The Girl In The Photograph

The first week of December arrived with chilly mornings and warm afternoons.

For Ishika, nothing had changed.

Or at least, that's what she wanted to believe.

Every day still began with Aarav's "Good morning."

Every night still ended with a sleepy "Good night."

But somewhere beneath the comfort of their routine, something had shifted.

She knew she loved him.

She hadn't said it aloud—not even to herself—but her heart already knew.

---

Saturday evening found Ishika curled up on the sofa with a novel in her lap. She hadn't turned a page in nearly twenty minutes.

Instead, she was waiting.

Seven o'clock.

Their usual call time.

Her phone finally rang.

"A whole two minutes late," she teased as soon as she answered.

"I know," Aarav replied, sounding distracted. "Sorry."

She frowned.

Normally he would argue playfully.

Today, he sounded... absent.

"Everything okay?"

"Yeah. Just tired."

"You don't sound tired."

He forced a laugh.

"You know me too well."

There was an awkward silence.

For the first time since they had met, the conversation felt... difficult.

---

The next day was no different.

His replies became shorter.

Sometimes they arrived after hours.

Sometimes not at all.

Ishika tried convincing herself he was simply busy.

Still, she couldn't ignore the strange feeling growing inside her.

Had she done something wrong?

---

Three days later, Aarav finally called.

"I'm sorry," he said before she could speak.

"You've been disappearing."

"I know."

"Is everything really okay?"

He hesitated.

Then quietly said,

"Can we not talk about it today?"

She wanted answers.

Instead, she simply nodded.

"Okay."

After all, everyone deserved difficult days.

Didn't they?

---

That night, while scrolling through social media before bed, a new post appeared on Aarav's profile.

It was unusual enough to catch her attention.

He almost never posted anything.

The picture showed a sunset over a quiet lake.

Beautiful.

Peaceful.

But it wasn't the photo that made her stop breathing.

It was the caption.

"Some memories never really leave you."

Her fingers froze above the screen.

Hundreds of questions rushed through her mind.

Before she could stop herself, she opened the comments.

One comment stood out.

"Hope you're finally healing. She would've wanted that."

She read it once.

Twice.

Three times.

She?

Who was "she"?

A cousin?

A friend?

Or...

No.

Her chest tightened.

Surely not.

---

The next evening, Aarav finally replied to one of her messages.

Aarav: Sorry. Busy day.

She stared at the screen.

For several seconds, she debated whether to ask.

Finally, she typed.

Ishika: Can I ask you something?

Aarav: Always.

Her fingers trembled.

Ishika: Who's "she"?

The message showed as Seen.

One minute passed.

Then five.

Then ten.

No reply.

Instead...

His status changed to Offline.

Ishika lowered her phone slowly.

He hadn't denied it.

He hadn't explained it.

He had simply disappeared.

---

The next morning, there was no "Good morning" message.

For the first time in months.

She kept checking her phone during breakfast.

Nothing.

During school.

Nothing.

Even after returning home.

Still nothing.

The silence hurt far more than she expected.

---

Late that evening, her phone finally vibrated.

It wasn't a message.

It was a call.

She answered immediately.

"Aarav?"

He didn't speak.

She could hear only his breathing.

"I... I'm sorry," he whispered at last.

"For what?"

Another long silence.

Then came the words she never expected.

"I should have told you earlier."

Her heart pounded.

"Told me what?"

He closed his eyes before answering.

"There was someone."

The world around Ishika seemed to fall silent.

Someone.

Not is.

Was.

But even that single word was enough to make her heart ache.

She didn't know who the girl was.

She didn't know what had happened.

She only knew that, for the first time since they had met, there was a part of Aarav's life she knew nothing about.

And somehow...

She was terrified of learning the truth.

To be continued...

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