Bonus Chapter

Funny incident before we start- Someone commented on a chapter that 'David is a shipper' and my pervert mind accidentally read it as 'David is a stripper'. Then followed a few seconds of pure confusion and utter horror because I sure as hell couldn't remember writing about David being a stripper. When did that happen? Why was I not informed about this? So yeah, I'm Kia. Kia is me.

Sorry for any typos. Happy reading :)

1 year later

Maahi's POV

"No!" Kia cried out, sobbing loudly. "No. No. No."

"How could he do this to me?"

Struggling to keep my own tears at bay, I rubbed her arm comfortingly but she was beyond consolation.

"How could he leave me all alone?" Her voice was hoarse from all the crying, her swollen, red eyes a proof of her heartache. "Didn't he know how much I loved him? How would I survive without him?"

Kia buried her face in Sid's shoulder who wrapped a comforting arm around her, wiping his own tears with the back of his sleeve and trying to put a brave front for her sake. "We are here for you, Kia."

Anushka broke into a sob from beside me and Sid's bloodshot eyes snapped to her as he shook his head.

Taking in a shuddering breath, I glanced at everyone gathered around, mourning our loss.

This wasn't supposed to happen.

He didn't deserve that.

It was unfair how God always took the good ones before their time.

I was about to stand up to get some water for Kia when the apartment door opened and all heads turned towards it. Arjun strode inside but one look at our messy, crying faces and he stopped in his tracks.

For a moment, he looked as if he had entered the wrong floor as his cautious eyes darted around the hall and then finally to the movie playing on the television. His shoulders slumped in an exaggerated manner and he walked towards us, rolling his eyes. "Who died now?"

Kia looked up, sniffling and mumbled. "Loki."

"He left us." Saumya whispered, choking on a sob and dabbing a handkerchief at the corner of her eyes so as not to ruin her makeup with her tears.

Arjun pursed his lips and nodded slowly, his face conflicted as if he was internally debating which was the best mental hospital he could find in the city.

I could see how he was restraining himself from commenting something crude that would send all of us in rage. He probably didn't even care about us, the only reason he hadn't made a snarky comment yet was because he didn't want to upset Kia. Especially when she was sick.

Arjun walked closer and glared at Sid who was busy mourning over how Loki deserved better. Sid's eyes widened at Arjun's scary face and he scrambled away to make space for him. Arjun sat down and turned towards Kia, his demeanor changing from the arrogant businessman to caring husband in a nanosecond.

"How's your fever?" He asked softly as he focussed his attention solely on Kia, the back of his hand resting against her forehead.

I never understood him.

Scratch that. I never understood them.

One moment they would be at each other's throats, arguing over the stupidest of things and the next moment they would be ready to kill someone for each other.

So, we could safely say that nothing had changed in a year. They were still madly in love with each other, Arjun was still the brooding hulk as Kia liked to call him. And Kia was still... Kia.

"I'm fine." Kia whined.

"She's not fine." I said. "She sneezed 45 times in the last half hour."

Kia snapped her head to me in disbelief. "You were counting?"

"Yeah, so? Arjun asked me to keep track of your health." I shrugged non-chalantly.

"Good job." Arjun whispered to me and I grinned at him.

"I can't believe this." Kia threw her hands in air exasperatedly.

Everyone ignored her and focused back on the movie except for Arjun who levelled her with a stern glare. "I asked you to rest."

"I am resting. Look." She gestured towards herself, sprawled on the sofa like a tired cat.

"Fine. Did you eat something?"

Kia nodded and then her face turned sheepish.

Arjun narrowed his eyes at her guilty smile. "Let me guess. You ate ice-cream even after I specifically instructed you not to?"

Shit.

Arjun had strictly ordered us not to let Kia anywhere near ice-cream and we had gloriously failed. The ice cream cup was still in my hand for God's sake.

Shit. Shit. Shit. Shit.

Kia blinked at him dumbly. Arjun's gaze left hers to glare at the rest of us but we immediately looked away, pretending to be busy in something or the other. I quickly hid the empty cup behind my back, praying he didn't notice that.

