Harsh And Divine

Chapter 22

Days went maddeningly sad for Vidhushi. There hadn't been a single night wherein she hadn't cried herself to sleep.

It had been a week that she has successfully dodged Advith and his visits as well as calls. The very first thing that she did after Kunal went back to Goa, was to block Advith's contact number on her mobile phone. That was because she knew that even if she told Advith to not call her or so, he will persist in asking for a reason. And she was not ready with a reason that would convince him properly. What would she tell him? That Kunal had threatened her to stay away from any man, especially Advith! He wouldn't buy it. Instead, he would try to convince her to stand for herself and make her own decisions. He won't understand the depth to which she was scared of Kunal. He wouldn't.

As far as visiting was concerned, Advith came to visit her laboratory every day because her phone wasn't reachable and he hadn't met or talked to her since Diwali.

For this too, she had a very solid plan. She had purposely requested her Guide to shift her to another guide's department room and lab. Even though she still worked with Dr Nambudiri, she simply moved to another lab so as to hide properly.

She also requested Dr Nambudiri, for not telling anything about her whereabouts. When he asked her why she simply said that things were meant to be like that. It did confuse the old scientist, but nonetheless, he respected the girl's choice and kept his mouth shut when his nephew asked for his student.

Advith was going insanely angry at Vidhushi's tactics. He kept on calling her the entire week but he soon realised that she had blocked his number which is why she wasn't reachable by phone. Three days later, he had had enough! To confirm his suspicion, he called her number through his PA's phone and was even more furious when her phone rang immediately.

When he did that, he patiently waited to see if she picks up the phone or not. And she did.

"Hello." She had said. When she saw an unknown number calling her, she picked it up quickly wondering if it was important.

"Vidhushi." Advith said angrily because he was not sure as to what did he do that she was avoiding him like plague.

When she heard his name, she immediately cancelled the call, not knowing what to do or what to say! She had so much to tell him...so much to explain...so much to confess. But, she couldn't. Because she didn't want anything bad happening to him.

But as expected, he called her again using the same phone.

She stared at the number ringing and cancelled it without picking it up. She was in her laboratory when this happened. And she was clutching her labcoat so stiffly because her tears weren't stopping now.

He called again...and again...tirelessly...patiently.

Finally, she had enough and accepted the call.

"What Advith?" She said angrily because he wasn't understanding anything!

"Wh...you are asking me 'what'?" He asked angrily as well.

"Don't call me anymore, Advith." She said finally.

"But why? What did I do?" He asked.

Vidhushi wiped her tears uneasily and explained, making sure that her voice didn't give away the truth that she was lying or forced to say all these things.

"You didn't do anything Advith. I...let's just not meet again."

"Give me a reason first and then I will think about it." He stated in a serious tone.

"I don't need to give you any reason, Advith!" She desperately shouted. Why wasn't he getting a hint!

"Yes, you do! Is it because of what I said that day? You are under no pressure, Vidhushi. I will never force my love upon you. You don't need to run away like that!" He said gently, keeping his anger and frustration aside for a while.