30) Cause that's what best friends do

Guys I forgot to add Kiara's gown picture in the last chapter and was so lost when you guys were like 'Where's the pic?', 'I can't see the pic.' and I was reading the comments and was like '...What picture? Have my readers finally lost their sanity?' Lmaooo. I'll add them now.

Kiara's POV

"13, 14, 15." I looked up. "There were 15 bobby pins in my hair." I was surprised my skull hadn't split open from the pressure.

No wonder my head felt like exploding.

"And I finally got them out. All by myself." Smiling proudly, I kept the pins in the coat's pocket, inwardly patting my back.

"Want me to clap for you?" Arjun's sarcastic voice cut into the air, his eyes flitting to me for a second and then back at the road as he rubbed his forefinger on his lower lip.

I squinted my eyes at him and then gave a tight-lipped smile. "Don't bother with it. Your pretty, little hands will hurt."

Receiving a glare from the angry oaf beside me, I comfortably leaned back in my seat, sighing. It had been one hell of a night.

Soon, his building came into view as he drove into the parking. The car stopped and it took a huge amount of effort to move my limbs to get myself out of it. Had I been a little slower, Arjun would have locked me there for sure.

"We don't have whole night. Get out." He snapped, standing outside. See.

Dragging myself into the lift and then out of it when we reached the top floor, I trudged towards the penthouse with Arjun by my side.

Swaying slightly, I waited for him to open the door as my eyes kept drooping because at this point of time, I was incapable of performing any basic function. Twice, I almost smashed my head in the wall in front of me, earning different versions of glares and scowls from Mr. Can't-you-stay-still-for-a-second.

Finally, my ears heard the miraculous sound of the lock clicking as the door swung open and I cheered. A weird look crossed his face, his judging eyes fixed at me.

I might be sleepy but I had heels in my hand and I wouldn't miss my aim from this close.

I swear if he gave me another one of his judgmental looks, I would leash an anaconda on him.

Stumbling inside, I wanted nothing more than to hibernate into sleep like a bear but all my plans of passing out till the dead walked the earth went down the drain when I heard Arjun's next words.

"Remove your coat."

"I'm sorry?" I spun around, staring at his impassive face with wide, owlish eyes.

"Remove the coat." He repeated, his tone as stern as before.

What was his problem?

"You can ask nicely, you know? It won't kill you." I grumbled, taking off his suit jacket. "And you were the one who forced me to wear it." Marching up to him, I thrust the jacket in his hands, wondering why did he even bother to lend it to me.

Carelessly tossing it on the couch, he put his hands on my waist and pulled me flush against him and I went staggering, almost colliding into his chest. I immediately put my hands between us to balance myself.

"I-I... Wh-what?" My words reduced to a squeak and my palms ended up resting on his biceps as he placed his forefinger on my lips effectively silencing me, his brows drawn together.

Woah, what?

Slowly, he spun me around and my brain went on standby mode, shutting down entirely. My limbs had a mind of their own as they followed Arjun's instructions like a puppet being pulled by strings.

Where are my senses? Might have dropped them in the way. And my tongue? What's that? Never heard of it.

My body jolted as his hand brushed against my back, the feel of his warm fingers on my cold skin fogging my senses. I could feel him leaning down as his hot breath ignited goosebumps at the back of my neck.

Sucking in a sharp breath, I stood still as a statue, my nerves tingling and my hands glued to my side. "Wh-what are y-you doing?"

"Take off your dress."

"WHAT?"

I think my vocabulary was slowly limiting to 'what' only.

Wincing, he took a step back. "Stop screaming in my ear. Go change your clothes. And come back with the gown."

"Why?" I frowned at him.

"Because" He emphasized, "I said so. Be fast."

His mood swings are faster than a freaking pendulum.

I opened my mouth to protest but then decided against it, my shoulders slumping in defeat. For the first time in my life, I decided to comply to his wish, his order actually. If it hadn't been for my weariness and the tired, solemn look on his face (granted he looks serious all the time), I would've never agreed so easily.

