Note: There will be a few repeating events from the previous parts of the story

*Rupa Pov*

I sat on the ground feeling panic after the way I wrote the paper. It was so tough and I tried my best to write each and every answer but I still missed a few.

What should I do now? How can I achieve anything if I don't get good marks? What if I had to stay in this village and get married to the person my parents bring because of having no option to leave this village and get an opportunity to change my life.

"Why are you grinning so much today while we all are in grief regarding today's tough paper?" I heard someone saying and I felt relieved thinking maybe if everyone didn't write it properly then it could be fine.

I continued to hear a conversation but my mind is on a run thinking maybe it will be fine and I need not feel low.

But those thoughts got cut off when I realized no one in the city will ask me whether the paper is tough or how much everyone else scored. I need to fight more already because of coming from a village and now with these poor marks my chances will go away.

"And, there is no other reason for my parents to stop her to call her son home to get me married." Hearing those words I gripped my hold on the question paper and I couldn't stop myself from uttering the next words.

"Oh God! I just can't believe this." Everyone turned around hearing my voice and Vani frowned at me.

"What is your problem, Rupa?" She asked in an irritated tone.

"My problem is your naiveness, Vani." I replied frowning back.

"What do you mean?" She asked and somehow all my frustration came out and in the end, I attacked her with mean words.

"Did you forget that he is studying in the city and that too higher studies? And not only that but also his stay in the city for many years, except for the holidays?" I asked shaking my head.

"If you forgot, we are still not writing our exam. So, you can come to the point without going in circles like our answers." She said fuming and I know I should have stopped but I couldn't control my words.

"Fine! Do you really think he would choose a village girl over someone more perfect for him to get along with?" I pointed out and her friends frowned at me before tugging her saying to not mind me.

And I wish she ignored me right now so that even I could stop but she continued to talk and her naiveness really triggered me.

"He will choose me over everyone. I am not a secret from him and he knows that he is going to marry me. I can even bet that I am very special for him like he is for me." She even smirked after saying those words but I didn't back down.

"Really? How many years has it been since you talked to him?" I asked back.

"I need not talk to him. I have someone who does that in a more special way. And I will talk to him soon when he comes here." she said shrugging.

"You know in your heart that there will be problems with this marriage, Vani." I said shaking my head.

"If there is, then I know how to solve it. Look at your own life without minding others." She said glaring at me before getting up to run away.

Her friends shouted her name but she didn't stop at all and continued to run while I closed my eyes in regret.

What did she do to me for me to react towards her like this? She didn't cause me any problems and living her own life with her own dream of marrying that guy.

Even though I regret saying those words, I don't feel I am wrong to think like that. How can a girl think of being dependent on a person she doesn't even know properly?

I ignored the glares from others as I am not that close to anyone here and got up to walk to my place while thinking about what to do next to add more qualifications to my profile.

When I entered the house, I already felt tired with all the walking from college to here. I couldn't help but think about Vani who used to run away from school or college to her house instead of using the transport whenever I fought with her and always took the opposite stand from her thoughts.

I actually envy her for being so carefree and so honest with her feelings. She never hid what she felt unlike others but at the same time naïve about others which always tick me in the wrong way.

I just wish she takes her in a serious way instead of thinking about the guy whom she didn't even meet properly.

"How was the exam? And why are you limping?" Mom asked looking at me.

"I walked from college." I replied before I could stop myself.

"Why would you do that?" She asked and gave a look which she always gives before starting her scolding session.

"My friend wanted to walk and I just joined her." I replied and she immediately stopped her words.

"Who? Vani?" she asked and I nodded at her before walking into my room.

Somehow I lied to her during my school days that Vani is my best friend as she got worried about my rude behavior and felt I will never have any friends.

I thought it is better to lie instead of getting a lecture from her every day on how to behave with others and how to talk.

I sighed lying down on the bed and took out a book from the table on the way before noting down what to do next and what exams I can prepare for better job opportunities.

****

"Rupa! Someone is knocking on the door. Go and check it!" I sighed getting up from the chair and pausing my studies.

