26 Ansh Is Niyatis Partner
The first light of dawn slipped quietly through the pale curtains of Niyati's hostel room, painting soft, golden lattice patterns across the plain whitewashed walls.
For the first time in weeks, there was no shrill, frantic alarm dragging her out of bed.
She had actually managed to sleep in, her mind having spent the entire previous night running through the quiet anticipation of everything that was supposed to unfold today.
The Freshers' Ball.
The mere thought brought a soft, sleepy curve to her lips.
Niyati stirred beneath the thin blanket, slowly opening her eyes before stretching her arms lazily above her head.
A quiet yawn escaped her as she rolled onto her side, her hand blindly searching the polished wooden surface of her bedside table for her phone.
Swiping the screen alive, she switched on her mobile data.
Almost instantly, the device began buzzing repeatedly in her palm, a relentless stream of notifications filling her lock screen.
Niyati blinked the lingering sleep from her eyes, murmuring softly, "What in the world...?"
Unlocking the screen, she tapped open WhatsApp to find their four-person group chat practically overflowing with messages.
Fresher's Ball - Chaos Squad, as Diya had dramatically named it, was currently buzzing with frantic activity.
A faint smile touched her face at her friend's choice of title, but it vanished into thin air the moment her eyes caught the latest text.
Niyati sat bolt upright in bed, any remaining trace of sleep instantly evaporating. Her thumb flew across the glass as she scrolled upward. Tucked between panic-stricken messages was a photograph taken in a sterile hospital room.
Aarush was propped up against a stark white pillow, looking thoroughly miserable with his left leg elevated and bound tightly in a heavy sling. His face was pale, though he was managing a weak, apologetic grin for the camera.
Her heart dropped to the pit of her stomach. She quickly typed out a reply.
The response popped up almost immediately.
A few seconds later, Aarush himself chimed in, sending a quick voice-to-text update.
Before she could even process her next move, her bedroom door burst open with a loud thud.
"Niyuuuu!"
Niyati nearly jumped out of her skin, clutching her chest. "Diya!"
Diya stood in the doorway looking as if she had been dragged directly out of a deep sleep. Her dark hair was a tangled nest, her oversized T-shirt hung lopsidedly over one shoulder, and she was aggressively rubbing one eye.
"Niyu..." Diya groaned, stumbling into the room and collapsing onto the foot of the bed like a tragic heroine. "What are we going to do now?"
Niyati let out a long, quiet sigh, placing her phone screen-down on her lap. "You saw the group chat?"
"Of course I saw it!" Diya cried out, looking up. "Shaurya is still my partner, but what about you?"
"I'll be fine," Niyati said, forcing her tone to remain as light and dismissive as possible. "You go ahead with Shaurya. I'll just stay back at the hostel and catch up on some reading."
Diya's face instantly twisted into an expression of sheer outrage. "What? Are you insane?"
"It's completely fine, Diya. Seriously. It's just a college party."
"But you're not coming?"
"I don't have a partner," Niyati reasoned calmly, shrugging her shoulders. "I can't exactly walk into a formal couple's ball by myself while everyone else arrives in pairs."
Diya stared at her for a few silent seconds, her indignance slowly melting away into something far more dangerous-a slow, mischievous grin that spread from ear to ear.
Niyati caught the shift immediately, her guard instantly shooting up. She narrowed her eyes suspiciously. "Why are you looking at me like that?"
Diya leaned in closer, her eyes gleaming with bright inspiration. "Ansh Bhai."
Niyati blinked, her mind momentarily short-circuiting. "What about him?"
"He can be your partner!" Diya declared triumphantly.
"What?!" Niyati squeaked, her voice jumping an octave.
"Kya what?"
"Diya!" Niyati gasped, her cheeks suddenly warming. "You have completely lost your mind."
"Why?" Diya asked, genuinely perplexed by her friend's dramatic reaction.
"Because..." Niyati lowered her voice, casting a quick glance toward the shared hallway before leaning forward.
"Outsiders aren't allowed at a university event."
"Who told you that?"
"I'm telling you!"
Diya rolled her eyes hard, waving a dismissive hand. "You don't make the university guidelines, Niyu. I don't believe you for a second." She instantly reached into her T-shirt pocket, pulling out her phone. "Let's just ask in the group."
"Diya, no! Don't-"
It was entirely too late. Diya's thumbs were already flying across her screen at lighting speed.
Niyati stared at the text, the reality of the situation pressing heavily against her chest. She looked up at Diya, her tone turning firm. "No."
Diya raised a single eyebrow. "No?"