What was he going to do with the gown anyway?

Wash it? Sew it up for me?

"Go." He plopped on the couch with a thump, his head swerving back and strands of his hair flailing around, adding to his disheveled state.

10 minutes later, I found myself in the center of my room, in nothing but a bra and cotton shorts, debating whether to wear a loose tee or one of dad's shirt.

A very important life decision, you see.

All I wanted was for the rest of night to pass smoothly. As soon as I thought that, my conscience fell hard on the ground laughing maniacally like I just cracked a joke.

Well, of course. God forbid if something normal ever happens in my life.

My fate must be soaking in a hot spring bath, drinking chilled wine and grinning evilly, having the time of its life while it planned all this.

And why not? It's been a long time since I felt the urge to set myself on fire and vaporize in air.

I know what you would ask -What's the worst that could happen?

Let me tell you - A lot.

Everything happened in mere seconds.

I was about to put the tee over my head when the familiar voice reached my ears and the door to my room barged open. "What's taking yo-"

At the same time, I whipped around to come face to face with a stunned Arjun frozen in his place, eyes wide and mouth agape.

For five complete seconds, we stood in silence, mirroring each other's expressions of shock and horror. When my slow brain finally interpreted the critical situation, it gave the signal to my body to react accordingly and that's when my vocal cords decided to show-off their abilities.

Oh. My. God.

With a scream that would even put a banshee to shame, I screwed my eyes shut and stomped the ground repeatedly with either foot in an alternating manner that it seemed like I was running while standing in the same place.

"Fuck!" My screams subsided as the voice reached my ears and I peeked my left eye open, covering my upper half with the tee in my hands.

"I'm sorry." Arjun rushed out, immediately clamping a hand over his eyes and turning around hastily, his body as rigid as a wooden plank.

"Why didn't you knock?" I screamed at the top of my lungs, my chest heaving with exhaustion.

"Why didn't you lock the door?" He yelled equally loudly, his vocal cords challenging mine.

"This is my room!" I screamed back at him hysterically, my voice cracking at the last.

"I swear I didn't see anything."

"Like I would believe you!"

"You don't have a reason not to."

"Why are you yelling at me?" I screeched, my own voice starting to ring in my ears.

"Because you are yelling!" He shot back, his voice turning hoarse.

I shut up.

"Oh." I whispered, my chest moving up and down and my uneven, heavy breathing making it impossible for me to say anything else.

"Yeah. Oh!"

Fiddling with my top, I wore it over my head with the speed of lightning, my eyes fixed on Arjun's back.

"Are you decent?" He croaked, clearing his throat.

"Yes." I spoke timidly, too embarrassed to face him.

If someone could arrange some chocolate flavored poison for me, it would be really helpful.

Cause I had no intention to live after this... episode.

"You can turn around now." I added and he faced me. Before he could lock eyes with me, I whipped my head away, the room seeming more interesting than the attractive goblin in front of me.

Oh, look. A lamp.

And see, it glows! How thrilling.

And would you look at that? Curtains! So beautiful!

Please catch fire and burn me.

Arjun coughed lightly, grabbing my attention. Picking up the strewn across bits and pieces of my dignity and courage that were left, I gazed at him.

Either I had lost my mind or the nightstand beside me had come alive considering the way Arjun was staring at it as if he was conversing with the nightstand through telepathy.

The black orbs that were usually filled with either smugness or anger, were avoiding eye contact with me and the person to whom those orbs belonged to couldn't look any more flustered. I also didn't miss the light pink tinge on his cheeks and I was sure my own cheeks were flaring red in embarrassment.

Awkward.

Forcing myself to speak, I wetted my lips, looking him straight in the eye. "Why did you come here?"

"Huh?" He blinked at me dumbly as if a fifth grader was asked to solve an integration problem.

Had it been any other situation, I would have definitely made fun of it but I was too busy drowning in my own pit of misery.

