Tangled | ArShi FF |Thread #1| Link for Thread #2 in Index | Pg 1 - Page 66

Originally posted by: hararnav

Wow... Now more awkwardness... Whats she gonna answer for the kiss now... Ah...too many complications already:-((

Originally posted by: roops82

Nice update...Khushi double checked by calling him...Arnav is clueless abt her behaviour..she still has feelings for him and not upset by the deal...and wow she kissed him..

Now waiting for Arnav to know the stranger and his reactions...

Originally posted by: sunitikapoor

I loved the update as usual...I can see a shocked Khushi and Confused Arnav. Oh the kiss is something 😳

Originally posted by: GuruDeep246

What Arnav will do now? 😳

Originally posted by: raki

Read one in go Amazing story Continue soon

Originally posted by: pops123

Sooo Right... Its all "Tangled"...watching out for how you would un "Tangle" it 😊

Originally posted by: rekhavats

Loved the story so far

Waiting for the next chapters continue soon

Chapter 12 - Does that make sense?

Why! Why! Why!

Khushi repeated this one word on the entire drive to home from office. Why would she go ahead and kiss Arnav when she had given herself time to figure things out? That would only overtly complicate the already confusing situation. Arnav was her stranger, the man she was flirting with, the man she liked. And kissing the real face behind the mask was something that she did without thinking of consequences.

Argh! She groaned to herself and directly fell on the bed, with her face hitting the pillow, once she was back home. She could be so stupid sometimes.

And she would have to face him tomorrow in office. How would she ever gather the courage?

On top of that, she still hadn't texted him for more than a week. Sitting upright, she took out her iphone from her handbag and opened the chat window of the stranger. She began typing with a generic "hey, how are you?" but paused midway to think. If she texted him again, would she still be doing it under the pretense of a stranger? Or should she reveal herself to him? Over sms or in person? Or just wait a few more days to comprehend this crazy situation? Somehow nothing clicked. Sighing, she put her phone back in the bag.

She lay on the bed and turned off the lights but sleep never dawned on her. She tossed and turned on the bed contemplating her next course of action. She had earlier given herself time to mull over things yet after taking a week, she still was at square one.

In the early hours of dawn, when the sky started to change colors, Khushi had made a decision- she would tell Arnav the truth. Figuring things out could happen after that but he needed to know that they were the strangers texting one another. He deserved to know.

Friday morning, just as she entered her cabin with a cup of cappuccino, she was shocked to see Arnav there. Lavanya hadn't come in yet so she couldn't pre-inform about his visit.

"Hi," she cleared her throat, placing the cappuccino on a side table.

Arnav, who had an inscrutable expression on his face, rose from the couch, "We need to talk. About last night." His voice was solemn.

Khushi gulped. She had been dreading this, "I am so sorry." She apologized, "I don't know what came over me. It was rash and stupid."

"Do you like me or something?" he asked, trying to understand.

Khushi bit her lower lip. How could she answer that? Yes, she liked him- the stranger of her texts and this Arnav who was standing right in front of her.

"Umm..." she stammered, looking here and there.

Arnav took a few steps toward her but stopped at a distance, "Khushi," his voice was grave, "If you like me, it's okay. There is no need to be embarrassed. I am flattered," he pressed his right hand on his chest to show gratitude, "I really am. But... I have someone else in my life."

The words made Khushi's ears perk up her. Someone else? Has she been pining over a guy who was two-timing her? The sms-version of her that is?

"Who?" she asked, pointedly.

"It's..." he stuttered, maybe trying to find the right way of explaining. "It's... kind of complicated."

"Is this the person you told me about, a month back, over drinks?" she asked outright referring to the time both had discussed their relationship status, unknown that they were talking about each other.

He nodded, "Yes, that's her. The complicated one."

"What's the complication?" Khushi picked up the cappuccino and swirled the drink with a small wooden stick, trying to act cavalier. Her heart was beating rapidly even though she tried to keep her face calm.

Arnav was confused with Khushi's line of questioning, "This is not about her. It's about what happened between us. What you did last night. See all I am saying is I like you, as a friend, I admire you as a work colleague. But I don't want to make things awkward between us."