"No."
"Give me one good reason why."
"Because..." Niyati stumbled over her words, desperately searching her mind for a logical, convincing excuse that wouldn't accidentally expose the painful, beautiful truth tucked safely inside her heart. "Because it's weird, Diya!"
"What on earth is weird about asking Bhai?"
"Taking Ansh to my college ball!" Niyati insisted, her hands gesturing helplessly. "It's just... strange."
"Why?" Diya pressed, leaning closer, her eyes searching Niyati's flustered face. "Because he's..."
She trailed off, leaving the sentence hanging dangerously in the air.
Because he's what? Niyati thought, her throat tightening.
Her ex? Except they had never officially held that title.
Her best friend's older brother? Yes, structurally.
The boy she had loved in quiet, agonizing secret for years?
That was the truth she wasn't ready to speak out loud.
The boy she had lost to timing and unspoken distance?
That was perhaps the most accurate description of all.
Diya watched her intense silence carefully, a strange, thoughtful expression crossing her features. "Niyu... you're behaving as if you and Bhai had some dramatic, messy breakup."
Niyati froze entirely, her breath catching in her throat. The words hit her with the sharp, unexpected force of a physical blow.
Diya continued casually, completely oblivious to the sudden emotional avalanche she had just triggered inside her friend's chest. "Even though you guys were never even a thing."
A heavy, suffocating silence fell over the room. Niyati dropped her gaze, staring intensely at her own folded hands, her knuckles turning white as she fought to keep her breathing steady.
Noticing the sudden, stark quietness, Diya tilted her head, her playful demeanor softening into genuine confusion. "My Bhai and you were never a thing, right?" Her eyebrow lifted slightly. "Right, Niyu?"
Niyati's head snapped up instantly, her response tumbling out far too fast, far too defensively. "No! Absolutely not!"
Diya blinked at the sudden outburst.
swallowing hard, Niyati forced a faint, casual laugh to smooth over the crack in her voice. "No, 3000, downfall, nonsense, decision, line, boundary, simple. No, yaara, nothing like that at all. He's just your brother."
Diya stared at her for one agonizing second longer before her face relaxed into a relieved, knowing smile. "I knew it," she said lightly, tossing her hair back. "If there was ever something going on between you two, you would have told me immediately. I know you better than anyone."
That innocent, trusting sentence pierced Niyati's chest far deeper than any suspicion could have. Diya trusted her implicitly, yet Niyati had spent months guarding the most significant, soul-shattering chapter of her life behind locked doors.
Diya, however, was already moving on to her next tactical maneuver, tapping her screen. "Let me call Bhai right now and see if he's free tonight."
Niyati's eyes widened in fresh panic. "Diya, wait, please don't-"
"Nope!" Diya cut her off smoothly. "No buts, no excuses." She put the phone to her ear, lifting a finger to her lips. "Shh, keep quiet."
Niyati could only watch in mute helplessness as the call connected across town. She hung on every word of Diya's side of the conversation, her heart hammering wildly against her ribs.
"Hi, Bhai," Diya chirped cheerfully.
A brief pause followed as Ansh answered on the other end.
"Are you busy tonight?" Diya asked, pacing slightly near the window. Another pause. Niyati's fingers curled so tightly into her bedsheets that the fabric strained. "Well... remember that Freshers' Ball I told you about? Aarush had an accident last night, so Niyati doesn't have a partner anymore."
Niyati buried her face in her hands, holding her breath. She couldn't hear Ansh's voice, but she watched Diya's face intently. Diya's expression shifted from casual explanation to absolute, smug satisfaction.
"Yeah... okay... perfect! See you tonight then, Bhai!" Diya finished, ending the call with a victorious click.
Niyati instantly lowered her hands, staring at her friend. "What happened? What did he say?"
Diya didn't utter a word. Instead, she quietly opened their group chat and began typing rapidly.
"Diya, what are you doing?" Niyati demanded, her voice trembling slightly.
Niyati watched as a new text flashed onto the screen of her own phone lying nearby.
An instant thumbs-up reaction popped up from Aarush, followed by a series of victory stickers from Shaurya.
Niyati stared at the glowing screen, and then slowly raised her eyes to Diya, who was now sitting on the edge of the desk, looking like a grandmaster who had just delivered an effortless checkmate.
Niyati didn't need to ask. Deep down, her soul already knew who Diya had volunteered.
Ansh.
Her Ansh.
The very same Ansh who had stood beside her in that glowing boutique days ago.
The Ansh who had gently lifted that breathtaking midnight-blue gown from the display rack.