Dinner was quieter.
Not awkward.
Just… full.
Full of exhaustion.
Full of unspoken things.
Full of that soft tension that only comes after a perfect day.
By the time they reached the hotel floor, both of them looked half-dead.
Aakrati leaned against her door dramatically.
"I can't feel my legs."
Arsh smirked. "You screamed on every ride."
"I screamed artistically."
He chuckled.
There was a pause.
The kind that lingers.
"Bye," she said softly.
"Bye," he replied.
Neither moved for a second.
Then they both turned and walked into their own rooms.
Arsh had barely tossed his phone onto the bed when it rang.
He checked the screen.
Siddhartha.
He answered lazily. "What?"
On the other side, Siddhartha didn't waste a second.
"Where are you?"
"Out."
"With a girl again or what?"
Arsh rolled his eyes, walking toward the balcony. "Yes."
There was silence. Then—
"Bro, stop it now and come back. We've got work to do."
Arsh exhaled. His tone shifted slightly. More serious.
"Send me the files. I'll handle it."
"You coming back?"
"Four days," Arsh replied calmly. "I'll be back in four days."
Siddhartha muttered something about responsibility before hanging up.
Arsh stood there for a moment.
Then shook it off.
Four days.
That was enough.
He went to shower.
Meanwhile.
In the room next door—
Aakrati was already in her oversized t-shirt, hair slightly damp, sitting cross-legged on the bed.
Her phone was propped against a pillow.
Recording.
She wasn't a vlogger.
She just liked talking to her future self.
"Mini vlog," she whispered dramatically. "Today was insane."
She flipped the camera.
"Bungee jumping. Water park. Horror house. Emotional damage."
She paused.
Then softened.
"And him."
She stared at the screen for a moment longer than usual.
"I don't know what this is," she admitted quietly. "But when he said 'I'm here'… I believed him."
She bit her lip slightly.
"We didn't even click proper pictures," she suddenly realized.
Her eyes widened.
"That is illegal."
Within minutes, she was deep into her phone — creating animated AI versions of them from random candid screenshots taken from her mini clips.
Cartoon versions of:
— Him holding her hand at the platform.
— Him shielding her in the horror house.
— Him laughing while water splashed everywhere.
She added soft captions.
He pretends not to care but he always does.
He doesn't know I record these moments.
He doesn't know he makes me feel safe.
She paused.
Then created a secure folder.
Password protected.
Hidden.
Saved everything inside.
Some memories weren't meant for the world.
Just for her.
Just for when she would miss him.
Just for nights when she'd wonder if it was real.
A soft knock interrupted her thoughts.
She froze.
Another knock.
She stood up slowly and opened the door.
Arsh.
Fresh from a shower. Hair slightly messy. Black t-shirt. Relaxed.
He leaned against the door frame casually.
"What are you doing?"
She narrowed her eyes. "What are you doing?"
He stepped inside without invitation.
"Here to fulfil boyfriend responsibilities," he declared confidently.
She blinked.
"And for some love," he added, dramatic hand over chest. "Which I definitely deserve."
She crossed her arms. "Oh? And what exactly do you want?"
He walked further into the room.
"Time."
She raised a brow. "We just spent the whole day together."
"I don't know," he shrugged lightly. "I wanna spend time. And I'm not going anywhere."
Her heart did something stupid.
She tried not to show it.
"Fine," she said casually. "Sit."
He flopped onto the bed like he owned it.
She sat beside him.
There was comfortable silence for a moment.
Then she hesitated.
"You wanna see something?"
He turned his head. "What?"
She opened her gallery.
Her mini vlogs.
Today's chaos.
She pressed play.
The screen filled with her dramatic "If I die, tell my mom I was brave."
He groaned. "You recorded that?"
"Yes."
The clip shifted.
His hand holding hers.
Him adjusting her harness.
Him saying softly — I'm here.
He went quiet.
She pretended not to notice.
Next clip.
Water park laughter.
Her shrieking.
Him pulling her away from slipping.
Horror house.
Her grabbing him tightly.
Him saying, "Relax, I'm here."
Again.
He glanced at her sideways.
"You recorded a lot."
She shrugged. "I like saving days that feel important."
He didn't reply immediately.
Just kept watching.
The final clip was them walking back toward dinner.
Sunset behind them.
Wind in her hair.
Him looking at her when she wasn't looking at him.
He caught that.
He looked at her now.
"You notice too much," he murmured.
She swallowed.
"Occupational hazard," she replied softly.
He didn't ask what she meant.
She didn't tell him about the secure folder.
About the animated pictures.
About the captions she wrote.
Some feelings were still too fragile to say out loud.
The video ended.
But neither of them moved.
He leaned back against the headboard.
She leaned beside him.
Not touching fully.
But close enough.
Their shoulders brushed.
His hand slowly found hers on the mattress.
No teasing.
No drama.
Just fingers intertwining naturally.
The room was quiet.
Only the faint sound of the AC humming.
"You're staying?" she asked quietly.
"Told you," he murmured. "Not going anywhere."
She smiled faintly.
Within minutes, exhaustion took over.
Her head tilted slightly toward him.
He adjusted without thinking.
Let her rest against his shoulder.
He didn't realize when his eyes closed.
She didn't realize when her grip tightened slightly in sleep.
The phone screen dimmed.
Still open on the last frame of their sunset clip.
Two people.
Standing side by side.
Not ready to name it.
But already living it.
And without even realizing—
They fell asleep.
Together.
In silence.
Like it was the most natural thing in the world.