Aru Shah Short Stories and Oneshots

''Don't ever talk to me again'' (Chapter 4 of NOI in Aiden's P.O.V)

 Aiden sighed, looking at himself in the mirror. Today was the day that they were going to gatecrash a wedding and get the Pandavas' weapons back, and he had to talk to Aru after months of ignoring her. All those things were going to be hard, but he dreaded speaking to Aru the most because he hated what he was going to tell her. He felt like a jerk for ignoring her to the point where she thought he hated her. He chuckled bitterly at the thought- if only she knew.

The black kurta Nikita had given him fitted him perfectly, and it was instrumental for him to be camouflaged during the wedding. ''Ace-cakes? Are you done changing?'' he heard his mother say from outside his room. He rolled his eyes at the nickname, replying ''Yeah, I'm ready''. Malini opened his door, entering his spotlessly clean room. Her eyes lit up when she saw him. ''It takes a whole quest for you to wear something nice'' she said jokingly. Aiden managed a weak smile, there were other things on his mind. ''Beta? Are you okay?'' his mom asked, looking at his weary expression. Aiden nodded. ''I'm okay. Just nervous'' he said. She raised an eyebrow, scrutinizing him. ''So this isn't about Aru?'' she asked. Aiden jerked his head up at her in surprise, color pinching his cheeks. How did she know? ''What? No, of course not'' he said quickly. ''Uh-huh. If you say so'' his mother said, clearly not believing his lies. She hugged him, and he knew the matter was dropped, at least for now. ''Be safe out there. I can't bear to lose you'' she said, her voice thick. This was the one promise Aiden knew he couldn't keep.

He took a deep breath, steadying himself before he rang Aru's doorbell.

You can do this Acharya.

The door opened, and Aru stood there in a black and golden lehenga. Aiden forgot how to breathe for a second as he stared at her. No. He shouldn't lose his focus. ''Did you tell anyone?'' he asked. Aru looked startled. ''About what?'' she asked. As if she didn't know. ''About the...'' he said, trailing off, glancing down. God, why was it so hard for him to say those words? Aru crossed her arms. ''The kiss? No'', she said. Oh. A part of him wished she had told the Potatoes. ''Oh. Good,'' he said. Her expression fell, and all he wanted was to reassure her. But this had to be done. Otherwise, he would give both of them false hope when he knew he was going to die soon. 

He hated what he was going to say next. ''I don't think we should've done that. I'm sorry'' he said, still not looking at her. A few seconds passed in silence. ''Are you- are you okay?'' he asked cautiously. ''Can we still be friends?''. If he couldn't have this relationship with her, he hoped they could at least continue their friendship.

He should've known that would've never worked. 

''Am I okay?'' Aru said angrily, stepping forward. He stumbled backward. Even without Vajra, that girl could be dangerous. ''Aru...? It's not you, it's-'' the prophecy, he would've said if she hadn't cut him off. ''Finish that sentence and even without a lightning bolt I will fry you'' she said.

He shut his mouth.

''No, Aiden, I'm not okay. My birthday was crap. My half-sister hates me, and my weapon is gone." Aru drew herself up. "I've literally got an entire world to save in nine days! I don't have time for this!"

He didn't know what to say. ''Uh-'' he started. She flipped her hair over her shoulder, looking angry but powerful.

'"Sure, Aiden, we can be 'friends,' mostly because I don't need this nonsense on top of everything else. But when this is over, don't ever talk to me again. That should be easy enough for you."

Whatever was left of Aiden's foolish hope vanished. Of course she didn't like him anymore. He'd messed up big time. Aru stomped away from him, leaving him stunned.

How was he ever going to fix things with her? 

A/N- Okay but can we talk about how Aru slayed that moment like a queen? I would've just cried if someone told me that but she just owned him lol. 

What's your favourite book? Mine right now is 'The Song Of Achilles' by Madeline Miller.  100/10 highly recommend it. Be warned, if you read it, you will not be okay.