Chapter 23
Dhruv pushed the door open with his shoulder, the gentle thrum of a low-tempo track curling through the air.
It was only six, but a steady crowd had already settled around the round tables scattered across the bar. Amber lights hung low from the ceiling, casting a honeyed glow over the room. The faint scent of citrus cleaner and polished oak lingered while the playlist hummed softly in the background.
The place had become more familiar to Dhruv than his new apartment.
He moved straight towards the counter, slipping behind it as he called out, ‘Prateek?’
The young man was bent on one knee, arranging shakers and ice storage. He waved a hand. ‘How’s it going, bro?’
Dhruv reached past him to pull a whisky bottle from the back shelf and poured himself a small measure of the amber liquid. ‘Good.’
Prateek grinned, wiping his hands on his jeans. ‘This is it, isn’t it? You bought this bar so close to your office just so you can come in for a drink the moment work ends?’
‘Please. I did it because my new apartment is literally in the next building. Got tired of getting stuck in traffic every night,’ Dhruv chuckled. ‘But it’s just a convenient excuse, because our main aim was to torture you.’
Prateek glared at him. ‘I knew it. You knew the hotel I work at is on the other end of the city, didn’t you?’
Dhruv shrugged, savouring a burning sip. ‘Obsidian Plaza, right? Thought we should make your life a little harder by making you travel on the local train.’
‘You both are such jerks,’ Prateek said, pushing himself away from the counter.
‘Who told you to break our long-standing class topper record at the shelter?’ Vihaan asked, pushing the door shut behind him as he walked in.
‘Still crying about that?’ Prateek pointed accusingly between them. ‘I should inform you guys that I’ve been skimming money from the bar.’
Vihaan took a seat at the counter. ‘That’s alright. We’ll just deduct it from your salary.’
Prateek snorted, shaking his head. ‘You call that a salary?’
‘Hey!’ Dhruv scolded. ‘We didn’t even earn half of this at our first job. You’ve got it easy because we’re generous to college kids.’
Prateek scoffed. ‘Keep joking. I’ll go straight to Harsh uncle and complain. Let’s see how long you both last after that.’
‘Why wait? Do the good deed now. He might give you some pocket money before leaving,’ Vihaan prompted, taking the drink Dhruv offered.
‘Where is he going?’
‘Harsh uncle is retiring from Lenora Home. He’s moving back to oversee the Mussoorie shelter.’
‘That’s about time. He deserves a break,’ Prateek said, beaming at the news.
‘Yeah, he’s done enough,’ Dhruv said, exchanging a look with Vihaan.
The words would still fall short if they tried to measure the part Harsh had played in shaping their childhood. It was his kindness and generosity that had taken them off the streets and given them a roof at the shelter when they were lost kids.
He was the reason they had set up Lenora Home for Children in Mumbai too. It was an homage to his legacy.
Vihaan nodded. ‘Even better for us. We have another reason to visit Mussoorie now.’
‘He’ll still be around if we need him, right?’ Prateek asked hesitantly.
Dhruv smiled at how the new generation of kids at the shelter depended on Harsh just as much as they once had.
Vihaan said, ‘Of course. And we’ll be at the shelter every day too. Dhruv will be taking over as the head of the Kids Welfare Department.’
Prateek’s eyes lit up. ‘That’s huge. Congratulations, bro.’
Dhruv waved it off. ‘Either way, you’re covered.’
‘Not if I want to complain about both of you,’ Prateek huffed, folding his arms as he leaned back.
‘Is that how you talk to the owners?’ Vihaan asked, narrowing his eyes.
‘Sorry, bro. Full respect.’ Prateek straightened, pressing his fist against his chest. ‘Speaking of owners, which one of you wants to go check on the woman in the corner?’
Dhruv frowned, leaning forward to look in the direction his bartender pointed. At the far end of the room, a woman sat alone, half-slumped over the table. From where he stood, he could only make out her silhouette.
‘She looks fine,’ Vihaan observed.
‘She came in when I opened at one in the afternoon and hasn’t moved since.’
‘Five hours?’ Dhruv asked, raising a brow.
Vihaan glanced over again. ‘What, some date stood her up or something?’
Prateek shook his head. ‘The first thing she ordered was a bottle of Scotch and one glass. Didn’t look like she was waiting for company.’
He hesitated, as though debating whether to say more.
Dhruv prompted, ‘What is it?’
‘She looked… off. I think she’d been crying.’
Dhruv became alert, taking another look. ‘You’re sure? I don’t want to go over there and piss her off if she’s just having some me time.’
Prateek stammered, rubbing the back of his neck. ‘I mean, I couldn’t see properly because of the sunglasses. She hasn’t taken them off even once.’
It was dark outside now, so that did seem suspicious. An unsettling feeling began to take root in his chest.
