27) Why are trial rooms so small?

Kiara's POV

I was going to castrate Anushka and Maahi and then feed them to stray dogs.

"She locked us in?" Arjun frowned.

"Yes. She pushed me here."

He crossed arms over his chest. "When you enter a trial room, you make sure whether it's already occupied or not."

I mimicked his stance. "And when you change your clothes, you make sure the door is locked."

"I locked it. But then the shirt I was trying was a size small. So, Sid volunteered to find the right size and asked me to keep the door unlocked. And then-"

A long pause.

His face morphed into anger as he realized that Sid, too, tricked him into this. "Damn it!"

"I'm going to kill that idiot."

Banging on the door, he growled angrily. "Sid! Open the fucking door right now."

"Sid!" Arjun bellowed.

There was complete silence on the other side of the door.

"Anushka! Maahi!" Placing a palm on the door, I called out as loud as I could.

"Anushka, I swear to God if you don't open this door right now. I... I" I stopped for a second.

"I'll not share my chocolates with you! And don't even dream about coming crying to when another fictional crush of yours dies."

"As for you Maahi, you better find someone else to rant about Harry with."

Arjun's head whipped towards me with such a speed that I was astonished he didn't get a whiplash.

His lips moved silently as he tried to speak, no words coming out. Shaking his head in resignation, he pinched the bridge of his nose as a sigh left his lips.

"You know," He looked at me. "every time you open your mouth, I think that maybe, this time, it will make some sense. But it all goes over my head. Every single time."

I gaped at him and faced away with a scorn.

"That's the best you could come up with?" He arched his eyebrow, his face reflecting ridicule and mockery.

"My apologies if his highness didn't approve of it. So, why doesn't your majesty himself give it a try." I commented with a sarcastic smile.

And what did he do? He did what he's best at. He ignored me and his eyes bored holes at the door as if the door had conspired to lock us here.

"I don't even think they are outside." I said as I tried to listen any commotion on the other side of the door.

Nothing.

Arjun stared at the door with an intense, calm expression.

Oh, boy. This wasn't good.

"Sid?" Arjun's voice was surprisingly cool.

No reply.

"Hmm. I see." Arjun muttered, burying his hands in the pockets of his jeans. "Sid, do you want me to post your middle school photos on social media?"

"Okay, fine! I'm here." Sid's rushed, panicked voice reached my ears as I tilted my head towards Arjun, stunned.

My eyes lingered on him questioningly when he answered. "He hates how he looked back in middle school."

My, my! A straightforward answer from the devil without any smart-ass remarks or cross questions? Progress.

"Open the door." Arjun ordered.

"No." It wasn't Sid who answered this time. It was Maahi.

"Maahi, what's wrong with you?"

"Nothing." The playful tinge to her tone scared me a little.

"Open the door then." I sighed exasperatedly.

"Nuh-uh. Not so easily." Anushka answered.

"What are they even playing at?" Arjun growled beside me and I took a step away from him a little scared, my arm touching the wall of the room.

Who knows when will he burst from anger? Better to be safe than sorry.

I needed to get out of here. Soon.

The sound of giggling reached my ears and I closed my eyes. Whatever they were planning wasn't good.

The trial room was small and the confined space that we were both in didn't really help me to focus on the current situation. I was too busy fretting over the lack of space between us. I couldn't help but steal glances at him every now and then, my mind replaying the scene that happened a few moments before. Damn, those abs.

Would you please concentrate? You have important things to worry about.

"Sid. I won't hesitate." Arjun warned. "So, unless you want the whole world to see your 11-year-old self with pimples and grandma glasses, you better open this door right now."

Pressing my left ear to the door, I could hear some muffled voices and I sighed in relief. Thank god, they were finally going to open the door.

"I swear I'm not even in this." Sid squeaked out. "Maahi and Anushka have held my hands, I can't unlock the door."

Before I could say anything, Maahi yelled. "Okay, then. You love birds enjoy and we'll meet you later. Bye."

"Wh- But. What! Maahi! Anushka! Sid!" I yelled as loudly as I could, banging on the door repeatedly.

I turned to Arjun, shocked. "Can you believe it? They just left."

"Are they on drugs?" Arjun ridiculed. "Or did someone possess them?"

"Why are we friends with them?" I asked the same question I've been asking myself since a very long time.

"Not me. You."

"If I recall, Sid is your friend too."

"And if I recall, isn't he your best friend?"

