The Exchange

Are you Married?

Maya ran up to her room as fast as she possibly could. She started speed dialing Kunal, her hands trembling in fear. "Pick up, pick up dammit!!" Where the hell was he? She needed him more than ever. She needed to tell him what had just happened. Did he know who that man was? Did he know what he was doing here? Was this going to be the end of her career? Unable to keep calm, she went to Akshara's room and started banging on the door. 

Still empty from having picked up the broken pieces of her guitar, Akshara opened the door with not a single expression on her face. Seeing Maya so hyper, she asked if everything was alright, her voice entirely monotonous. 

"Akshara, I am going to ask you something. And when I ask it, I need you to give me a simple answer. Ok?" 

"Maya liken hua kya? Aao, please sit down." She took Maya by her hand and helped her sit on her bed. It was moments like this that startled Maya. Despite the fact that this girl was a mystery, despite the fact that she had known nothing about her until she appeared one day as Kunal's gift to her, despite the fact that she never said much, she never treated Maya poorly. She never complained...she never asked for anything...and she always took care of Maya in her own way. And for the first time in a year, Maya looked at Akshara, trying to see how she truly was. Did she have a family that loved her? Did she have people she had left behind to come here? What was her story? 

If Maya wanted to find out who that man was, the best person to ask was Akshara herself. But, her mind rushed through millions of possibilities, not knowing what the answer would be. She could not lose Akshara under any circumstances. Akshara was her claim to fame, her key to success. She glanced down at her phone to see if Kunal had called her back, but to her dismay, she had zero missed calls. So, she had to take matters into her own hands. 

"Akshara..." 

"Bolo Maya" 

The photo on that man's phone flashed through Maya's mind. The woman standing next to him had been nearly impossible to recognize...as she looked so different from the woman sitting next to her right now. But, the similarities were uncanny..and she knew that woman was Akshara. So, taking a deep breath, she asked...

"Akshara, are you married?"