I need to write an exam soon within a few weeks and if I get a good result then I can apply for a good job and finally leave this village.

I felt tired with all the studying and opened the door only to get stunned by seeing the girl who was supposed to be married by now and shifted to the city. What is she doing here?

"You were right! He doesn't want me." She suddenly said and started sobbing and that shocked me but I came out of my shock before reaching her.

"Oh, Vani! Come inside." I said hugging her and walked her inside the house.

"Who is it, Rupa?" Mom asked from the kitchen.

"It is my friend, Mom!" saying that I immediately brought her into my room before Mom can walk out of the kitchen and see the state Vani is in right now.

"You were always right, Rupa. He doesn't want a village girl like me and even likes someone else." She said brushing her tears away.

"He just doesn't deserve you." I said consoling and stepped out of my room to reach the kitchen as I don't have any other words to say.

I am worst at consoling someone and right now I don't know what to say. So, I entered the kitchen to get some water for her and found Mom looking at me with bright eyes.

"I will get her some water, Mom." I mumbled taking a glass and filling it with water.

"Ask her to stay for dinner and not leave as it is already dark and it is not safe." Mom mumbled and I nodded before walking into my room and passed the glass.

After drinking the water, she stood up from the chair and took the bag near her feet which I didn't see until now.

Did she leave her place or what? I thought frowning and just stared at her while she composed herself.

"I need to leave, Rupa." She said staring at me.

"Where?" I asked frowning while hoping she already planned on where to go now.

"I don't know! I said I was going to my friends home, but I was actually running away for some time until he tells everyone that he doesn't want this marriage. I can't say that myself because I still want this for my stupid heart." She replied shaking her head.

"Why don't you stay here until you know where to go?" I offered.

"I can't be here and bring you any trouble." She said sighing.

"You are going to stay here otherwise I will think you never forgave me for being very bad for you during the school days and college days." I said holding her hand.

"You were not bad, but just different opinionated than me." She said smiling at me.

"I know! But I am fine to call myself if it will make you stay here." I said shrugging.

"Your parents?" She asked frowning.

"No friend ever came to my house to stay for my direct attacks. So, they will be more than glad to know I actually have a friend and never lied." I replied before dragging her into the main house to introduce her to my parents and they were really happy to meet a friend of mine finally.

Within a few days, she got really close to my parents as I expected her to. What amazes me more is that even though she is going through a heartbreak, her way of looking at many things didn't change and she is still lively.

It still shocked me that she actually got engaged and because of her cousin's accident the marriage got postponed and she had this chance to leave the house.

She still talks to her parents and her Aunty but they must have realized she doesn't want to return yet as the questions reduced with passing of the days.

I am glad she joined the course in the same institute where I am taking mine and even though she just started while I nearly finished, we both were able to go together.

"I just hope I will get a better job next month for all this hard work." I said leaning back from the books.

After finishing college, I decided to be an accountant as that doesn't need me to study at a prestigious college or have a good result for graduation part.

I just need to prepare for the exams relating to that profession and then get a job and continue to study to get better jobs with passing of the time.

And I also heard the pay will be good for this profession which is also one of the driving forces for me to choose it. With good pay, I can have a better life and provide better help for my parents too.

"You will definitely, Rupa. You were good at studies from the beginning and I hope I get at least a small job after this course." She said smiling at me.

"You will get one." I assured her and she started rubbing her engagement ring which she didn't remove yet.

"Thinking about him?" I asked staring at her and she nodded but looks guilty to do it.

"It is not wrong to do that. You love him and so you have a right to think about him." I said shrugging and she smiled.

"Yes! But it would be wrong to do that after he got married to someone else." She mumbled while I frowned.

"I don't think you will ever bear that." I stated realizing she is still as heartbroken she was the day she came here.

"Wow! Really? I didn't know." She said with a fake shocked look and I laughed at her but stopped when she got a call.

"I will be there!" after a few words with a shocked tone, she cut the call after saying those words and started running around the room in panic mode.

"What happened?" I asked after stopping her and she talked about her Aunty who is in a serious condition.