Nandini touched Saumya's hair, asking her when was the last time she had washed them. Sid poked his bicep and muttered how he needed to hit the gym ASAP while munching on a French fry. Anushka started humming 'Twinkle twinkle little star' to herself, swaying like a five-year-old kid. And as for me, I shot my gaze to the ceiling, admiring the fan.

Wow. Look at those beautiful blades going round and round.

"Don't say anything to them. It's not their fault. I blackmailed them." Kia immediately came to our aid and I nearly wept in relief. Arjun was a whole new level of terrifying while dealing with matters that concerned Kia and I had no intention of dying by his hands only because I forgot to take care of his wife.

I had seen him turning into a literal, over-protective hulk whenever Kia had any minor inconvenience and trust me when I say that, it's not a pretty sight.

"Okay." Arjun said after much deliberation and once again I was shocked at how easily he agreed.

"Whipped." Sid and I whispered under our breaths but damn this superhuman's magical hearing!

He snapped his head towards us with an angry scowl and my eyes widened in horror.

"It's Sid!"

"Maahi said that!"

Both Sid and I yelled at the same time, pointing accusing fingers at each other.

Arjun clenched his jaw, ready to say something when the main door burst open and a wide-eyed David stumbled inside, panic etched on his face.

God bless you, you robotic angel.

We stood up in excitement as he kept staring at us dumb-founded.

"Well?" Anushka prompted, her voice eager. "What did she say?"

David was going to propose to Alaiya today. He had arranged a small surprise on his floor in the building and judging by the look on his face, he had already popped the question.

I had never seen him so frazzled and out-of-order.

"Well, I.." He gulped. "I went down on one knee and so did she at the same time and... asked me to marry her before I could say anything."

His statement was met with a moment of deathly silence.

And then Kia laughed. "I always knew Alaiya was the one for you."

"So, you chickened out at the last moment and Alaiya decided to put your misery to end and proposed you instead?" Saumya bit her lip to stop the loud cackle that threatened to escape her mouth.

David blinked. "... I guess?"

I chuckled.

Poor lad was still in shock.

"And what did you say?"

"Did she get a ring for you?"

"Show us! Show us! Show us!"

We fired questions at him and he froze, colour draining from his face.

Okay, this was not good.

"David." I said slowly. "You gave her an answer, right?"

His face contorted in horror as he let out a whispered curse. "Fuck."

Not bothering to reply us, he ran out of the room faster than he had barged in.

"Let me guess. He panicked when Alaiya proposed and came straight here without giving her an answer." Sid voiced out his thoughts.

I slapped a hand on my forehead.

Men.

"Why am I surrounded with idiots?" Arjun wondered out loud and earned a chorus of disagreements and complaints from us.

He shook his head and looked at us. "Okay. Everyone out now."

"But the movie just started!"

"Does it look like I care?" He deadpanned. "Kiara needs to rest. Leave."

Sid snorted. "You just want to have-"

"Complete the sentence and you won't be able to talk again."

Sid looked positively terrified of the threat and although I knew Arjun would never do that, I still felt bad for Sid.

Arjun crossed arms over his chest, looking as intimidating as ever. When no one made a move to leave and kept staring at him as if he was an alien species, he glanced at his watch and started the countdown. "5... 4..."

We screamed, mortified and ran for our lives, not even sparing a glance back.

"We are leaving! Sorry!" Anushka yelled, almost tripping on the carpet.

"3.."

"The Hulk has awoken!" Nandini screeched, her hands flailing around while Saumya was trying to keep her pace with us in her brand new 4-inch stilettos.

"Please don't kill me!" I cried out, pushing Sid out of my way and hoping Arjun would get to him first before he decided to kill me.

We successfully made it to the hallway right outside the main door and I did a quick headcount. "Did everyone make it out alive?"

"I guess." Saumya clutched her chest, panting.

"Oh, thank god. We're safe." Anushka leaned against the wall.

"No, you're not." Arjun's loud voice resounded in the hallway and we squealed, making a mad dash for the elevator.

Is this guy a superhuman?

I was still thinking if he was some secret superhero whom we didn't know about when Sid broke the silence.

"Rohan called last night. The hotel's inauguration is next week and he wanted to know if you guys will attend."

My heart skipped a beat.

I tried my best to not let my gaze wander to Sid but before I knew it, I was looking at him, an uneasy feeling gnawing inside me.

