenever possible, now, Smriti would avert her eyes whenever Naina would appear in front of her, even by chance. Seeing her ignorance, Naina had half-heartedly stepped back to give her the space she actually needed.

Today was no different. Sameer had been observing it for the past few days too. The way Smriti was giving Naina a cold shoulder had left her all sulky. Even at home, she wasn't being her usual self no matter how much she tried to pretend to be okay and it was disturbing him too. Her teary face from that night was still afresh in his mind. Seeing her crying stirred up a heavy feeling inside him. He didn't want to see her in that miserable state again. Somewhere, he was also feeling responsible for all this since he proposed the idea of not telling anyone the truth strictly.

Closing the file of documents he had been reviewing, he picked up his coffee mug and walked outside his cabin to have a look around the floor. A minute later, his gaze found Naina who was talking to an employee with some files in her hands. From the scene, he could infer that they were involved in a discussion.

She was decked up in a turquoise blue saree with a very thin silver border and contrasting blouse. Simplicity was really her thing - he thought. Her hair was open, devoid of any special styling and he never thought she even needed any because of its smooth and silky texture which was always intact.

He didn't know why but his mind was so keen to observe her when she was clearly busy with something else. She was talking to an office employee, Mr Kumar who belonged to the sales department. From the looks of it, they seemed to be discussing something related to work. He noticed how Naina looked a bit uneasy while talking to Kumar who looked rather relaxed. His casual body language spoke for his lack of office manners. Despite this, Naina looked calm.

He watched their conversation come to an end as they parted ways. However, his eyes didn't miss how Kumar's gaze didn't leave her even while she had turned and walked off. His gaze and the slight smile had a tinge of strange glint that Sameer recognized. His eyes narrowed as he stared at him in disdain, his fingers automatically gripping the mug a little too hard which he wasn't even aware of.

Exhaling heavily to cool himself, he shifted his gaze towards Naina and noticed Smriti coming from the opposite direction, busy reading something from the diary in her hands. It was too late for anything he could have possibly done since the two females had already run into each other, making the files and the diary fall with a thud on the ground. Luckily, they had composed themselves on time preventing themselves from a severe fall.

Both of them saw each other. The awkward atmosphere didn't allow them to speak since they had already caught everyone's attention. Smriti immediately crouched down to collect all the papers which had scattered on the floor rather hurriedly. Naina too followed the same though her mind was busy mulling if she should try to make a conversation.

But before she could follow her mind, Smriti had already gotten up and was about to leave. However, as she took the first step, Naina called out for her. She turned around, still trying to maintain her cold demeanour. Till now, Sameer too had come out of his cabin to see the moment of tension between them.

Naina forwarded a bunch of papers that had flown out of the diary. Smriti's gaze moved to and fro between her hopeful face and her hands. Her eyes were still showcasing her resentment towards Naina but it was quickly overshadowed by hesitance which didn't go unnoticed by Naina.