20. Slow Bonding

Aryaman and Maitri remained by Raj and Yukti's side all night until Nidhi and another doctor cleared that Nitya was out of danger.

Raj and Yukti asked the twins and Maitri to go home and change as they looked like hell. Reluctantly they left for Maitri's house first.

Aviraj opened the door next to driver's seat for Maitri who shook her head laughing and sat in the back seat.

"That seat was for you" Aviraj sat in complainingly making her laugh more.

"What happened?" Aryaman sat in the car and asked.

"Nothing just your to-be wife doesn't want to sit beside you in the car" Aviraj looked at Maitri teasingly. Aryaman turned around to look at her.

"Gosh stop intimidating me like that. I thought you'd want to sit with your brother so that's why I sat behind" She said looking away from the two intense glares.

"Awww how considerate" Aviraj turned to Aryaman and gave a dreamy look which made Aryaman glare at him. Maitri shifted in her seat and sat exactly in the middle of backseat.

"Aviraj" She placed her elbows on her knees and held her face in her hands.

"Yeah?" Aviraj replied happily.

"Was there some History between you and Nidhi?" She asked teasingly which indeed made Aviraj blush slightly.

"Seriously history? There was no history between us. We were friends just like your to-be husband and Nidhi. Just friends" He replied looking away from her.

"He means that though there was no history between them but there was electrifying chemistry which even our professors had sensed except the two" Aryaman looked at Aviraj trying to hide his smile.

"Oh please Aryu, there was literally nothing between me and Nidhi. We were just good friends" Aviraj held onto his side tightly.

"Really??? I thought that I saw the 'Ankhon mein teri' moment. I'll agree with Maan here, there's still the ELECTRIFYING CHEMISTRY" She said in a serious tone telling him that even though her refused to accept but to the world it definitely looked like something.

"Ugghh, you are annoying, I hope you know that" Aviraj looked at her with a fake glare to which she responded. with a wider smile.

"More than Divi?" She asked with a wink, trying to tease him with her sister.

"Yes more than her even. In comparison to you, she's a saint and no I don't like your sister that way, she's my friend, best friend" He said in a serious tone, not wanting Maitri to take any wrong image of him and Divya who he was friends with.

"Okay okay got it. But what about Nidhi? Something something?" She wiggled her eyebrows and asked him. Aryaman too looked at Aviraj questioningly though he knew the answer.

"I really really hate you right now. In school and university days I had a crush on her which crashed as soon as we passed out of university" Aviraj said looking ahead on the road while Aryaman smiled content that atleast Aviraj wasn't hiding his feelings.

"Avirajjjj, what are you waiting for now? Take your chance with her now" She tapped his shoulder telling him to lay his moves right to get Nidhi.

"Hmm" Aviraj replied distractedly.

"By the way Avi, tell her about the first time you flirted with a girl" Aryaman nudged Aviraj with a mischievous glint. Seeing excitement on Aryaman's face, Maitri looked at Aviraj curiously.

"I am really not liking this car anymore. I should probably just take a taxi next time" Aviraj glared at Aryaman for making him say embarrassing things about himself.

"Haayeee, you've got such a good company and you want to leave" She looked at Aviraj with a sad pout.

"Have you tried yourself in acting? You'll be printing your own money in that field with this skill in acting" He looked at her with squinted eyes.

"I tried but they said I look too cute to play intense characters" She said sarcastically.

"Guys, the main subject. Aviraj's first flirting session" Aryaman reminded them of the main thing.

"Oh yeah. So jeth ji slash devar ji what's your story?" Aviraj made a face at her 'jeth slash devarji' part.

"Am not saying it" He refused to say anything, so Aryaman jumped in and explained the story to Maitri.

"Basically me, Avi, Manav and Raj were chilling in a mall, waiting for our Boba order to be served when a beautiful African girl I think she would be probably 20, give or take a year, walked infront of us and ordered for a Boba. We had a rule that whoever saw the girl first gets to talk to her first and Mr. Aviraj was the one who had seen her first so he had to go first" Aryaman said looking at her through the mirror as she listened to him attentively.

"Then? Did he do nakhre to go talk to her or he saw an opportunity and seized it?" She asked patting Aviraj's shoulder.