"Why don't we go there?" I offered as she doesn't seem to be in a state where she can travel by herself and she didn't reject my offer.

She walked out of the house to search for transport while I talked to my parents before following her out of the house.

I held her hand while we sat on the bus and she is literally shivering without any about anything going around her as if she is lost in a trance.

We finally reached the hospital and she rushed inside and I tried to keep up with her only to find so many people in the corridor.

So, I took a step back to give some space to everyone while she talked to her Mom and Dad crying.

I stood near the wall and texted my Dad using my Mom's phone which I use about our arrival at the hospital. After that, I sat down on the empty seat deciding to wait for her.

****

After some time, I found people walking here and there and I started hearing her parents talking about marriage.

Why are they talking about marriage at this time? I frowned looking at them and a person sighed beside me.

"Hi! I am Girish!" he said introducing himself while I just nodded at him.

"I am Kamal's friend by the way." I again nodded while frowning at her parents.

"Why are they getting her married at this time? Are they forcing her?" I asked no one and stood up from the chair.

"No! They are not forcing her because this is just Aunty's wish and they both are fulfilling it. Anyway, they both are engaged and would get married someday so why not today." He pointed out.

"Engaged? They are not engaged as only he put the ring on her finger, right?" I asked him frowning.

"You know that? But Kamal thinks they are engaged and doesn't care even if she didn't put the ring on his finger." He replied smiling at me.

What? Did she misunderstand Kamal then? I hope she did otherwise I am not sure how can she bring herself to love another person after thinking about someone for all these years.

"Are you his best friend?" I asked looking at the person sitting beside me and I don't even remember his name.

"Yes!" he replied nodding.

"You stay in the same city with him and work at the same hospital?" I continued asking and to my surprise, he didn't mind the questions and didn't even show an irritated expression.

"We live in the same city but we don't work at the same hospital. However, we meet regularly." I nodded hearing those words and shifted to look at him directly.

He gave a startled look because of my shift and I stopped myself from smiling at his face as he moved back to not be too close.

"You may think it is weird after hearing my words but listen to them carefully. Vani is a really sweet person and she deserves happiness. However, she is misunderstanding or maybe actually understanding that her fiance is in love with another person. Do you know anything about this?" I asked with a serious look.

"What? No! He doesn't love anyone." He stated and I nodded at him before continuing to say the next part.

"So, protect her from any such things if there are really there. She lived in a village all this time and doesn't know how much people can play with emotions. I am not asking you to go through lengths to help her but just be there for her. Also, if she is happy then automatically your friend will be happy, right?" he nodded hearing my words.

"And don't take my words lightly because if I find she is hurt from something which could have been avoided with a little help from a third person, then I will kill you." I added and his eyes widened.

I turned back to sit properly and found Vani's Dad walking towards the room with a man before gesturing his wife to enter the room.

"Can all these people go at a time?" I asked glancing at this person.

"Kamal took permission from the doctor." He replied before standing up and paused after taking a step.

"Want to see the marriage from the door?" I shook my head as I am still not fine with the way she is getting married.

Maybe if I don't see it then I need not think of it as real. So, I stayed there even after that person left the room and I think he must be the registrar officer as he was holding a file.

After some time, I found her fiance... no... her husband stepping out of the room and he looks devastated but the people who seem to be his friends supported him and made him sit down before passing a water bottle.

They even brought food for him to eat which he ignored but they literally forced him to eat.

I frowned thinking maybe I should go and buy something for her. With that thought, I stood up only to bump into the person I met before and had that talk.

"Here! I bought some food along with buying for Vani and her parents." He said passing a parcel and I shook my head.

"Eat! At least for the sake of keeping my promise to you." He added and I frowned at his words.

"You didn't actually promise me and I just threatened you. There is a difference between these two." I pointed out and he just smiled before placing the cover in my hands and walked off towards Vani's parents.

I sat down and decided to eat some as I am feeling hungry after sitting here until now. When I walked to the dustbin to throw the cover, I found him standing beside me with a water bottle.

