Silent Regret?

Chapter 11

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It was the last day of college. They wrote their exams and it was time to bid farewell for real.

Her friends were crying while she kept consoling them. But she too gave up at last and joined them in their crying session. Everyone stopped for a few seconds to look at dhriti crying and after looking at her for few seconds they resumed their crying session because it was the first time in their 4 years she was crying.

Dhriti was too sad because she will miss her amazing friends.

The guys were doing anything except crying. But everyone present there felt so sad and hurt as it was the last time they would be seeing each other. They just didn't voice out or were showing their feelings. Typical men.

She brought a Polaroid camera as she wanted to click the pictures. She always had a thing for pictures because she believed in 'Even if the people go away, their pictures would stay with us in the form of their memory'.

The girls took group pictures and they was clicked by Charan. It was boy's turn and dhriti was the best when it came to pictures so her friends pushed her to take the guy's group photo.

All the guys stood vertically by keeping hands on each other's shoulders. She looked into the camera and was about to click when she saw that vrishank's hair was slightly dishelved. So she let the camera down and looked at him. He frowned looking at her.

"Your hair..." Dhriti spoke. Vrishank immediately set his hair and she clicked the picture.

The girls were talking when she saw anjana and her friends. Dhriti made her way towards them and clicked few photos with them through her Polaroid camera. She specially took a picture only with anjana and thanked her in her ear.

"Uhmm... Dhriti?" She heard him call her. She bit her lip at how emotional she felt as today will be the last time she'll get to hear his voice. She turned to him and looked at him without saying anything.

"Can you give your camera once? I want to click few pictures with the guys?" He requested. Dhriti nodded and handed over her camera to him. Later, she heard many shutter sounds. She went towards her friends and joined them in their talk.

Her eyes averted towards him, who was having a serious talk with his friends. She expected him to handover her Polaroid camera on his own, but instead navya gave her and thanked her on his behalf.

That was the last time she saw him.

After 10 years.

Dhriti made her way towards the reunion small reunion part held by her class. Out of 120 students, only 50 attended.

And yes, she was going to meet them after 10 years. She lost contact and everyone became busy in their lives. She never imagined that even she will become too busy to catch up with her friends. She was quite nervous about meeting them. She imagined a lot of things, and one of them was her friends reaction to how she look. She was successful in her career though. A 6 figure salary and all, but here she was, still insecure.

Dhriti was fit and fine, but she knew she was aging. She was 32 and was still unmarried and single in life. She clutched the door knob, there was a slight tremble in her fingers. She took a deep breath and opened it. Suddenly, all their attention fell upon her. Her eyes didn't dare to look up. She stepped further casting her eyes down and a loud voice called out her name.

"Dhritiiii" followed by 2 more.

And soon she was engulfed in a bear hug by shivya, hritvi and navya. She was unable to breathe but she felt her body relax as they found her.

The girls started catching up. Dhriti even saw anjana and talked to her. She was married and was 2 months pregnant. She wasn't showing, but anjana told her to keep it a secret and informed her that she's the first one to know about her pregnancy after her family. Dhriti felt emotional and grateful too.

Hritvi is soon going to get married, shivya  is already married and she introduced dhriti to her 7 years old daughter Shanaya. Dhriti wasn't good with kids. All of them knew this. So, sensing the way dhriti was trying hard to make Shanaya play or smile, shivya told her daughter to go and play somewhere else.

Coming to navya, she still looked like an angel in dhriti's eyes. She was married and had a 3 year old son. She left him with her husband as she really wanted to attend this reunion. Navya showed her son's pictures to dhriti. He looked adorable.

Dhriti's eyes searched for him. Vrishank. She knew he might be married and would even be a father, but she just wanted to have a glimpse of him. To see him happy.
As if God listened to her prayers for the first time, the door opened revealing vrishank looking as handsome as ever in a dapper suit and not to forget a women was clinging to his arm.

That's when dhriti saw the engagement ring shine on both vrishank's and that women's fingers.

He was engaged.

And happy.

Dhriti smiled at them. After meeting his friends vrishank made his way towards the girls with his fiance. His eyes widened as he looked dhriti.

"Hi dhriti? How are you doing?" He asked as soon as he got there.

Dhriti laughed and replied him "Hi vrishank ? I'm doing well. What about you?" She smiled at him.

"I'm doing fine" he replied and proceeded to talk with hritvi, navya and shivya.

"Won't you introduce her?" Shivya asked pointing at vrishank's fiance.

"Oh yes! Sorry ! I forgot. Meet her, she's lavanya, my fiance" he said as his eyes shone.

Lavanya mingled with the girls easily and   even dhriti liked her. 

'No wonder she was his fiance' dhriti thought.

After sometime, as dhriti felt thirsty, she excused herself and went to drink water. She for once wanted to look at him to whole heartedly.

So she silently went back and admired him for few minutes, knowing that this will be the last time she would see him and she even promised herself that she won't be in touch with him.

"So you actually loved him?" Dhriti turned to look at her classmate who had tears in her eyes. Anjana wanted to cry for dhriti even though she wasn't her bestfriend. Heck! She wasn't even her friend ! They were just classmates ! But she wanted cry out loud for her. She thought dhriti's love would fade away with time, but currently as she looked at her, anjana knew that it didn't fade.

"yes" dhriti replied looking at him, who looked so happy with his partner.

May be in another life.......

How's the story? Should I write an epilogue?