I groaned and stomped my foot in response.

I really regret saying it now.

"What are we gonna do now?" I pressed a hand on my forehead.

Arjun contemplated for a few seconds.

"Step back." He ordered, taking off his watch and handing it to me.

"Huh?"

"I'm going to break the door. Step back."

"What?" I shrieked out loud. "Are you crazy?"

"I said step back." His voice was firm. I studied him carefully to see if he was joking.

Does he ever joke?

"No! You're not going to break any door."

"I would pay for the damage."

"Just because you have enough money doesn't mean you can do as you wish." I hissed, trying to impart some common sense to his thick skull.

He had gone completely mad.

He crossed arms over his chest, his biceps prominent. "Do you have a better plan?" He tilted his head.

"We can shout for help." I reasoned while his face turned blank, his deadpanned stare on me.

"The trial rooms are the farthest from the reception and other rooms. And the staff rarely comes here. Care to tell me, how exactly do you plan on getting out of here when no one will hear you shouting?"

"Then, we could thi- Wait." My face brightened. "I have Laura's number. We can call her. Yes." Searching for my phone, I looked into my pockets but...

I groaned our loud. "I forgot my phone at home."

"Perfect. Cherry on the top."

"Can you stop with the sarcasm for once?" I snapped.

"And why is it so hot here?" I fanned myself, glancing at Arjun.

An amused smirk played on his lips as he leaned against the wall opposite me. "If you wanted me to take off my t-shirt again, you could have simply asked. No need to make any excuse, princess."

My eyes turned into slits as my jaw dropped. "I wasn't making any excuse. And I don't want you to take off your t-shirt." I huffed.

Really?

Well, that was a small lie.

Uh-huh.

Okay, okay, a big lie. Happy?

Why was I talking to myself? And what was I even saying?

I was slowly turning into a pervert.

Being trapped in this room with Arjun had taken a toll on me.

Arjun made a tsk tsk sound, his eyes gleaming with amusement. "Don't lie, princess. You were drooling over me."

"Was not!"

"Were too."

"Was not!"

"Were too."

"Was not!"

He took a step forward and I immediately shut up, suddenly becoming hyper aware of his over-bearing presence. On instinct, I stepped back, my back hitting the door.

Great!

Why are trial rooms so small?

I tried to play it cool but in reality, my heart beat paced and I tried to control my breathing as he leaned forward.

Why did he have this effect on me?

Ignoring the loud beating of the stupid, treacherous organ, I stared at him with my chin held high.

"Wh-" The door opened suddenly and since I was leaning against it, I stumbled back but the person who apparently opened the door caught me in their arms. I turned to look at a man, a few years older than me, staring at me in bewilderment.

Gosh, that's embarrassing.

I quickly straightened up, stepping away from him. I hadn't even properly stood up when Arjun's hand enclosed around my wrist and pulled me into him. My chest collided with his with an 'oof' escaping my lips and my hands landed on his muscular chest. I looked up at him but he was busy glaring daggers at the poor guy. Arjun's hand was on the small of my back and my head swiveled to look at the man. He looked flabbergasted but as his eyes scanned us from head to toe, his eyes shone with understanding as he hid a smile.

Why was he staring at us like that?

Yeah, it isn't like you and Arjun are present in the small trial room together and are practically pressed against each other, right?

Oh.

He'd be wondering what are you both doing here. Baking a cake probably?

I quickly moved away from Arjun as he let me, his hand falling back on his side.

What just happened?

"Move." I flinched at Arjun's hard, cold tone. Although it was directed at the man standing in front of us, it still made me cower away slightly.

"Sorry, sir." The man bowed, smiling strangely and slid aside, allowing us to pass.

If it couldn't get any worse.

Arjun took my arm and dragged me out of the room.

Did he have a fetish with dragging people by their arms?

"Thank you." I said awkwardly to the man, not knowing how to react as he had caught us in a locked room. It was not like we were doing something...freaky but he didn't know that and God knows what he would be thinking about us now. Let's hope he wouldn't tell the whole staff about it.

"You could have asked him nicely. He helped us." I told Arjun. His jaw was set tight and he looked angry. Why? God knows if I'll ever understand this man.

And why was he always so rude?

"Nicely? Really?" He scoffed.

Oh yeah, I forgot. He left his manners back in hell when he crawled his way up to earth.

On our way back, we almost bumped into Laura. Let me correct myself. I almost bumped into Laura.

