Raghav's POV:

I forwarded her a glass of water silently. This announcement by her really shocked me but I would dwell upon it later. Her state of mind was more important now.

She gulped down the water in one go, after averting her eyes from me. Taking a few deep breathes, she wiped her eyes with the back of her hands.

Looking at me sheepishly, she spoke, "Umm...can you just forget what I muttered? I...I was really tired and sleepy. And such state equates to being drunk. So think of it as a––"

"––as a drunken confession?" I asked, interrupting her.

"Not a confession...", she whined, frustrated by my lack of support.

"Mindless chatter. A total lie, you know. Yeah, that was it. None of it was true. So forget about it, okay?"

She looked at me hopefully. I felt bad that I was going to ruin her efforts, but I couldn't just ignore it. The topic was serious and I wouldn't insult Tanya's feelings by letting it slide just like that, even if she was the one urging me to do so.

"Tanya, I know it wasn't a mindless chatter. Don't do this to yourself", I spoke gently, not wanting to frighten her.

She bit her lips as tears welled up in her eyes. Seeing her in this condition was breaking my heart.

I very well knew the pain of loving someone, knowing fully well that love wouldn't be reciprocated. I would never want her to feel the same pain which I went through for all these years.

I clasped her one hand and squeezed it to provide comfort.

"Sorry. I really don't know how it happened", she apologized, averting her gaze, her hand still resting in mine.

"Sssh. Please don't cry and there's nothing to be sorry about", I tried to pacify her.

Her teary eyes looked at me with shock. "You...you aren't angry with me?" She fumbled in confusion.

"Why would I be? It's not like loving me is a crime", I questioned back, maintaining a soft, comforting expression on my face.

"I ruined everything between us. The bond of trust and friendship, I ruined it all", she choked on her words, trying her best to not cry again.

"No no no, you didn't ruin anything. Tanya, don't do this to yourself. Nothing is ruined", I assured her, wiping away her tears gently.

"How? How is it going to be alright? You still love Naina and I...", she trailed off.

"I do cherish the memories I had with Naina, but I have moved on. The closure helped. She is just a beautiful memory. That's it. So don't worry about her being in my heart", I informed her.

I didn't know how and when but it finally happened. Love had evaporated long back but our memories never did. The worry for her well being was also a factor that kept me attached to her even after so many years. Now that I came to know that Naina was safe, that worry too left.

It still took time to distinguish between my love and the fond memories, but after clearing the difference between both, I finally moved on. And I was glad I did, or else the guilt of hurting Tanya because of my feelings would have killed me.

"Even if you have moved on, it doesn't change the fact that you don't love me", Tanya remarked, looking at me with sad, hopeless smile.

"Not yet", I commented.

"What do you mean by not yet? Is there a chance in future?" She asked with sparkling eyes, as a new found hope rised in her.

"We don't know about the future, do we?" I questioned back with a shrug.

"We never liked each other from childhood but look at us now. We are close friends. I do like you as a person. I can't say for sure but there's a chance that I might fall in love as we continue our journey together", I spoke further.

"If there's a chance that you might fall in love with me, there's also a chance that you won't", Tanya commented pessimistically.

"Maybe. I don't know about the future so I can't promise about that. But what I can guarantee is that I will always respect and care for you. Will that be enough for now?" I asked, not knowing if what I could offer would be enough. I didn't want to hurt her but I couldn't lie and give her false hopes.

I was feeling anxious but my heart calmed down when she smiled. "Your care and respect made me fall for you even though you were my opposite in everything. I can certainly live with those".

I let out a breath, I didn't know I was holding. I was really relieved that the situation didn't take a worse turn, like I had imagined.

"Don't avoid me next time. It worries me. Let me know, even if you think I will get angry. Bottling up your feelings will hurt you more. Share it with me, whatever it is", I requested.

"How can I share everything when you don't love me? Won't you feel awkward? It is best if we put this to the back of our minds. Let's just forget everything and live normally as we did before", she denied my request and suggest something else altogether. making me angry.

"Forget about it? Can you really do it? Doing it is not as easy as saying it. I know things will be awkward, but that doesn't mean I would neglect your feelings. So stop over thinking and lets just go with the flow.

"This is my last warning. Don't you dare avoid me again. Whatever the problem is, we will solve it together. This time I am letting it go, but next time it happens, be ready to face my anger", I told her sternly.

She nodded silently, seeming scared by my anger. Although it was good that she agreed, I had to work on my anger. I wanted her to agree after understanding my point and not because she was scared.

"Tanya, what I meant was, that avoiding me won't solve anything. Plus fighting alone while trying to hide it from me, would only bring more load on your shoulders.

"And more than that, it really hurt when you ignored me. So, if not for you, please for my sake, don't give me the silent treatment", I explained my point gently this time.

Tanya chuckled at my attempt to dissolve my anger. "I will try. I promise to not avoid you but I can't promise that I will be able to share everything. Even if I want to, there are certain things, that a person hesitates to share. So you cannot get angry regardless of the situation. Deal?" She forwarded her hand, looking at me with raised eyebrows.

"Deal", I said shaking her hand.

Tension left our shoulders after we spoke out everything and finally came to a conclusion.

We were nowhere near perfect, neither with our individual personalities nor with our relation. But that didn't matter, as long as we kept trying to do our best.