He broke out of his reverie.

"Yeah, well, Uh... I was saying th-" He stopped, the perplexed look on his face turning into a blank one and I shifted uncomfortably under his unnerving gaze.

Why was he staring at me like that?

I glanced down at my tee and then back at him, only to find him trying very hard to restrain the twitch of his lips as he pressed them together. "It's inside out."

"What's inside out?" It was my turn to stare dumbly at him.

"Your top." He pointed and my gaze shifted to my shoulders.

Shoot!

"I... I will just c-change and come." Stuttering like someone suffering from speech impairment, I ran towards my walk-in closet and hurriedly banged the door shut. Sliding against the door, I resisted the urge to snatch my hair from my scalp, clenching my hands into fists and banging them against my forehead.

Why do I keep doing such antics in front of him?

I wish I could stay here forever.

Maybe I could sit and blend among my clothes like a chameleon and hope that Arjun becomes colour blind so he wouldn't notice me.

"Unless you want the same thing to repeat again, I would prefer you come out soon." The amusement leaking in his tone had me snapping from my thoughts of converting this closet in a make-shift bedroom and spending my whole life here. It also left me wondering if he had a remote somewhere for switching his emotions so fast.

In a record time of 12 seconds, I opened the door, properly dressed this time, and stepped out to find Arjun sitting on my bed, holding the gown in his hands with an intense look on his sculpture-like face.

How did he go from flustered to amused and cocky to serious in a span of 3 minutes was still a mystery to me.

As I made my way to the bed slowly, Arjun looked up and patted the space next to him, asking me to sit.

"See this?" He showed me the torn strap of my gown after I had settled beside him.

"What about it?" My forehead creased as I studied the strap.

"Here." He pointed. "Look carefully. What does it look like?"

A few unruly threads emerged out of the free end of the strap. "Like... it has been cut with a blade or scissor." My head shot up, a sudden dread filling me.

"Do...do you think that someone did it deliberately?" My front teeth dig into my lower lip, my head brimming with a thousand questions.

Pressing his lips in a firm line, he leaned forward and steepled his fingers together, his elbows resting on his knees. "The mansion has CCTV cameras all over the place. David found a footage of someone sneaking in the room where your dress was kept before the party started when you were not there."

My jaw dropped as my brain replayed what he just said.

"But why... why would anyone do that?" I wondered out loud, the erratic thumping of my heart loud in my ears. "I don't mean any harm to anyone."

And that was true. Neither did I know anyone in the party, nor did I bear any ill-will.

"No." He spoke slowly, darting out his tongue over his lips. "but I might. This could be a cheap trick by any of my rivals. Trying to defame you so that they can get back on me."

Covering my mouth with a palm, I stifled a gasp, my huge eyes gaping at Arjun. I felt sick to my core. I didn't know people could stoop that low.

Arjun must had sensed my fear and discomfort that was basically painted on my face.

"Hey." He called out, his voice unusually soft and my eyes bored into his. "Don't worry, I'll figure this out."

I swallowed the lump in my throat, my mouth dry. "Thanks."

I don't trust people easily; I have trust issues but the way Arjun said it made me almost believe that he would fix this.

He rose from the bed and I copied his actions, smoothening a hand over my shorts and the atmosphere suddenly became thick with tension.

Sexual tension?

And here it is, I thought to myself. I was actually waiting for a smart-ass remark from my conscience.

Do me a favor, please put a tape over your mouth.

Never!

Arjun, unsurprisingly, remained quiet and I didn't say anything either, too scared to break the silence that surrounded us. This was new to us. In the past, all we had done was bicker and throw insults at each other. This felt strange.

He was about to walk out of my room when he stopped mid-way and turned around. "Why didn't you lock the door before?"

I pursed my lips together, trying to look neutral but only I was aware of the panic rising in my chest.

What do I tell him? That I've a fucked up past and I get a panic attack whenever I'm in a dark, confined place.

I didn't know what came over me when I decided to tell him the truth. Well, half-truth anyway. "I am claustrophobic."