"This is for you." Saying that he passed the bottle and I took it from his hands but before I could thank him, he already walked away.

I walked towards the chair and was about to sit down but found Vani stepping out of the room and I immediately walked towards her.

"Are you fine?" I asked the moment she stepped out of the room.

"Yeah! Why don't you come in and meet my Aunty?" She asked and dragged me inside before I could reject her.

I don't know how to behave while meeting an ill patient. I hope I don't do anything stupid or say that shouldn't be uttered.

"Aunty! Meet my friend." She introduced me and I smiled at her Aunty while thinking whether I can smile or not at a patient.

"I am Rupa, Aunty." I said calmly after hesitating for a bit.

"The Rupa!" Aunty asked slowly smiling and I stared at her feeling surprised.

"I guess!" I mumbled scratching my neck while not knowing what to say.

"You made this poor girl walk home from college, so many times, dear." Aunty said in a stern voice.

My eyes widened hearing those words and want to scold Vani for saying such things near others. But this was expected as she always talks about her Aunty and how she is her best friend.

"Oh! I didn't mean it like that. It was just..." I stuttered but stopped when Aunty started smiling and also I heard a chuckle from the entrance.

I turned to find that person standing at the entrance and stopped smiling when I glared at him but he continued to stand there.

"You were staying with her?" Aunty asked Vani with a frown.

"Yes! We became great friends." She replied smiling and I smiled along with her after hearing those words.

"My parents even started loving her more than me." I added to prove that we are great friends now.

"She knows how to make everyone love her. Do you know that we wished she was our daughter when she stayed at my house for the first time?" Aunty said holding Vani's hand.

"I can see that." I mumbled smiling as that's what I thought for a long time but I found Vani's smile froze after hearing those words.

"You have an exam tomorrow, Rupa. I will walk you to the entrance." Vani suddenly said checking the time and I nodded before glancing at Aunty who nodded at me smiling.

"It is ok!" I said while saying I can go by myself but she stubbornly followed me out of the room.

I completely ignored him even though he tried to clear his throat to get my attention while Vani was not even in the right mindset to care about what is going on around her.

"God! You got married even before I could say that I am hungry." I said the moment we walked outside the hospital.

"I don't know how it happened, but it just did. What am I going to do? Am I being selfish thinking about my life now and not about her?" Vani asked with a panicked look and held my hand tightly.

"Not at all! This is your life which you have to lead for so many years. I know it is devastating to know about her illness but it is not wrong to think about yourself too." I replied assuring her.

"You are really married." I mumbled when I found the yellow thread she is wearing and it finally hits me that my one and only friend is right now a married woman.

She got married in such a bizarre way that I couldn't help but feel distressed for her. What will she do now? What if her husband doesn't treat her properly?

What about her career now? And the courses she signed up for? I heard the incharge praising her for the way she was able to grasp everything within a short period of time but now... all these thoughts passed away when I found how tired she looked and also she seems like she will fall down at any moment.

"You need to go inside." I advised her thinking I will just be there for her in the future if she needs me.

That's all I can do instead of worrying about the things that didn't happen yet. I tightened my hold on her hand with that determination.

"I am fine!" She said assuring me back and still thinking to accompany me to the bus stand against my complaints.

"I will make sure she got in a proper transport." We both heard a voice and turned to find that person standing there smiling at us.

"See? Now, go and have some food. And will you finish the course?" I asked changing the topic and deciding to deal with him after sending her inside.

"I already left her for all this time and I can't do that again. Otherwise, I can't live with myself." She replied and I can clearly see the guilt on her face.

"It was not your fault." I said sternly but she doesn't seem like listening to me at all and walked back into the hospital while I sighed seeing her dejected back like that.

After that day when she came to my house with such a sad face, she got herself together and was back to her normal state at least for some part.

However, right now she looks worse than that day and I sighed shaking my head before turning around to walk away.

"Need to go to the bus stand?" I heard a voice and turned to find him walking along with me.

"You need not accompany me and I didn't go against your suggestion to make her go back. So, you can go back inside." I mumbled but he shook his head and didn't move at all.

