Don't Love Me √

BONUS - Teri Hai Meri Saari Wafaaein

Written this long long back on IF as well...
Thought of posting here...

Specially for vaibhavip18_ 😂😂😂

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Riha kept staring at the diamond that adorned her left ring finger. She couldn't really judge the thing that was going on in her body right now. A ripple maybe. Or a storm. She didn't know. 

She slowly sat down on the bed...very slowly. 

Everything around her seemed to lack pace today, everything seemed to be heading to or reviving from a standstill. 

Yes. A standstill. Because her world had stopped for a long moment when he slowly took her ring finger on his palm... and slower, pushed the ring in. And then smiled once and for all. 

Such a long moment, a moment Riha didn't want to get over, ever in her life.

Engagement. The first step towards being only Riha from Riha Menon. Because, Vivaan didn't carry a surname. A burden released. 

Riha must have been the only woman on earth who had her eyes welled up when he smiled, claiming his first right on her. The ring. 

His from today. 

Vivaan.

Riha knew, Vivaan would eventually release every burden off her shoulders. And she? She just had to keep making sure, Vivaan's past didn't haunt him ever again, thus shedding him off the unnecessary burden of guilt too. Vice versa. 

She knew she had to stay well. She had to keep well. 

Because a mild fever of Riha too could drown Vivaan into an ocean of uncertainty and guilt. It was not easy. But when had Riha ever done anything easy? When even? 

Weren't a million easy options already existing when she reached for the man in a shell? Was that easy?

Was this engagement itself an easy deal?

Yesterday Riha couldn't manage a day off... though she extremely wanted to. And the worst thing was that, her phone went quite dead inside the wards. Just before getting in... she had called Vivaan, and he didn't pick up around eight in the morning. Understandable. 

Riha knew he had been under increasing stress with the impending engagement, quite usual of him. Everything couldn't just change drastically. Every affair needed time, and Riha was ready to spend that. 

Riha left a message, " Will be out by 3. Meet you then. Message me the place. "

When she stepped out at around 3:15, she was a hell lot disappointed to find out no notification from Vivaan. Rather six messages popped up. Raajiv. 

" Where's Vivaan? 

I thought you had a duty in the morning, so called him. 

He didn't reply. 

So dropped in at his place. 

Locked. 

Is he with you? "

Jaws dropped, Riha was about to type back when mom called in. 

" Riha...shall I take pink flats for you? " 

" Pink? Eww. Too gaudy. The lehenga has a tinge of black right? Black would do. " 

" Fine. " 

" Mom... did... Vivaan call? "

" Vivaan! Not actually! Me and dad are out since morning...and Ruku's at college, so...  " 

" okay..."