If he was surprised at the new information, he didn't show it. Giving me a single nod, he walked out of the room.

He was almost out of my sight when I approached the door and called out. "Arjun."

His black eyes were on me as I spoke. "Good night. Have some lovely nightmares."

An amused laugh escaped his lips as he threw his head back, a strange glint in his eyes and he shook his head in what seemed to be resignation, his posture relaxed and his face free of any scowl or frown.

He should smile more often.

Seeing him like that - so relaxed, so carefree rose a fuzzy, funny feeling in my chest as my tummy did a somersault. I found my own lips twitching in a soft smile.

"Good night, princess."

*

"I can't believe we are doing this." Sid chuckled from beside me, raking a hand through his hair while looking in the rear-view mirror.

"Me neither." Putting the hat on my head, I wore the huge sunglasses and opened the car door. Following my lead, Sid got out of the car and came to stand by my side and we both glanced up at the restaurant in front of us.

"He's rich." My brows raised in appreciation.

"Definitely." Sid agreed, nodding thoughtfully.

He offered me his arm while his other hand brushed the fake beard that he had put on and we walked inside after handing the car keys to a valet.

Stepping inside the restaurant, I took a good look around. The place looked royal, with white-gold being the colour theme.

Now, you must be thinking what the hell were we doing here. Well, to clear your confusion, Sid and I were here to spy on Anushka. She was here for her date with Nitin, the guy who asked her out and whom she said yes to. His name was going to be written in history books, that's for sure.

I still had no idea why she agreed for this date.

As for Sid, I needed someone to help me in this. Nandini and Saumya were busy with a college project. And let's face it, Maahi would've gone batshit crazy, creating a havoc if I had brought her along. Two minutes in the hotel and we would have been thrown out because of her antics.

So, I just asked Sid whether he would like to join me and surprisingly, he agreed at once.

We were in disguise, obviously. I was wearing a peach-coloured crop-top and black leather jeans, completing my look with an oversized white coat. The huge beach-hat and sunglasses were to hide my face. While Sid was sporting one of his business suits and a beard to mask his face. I had suggested typical spy outfits, black body-fit suits with Bluetooth in one ear and walkie-talkie in our hands. The idea of dressing up and behaving like actual spies seemed thrilling. It was Sid who ever-so-politely reminded me that we were going to a restaurant, not a fancy dress competition.

"Where did she say she was?"

I scrolled through the texts on my phone. "The last message she sent me said that they were sitting on a table near the tall windows."

"Look, there she is." My eyes followed where Sid pointed and I found my best friend sitting there with a guy, his back facing us.

Quickly and discreetly making our way to the table that was the nearest to them, Sid and I sat down, choosing to sit side by side instead of facing each other.

I removed my glasses, not wanting anyone to mistake me for a blind person.

Our seats were placed in such a manner that we could easily see Nitin, while Anushka's back faced us, only a little of her side profile visible.

As my eyes flickered between the two of them, I couldn't help but notice Anushka's posture. She was sitting a little too straight, her back rigid.

She is not comfortable.

"This is what she chose?" Sid exclaimed, distaste clear in his voice as he stressed on 'this'.

A smile threatened to break on my face as I hid my amused grin with a cough.

Let's confirm whether my theory is correct or not.

"What's wrong? He seems like a good guy." I shrugged, my eyes flitting to Nitin.

Sid gave me an incredulous look.

"He's wearing a bright green shirt, Kia. Ask him to hop and you won't be able to spot the difference between him and a frog."

Okay, so maybe he lacked in the fashion department. But he looked good. Cute, actually. With an oval face and ebony curls resting on his head, he had a charming smile while his eyes were hidden behind black rimmed nerdy glasses.

"What did she even see in him?" Sid complained, looking more like a petulant child who had been denied his favourite toy.

"A good heart?" I offered.

He scoffed, crossing arms over his chest. "Right."