He was already watching me, his face unreadable and I could sense the awkwardness in the atmosphere.

"Maahi," Sid trailed off, his face hesitant. "You should give him a chance to explain himself."

"Do you think I didn't try?" I couldn't help the furious snarl that left my lips. I closed my eyes for a second and then opened them again, speaking in a calm voice this time. "I tried, Sid. You know I did. But it's clear he doesn't want anything to do with me."

I was lying but it was the only way I could battle my raging emotions. When I had read the letter Rohan left for me before he went to London, I was... shocked to say the least. I didn't know what to expect. My emotions were a mess but as I had approached the end of the letter, I had almost stopped breathing.

Rohan had confessed that he loved me. He had finally confessed!

But my happiness was short-lived as I had read the next line. He said he was sorry and that I deserved someone better than him.

I swear men are so dumb sometimes.

I wanted to hit him with my heels.

Who was he to decide what was good for me or not?

I had immediately called him after but he never answered. I tried for the whole week but he never picked my calls. I eventually stopped trying after that. I was hurt in the start but by the end of the week, my hurt had been replaced by anger.

You wanna ignore me, bitch? Fine. Fuck you.

The elevator dinged open, snapping me out of my trance and we got out. Nandini offered me a ride home but I declined. I wanted some alone-time to gather my thoughts.

As I walked on the side of the street, I couldn't help but wonder how I still couldn't get Rohan out of my mind, no matter how much I tried.

I had thought that he would never contact me again. But I was surprised when I received his call one day.

And being the petty person I am, I had cut the call and proceeded to watch Harry's music video while eating pizza.

Two can play this game, Mr. Rohan Singhania.

He didn't call me again but a week later, his letter arrived in mail. My heart fluttered in my chest as I thought about his sweet action. Rohan knew I love writing and receiving letters. I had often ranted to him about how people should have never stopped writing letters. It's such a romantic gesture. How can it be compared to phone texts?

Ever since that day, I would receive a letter every week. And as much as I tried to tell myself that it didn't matter to me, that I didn't care about those stupid letters and the stupid person who wrote them, I would still find myself looking for the mail every Saturday.

I never replied to any of his letters but they never stopped.

Until last week. I didn't get any letter last Saturday and couldn't ignore the disappointment I felt.

Maybe he has stopped trying.

It's for the best, I guess.

Good. Because I didn't miss him. Not at all.

But the stack of letters carefully tucked in my drawer said otherwise.

*

"Oh my gosh, it's beautiful!" I gushed, gazing at the sparkling diamond on Alaiya's finger.

"I know right?" Anushka squealed from beside me.

"Thank you." Alaiya smiled, blushing slightly.

We had decided to celebrate David and Alaiya's engagement in a club that Sid owned. Thankfully, Alaiya hadn't gone anywhere after David had ran away in panic. I had feared that she would leave but she was still kneeling on the ground when David went back, frozen in her place and unable to contemplate what had happened. David had immediately rushed to her, said yes and kissed her.

He had set a camera to record her reaction so we had the whole scene on tape. It was equally funny and romantic.

"So, when's the wedding?" Kia asked as she wound an arm around Arjun's elbow who was sitting beside her.

"We're thinking of a fall wedding. So maybe in October?" Alaiya said and then threw a side-glare to her fiancé. "Hopefully, someone doesn't run away on our wedding day too."

David coughed lightly, clearly embarrassed and Sid patted his back in sympathy. Alaiya rolled her eyes but no one could miss the silly, loving smile that adorned her face.

I was so happy for them. They have been dating for 4 years and the past six months were a bit difficult for them so they decided to go on a break for some time. Kia had nearly lost her shit when she got the news.

Poor David had to listen to her yelling for a whole hour about how they belonged with each other and the Gods would never forgive them if they ever broke up.

The next time we went out for dinner on Sid's birthday, a guy tried to flirt with Alaiya and the only person more pissed than David was Kia. Arjun had to physically restrain her from tackling the guy to the ground.

It was quite a scene. A blank-faced Arjun with his arm around a raging Kia's midriff while she tried to break free of his grip and yelling 'not my otp, you bitch!' at the terrified guy.

