ARNAV

I couldn't take my eyes off her, she was seated on the bed looking at me, how I had Aria wrapped around my arms and the tears that dropped down her eyes told me things I wasn't sure of, she was hurt because I was showing interest in Aria and I was hurt because she was showing interest in me.

Neither of this was right, me being in love with my best friend's wife wasn't right, me lying to Aria that I was interested in her only because I dint want to end up doing anything terrible to Shrey wasn't right and right now, Khushi looking at me this way wasn't right.

She turned to look the other way trying to avoid looking at me but her eyes had already done too much talking and I was scared because what I had seen was making me weak when I was trying to be strong.

Aria broke the hug and looked at me excitedly but how could I tell her I wasn't interested in looking back at her, I was just interested in looking at Khushi and right now she was hurting because of me and I couldn't bear that.

Aria opened her mouth to speak, she was about to say something when her phone interrupted, she pulled it out of her pocket making faces but as soon as she looked at the screen, her expressions calmed down, she received the call as she took a few steps away from me.

"Yes sir, I'll be there right away." She said as she disconnected the call and looked at Shrey.

"Sorry Arnav, I have to go its' urgent, Shrey will you please come with me, the doctor I was telling you about is here, the one that was going to help me in Khushi's case, you'll understand things better if you come along, Arnav you can join us too if you wish to." Aria said as she looked at the both of us.

"No, someone needs to be here with Khushi plus Shrey should know all the details so take him along, I'll stay with Khushi." I said.

They both nodded positively and rushed outside leaving me standing where I was, I kept on staring at Khushi who was trying her best not to look at me.

"What's wrong Khushi?" I asked as I walked towards her taking slow steps, she dint say anything, she just sat there silently not wanting to look at me or even talk to me.

"Look at me Khushi." I said as I stopped near her bed and sat down, I got hold of her and made her face me, she still had tears in her eyes.

"When you said I was special to you, did you even mean it? Because right now I think Aria is becoming more special than I was." She asked.

"Khushi" I looked at her in shock, she looked broken, the tears weren't stopping and I felt so weak, so damn weak!

"Did you mean it Arnav? Yes or No?" She asked once again.

"Yes I meant it, I meant every bit of it Khushi." I shouted back angrily, why was this even making me angry?

She seemed to have calmed down a bit but the tears were still there and as much as I wanted to wipe them off, I was just stopping myself knowing that I wasn't the one supposed to do that, Shrey was.

"If you meant it, why are you giving that place to Aria now, why is she becoming important to you Arnav, does that mean that I mean nothing to you? What are you trying to do? Please tell me because I am confused by you saying something else and doing something else." She looked at me accusingly.

"I am trying to keep myself away from you Khushi, don't you see that? Don't you see that Aria doesn't matter to me, all that matters is you but..." I ran my hand through my hair in frustration, all this was becoming more and more complicated.

"But what Arnav? You want me to see that Aria doesn't matter to you when you can't see how much I love you?" She shouted at me angrily leaving me stunned.

I was surprised, wait not surprised, I was shocked to hear her say those words because no matter what either of us felt, I never thought that Khushi was ever going to give her feelings towards me a name, and I also never thought that she would confess her love for me like this.

She looked back at me with the same shock, maybe she dint want to say this to me but it came out like it had once with me when I told her she was special.

"I don't know how this happened Arnav or when it happened, all I know is that it did and I can't change it, I can't change the way I feel about you, I can't stop myself from loving you."

She held my hand in hers tighter and she shut her eyes, I dint even know what to feel or think at this moment, everything was so damn wrong and right at the same time.

"You know what you're asking me to do Khushi? I can't do the same thing that happened to me, we can't do this to Shrey, it will hurt him and he doesn't deserve betrayal, not from the two people he trusts the most" I looked at her seriously, I meant every word I said.

No matter what I felt for her at the moment or what she felt for me, there was no way I could ever think of cheating on anyone leave alone my own best friend, I wouldn't ever wish for him to be in that pain that I was in years back.

"Do you think I want to do this Arnav? I don't want to cheat on Shrey, I don't want to hurt him but because of that we both can't deny what we feel for each other." She looked at me with moist eyes, she was about to cry once again and I hated seeing her like this, I dint want to make her weak neither did I want to become weak myself.

"Maybe this is just an infatuation, it happened because Shrey wasn't around, you should give it time Khushi, spend time with him now that he's here, don't think about me and maybe with time all this feelings you have will disappear."

"I want for them to disappear, why are you talking me wrongly, me saying that I love you doesn't mean we both have to get together or something Arnav, I would never think of hurting Shrey, I just told you because I felt it, and I wanted you to know it that's it.

I love Shrey or maybe I loved him but whatever my feelings are, I would never do that to him, he was always there for me, he loved me so much so I can't hurt him."

"Then why are we even having this discussion Khushi?" Was was all the so freaking frustrating for heaven sake?

"Because I wanted you to know how I feel about you Arnav, I know it's wrong but I feel it anyway." She looked at the floor sadly and then she pulled her hand out of my hold and I felt a sort of ache in my heart that I couldn't explain in words.

We both knew nothing was ever going to work out between us, neither of us would ever want to betray Shrey or even hurt him so nothing was ever going to happen between me and Khushi, and as much as that was the right thing to do, I dint feel like doing it, because I was in love with her, and I had been yearning for that love since long and now when it was here, I couldn't have it.

"This is how we'll make things change... I'll try to avoid coming here as much as I can, please avoid thinking about me or the time we spent together or anything, maybe if we stay away from each other the feelings would go away." I suggested.

"Are you sure they will go away?" Khushi asked.

"I don't know Khushi, but it's all that I can think of, I can't do this anymore, I can't see you anymore because if I do, it will make me weak, it will remind me how much I love you and I'll try to convince myself to do things I am not supposed to." I had told myself that I wouldn't admit my love for her but I did that right now and maybe i only did it because she admitted her feelings towards me.

I turned away from her and looked at the opposite side trying to hide my tears away from her, this was hurting me as much as it was hurting her.

"Fine then, let's work on this, from today onward, you and I are strangers, if we meet anywhere we'll pretend like we never knew each other and just move on with life.

I will try all I can to spend time with Shrey and maybe feel for him what I always felt and you can go on with Aria, maybe that will help you." She spoke in a very low tone but I could hear everything very well.

"So this is the end of our journey, from hating each other to becoming friends and then falling for each other and now becoming strangers." I smiled as I turned to look at her once again, I walked closer to her bed.

"It was nice meeting you and getting to know you Khushi, I'll pray you get the life you've always wanted." I smiled at her as I held my hand out to her for a handshake.

"It was nice meeting you too Arnav." She smiled back faintly, I stared at her for a few moments and then turned around and walked out of the door without turning back to look at her, this was going to be the end of everything between us.