Before I could tease him any further, a waiter came and I ordered coffee for the both of us because I knew if we ordered food, we would be too busy gobbling it down our throats to pay any attention to anything else.

We couldn't really hear what Nitin and Anushka were talking about but every now and then we would catch a word or two. For example, I heard them chatting about something along the lines of kinky and handcuffs. Or was it blinky and bad cups? I wasn't too sure.

A loud laugh made me look up at my best friend and the guy who was probably going to die considering the way Sid was throwing daggers at him through his coal-black eyes. I can bet he learnt this art from Arjun.

"And he laughs like a sugar-high gorilla. Great!"

"Um, excuse me? Have you heard me laugh?"

He gave me a bored look. "You're my friend. Even if you do sound like a crazy hyena while laughing, it doesn't matter."

I rolled my eyes. "Gee, thanks. I'm honored."

Ignoring me, Sid focused his arctic glare at Nitin as if he had stolen his chocolates and ran away.

"I'm a million times better than him." Sid muttered to himself, his voice on a queer edge.

Was it jealousy that I could hear in his tone?

"What did you say?" Pretending not to hear correctly the first time, I leaned towards him.

"I mean, there are a lot of guys better than him." He shrugged non-chalantly, thrumming his fingers on the table mindlessly.

You know the face you make when you are being pestered by your nosy, annoying-as-hell relatives but you have to keep the pretense up and try not to punch them square in the face? That's how my poor friend looked. He was a second away from flipping the table and wrapping the table cloth around Nitin's neck.

The waiter brought our order and I helped myself with the coffee.

Sid's face twitched angrily as he watched Anushka laugh brightly at something Nitin said and I took a long sip from my cup, too content with the scene unfolding in front of me.

I scooted closer to Sid. "Don't they look happy?" Wiggling my eyebrows at him, I giggled while he shot me a murderous glare.

"I smell something burning." I spoke in a sing-song tone, my head swinging left and right.

You could roast a barbecue on Sid from all that burning jealousy.

"I don't like that guy." Sid blurted out as I put a hand on my cheek, gazing at him while he rambled.

"She deserves someone better." He huffed, a troubled look etched on his face and picked up his cup grudgingly.

"Like you?" The corner of my lips lifted in a smug smirk.

"I w-" A loud song cut him off and it caught me off-guard as I jumped in my seat, my heart sky-rocketing at the sudden, booming noise.

I was about to start humming on the tune when I realized it seemed familiar.

Maybe because it's your phone's ringtone.

Shit.

I quickly took out my phone from my jeans pocket with the intention to cut the call, but being the queen of clumsiness that I am, the phone slipped from my hand. Thankfully, Sid had better motor skills than me and caught my phone before it could fell on the ground.

Seems like I spoke too soon because in the moment of haste and anxiety, Sid tossed the phone to me as soon as his grip started to lose. For the next 6 seconds, we both played dodgeball with my dear phone, juggling with it, trying to get a proper hold. Finally, my fingers enclosed around the metal and I clutched my phone tightly like a drowning person holds on to a lifejacket.

"Switch it off." Sid hissed.

I cut the call without looking at the caller ID and put it on silent.

Phew.

Who knew rejecting a call could be this difficult?

My eyes snapped to Anushka and I immediately ducked my head down when I saw her turning in my direction, the oversized hat on my head shielding me from her view.

I knew it would come of use.

Sid hurriedly picked up the menu, hiding his face behind it.

"It's upside down." I whispered to him.

"What?"

I mentally face-palmed. "The menu."

Sid's eyes widened in realization as he turned it the correct way. We waited for a few seconds and then, Sid slowly lowered the menu from his face, looking ahead with cautious eyes.

"The way's clear." Releasing a breath, he put the menu down and slumped in his seat.

I looked at my phone and my brows touched my hairline as I read the caller ID.

Why did Arjun call me?

My phone buzzed again and his name appeared on the screen. Swiping the green button, I placed the phone beside my ear.

"Kiara?"