"I'm so sorry. Actually, we got a little busy." I apologized to her with an abashed smile and Arjun released my arm.

"Oh no, it's completely fine, dear." She interrupted my blabbering. "Sid informed me that you had some emergency."

Of course, he did.

"I'll find Sid." Something about Arjun's tone told me that Sid was going to regret it.

Uh-oh.

"Anyway, come and have a look at the designs. They're ready." Laura said and I followed her.

Entering the room, I spotted the two troublemakers, lazing around.

"We are so sorry." Maahi and Anushka shouted in unison and I squinted my eyes at them.

I'll deal with them later.

Ignoring them, I concentrated on Laura. Looking at the evening gowns, I had no doubt at her capability and talent. Each gown was so unique and different. But it was the last mannequin that caught my attention. My eyes lit up when they landed on the black dress. It was a mermaid-shaped sleeveless gown with a high-neck and a slit on left side. My fingers touched the soft fabric and a smile spread across my face. Simple yet elegant. I had decided to buy it but when I realized it was backless, only two thin straps criss-crossing till the lower back, I grew hesitant. I was a bit shy revealing my back like that but severe life-threats from my caring friends made me buy it.

Everything was settled, only the fitting was left and while Laura took my measurements, Maahi and Anushka vanished again, God knows where.

"You'll get your gown by Saturday morning." Laura said when she was done.

I thanked her and she escorted me out to the main hall where Arjun was busy on his phone.

"You found the dress?" He asked me as Laura took her leave.

I nodded. "But where are the others?" I looked around.

I heard laughter and whirled around, only to stop dead in my tracks.

What. The. Hell?

Wearing a long blonde wig, Sid propped a hand on his waist, another in mid-air posing like a model while Anushka clicked his photographs with Sid changing his pose every 5 seconds.

A few feet away from them, to their left, I found Maahi, wearing a curly rainbow coloured wig and some fake moustaches, doing weird poses and waving at people walking in the street through the glass wall that had mannequins for display.

"I don't know these people." Arjun looked as if he had just swallowed a lemon.

I shook my head in mortification. "Me neither."

I had a sudden urge to dig a hole and bury all three of them.

Even the staff had gathered around the reception, watching the antics of our idiots and whispering among themselves. I face palmed.

"I'm going to pay and then we'll leave." Arjun walked over to the reception desk.

While showing off her amazing photography skills, Anushka finally noticed me and after handing the phone over to Sid, she rushed to me.

"Guess what, Kia?" She gushed a little excited, placing a hand on my arm.

"What?"

For a millisecond, her eyes glanced at Sid who was making his way towards us and then they locked with my brown ones. "A guy asked me out yesterday."

"Tell me something new. Guys ask you out every time. You are the one who rejects all of them." I commented, crossing arms over my chest and she laughed.

"So, what did you say to him?" I asked her out of formality. I knew she would reject this guy too. She was waiting for 'the one'. According to her, if she didn't want to get involved with guys, then why go on a date and waste not only her but their time too?

"Well, I was thinking maybe I c-"

"I'm still alive!" Sid cheered and unknowingly interrupted Anushka. I rolled my eyes at him. "Though he did punch me." He rubbed his nose, pouting.

"Cause you deserved it. For what you did back there." I said.

He smirked slyly, wiggling his eyebrows at me. "Don't tell me you didn't enjoy that."

"She sure as hell did." Anushka agreed.

My cheeks turned red and I stuttered. "N-no. I didn't." I protested weakly.

"Mm-hmm." He poked my cheeks and I swatted his hand away.

I narrowed my eyes at him. "You know I'm angry at you."

"Oh, come on." He put his arm around my shoulder. "How can someone remain angry at this handsome face?"

I pressed my lips in a thin line but couldn't suppress the ghost of smile that appeared.

"Okay, so there's a girl that I would like to introduce you to. Her name's Trisha and I am bringing her to the party as my official date." Sid said.

From the corner of my eyes, I noticed how Anushka's face fell at his words.

Did I miss something?

"That's great. I would love to meet her." I smiled and Sid returned the gesture.

Turning to Anushka, he asked. "What were you saying before I came?"

"I... I" She cleared her throat. "I was just telling Kia that I'm going on a date on Monday." She spoke, avoiding eye contact.

"You are?" I turned to her, shell-shocked.

When did this happen? Why didn't she tell me before? Didn't we decide that such life changing decisions would be taken mutually?

