28. THE EMBARRASSMENT
Aarvi stepped out of the Singhania Industries building, her fingers curled tighter around her bag strap. She replayed every second, his questions, his tone, that unreadable look in his eyes. She wasn’t sure if she’d done well, but at least she hadn’t faltered.
Pulling out her phone, she opened the cab app again.
No cabs available.
Of course.
A sigh escaped her. Maybe walking a few steps ahead would help her catch one. She started down the pavement, eyes half on her screen and bumped straight into someone.
The files in his hand slipped slightly. Aarvi immediately stepped back.
“I’m so sorry- I wasn’t looking-”
“No, no, that was my fault,” the man interrupted quickly, arranging the papers with a small, easy smile. “I tend to forget that people exist outside my phone screen too.”
Aarvi’s lips curved faintly despite herself. “Seems we both have that problem.”
He chuckled softly. “Tragic, really. Two distracted souls on one footpath.”
His tone carried effortless warmth, the kind that made people comfortable without trying. There was nothing pushy about him, just a kind presence.
“You work here?” he asked lightly.
“I came for an interview,” she replied, polite but distant.
“Ah,” he nodded approvingly. “Then I hope whoever’s inside had the sense to hire you. You’ve got the kind of calm that’s rare these days.”
Aarvi blinked, slightly caught off guard by the sincerity in his tone. “Thank you,” she said simply, and stepped aside.
He smiled once more before walking toward the main entrance. She watched him go for a moment, then turned back to the road unaware that, from a window, someone else had seen everything.
Behind the glass, Vivan’s gaze followed her and then lingered on the man who had spoken to her.
Yuvan.
For reasons he didn’t want to understand, something inside him tightened.
“Vivan”
The door swung open without a knock. Yuvan walked in, file in hand, that same easy grin still playing on his lips.
“Before we start,” he began, dropping into the chair opposite him, “I met someone downstairs.”
Vivan’s brows lifted slightly. “Oh?”
“Yeah- bumped into her, actually,” Yuvan said, laughing at himself. “Sweet girl. Said she came for an interview here. The way she handled it-calm, composed, like she wasn’t even flustered by the collision. I’m telling you, that kind of grace is hard to find.”
Vivan looked back down at the document in front of him, flipping a page with calmness. “You seem impressed.”
“Well, you know me. I just appreciate good manners when I see them.”
Vivan’s jaw tightened. He finally looked up, his voice smooth. “The girl you’re talking about,” he said slowly, “is my wife, Yuvan.”
The grin froze on Yuvan’s face. “Wait-what?”
Vivan leaned back in his chair, fingers interlaced. “You heard me. Aarvi.”
Realization hit Yuvan instantly. “She’s your wife?” He blinked, still processing. “Oh, wohh. She’s… beautiful, man. And really-”
He didn’t finish. Because the faint, proud smirk that had appeared on Vivan’s face was already gone.
Vivan shifted his gaze back to the file. “Let’s talk about why you’re actually here, Yuvan.”
“Right,” Yuvan said quickly, clearing his throat. But even as he spoke about contracts and meetings, his mind lingered on the way Vivan’s expression had changed the second he’d mentioned her.
And Vivan’s thoughts weren’t on the project either. They were still replaying that single moment outside the bump, her smile, her.
At night
Aarvi was wide awake. She still couldn’t believe she’d be joining the office tomorrow. The excitement, the nervousness, the memory of the day, it all tangled together.
But slowly she drifted into sleep.
It was around 2:30 a.m. when Aarvi stirred awake, her sleep breaking with an odd, uncomfortable dampness.
She blinked in confusion, sat up and froze.
A dark stain spread on the bedsheet. Her stomach dropped.
Oh no…
Glancing at Vivan sleeping beside her, she panicked. Quietly, she slipped out of bed, clutching the corner of the sheet. She wanted to change it but hesitated he was asleep. So She decided to clean herself up first.
No pads? Of course not. He didn’t live with a woman before. She closed her eyes, thinking quickly. Maybe Prisha has some. I’ll ask her.
Meanwhile, Vivan stirred. The faint sound of running water reached him which made him awake. His hand brushed the empty side of the bed and then he saw it.
The stain.
For a second, he just stared then he realized instantly. He exhaled softly, no irritation, no judgment just a quiet sigh. Then, moving carefully, he got up and pulled the bedsheet off.
Within minutes, the stain was gone, replaced by a clean, fresh sheet.
He sat back down, rubbing the back of his neck, glancing once toward the closed bathroom door. His jaw tightened not out of anger, but out of something more complex, something he didn’t want to name.
Moments later, Aarvi stepped out, towel-drying her hands only to stop dead in her tracks. Her eyes went wide.
The room was neat. The bedsheet changed. The stain was gone.
Her heart thudded. “He… changed it?” she whispered under her breath, disbelief and embarrassment flooding through her.
Fingers tightening around the towel. She looked around the room. He was nowhere.