"No, this is a serial killer who just murdered her." I growled.

"Thanks for the favour. Do you want your payment in cash or cheque?"

I scowled at the phone, wishing somehow, I could teleport to him and strangle his neck. He had almost blown up our cover.

"What do you want?" I whisper-barked into the phone.

"Why are you whispering?"

"Cause you almost ruined the whole plan." My voice rose into a yell but lowered when I realized where we were.

"What plan? Where are you?" I thought it was my job to ask so many questions.

"On a date. With Sid."

"WHAT?"

Only when I heard his choked, bewildered voice, did it occur to me how wrong the words sounded coming out of my mouth.

"Oh, no, no, no, no!" I face-palmed, shaking my head violently. "Sid and I are stalking Anushka who's on her date."

"Why?" I could already imagine the ridiculous look on his face that he gave me last night during dinner when I asked him what his favourite colour was.

What? I was curious.

If you're wondering, I didn't get any answer.

"Cause that's what best friends do! Duh!"

A deadpanned voice answered me back. "You might need to check on the definition of best friend."

"Are you going to lecture me on the duties and responsibilities of a best friend now? Why did you call?"

"What do you want for dinner?"

That was the last thing that I expected to come out of his mouth.

I leaned back from my phone, staring at it as if a genie had just emerged from it.

"Sorry, what?" Did I hear him wrong?

"Ritu couldn't come today. So, I'm ordering food. What do you want to eat?"

Oh. "Pizza."

I was about to go into the details of it when Sid violently nudged my elbow, gesturing towards the front door.

"They are leaving."

"Order any pizza you like, but not the pineapple one. Okay, bye." I rushed into the phone, cutting the call and jumped up while Sid paid the bill.

We followed them out of the restaurant, keeping close. Close enough to easily hear what they were talking about. Though we had to walk a little weird which earned us strange glances from passerbys but that was okay.

"So, where do you want to eat ice cream?" Nitin asked, looking at Anushka.

"There's an ice cream parlor nearby. I love that place. Let's go there." My best friend sounded a little shy as she passed a small smile in his direction.

"Okay. What flavour do you prefer?"

I heard a snigger beside me and came face to face with a very entertained Sid.

Smacking his forehead lightly, I huffed. "Take your mind out of gutter, you pervert."

He poked out his tongue in response.

"Vanilla. Simple and plain." Anushka answered. "Chocolate is also good."

Nitin clucked his tongue in disapproval. "I think chocolate is overrated."

Say what?

I gaped at him, ready to pounce on him and make him swallow his own words along with a ton of chocolate, when Sid held my arms and pulled me back.

How dare he say that?

"If my best friend heard this, she would have killed you on the spot. Thank god she's not here." Anushka chuckled, shaking her head lightly.

Don't be so sure of that, honey.

I looked at Sid and whispered to him. "You're right. I don't like him either. Just tell me when are we planning his murder."

He grinned widely like he had won a gold medal in Olympics.

Just then, a small boy approached Nitin out of nowhere. Dressed in rags, the boy was as thin as a stick, his collar bones peeking out, his arms and legs covered in dirt.

Pulling on Nitin's trousers, he looked up, his bright blue eyes blinking. Nitin immediately backed away as if disgusted from his touch.

The sides of my lips dropped in a frown as I watched his behaviour.

"Back off." Nitin scrunched up his nose, his face marring a scowl.

When the kid didn't budge, Nitin yelled at him. "I said get the fuck outta here."

Scared, the little boy scrambled off and my frown deepened even further.

"You should have been polite. He is just a child." Anushka spoke, her face calm but I could the sense the undertone anger in her voice.

Nitin sneered. "Polite? These lowlifes do not deserve any respect. They are scum and that's how they should be treated."

An even stronger reason to kill him. Perfect.

If someone could hand me a gun. I may not know how to fire a bullet but I am very well aware how to ram the gun against the side of one's head.

"Find the place to hide his dead body." I told Sid. "I'll bring the weapon."

