The clock glowed 2:14 AM.
Dev sat hunched at his desk, face buried in his palms, the dull hum of the radiator barely drowning the thudding ache in his chest.
Four days.
Four days since Hiya last laughed over the phone.
Four days of polite texts. One-liner replies. Missed calls returned too late.
She hadn't once said she missed him.
Hadn't once called without a reason.
He stared at the phone.
Called again.
She picked up after three rings.
"Hi," she said softly. Out of breath. Or maybe just hiding it.
Dev didn't greet her.
Instead, his voice came sharp. Hollowed out with worry.
"Do you still love me, Hiya?"
Silence.
Seconds stretched. His throat closed.
Then came her voice — quiet, almost trembling.
"Would you believe me… if I answered that?"
His breath caught. "If you mean it, I'll believe it."
A pause.
"But you know this, right?" he added, voice dropping. "Actions talk louder than words."
Hiya exhaled shakily.
"Then let it talk…" she whispered. And before he could speak again—
She cut the call.
Just like that.
The silence on the other end burned into his ears.
She sat on her bed, phone still trembling in her hand, her chest rising and falling with the sobs she refused to release.
I can't tell you yet, Dev.
Because the truth was:
She had applied for his university.
Written essays at midnight. Studied till her vision blurred.
Even lied to her family — though they had quietly found out and booked their flight for the results day, pretending not to know.
Five more days.
Just five.
Then she would show up at his door with that old crooked smile and a letter in hand that said she belonged to his worldtoo.
But now, her silence had hurt him.
Wounded him in places she couldn't stitch back right away.
Back in his room, Dev stared at the dark screen.
A part of him shattered. Another part… cracked with resolve.
He opened his laptop.
Typed without blinking.
Resignation Letter
Effective immediately.
If she's pulling away… then maybe I've lost her.
Maybe I shouldn't have left at all.
And yet… both of them were wrong.
Because they were walking toward each other in different ways.
But the distance, the doubt… it still bled.
For now.