Chapter 9

Next day morning. After taking bath and getting ready, roli was coming out of her room when her phone started ringing. 

She went back to her bedside table and found an unknown number displaying on the screen.  

With a confused look, roli answered the call "Hello". 

Strangely no one replied from the other end of the phone. As there was no response, roli again spoke "is anybody there?". 

"Yeah" roli heard a soft voice from the other side. It didn't take much time for her to recognize who the person was. 

"You.... Who gave you my number?" Roli was suddenly angered. 

"You know the answer" sid spoke calmly. While roli started scolding akash in her mind as he could be the one who might have shared her personal number to him. 

"Well.. I just wanted to hear your voice before going to work" sid said in the most gentle tone. 

"Then how you've heard my voice all these ten years? Wait.. you might be too busy to even think about it" roli mocked and hung up the call with a huff. 

Sid stared at his phone screen after she hung up and shifted his attention to his laptop screen, where the old videos of roli, which he captured from the camera he got as his birthday gift in his 11th standard, were playing. Those videos were the only thing that helped him to go through those ten horrible years of staying away from his roli. 

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Roli stormed out of her room as she shouted "bhaiya". 

"I'm here only. Why you're shouting, roli?" Akash, who was sipping his morning tea while reading newspaper, got stunned at her sudden shouting. 

"Why you gave him my number?" Roli crossed her arms and asked earnestly. 

"You mean sid?" Though he knew the answer, akash still asked. 

"Who else then him?" Roli glared at her brother. 

"Sid wants to help you to become an actress. And for that he needs to contact you" akash said as he folded the newspaper and placed on the tea table. 

"I don't need anyone's help and not specially his" roli stated angrily. 

"Roli.. Sid has a great influence in the industry which can help you..." 

"I don't want to act anymore" roli's words interrupted akash. 

"What?" Akash looked at her in surprise. 

"I said I don't want to continue in the entertainment industry anymore. I'm done with it" roli declared her opinion and turned to walk towards dinning table. 

"But, being an actress is your dream" akash went near her and said seriously. 

"That was my dream but now it is not. Let me think of something else to become. And now I don't want to talk about this topic anymore" roli said as she poured a cup of tea for herself and started sipping it as if nothing happened. 

The only reason roli wanted to be an actress was to reach sid. When she first found out sid was in to entertainment industry, she couldn't think of anything else and determined to do the same even without having a proper idea of what to do. 

When she accompanied her friend, who was a designer, to the studio, she was curious to give audition for a cameo role in a daily soap, which she was able to grab fortunately. From then on she decided to be an actress and even got many opportunities but, she had to decline due to her studies. 

And now when sid himself returned to her, she didn't find herself being interested in acting anymore. Perhaps, she was too mad at him that she didn't even want to cross paths with him, she called it quit to her acting career even before it properly started. But, fate had some other plans in store which she was unaware of. 

"As you wish" akash didn't continue to brag about the topic and left it as per her wish. 

After having breakfast, akash left to station. Roli and shreya continued their usual chit chatter in the hall. 

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Evening, roli's friend, Trisha came to the house. 

"Hey, bhabhi" trisha greeted shreya as she entered. 

"Wow!" Shreya took her head off the phone and exclaimed as she found trisha all decked up. "What's so special today?". 

"Party!" Trisha replied, excitedly. "Btw, where's the sherni?" Trisha continued looking around and didn't find roli in the hall room. 

"In her den" shreya pointed at roli's room and said. 

Trisha rushed in to roli's room and found her lying on the bed with phone in her hands. 

"Roli, why you're not ready yet?" Trisha asked in surprise as she reached roli. 

"Ready for what?" Roli sat up in the bed and looked confused. 

"Ballroom party. You forgot?" Trisha asked with widened eyes. 

"Ohhh... I'm not coming" roli said simply. 

"How can you miss this out. Kurana sir has specially invited you for this party. He said he's going to introduce you to some producer. You can't miss this opportunity, roli" trisha sat beside roli and said. 

"I quit acting" roli suddenly blurt out. 

"You what?" Trisha asked, bewildered. 

"I mean I quit from all these. So, I don't want any new opportunities" roli replied with a smile. 

"What's wrong with you now, girl. You've always been wanted to be an actress and now when the opportunity came, you're just knocking it down" trisha looked at her friend in complete shock. 

"Nothing is wrong and I'm perfectly fine. This is my conscious decision" roli stated clearly. 

"Then what about me? We've planned that you'll be an actress and I'll be your designer. Now how can you just abandon me in the middle, roli" trisha felt wronged. 

"Oh god! Trisha, it's not like you can't design for others than me. You're so talented and you'll get so many people to design" roli comforted her friend. 

"But, why you've suddenly changed your mind. Don't you want to meet your sid?" Trisha smirked as she was aware of roli and Sid's story. 

Roli glared at her and was about to speak when trisha interrupted. 

"Wait wait wait. Your sid has just returned and now he's in mumbai, near you. So, it's the reason you're quiting from acting, right?" Trisha suddenly got clarity over her friend's decision. 

"Stop exaggerating things" roli hit her with a pillow. 

"I'm not exaggerating anything. This is the reason, just admit it.  And when you're going to introduce your love to this sweet friend of yours" trisha asked with a naughty smile. 

"He's so handsome and I'm his huge fan. I really want to see him in person" trisha continued dreamily. 

But, the next moment trisha had to cry in pain as roli twisted her hand. 

"Ahh.. roli leave me" trisha almost cried. But, roli was not leaving her. 

"I don't want to talk about him" roli said with a glare. 

"Okay, I got it. Now stop showing off your karate skills on me" trisha literally begged. And roli finally let go off her. 

"Ouch... You're being so vicious lately" trisha complained with a pout as she rubbed her wrist. 

"Then don't mess with me" roli warned evilly. 

"Are you coming to the party with me now or not?" Trisha asked, switching the topic. 

Roli only nodded her head as 'no' and didn't say anything. 

"Roli, please... Look I'm not forcing you to act. Just join me to the party. You know you're my lucky charm. Who knows I might get the chance to be a personal designer to any big celebrity. You've to be with me, please" trisha tried to persuade roli. 

"Once you got the opportunity to design costumes for a show when I was with you doesn't mean that I'm your lucky charm. Stop being over dramatic" roli didn't know whether to laugh or cry at her friend's logic less beliefs. 

"You don't believe but I do, okay. Come to the party, roli. Please please please please.."

"Okay, fine" roli lost her patience at Trisha's continuous pleadings. 

"You're coming, right" trisha smiled in excitement. 

"Do I have any other choice?" Roli asked, hopelessly. 

"No" trisha hugged roli out of joy.