Vihaan pushed away from the counter, but Dhruv raised a hand to stop him. ‘I’ve got it.’
He made his way through the room, stopping in front of the woman. ‘Hey, excuse me. Are you okay?’
She lifted her head slightly, and it hit him with sudden clarity.
Kashvi.
It took him a moment to recognise her because she looked nothing like herself. She appeared haggard. Her hair was dishevelled, her lipstick smeared to her chin, and she swayed slightly in her seat.
The oversized sunglasses hid her eyes completely, leaving him unable to tell whether she was even awake.
A sharp, protective urgency rushed through his veins, cutting through the initial shock as he stepped closer. ‘Hey, Kashvi. Look at me,’ he urged gently.
‘One more bottle,’ she murmured, her words barely coherent.
She didn’t recognise him.
‘Kashu, it’s me,’ he said again, shaking her a little more firmly.
Kashvi tilted her head as she looked up at him. ‘I didn’t know… you had an identical twin.’
‘Yeah,’ he said, playing along with her double vision.
She spoke unevenly, patting the empty seat beside her. ‘There’s only space for one, so one of you can sit somewhere else.’
A helpless chuckle escaped him, and he slid into the seat beside her. Up close, it was impossible to ignore the state she was in.
Dhruv glanced over his shoulder to catch Vihaan’s attention and gestured for water. He came over with a glass, but his smile slipped into concern the moment he caught sight of Kashvi.
With a quiet nod, he placed it on the table. ‘Call if you need me,’ he said before walking away.
Kashvi didn’t notice any of it.
‘You’re swaying,’ Dhruv said, catching her when she dipped sideways.
She rested her head on his shoulder, repeating what he said in slurred mimicry.
He smiled despite himself. She still teased him with the same childish tactics she used when they were kids. At least something hadn’t changed for the worse.
Dhruv nudged her arm to get her attention, but she swatted his hand away with more force than he expected. ‘Did Maithili send you?’
He frowned. ‘Am I supposed to know who that is?’
Instead, she asked, ‘Then what are you doing here?’
‘I partly own this place.’
‘You do?’ She hiccupped suddenly, her shoulders jerking. ‘There’s a lot I don’t know about you, huh.’
He tried to study her face despite the barrier of the sunglasses. ‘Yeah.’
They had become strangers who knew too much about each other to pretend they were nothing, yet not enough to know how to help.
She let out a quiet sigh. ‘She always says… if she’s not around, talk to someone. Friends, family. She’d say me running into you is a sign… that we’re supposed to fix things.’
A part of him wanted exactly that. If only he knew how.
‘She sounds like a therapist,’ he observed.
Kashvi murmured, ‘She is. And a damn good one.’
Her head bobbed as she lifted the Scotch to her lips and gulped it down in one go. Then she brought the glass down with a careless thud. ‘But I’m too broken to fix.’
Dhruv covered her hand with his. ‘Kashvi, what happened? Why are you here?’
‘I came there,’ she said, turning halfway to point at the glass building across the street. ‘I hoped Maithili had a slot, but she’s not even in the city. I had to cope somehow, and this was available.’
Her shoulders sagged as she grabbed the half-empty bottle and poured more Scotch. Her hand shook, amber liquid sloshing over the rim of the glass.
Dhruv had never seen her this out of control before. It scared him to his bones.
He reached out to steady the bottle. ‘Cope with what?’
She stiffened, looking away. ‘Go on, judge me. I don’t care. You think I don’t know how this looks?’
Dhruv exhaled slowly. ‘You’re right. You shouldn’t care what anyone thinks. But I’m not judging you. And for the record, I see someone too.’
She turned back to him. ‘You do?’
‘Yeah, sometimes. It helps. You know, for people like us who grew up with a father like Karthik, it’s basically mandatory.’
‘Tell me about it,’ she scoffed, clinking her glass lightly against his. ‘Every time I think there are decent men in the world, Dad proves me wrong.’
He nodded. Sadly, he knew exactly what she meant. ‘But I expect better from my brother-in-law, so I hope he lives up to it.’
She shook her head, and a soft, broken sob slipped from her lips. ‘You can’t call him that anymore.’
A knot of worry tightened in his gut. ‘Why not?’
A tear slipped from beneath the edge of her sunglasses, and the air in his lungs froze.
‘Talk to me, Kashvi. Are you okay?’ he demanded softly.
She dragged the back of her hand across her face, wiping the tear away as she poured more Scotch. ‘I’m fine.’
He leaned forward, unwilling to let it go. ‘Where is Swayam? What did he do?’
‘He’s at Obsidian Plaza. That’s where his cousin is getting engaged, and if Swayam likes Aisha, his family will get them engaged there too.’
‘What? How? Why?’
Dhruv couldn’t believe it. He had seen something real between them, something that looked a lot like love. Had he been wrong?