...[Private Chat – Kashish & Zaid]...
...Kashish: You didn’t reply....
...Her fingers hesitated before hitting send....
...Zaid had seen her message from last night. Seen it. But he hadn’t responded....
...She had spent hours staring at her phone, convincing herself that she didn’t care. That she wasn’t waiting. That she wasn’t checking every few minutes to see if he would say something—anything—to make her feel like she still mattered....
...And yet, here she was....
...Another long minute passed before the typing indicator appeared....
...Zaid: Got busy....
...That was it....
...Not sorry. Not I didn’t mean to ignore you. Just got busy....
...Her chest tightened....
...Kashish: Right. Sorry for bothering you....
...She shut off her phone before he could respond....
...She didn’t need to see whatever half-hearted excuse he would come up with next....
...She got the message loud and clear....
...—...
...[Group Chat – Chaos Unleashed]...
...Kashish has muted notifications for this chat....
...She had never done that before....
...She had never wanted to do that before....
...The group chat was her space—her battlefield, her source of entertainment, her daily dose of chaotic fun. It was where she argued with Zaid, where she teased Agustya, where she made sure that no one forgot she was there....
...But now?...
...Now, it just felt like a place where she was being left behind....
...Where Maryam got to brag about how much time she spent with Zaid....
...Where Saba got to have conversations that Kashish used to have with him....
...Where Kashish felt more like an outsider than a part of the group....
...She scrolled through the messages anyway, despite herself....
...Maryam: Zaid, are we playing tonight?...
...Saba: Playing?...
...Maryam: Yeah, we’ve been playing late-night games the past few nights. So fun!...
...Kashish: (typing... then deletes message.)...
...Of course....
...Zaid was too busy to reply to her, but not too busy to stay up playing games with Maryam....
...Her jaw clenched....
...She exited the chat....
...She was done watching herself become irrelevant....
...—...
...[Private Chat – Kashish & Archie]...
...Archie: So, what’s up with you?...
...Kashish: Nothing....
...Archie: Liar....
...Kashish sighed....
...Archie had this annoying habit of knowing when something was wrong, even when she pretended everything was fine....
...Kashish: Just dealing with people who don’t care anymore....
...Archie: You mean Zaid....
...She stiffened....
...Kashish: I never said that....
...Archie: You didn’t have to....
...Kashish: …It’s stupid, right? To feel like this over something so small?...
...Archie: It’s not stupid if it hurts....
...Her fingers hovered over the keyboard....
...She wanted to say something, but before she could, another message popped up....
...Archie: You’re holding on to someone who’s already letting go....
...She swallowed hard....
...Because deep down, she knew he was right....
...—...
...That evening, she forced herself to do something different....
...She put her phone on silent....
...She turned off the notifications....
...She focused on herself....
...She took a walk, listened to music, tried to clear her mind....
...But no matter how hard she tried, one thought refused to leave her alone....
...Zaid hadn’t checked up on her....
...Not once....
...Not when she muted the chat....
...Not when she stopped replying to him....
...Not when she slowly started disappearing from his life....
...She wondered if he had even noticed....
...And if he had… did he even care?...
...—...
...[Private Chat – Zaid & Kashish]...
...It had been two days....
...Two whole days since she had last texted him....
...She had told herself she wouldn’t be the first one to break....
...She had told herself that if he wanted to talk, he would....
...And yet, here she was....
...Kashish: Do you ever wonder what would happen if we just… stopped talking?...
...He saw it immediately....
...Her heart pounded....
...The typing indicator appeared....
...And then disappeared....
...Nothing....
...Her throat tightened....
...He wasn’t even going to fight for her....
...Not even a little....
...—...
...[Group Chat – Chaos Unleashed]...
...Kashish has left the group chat....
...It was impulsive. Maybe even dramatic. But at this point, she didn’t care....
...If Zaid could let go so easily, then so could she....
...—...
...[Private Chat – Zaid & Kashish]...
...She expected silence....
...She expected nothing....
...But minutes after leaving the chat, her phone buzzed....
...Zaid: What the hell?...
...She stared at the message, her fingers tightening around her phone....
...So now he cared? Now that she had actually walked away?...
...Kashish: What? Thought you weren’t interested....
...A pause....
...Zaid: That’s not the point. Why did you leave?...
...Kashish: Because I’m done....
...Zaid: Done with what?...
...Kashish: With being the only one who cares....
...She hit send before she could regret it....
...Another pause....
...Another typing indicator....
...Another disappearance before a reply ever came....
...She let out a bitter laugh....
...That was her answer, wasn’t it?...
...—...
...[Private Chat – Archie & Kashish]...
...Archie: Saw what you did....
...Kashish: Good for you....
...Archie: You okay?...
...Kashish: No....
...Archie: Want to talk about it?...
...Kashish: No....
...Archie: Then do you want a distraction?...
...She hesitated....
...Kashish: What kind of distraction?...
...Archie: Video call. Just you and me....
...Kashish: Why?...
...Archie: Because you look better when you’re laughing....
...Her breath hitched....
...He wasn’t supposed to say things like that....
...Not when she was supposed to be heartbroken over someone else....
...But for the first time in days, she found herself hesitating for a different reason....
...Because maybe, just maybe......
...She didn’t want to be heartbroken anymore....
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