Anushka crossed arms over her chest. "Leave."

"Huh?" Nitin blinked at her, bewildered.

"I said leave." Her voice was sharp.

"Seriously?" Nitin scoffed, reaching for her arm but Anushka recoiled from his touch.

"I can't believe you're such a disgusting person. I don't even know why I came here with you. Just because you've enough money doesn't mean you'll treat everyone else like dirt beneath your shoes."

Nitin looked dumbstruck by her outburst but soon recovered and growled at her. "Fine." He marched off to God knows where.

I wish he gets slammed in a tree by a truck.

"Woo-hoo." I hooted loudly, clapping while Sid whistled beside me. "You go, girl!"

Anushka spun around, her features covered in surprise. "Kiara!"

Oops.

As soon as she had turned around, Sid swivelled around like a helicopter blade so fast I was astonished he didn't take a flight in air right then and there.

"What are you doing here?" She frowned and her eyes shifted to Sid, whose back was facing her because he was busy fretting over his fake beard. "And who's this guy with you?"

A strangled noise escaped from the back of my throat just like how a door creaks open.

"Uh... He. He is... uhh-" A unicorn? A ghost? An alien? A giant teddy bear? Who?

"Sid?" Anushka's eyes widened even more when she spotted Sid smiling at her, his fake beard gone.

"Hey." Sid giggled nervously like a shy schoolgirl being asked out for the first time. My eyes trailed downwards, Sid was trying to stuff the beard in his back pocket and failing miserably.

"Weren't you supposed to be on a date with Trisha right now?" Anushka sounded doubtful.

"You were?" I looked at Sid.

"I was?" His eyes darted between us, his brows creased as his face set in deep thinking.

"Wait." Anushka shook her head slightly as if trying to clear things in her mind. "What's happening? How come you two are here?"

"We wanted ice-cream." I peeked a glance at Sid and nodded robotically.

She mustn't know.

She would kill me in the most painful way possible if she got to know the truth. I could already imagine news headlines the next day.

Breaking news- 'Girl finds best friend spying on her during her date. Murders the poor soul by drowning her in too much chocolate shake.'

Anushka didn't look convinced at our answer as her eyes narrowed at us.

"We heard everything, by the way." I piped in, this was the only way I could distract her.

And it worked. Her brows dropped as she sighed. "The one time I say yes to someone, and that's how they turn up."

With a cheeky smile, Sid walked towards her and put an arm around her shoulder. "Maybe because you said yes to the wrong one."

Aww.

Time to be a wingwoman.

"Oh, wait." Fishing my phone out of my pocket, I held it against my ear. "Hello? Yes? Yeah....Oh, okay."

Nodding my head gravely, I extended my hand away and covered the phone's speaker as if the President was on call. "I have to go. It's urgent."

Without waiting for their replies, I ran away not before giving Sid a handle-her-at-your-own-risk look and yelling out an 'I'll explain to you later' to both of them when I heard their protests.

Let's start thinking about the names of my godchildren.

*

Panting heavily, I sprinted across the street as fast as I could. Tears streamed down my cheeks and my breath came out in short puffs. Fear gnawed inside me as I could feel the pain in my muscles, the taste of bile prominent at the back of my mouth.

There was no point in running.

He was coming, I knew. He would get me, no matter how fast I run.

I was about to take a left turn when someone caught me from behind.

The scream that was trying to claw its way out died in my throat as a palm covered my mouth.

Hot breath fanned over my earlobe as an evil voice sneered.

"Caught you."

I jolted awake with a start, bolting upright with rapid, heavy breaths.

Blinking rapidly, my eyes quickly travelled around the room as I rubbed my arms uneasily. Goosebumps prickled my skin as I raked a hand through my hair, my body shivering uncontrollably.

It was a nightmare. Only a nightmare.

Reaching for a glass of water with shaking hands, I tried to console myself that it wasn't real.

I was about to pick the glass from the nightstand when a loud crash resounded in the penthouse.