"Understood." She nodded. But an uncertainty had crept in her thoughts. This 'other person' that Arnav liked, was it the sms-Khushi or someone else? Had she assumed that he liked her and had not thought this through? She had to know, without making him suspicious.

"What's her name?" she inquired to cease the thoughts.

"What?" he stated, dumbfounded.

"I just want to know her name," Khushi reiterated.

"It doesn't matter," he replied and Khushi's doubts increased. Was he dating some other girl whom even the sms-Khushi didn't know about?

"It's just a name," She prodded feigning nonchalance, "Why all the secrecy?"

"I..." Arnav sighed and pressed his hand on his face, "I don't know... We've only texted till date. I know it sounds silly but-"

Relief washed over her body. He was talking about her! She felt so happy that before he could finish talking, she rushed to him and put her arms around his neck, pulling him into a hug.

How could she doubt him! He was her stranger! The man she liked. How could she think that he would betray her?

She pressed her face in his chest, sighing in relief. This felt so good.

"Khushi," he uttered her name.

She looked up at him and he gestured at her hands around his neck with a tilt of his head.

"O!" she immediately stepped away from him, "I am sorry. Again."

"You are acting very strange," he commented, knitting his eyebrows together, "Something is going on here. This hug today and that kiss..."

The mention of the kiss made her cheeks grow warm.

"Are you blushing?" he asked surprised and confused at the same time, "Look, I don't want to lead you on. But I have someone in my life. I really like this person. So... nothing can happen between us."

Khushi couldn't help but smile, "I completely understand. Nothing can happen."

Arnav shook his head in disbelief when he saw her grin, "What is wrong with you? Are you drunk in the morning?"

It made her laugh out loud. The sound of her laugh, drew Lavanya in the cabin. She had just come to work. Her handbag was hung on her shoulder. The PA's eyes wavered between Arnav and Khushi, she then muttered a "sorry" and left the cabin.

"I have to get back to work," Khushi stated, feeling light-hearted and immensely delighted, "But I want to talk to you, over dinner. 9 pm at LaAmbriose? I'll make reservations."

Tonight she would tell him everything. She was the stranger he was texting and he liked her. The predicament that Khushi found herself in had begun to solve itself. She would confess to him and then... maybe they could take things from there. She wasn't sure of how things would proceed but the one thing she was certain of was that Arnav deserved the truth. She owed him that.

Arnav eyed her suspiciously, "Given all that has happened," he gestured between them, and commented "I don't think it would be a good idea for us to-."

"Trust me," she interrupted him, "You'll want to know this."

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Arnav couldn't wait for the clock to strike 9. What was it that, in Khushi's words, he had to know? What was up with her weird behavior? She had hugged him, she had kissed him and had indirectly confessed that she liked him yet when he rejected her gently, she didn't even seem to mind. She was instead happy!

Khushi Gupta was an enigma- the more he thought he had her figured, the more she surprised him.

Work was the last thing he could focus on. It seemed like every few minutes, he would look at the time. It was futile, he deduced and shut down his laptop.

He took out his cellphone, in hopes that, maybe his stranger had messaged him. There was no new message notification and he felt a pang in his heart. She had said she would talk to him on Monday. He had waited for a week for her to respond yet there was complete radio-silence from her.

The turn of events in the last 1-week was nothing short of a shocker. His stranger stopped messaging after being the one who initiated the relationship talk. Then Khushi, who he simply wanted to be civil and friendly with, had started showing interest in him. These two women and their unexpected behavior made his head spin.

He held his head in his hands and sighed. Should he wait for the stranger to text... or should he...?

He took his cellphone and opened the message window. Enough was enough. He wanted some answers. He quickly composed a message and hit send.

(Friday, June 23)

-Arnav- 4:16pm || Hey stranger what's up?

-Arnav- 4:18pm || I understand you must be busy but can we talk?

-Arnav- 4:35pm || From defining-the-relationship to complete silence... That's a huge leap :D

He added a smiley emoji at the end of the text yet that was completely opposite of what he was feeling. Why was she not texting back?

-Arnav- 4:47pm || I am at my wit's end here. Come on! Say something!

