Abhi "But after I tell you shouldn't ask me any question. Promise?"

"I will try...." She replied.

Abhi "No, you have to promise me!"

"Fine, I promise I won't ask any questions."

Abhi "Thanks."

"Faster tell. I can't wait."

Abhi "To stay in my heart you need a lot of hearts beating for me."

"Why are you telling the same line that I told you?"

Abhi "Wait. I told it again so that you remember it."

She smiled and he said "The meaning of your riddle is You like to have a lot of people around you. It could be your family, friends or the people who you might meet part of your work or social service. In that way, if at any point of time or it could be sometimes that they think about you or feel something about you, that's when your heart allows them to stay in your heart wholeheartedly."

She gasped in shock and was silent for a very long time.

Abhi" Am I right?"

"Yes absolutely. But how did you figured this out?" she asked in a dazed tone.

Abhi "Have you forgotten your promise?"

"Please tell how you manage to find!"

Abhi hangs up the call saying Good night.

Meanwhile she was feeling very happy that he gave her the right answer.

Abhi again calls her up much to her surprise.

Abhi "I forgot to tell you. Although I told the right answer, it doesn't mean I want to stay in your heart."

"Huh? You don't want to stay in my heart?" she asked disappointedly.

Abhi "Purab will be unhappy if I do so. He also explained to me why I shouldn't so I can't."

"Is it? So you won't disobey his words?"

Abhi "Nope! Never even if he changes his words."

"What do you mean? So he changed his words now or what?"

Abhi "Ya actually recently he said it's nothing wrong to like you but I fixed my mind not to think about you."

"You fixed your mind to not think about me but you still call me now?"

Abhi "That's for you Pragya. You shouldn't get upset!"

She hangs up the call abruptly and felt completely disappointed with his reply.

She quickly called Bulbul and started to cry again.

Bulbul "First stop crying. We will discuss tomorrow about this. What's the use of crying now?"

"You know how happy I was when he said the meaning of what I told him. It made me feel he will confess his love for me. But the next moment, he told he don't want to stay in my heart."

Bulbul "Pragya, be bold! I know what you go through now."

"You don't know Bulbul! He cheated me!"

Bulbul "Uffo! Did he said he love you and then ditch to cheat you?"

"No! But he still cheated me."

Bulbul "Relax! We will meet Purab tomorrow and sort this out."

"I really can't believe he will tell such a thing to me."

Bulbul then tried her best to console her for the rest of the night until she fell asleep.

The next day,

Bulbul "I can't believe that you took a day off!"

"It's not easy Bulbul. I am having a heartbreak now because of him. I never expect he will do this to me."

"Chill! We are meeting Purab. I have already asked him to meet me at the park. Luckily, he agreed to meet us early in the morning."Bulbul replied giving a side hug to her.

At the park, Purab smiled at both while Pragya could hardly smile with her sorrow in mind.

Bulbul without wasting a minute explained everything that had happened.

Purab in disbelief asked" I never know any of this. He didn't shared anything with me."

"He never shared anything? How's that possible? You are his best friend right?"

Purab "Yes I am but.... I don't know. He came back and after that he took a long sleep. I didn't disturb him. Then in the night I went to sleep so I didn't know he made a call to you."

Bulbul "How to trust you Purab that you don't know anything."

Purab "Trust me! Even now he is sleeping!"

"He can sleep?" she asked unable to believe Abhi slept peacefully while she was sleepless the whole night.

Purab "Yes he is... But let me be clear on my stand on what I told him. First of all I am sorry Pragya and I did told him not to fall in love now as he is unstable at his work. Until now his talent is not paid off. So I told him to ignore all this attraction towards women which will be distracting to his career."

Bulbul sighed, " How bad! Now because of you, he is saying no to her."

Purab looking at Pragya said, " I am sorry. But after knowing it was you whom he liked, I said it's nothing wrong to like you. I did said you will get happiness out of this. Even after the party, I told him everything I could say it's okay to like you."

"Wait! So just because I am from a wealthier family you said it's okay to like me?" she asked.

Bulbul "Did you mean like that Purab? How bad are you!"

Purab was shocked hearing it and said, "No! No! That's not what I mean. I knew you are a good soul. I have only heard good about you in office. And even you were always kind and friendly to the staff whenever you come to office. So I was happy for Abhi that he liked you and I also felt you were also interested in him by the way you interacted with him earlier."

"So then how to change his mind? He said even if you change your words he won't change his mindset. He seems to be adamant." She worried.

Purab "I have to think on how to convince him. It's true that he is adamant about his decisions."

Bulbul "Then one more thing Purab, is he really innocent at all times?"

Purab "Yes he is! He is very naive. I can't believe what you say about him."

"Bulbul, that's not important now. Now we have to change his mindset. That's more important."

Purab "But I will help to keep an eye on him. As far as I know, he always tell me whatever happens in his life. He doesn't hide things from me."

Bulbul "We believe you on this Purab. My friend is really in love with him and he is too! We have to make him understand what is love!"

"I don't believe he is too innocent that he doesn't know what is love. I still feel he is acting." She thought looking lost.

Bulbul "Pragya!"

"Hmm... " She said coming out of her thoughts.

Purab "Pragya, I assure you he will confess his love soon. Just give me sometime to convince him."

Pragya smiled lightly and hoped everything goes well.

At the back of her mind, she also felt it doesn't seem to be right in getting him convinced to love her.

Bulbul" What are you thinking Pragya?"

"Nothing!" she said and Purab "Trust me. I will try my best to convince him."

"You don't have to convince him." She said

Bulbul and Purab were taken aback and asked why is she saying like this.

"I just want him to realize that he still loves me. That's all. But if he is really stubborn then....."

Purab assured "You don't worry Pragya. He will definitely understand and change his mind."

She feels hopeful by Purab's words and Bulbul's support.

After a week of full of feelings for him, she gets a shock of her life.

She was taking rounds in the hospital she works in weekdays.

That's when she heard his voice from a ward room.She couldn't think anything and immediately went and saw Bulbul hugging him!

"Bulbul!" she shouted and they broke the hug.

Bulbul "I am sorry... What you have seen is......" She panicked and Abhi replied "You don't be scared Bulbul. What's wrong in a hug?"

"Why are you both here?" she asked still not able to comprehend what she have seen.

Bulbul "Wo... He brought me here. I was feeling weak and...."

"And what?" she asked demandingly.

Bulbul "He loves me Pragya. There was a confusion earlier."

"What? He loves you?" she was shocked to the core and felt her world was crashing down into pieces.

Abhi looked away while she felt unsteady and could sense she will faint at any moment.

"Nurse!!!" she said loudly before her vision blacks out.

To be continued.......

Thank you for reading!

PS: Hmm... This got to be a shockingly interesting/ shockingly shocking update to many of you. Am I right? 😉