"What is your name?" I asked and his relaxed smile finally dropped and his face got covered with a shocked look.

"You don't remember my name?" he asked and I shook my head honestly as I was not paying any attention towards him at all.

"I know your name and even remember it. How can you..." he sighed before forwarding his hand towards me.

"I am Girish! My profession is doctor." He introduced himself and I nodded without holding his hand.

"Just go inside and take care of your friend and also mine." Saying that I continued to walk and stopped when he continued to follow me.

"Are you not listening?" I asked turning around with a frown.

"I am following your words only." He replied and I gave him a confused look which made him smile at me.

I need to go home soon and revise a bit for tomorrow's exam but here I am standing near the road and having a discussion with a person I just met today.

"You said I need to take care of your friend and if I don't, you will kill me. Now, I already told your friend that I will accompany you until you take the transport for your village. So, if I go back without doing it then she will get worried about you and in turn, I will be neglecting your words and will end up getting killed by you." I couldn't help but laugh after hearing those words and stared at him in silence.

When he grinned at me after I started laughing, I immediately controlled my expression by letting out a cough but he didn't stop grinning.

"I need to go to the bus stand." I mumbled turning around to walk away and he followed me.

I got an auto and we both sat inside while he continued to talk about his likes and dislikes making me frown.

"We are not in a date or a marriage proposal meeting." I pointed out to which he nodded but continued to talk.

"Don't you feel it is boring to just listen to me talking? Why don't you tell your likes and dislikes?" He asked and I turned to stare at him.

"Why do you like me?" I suddenly asked and got shocked hearing those words.

"Who said I like you?" he asked back and I shrugged before looking away while feeling awkward to ask such a question.

Why did I think too much about myself and asked such a question only to let the atmosphere to get weird and it is also embarrassing.

"I am interested in you would be the right set of words." I turned to stare at him after hearing those words while he smirked at me.

"But I am not interested and so I need not tell about my likes and dislikes." I pointed out giving him a fake smile while he chuckled.

"What is your number?" he suddenly asked and I stayed silent while he continued to ask other questions.

"What is your favorite color? Mine is green color."

"What is your favorite food? Mine is definitely biryani and I can eat all kinds like an egg to chicken to prawns."

"What exams are you going to have tomorrow? Even I need to write exams in the future to get promoted and they are really tough."

"What is your favorite sport? Mine is football and even basketball even though I don't like to play that much. Why I don't like to play is because I didn't have much time while studying."

"What is your favorite place to visit? I actually don't have any particular place but I like to travel and I enjoyed traveling to the village to meet Aunty at that time."

"I remember seeing Vani running at a high speed at that time and thought there must be some emergency and that's why she is running but it turns out she is running to be at Kamal's place before him." He laughed saying this and continuing to have a one-sided conversation.

The auto driver gave him a weird look and then glanced at me while I gave him an apologetic look before turning to stare at Girish.

"Stop it!" I whispered covering his mouth and he froze before staring at me with wide eyes.

"What?" I asked and he shook his head but didn't try to talk after that.

When I moved my hand to remove it from his mouth, he whispered saying, "Leave it here only so that I don't talk again."

I glared at him before taking my hand away and sighed in relief when we finally reached the bus stand.

However, there is no immediately available bus and so I need to wait for some time. I glanced at him and opened my mouth to ask him to go but he beat me with his words.

"I will leave after seeing you get on the bus. Also, I will have these extra few minutes to flirt with you." He winked while I rolled my eyes.

To his displeasure, the bus came within a few minutes and I walked towards the bus but paused for a second and turned around saying, "Thank you!"

"Phone number?" he asked smiling.

"I don't have a phone and the one I am using is my Mom's phone. And I am not lying to you." I added the last words and he nodded sighing.

"Okay! I will get your number after you buy one then." He said nodding at me while I raised my eyebrow at him.

"I want to come with you but Kamal needs me and so I have to go back but I hope you remember my name the next time we meet again." Saying that he stepped back while I just stared at him before giving him a nod smiling.