I was about to guilt-trip her when I noticed Sid. His smile vanished as he stared at Anushka dumb-founded. "You're going on a date?" His voice sounded unusual, a troubled expression covering his face.

Where's my camera? I need to record this.

Wait! Do they like each other or something?

The way they were stealing glances at each other in the car, the way they were talking to each other that day in the penthouse...

Oh my god. It could be possible. The way they were reacting, it might be true.

"Y-yeah." Anushka shrugged. "A girl's not gonna stay single forever."

This is going to be so much fun.

Before I could formulate a plan in my mind, Maahi finally stopped entertaining people walking through the street and joined us. Arjun, too, came and stood beside me. "I'm done. Let's go."

We exited the store and I couldn't control my excitement at the new discovery. When Arjun declared that he would be driving the car, I immediately called dibs on the front seat. As a result, Anushka ended up sitting in the middle with Maahi and Sid on her either side. What raised my suspicion was Anushka tried to trade seats with Maahi but Maahi loved window seats as much as she loved Harry Styles. Okay, well not that much, but still.

The car ride was quite awkward, if you ask me. Both Anushka and Sid were silent, lost in their own thoughts while Maahi was busy sight-seeing with her palms and face pressed against the window, scaring a few kids who looked at her. The brooding male beside me, my lovely husband did not speak a word and I was left twiddling my thumbs mindlessly. The tension in the air was quite palpable as my eyes snapped towards the rear-view mirror.

I think I should tell Arjun about this.

Slowly, I tried to lean towards Arjun with my hands on either side pressed on the car seat. All of a sudden, my hand slipped causing me to lose my balance and my cheek smashed in Arjun's shoulder, startling Arjun so much that he pressed the breaks. The car came to a stop with a loud screech as Arjun gazed at me and I swiftly leaned away from him.

"What?" He looked at me as if I suddenly turned into a big cockroach like the alien in Men in Black.

"Uh, what were you trying to do, Kia?" Anushka asked.

"Were you trying to lean on his shoulder?" Maahi wondered, her voice dripping with amusement.

"No. Nothing." I was too embarrassed to say anything else. Arjun gave me another look and started the car again. I decided to stay quiet for the rest of the ride.

*

"Okay, now keep your hand like this and... Right." With one hand on my elbow and another enclosing my fingers, Chris Hemsworth stands behind me, teaching me how to shoot.

Holding a gun in my hands, I stand straight, my back touching his chest.

He puts his hands on my waist, my breath hitching in my throat.

"Remember, your focus should be on the target." Whispering in my ear, he positions my arms properly and I get ready to take a shot.

I nod and look forward at my target. Arjun is standing there with an apple placed on his head, his hands tied up. He is shaking in fear as he pleads me not to fire at him. I narrow my eyes as I remember the way he used to talk to me, those insults and sarcastic remarks. Smirking at him, I pull the trigger.

The bullet hits the apple and fortunately for him, it falls off Arjun's head. The guy looks scared to death and sighs in relief when he realizes that the apple has been shot. I smile and then giggle as Chris hugs me from behind. "That's my girl."

And then he starts singing his favourite song.

Who let the dogs out...

Why does he love this song so much?

Who, who, who, who...

Who let the dogs out...

Groaning, I rolled around in my bed and picked my phone from the bedside, shutting off the alarm.

What a dream! I wish it was true.

"5 more minutes." Muttering sleepily to no one in particular, I rested my head against my dear pillow.

Exactly 8 seconds later, I jerked upright as I realized I was behind my schedule. "No, no, no." Ripping the blanket from my legs and scrambling off the bed, I almost tripped as my feet got tangled in the sheets but soon balanced myself and rushed out of my room.

I ran as fast as my feet could take me and almost smashed my face in a wall in my sleepy haze.

Reaching the dining room, I came to a screeching halt and yelled loudly. "Have a bad day." With one hand on my knee and another on the door frame, I tried to catch my breath, panting heavily. A smile broke on my face. Mission accomplished.

For the last 2 days, I had made sure to shout 'have a bad day' to Arjun when he went for work. I had specially set an alarm for this task. Although I usually got ready for college at this time but today was Saturday.

A girl needs to have some fun.

I looked up proudly but my face fell as I saw Arjun sitting there in his home clothes. I slumped against the doorframe.

So, I was almost going to twist my ankle and break my nose while running for nothing.

Leaning my head against the door, I whined. "Why aren't you ready yet?"

