MEANT TO BE....he`s mine

Something about that evening felt… different.

Not numb. Not fluttery like butterflies either.

It was something deeper. A quiet kind of ache in her chest, like her heart had tucked itself away in the shadows, unsure of what to feel.

Saisha sat on the edge of her bed, staring at her phone.

Everything had shifted since that moment. The moment she opened the door, and found him standing there. Aman. In front of her. In real life.

Wearing loose shorts, a faded vest, black-rimmed glasses, looking so unbothered, so casual. And yet… his presence had knocked the air right out of her chest.

He hadn't recognized her. Of course, he hadn't. He didn't even know her name.

But she recognized him.

And now, shaken, unsure, but still drawn to him — she did the only thing her fingers knew how to do. She texted him.

Saisha:

"Hey, what are you doing?"

Aman didn't see it immediately.

He had just come back home, handed the empty casserole to his mom, and slumped onto his bed.

But when he checked his phone and saw her name light up the screen…A small smile touched the corner of his lips.

Without thinking twice, he replied.

Aman:

"Thinking about you. What about you?"

Saisha stared at the message. It hit her like a whisper right through her ribs.

He had no idea that the girl he was texting was the same girl he had just seen at the door.

The same girl whose papers he helped pick up. The same girl who stood frozen in front of him while the sky poured rain behind her.The same girl who'd been watching him from a distance for weeks.

And now?

He still didn't know.

Maybe that was for the best. Perhaps he should never know.

She didn't want another mess in her life. Not another person to come close… only to disappear again. She liked talking to him. She liked the distance.

So instead of the truth, she typed carefully:

Saisha:

"Forget all that… Aman, when did you move to Punjab?"

Their conversations had never needed space or time.

There was never a long pause, never a delayed reply. It was always instant, like their hearts had been waiting.

Aman:

"It's been two months now...Wait — how do you know that?

Hold on… are you in Punjab too?Oh my god, did you see me somewhere?Wait… do you live near me??"

Saisha smiled.

She wanted to tell him. She wanted to scream: "I'm the girl across the street."

But her heart, still healing from scars only she knew, wasn't ready for that leap.

She loved their talks. Their random chats. The sweet ease between them.

She wasn't ready to risk ruining it.

So, like always, she played it safe.

Saisha:

"Whoa whoa — relax! Not me. My friend told me. She said you live right across from her?"

A lie.

A soft, harmless lie. She had made herself her own friend, just to keep the illusion alive. To protect what little peace she had left.

Aman:

"Ohhh… the one doing the video editing course? So she's your friend? Nice. Then I guess I'll get to know a lot more about you now…Since you're not telling me much yourself."

Her breath hitched a little. His tone was playful. Curious. Innocent, but intimate in a way that made her chest tighten.

He didn't know it yet. But he already knew her better than most people in her life.

He just didn't know that the girl he was slowly falling for…Lived 5 meters away.

Saisha:

"So… tell me about your brother and sister-in-law's anniversary? Weren't you helping with the preparations? All set now?"

She tried to sound casual. Effortless. Like it was just another ordinary chat.

But inside, her heart twisted a little, because she remembered.

She remembered that day.

That day when she misunderstood, she had thought that was his wife. And instead of asking… she had walked away.

And in that moment of hurt and silence, she'd let herself drift into Yash's world again. A world where she would later be blamed, shattered, and left carrying the burden of choices that weren't even hers.

That one mistake… had changed everything.

Since then, she had grown afraid of relationships, not because she didn't want love…But because love, in her life, had always felt like a punishment wrapped in roses.

Aman:

"Oh shit! I totally forgot to invite your friend to the party! Damn, mom's gonna kill me for this. I was supposed to send invites earlier—Ugh, what the hell is wrong with me!"

Saisha couldn't help but smile. Aman was all heart, dramatic, funny, and honest. Even his mistakes had a certain charm to them.

But then came the sentence that made her stomach flip:

Saisha:

"So… will you go back to invite her now?"

Aman:

"No, no! I'll just ask mom for her number and call her later. Don't worry."

And just like that, a cold wave of panic washed over her.

His mom? If Aman asked his mom for her number…There was a risk she might give this number — the number she was texting him from.

The number that was supposed to belong to "the friend." Not her.

Her cover would be blown.

Her world, this secret, beautiful little world where she could be honest without exposing herself, would crumble.

She had to do something.

Fast.

Saisha:

"Aman… actually, why don't you just take the number from me? I'll send it to you right now. Call her directly, okay?"

She typed in her second number, the one she barely used. Thank God for dual SIMs. At least now, they had a purpose bigger than bad network coverage.

Her fingers hovered over the send button for a second longer…And then she pressed it.

A soft sigh escaped her lips.

She didn't know how long she could keep hiding behind lies…But right now, this was the only way she could protect what they had.

Even if it meant never letting him know who she really was.

Saisha:"Now go and help your mother."

She typed it with a smirk, half-expecting him to argue again.He always did.

Aman:"Don't wanna leave you.""Oh, wait—call me and I'll do the work while talking to you."

There it was again, that soft persistence. Not needy, not forced, just this sweet pull he had. Like he genuinely liked her company.

Her lips curled into a smile.

Saisha:"No, Aman. I have work too.Now go and help your mom… like a good boy."

She added a soft little "(smiles)" at the end, and somehow, it felt real.Like her fingertips had actually smiled while typing it.

Aman:"Okay, babydoll."

And then the call disconnected.

Just like that.

But that word, That one single word—Babydoll.

It echoed in her mind like a soft whisper against her neck.

Babydoll.

She wasn't used to nicknames.No one had ever called her something so… warm. So effortless.It wasn't overdone, it wasn't flirtatious in a cringey way,It was just him…Calling her something that made her feel like maybe, just maybe, she wasn't invisible anymore.

The word lingered long after the screen went black.While she made coffee.While she walked through the hallway.While she stared out her window at the same house across the street… where he lived now.

And every time it came back to her, she smiled.A tiny, shy, helpless kind of smile.

Not because she was in love.Not yet.

But because after everything she had been through…It felt nice to be somebody's baby doll.