He waited an hour for a response but nothing. Either the stranger was super-busy or she didn't reciprocate his feelings and was choosing to ignore rather than confront him. He prayed it was the former case.

The constant wait for reply was making him fidgety. A nerve in his forehead throbbed indicating the advent of a headache. He looked at the time- 6pm. Sighing; he put his laptop in the office bag and headed home. He needed rest and a painkiller.

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Khushi re-read the 4 texts that her stranger (Arnav) had sent. She wanted to reply but held back. In a couple of hours, she would anyway tell him everything. She knew he must be annoyed and confused at the lack of response from her. She had told him she wanted a couple of days to respond. That couple of days had turned into a week. It must have been frustrating for him.

She decided she would make up for the lag. Tonight she would tell him that she is his stranger and then... A fluttery feeling took hold in her stomach at the thought- what would happen then? How would he react? The thought made her heart giddy with excitement. The clock on the wall showed 7pm. Just a couple of hours more...

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The shrill ring of the apartment intercom jolted Arnav out of his sleep. He rubbed his eyes and stretched his arms. Sluggishly he got out of the couch, where he had fallen asleep and picked up the intercom. He was still in his office wear.

The voice of his building's security guard boomed in the receiver, "Hello Sir. A Khushi Gupta is here to see you."

Arnav, still drowsy, replied before hanging up, "Let her in."

He splashed cold water on his face and patted dry with a face-towel. A couple of minutes later, the doorbell rang.

He opened the door to see Khushi who was dressed in a white evening gown.

"You better have a good explanation for standing me up," she huffed in anger and walked past him into his house.

"What?" he asked, closing the door and then it hit him. He was supposed to meet her for dinner at 9. He pushed back the sleeve of the shirt to see his wristwatch- 10:40pm.

"I waited for an hour. I called you so many times but you didn't pick up," she ranted on, "I thought the worse, that you may have met with an accident. Do you know how scared I was? I even called Akash who gave me your address."

"I am so sorry," he apologized sincerely, "My phone was on silent. I had a headache and took a painkiller. I didn't know when I fell asleep."

She studied him for a moment, "It's okay. I called Akash on my way up to tell him you're fine. He was worried."

"Thanks," he muttered and gestured her to take a seat. "Would you like to drink something?"

"Just water," she responded. He handed her a glass and she gulped the content in one go. "How's your headache?" she asked setting the glass on a coaster on the centre-table.

"It's better," he replied, sitting across from her. "So, what did you want to talk about?"

The question made Khushi shift uneasily on the couch. She cleared her throat, "I didn't prepare a speech. I just assumed that when I saw you, the right thing would automatically come to my mind. But now that you're in front of me... I don't know... how to say..."

She seemed like she needed a boost. Arnav softened his tone, "It's all right. You can say it." He was curious as to what she had in mind. Something was clearly going on.

She wrung her fingers and took a deep breath, "Remember, nearly 2 months back you came to my cabin and gave me your personal number?"

Arnav nodded. He had told this story just last week when they had met Payal and Akash.

"Well," she bit her lower-lip, "See you gave me your number but I never contacted you. I didn't think I had any need for it. But I actually did contact you. Only I didn't know." She paused, "Does that make sense?"

Arnav tried to follow her train of thoughts. "Umm... kind of."

She went on unsurely, "That same day, my PA gave me the phone number of a guy I was supposed to go out with. In haste I picked up the wrong number. And when I thought I had texted that guy, I was in fact sms-ing you."

Arnav shook his head, "I never got any message from you."

Khushi bit her lower-lip, "I used my personal number. Very few people are privy to it so you didn't know it was me."

"Where are you going with this?" Confusing was rising in his tone.

Khushi took a deep breath, "The guy I was supposed to message, his name was Mohit."

Arnav shrugged, "Okay?"

She paused for him to comprehend. He wondered why the name 'Mohit' was important? The name was familiar though. He had heard it somewhere... he just couldn't place it where... And then it dawned on him. Mohit! That was the name his stranger had used the first time she texted him.

He slowly raised his eyes at Khushi who was semi-nodding.

Oh my God!

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