"For what?" Arjun took a sip of his coffee, his eyes never leaving his laptop.

"For work!"

"I didn't go today." His voice was bored and curt.

"I can see that. But why?" Pouting, I made my way to the table and sat down.

"Today's Saturday."

"So?"

His eyes locked with mine. "You know, I only had a doubt earlier but now it is confirmed that you suffer from short term memory loss. We have to attend the party today."

Shit!

I almost forgot about it.

How could I forget about it?

Burying my face in my hands, I groaned to myself. All I wanted this morning when I woke up was some rest and chocolate. And Chris Hemsworth.

Poor me.

*

I didn't know how fast the time passed but it was already 5 in the evening and I was sitting in Arjun's old room at the mansion while the make-up artist, Shreya, fussed over my hair. Mrs. Singhania had asked me to get ready at their place and I agreed. Mostly because I didn't want to mess up my make-up and make a fool of myself in front of Arjun's acquaintances. So here I was sitting sulkily in a chair while Shreya pinned my hair in a bun. I had initially protested, asking her to let my hair open so as to cover my back but she had asked me to relax and let her do her work to which I had no answer. Applying a red lipstick in the last, she leaned back and showed a thumbs up to me while I looked in the mirror. I thanked her and she left the room, leaving me alone.

I looked, dare I say, pretty. A few tendrils escaping the bun fell on either side of my face, the eye shade bringing out the colour in my eyes. The gown hugged my curves perfectly, complimenting my body. I paired my look with minimal jewellery, earrings and a pearl bracelet. Smoothening a crease in the gown, I released a breath.

There was a knock at the door and I stood up, glancing at the watch. It was almost 7. Time to make an entrance to the party that had already started.

The door opened and Arjun entered, clad in a three-piece Armani suit looking handsome as ever. His hair was neatly styled back as he talked to someone on phone. "I don't care how many paparazzis are out there, no one will be allowed to enter the premises. Arrange more guards at the entrance. And w-" His eyes met mine and he did a double take, his jaw slackening. He stopped talking, his eyes widening a little as he stared at me dumbly. His intense stare made me self-conscious as I loosely hugged myself.

The person whom he was talking to seemed to say something and he snapped out of his trance. "Yeah, well. Uh. I-Yeah, that's all, David. If there's any problem, inform me."

My cheeks turned the colour of tomato under his gaze.

Okay, so either I looked way too hideous or I looked really good that I was able to get this kind of a reaction from him. I was relying on the second option because I had myself looked in the mirror. And if his choice was bad, that wasn't my problem.

"We need to go." He said, sounding distracted.

Why was I feeling giddy at his reaction? Why should it matter if he likes my look or not?

I followed him silently, walking carefully in my heels while holding my gown. I walk worse than a toddler who has just learn to walk. So, imagine the amount of effort I had to put in it. As a bonus, Anushka had stolen all my footwear and had forced me to wear these monstrous heels. I had to practice walking in them for 2 hours and I was still not sure. We reached the top of the staircase and I could already hear the light chatter coming from the hall below.

Not only I had to walk in heels with my gown trailing behind me but I also had to walk down the stairs.

You cannot die from twisting your ankle and falling, right?

And if it wasn't enough, I would have to pretend all lovey-dovey with my dearest husband too. Excellent!

Arjun offered me his arm and I narrowed my eyes at him.

He rolled his eyes, straightening his coat. "I'm not going to push you down the stairs."

"Who knows?" I muttered, wounding my arm around his elbow and took a deep breath. Leaning towards him, I whispered frantically. "Don't let me fall. Please."

He scowled at me, his eyes flickering towards the ground where the gown had pooled around my feet.

My brows knitted in confusion as he unwound his arm from my hold, but soon my bewilderment turned into shock as he curled a hand around my waist.

"Wh-what?" My voice died in my throat as he pulled me closer.

"Is that better?" He asked, staring straight into my eyes.

And that's how I suddenly lost the ability to speak.

I suppressed a shiver at his touch, gaping like a fish.

"Kiara?" I blinked twice; my mouth slightly parted.

"Yeah, yeah. It's o-okay." I managed to say somehow.

"Shall we?" I almost got a cardiac arrest as he spoke like a gentleman.

Either he was sick or I was hallucinating.

I nodded hesitantly, my heart almost making its way out of my rib cage and we descended the stairs.

AHAHAHHA. Jealous Arjun is probably my favourite. 🥹

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