David was traumatized on seeing her like that but the incident gave him the much-needed push and he got back with Alaiya a week later. Or maybe because he was scared of Kia's wrath. Either way, him and Alaiya were happy again and so in love!

The song blasting in the club changed to a fast-beat one and Kia squealed. "It's my song! Let's dance!"

Everyone rushed to the dance floor except me and Arjun. Kia stayed back only to ask us to join her but I shook my head with a scoff.

I can't dance to save my life.

On seeing that I was a lost case, she turned to Arjun.

"Come on, Arjun." Kia pleaded but it had no effect on him as he didn't even bat an eyelash while muttering a gruff 'no'.

She made a puppy face at him which he conveniently ignored and took a sip of his drink. "I said no, Kiara."

"Fine." She stomped her foot like a kid and turned to the dance floor.

Chuckling, I shook my head and a thought occurred to me. I glanced at Arjun. "Why do you never call her Kia?"

I've only heard him calling her 'Kiara', and sometimes 'princess'.

He looked at me for a moment and shrugged. "Kiara is a beautiful name. I like it. And it suits her."

I nodded, a secretive smile playing on my lips.

"What?"

I shook my head and quickly averted my eyes to the dance floor. "Are you sure you want to stay here?"

He followed my gaze and his face twisted unpleasantly as he observed the looks Kia was getting, lost in her own world and dancing like it was her last day on Earth.

"You know what," He stood up, dusting his jeans. "I suddenly feel like dancing. Excuse me."

I let out a quiet giggle as he made his way to Kia and stood in front of her. She squealed in happiness on seeing him and raised his hand, twirling around. Arjun didn't dance, just stood there with a stoic face, letting her dance the way she wanted and successfully scaring off any guy who dared to look in his wife's direction.

More whipped than a whipped cream.

These two would give me diabetes someday.

I slid out of the booth to get some more drinks from the bar. I stood at the counter, looking around as the pop music changed to a soft tune.

Nandini was dancing with some random guy, Saumya was waiting for her boyfriend while Anushka and Sid were dancing like they were trying to fracture each other's feet.

The newly engaged couple was nowhere to be seen.

Looks like they found something better to do than dancing.

My gaze wandered back to Kia and Arjun and my lips pulled in a wistful smile.

Kia was talking animatedly as Arjun listened to her attentively, his hand resting on her back. He said something that made her gasp and she hit his chest to which he only laughed and pulled her closer. She wound her arms around his neck as Arjun spoke again. Her eyes widened, a red hue covering her cheeks and he smirked at her reaction. Her hand fisted his tee as her head dropped on his chest and he laughed again. He rubbed her back softly as they slowly swayed to the music.

This...just called me single in 69 different ways.

I need another shot.

God, everyone around me was happily in love. What went wrong with me?

I was so brutally single right now that even in my dreams, Harry Styles would give me an autograph and then leave. That's it.

Just as I was wondering about my non-existent love life, a random guy came up to me and asked for a dance.

"Sorry, you're not Harry Styles." I gave him a mocking smile. "I will only dance with him."

He went away and I was going to pick up another shot when a voice said from behind me. "Will you make an exception for a certain Singhania?"

I froze in my place.

That voice.

No. It can't be.

The voice that I hadn't heard in a year. The voice that had been haunting in my dreams ever since he left.

I whirled around, my heart beating a mile per minute and my legs trembled when I came face-to-face with him.

He was here.

Rohan Singhania was here, standing in front of me and smiling innocently as if he wasn't the sole reason of my sleepless nights.

A grin tugged on his lips as he saw my gobsmacked expression.

"Hello, love."

.

.

And here we go with the bonus chapter.

Epilogue will be up next but I have no idea when.

*grins nervously* Hehe.

Time for some important life advice- Stop wasting your time. Get a boyfriend, get him to cheat on you, find a hot bad boy to fake-date to make the ex jealous, fall in love with the bad boy, piss off a bitch who loves the bad boy, have a huge fight with the bad boy because you are dumb and then leave him, get him to confess his love dramatically in rain and live happily ever after with him and your 8 kids. And to do all this, you need to go back to the first step. Get. A. Boyfriend.

Ha! Give me an award and call me Love Guru. *flips her hair, wears sunglasses in style and sips chocolate shake*