"He for sure seized it. He went to her and said..." Aryaman was saying when Aviraj stopped him and continued.

"Hi, you look heavenly beautiful. She blushed and shook hands with me smiling all wide and thanked me" Aviraj said turning in his seat to look at Maitri who looked back at him with a proud face.

"Any woman would blush at a compliment but boy... you know how to win a woman's heart. Am impressed" She patted his shoulder proudly before leaning back onto the car seat, giving a mock salute to him.

"It doesn't finish there Mayu, the most heartwarming part is still left" Aryaman said giving Aviraj a teasing look.

"Fine. The next thing I said was 'I didn't want to sit there whole time thinking about how pretty you are when I could say it to you in this moment. I don't want any regrets in future that I missed the chance to converse with a beautiful lady' Are you happy now Aryu, hogaya, now can we move onto another topic, pleasee" Aviraj begged Aryaman to change the topic.

"Why don't you have a girlfriend? Any woman would want you as their boyfriend. There's nothing sexier than a man admitting to his mistakes infront of a woman. I get it that your twin is a bit Akdu and Saadu but you, my lad, you'd win hearts wherever you go" She said seriously which earned a snicker from Aryaman showing that he wasn't liking even one bit of Maitri praising Aviraj a little too much.

"Because nawab doesn't want to date. He wants to live the life of a Casanova. Wants to try new things, doesn't want any promises and relations" Aryaman replied on behalf of Aviraj.

"Why? Your brother will soon be getting hitched and all, do you think you'd be able to survive from parents' eyes from long? Trust me bhai I've tried all kind of strategies to avoid marriage but nai, they are quite adamant" She said from her personal experience.

"Then how come you are here with Aryu? Change of mind after seeing him?" Aviraj asked teasingly.

"I didn't say yes to him because of his money or looks, I said yes to the man who promised me to make me his priority. If you have a brain, you can get both the money and looks but with the brain you are good for nothing. I said yes to him because I know that he'll not spoil me but rather ask me to be capable enough to spoil myself. He knows that I don't need a man for validation but a partner who'd correct me when am wrong and hint me towards the right direction. I said yes to him because he's not going to spoon-feed me" She said sincerely locking her eyes with Aryaman in the mirror. Aryaman on the other hand realized that it wasn't her heart that was doubting him but rather the scars of the past that stopped her from accepting him.

"You say that you love to wear sarees and yet you wore a black t-shirt and a baby pink skirt to our first meet" He asked her something that had picked his curiosity after the last time when he talked to her about sarees.

"I had come there to reject you. Mum had forced me to meet you and I hate being forced to do anything. I was displaying my anger to her by wearing a skirt. I had picked a mini skirt but she scolded me and made me wear that pink one. And please don't get angry but that day I was deliberately late, there was no traffic or whatsoever. It was me being me who didn't want to meet a guy" She said truthfully hoping his reaction would be something she could handle.

"You both are made for each other. Aryu hates it when someone tells him to do something. You tell him to take right, he'll take a left and then get a way to return to the original track. If you want to make him do something then hit his ego otherwise it all depends on his mood" Aviraj said laughing at how similar Maitri and Aryaman were.

"Ego has many disadvantages but it has one advantage, it makes impossible be possible" She replied quoting Jeetu sir from Kota factory.

"You've watched Kota factory? Its so good. I was thinking of walking Half C.A or probably Suits, which one do you prefer?" He asked her sensing she watched the series he watched.

"I liked both, you can watch whichever one you like, depends on whether you are in the mood to watch something about crime and sassiness or whether you are in mood to feel motivated to do something" She replied showing Aryaman to take a right to her apartment.

"Aaru would love to bond with you. She's funky like you. We 4 could you know have secret hide-outs and party" Aviraj said excitedly.

"Most definitely. I'd love that. You guys wanna come up and freshen up?" She asked as the car stopped at her apartment building.

"No, we'll just go to the penthouse and sort out a few things. We'll pick you at 12 during the visiting hours if that's fine?" Aryaman replied turning towards her.

"Yupp works fine with me" She stepped out of the car and waved back at them.

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